When Costa Hadjicosti opened the original Mediterranean 12 years ago, he decided that the concept had to be unique – different from any other franchise. This Cyprus-born restaurateur, who despite his business background says he has a gift for seafood preparation and a natural skill for preparing fish, believes in simple and plain, but uniquely prepared food. “The bottom line is that we are not stingy with our portions and that you get value for money.” And of course, the quality and freshness of all their dishes is discernable in the taste. “I wanted to expand and secure the concept – this was a dream come true,” says Costa of the newer of the two establishments, co-owned by his wife, Stala and his friend of almost two decades, Nicos Perdikes. Costa says that he is “the hardware of the business,” and of course, the menu is a feast of his own creations. Stala, who has an accounting background, takes care of salaries and other administrative duties and Nicos, a restaurateur from way back when, also has an industrial marketing background, and is said to be the “face” of Mediterranean. “I am on the operations side, training staff, and dealing with customers. I align myself with Costa’s vision for the restaurant.” Working harmoniously as a trio, Costa says this is only possible because they each have their own responsibilities and never step on one another’s toes.