Diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce, a variety of vegetables and a choice of meats and sauces — all wrapped up into a hearty slice of pita bread.
This isn’t exactly the scene one might picture when imagining the forefront of a gripping duel over UF’s student body.
But beginning in March, Gainesville will have a new restaurant in town, as Pita’s Republic will take over the vacancy left by Pizza Vito at 3411 SW Archer Road.
Pita’s Republic will primarily attempt to target the local college students — a strategy many local restaurants take. But unlike other new restaurants that come to town, Pita’s Republic will face the challenge of competing with Pita Pit, a popular chain among locals.
Moe Elkasri, the founder of Pita’s Republic, said the restaurant would do what it’s always done and not worry about direct competition in Gainesville.
“I certainly think that the market can support another restaurant like this,” Elkasri said.
Delving past the similarities in the restaurants’ names reveals that they focus on two fundamentally different ideas.
While Pita Pit is a fast-food chain that advertises its quick, easy ordering and delivery system, Pita’s Republic is more of a Mediterranean-style restaurant. The chain serves more than just pitas. It includes Mediterranean sides, as well.
Also, the restaurant does not deliver and has an expansive dining area where people are more likely to stay and eat, Elkasri said.
Pita’s Republic also focuses heavily on the nutritional content of its food, Elkasri said, and on its appeal to the health-conscious returning customers.
Elkasri opened the first Pita’s Republic in Tampa in 1990, near the University of South Florida.
The first restaurant was so successful that he expanded in and around the city.
People clamored for a Gainesville location, he said, and now that he’s franchising the chain, he finally can open one.
The restaurant has been franchising since 2007, and Elkasri found his Gainesville franchisee in a UF graduate, Lamia Elachchabi, who earned undergraduate and graduate degrees at UF in food and resource economics.
“We have some ideas for advertising, but nothing is set in stone yet,” Elachchabi said. “We just want people to come in and like the food and keep coming back.”
According to the restaurant’s website, more than 70 percent of its guests are repeat customers.
UF students like Michelle Hughes, a sophomore communication sciences and disorders major, are just the kind of customers Pita’s Republic hopes to attract.
“I’m a pretty healthy eater, so I’ll always go for the more nutritional alternative if price and taste are similar,” Hughes said.
A Tampa native, Hughes said she often eats at Pita’s Republic when she visits home.
She said she’s looking forward to the Gainesville chain, and she may even eat there more than once a week.
“It’s the sort of place that you can get addicted to,” she said, “because it’s good food, plus you know that it’s actually good for you.”
