For more than three decades, the Shish Kebab House has been a fixture on Tucson’s east side, serving what its owner calls authentic Middle Eastern food to regulars who have returned over the years. The restaurant was established in 1993 by Reina Alas and her then-husband, and for nearly 33 years the small, family-run business has relied on recipes and techniques passed down through generations. Now, however, rising wholesale produce prices and higher delivery costs tied to the war in Iran are straining the operation and threatening the tight margins that have sustained the restaurant for decades.
"I started this business with my ex-husband, he's Jordanian, and we both established this business," Alas said, recalling the early days of the eatery she continues to run. Building the restaurant meant more than opening a storefront; it involved learning and preserving a culinary tradition. She learned much of what she cooks from members of her extended family in Jordan — notably a former mother-in-law who lived with the family for seven years and taught her to prepare the dishes that form the backbone of the menu. Those home-cooked recipes and the hands-on preparation of vegetables and other fresh ingredients are central to the food customers expect at Shish Kebab House.
A cook at Shish Kebab House seasons and sautés vegetables on a flat-top grill inside the restaurant, illustrating the hands-on preparation of produce central to the eatery's menu as it faces rising wholesale costs.
The recent jump in costs has not spared staples. Wholesale prices for bulk produce and delivery expenses have climbed amid disruptions tied to the war in Iran, and suppliers have responded by adding surcharges to cover higher fuel and transportation costs. National data show prices for fresh vegetables are roughly 11.5 percent higher than they were a year ago, a shift that filters through to small kitchens that depend on consistent, reasonably priced deliveries.
Alas described the change as something felt in every corner of the kitchen. "When I started in buying a case of pita for $5, now I'm paying like $30 for a case," she said, laying out one stark example of how price jumps have altered routine purchasing. The increases go beyond baked goods: halal chicken, a central protein in the restaurant’s offerings, has seen costs more than double. "We used to buy a case of chicken halal, you know, last year for, let's say, $65 to $70. Now, I ended up paying like $156 for a case this year," Alas said.
Those figures have forced practical adjustments in how the restaurant operates. Alas said she has raised menu prices to reflect the higher cost of ingredients, but even with those changes the increases have cut into margins and required her to tap personal resources. "To tell you the truth, to keep this business going, I've been using all my resources. I've been using a lot of my savings to keep this place going," she said, noting that family funds have been necessary to bridge the gap between supplier charges and what customers can reasonably be asked to pay.
Despite the financial strain, Alas emphasized the reasons she continues to run the restaurant: family, community and a love of cooking. "I do this because I started it when my kids were so little, and they grew up in this business," she said, pointing to the personal history that ties her to the place. Customer relationships, she added, have been an important source of support. "The satisfaction of the community and my customers keep me going, just seeing how much they love our food," she said.
For Alas, the restaurant is also a personal outlet. "This is also for myself; it keeps me satisfied," she said, describing the pleasure she takes in preparing food and maintaining the culinary traditions she learned from family members. That satisfaction, along with community loyalty, has been enough to keep the doors open even as supply prices climb and delivery surcharges strain operating budgets.
The Shish Kebab House's storefront remains a familiar sight on the east side, its signage marking a small, long-standing business navigating new economic pressures. The Shish Kebab House storefront in Tucson with its prominent signage as customers enter, showing the small, family-owned restaurant highlighted in the story about higher produce and delivery prices tied to the Iran war. As wholesale produce and delivery costs continue to rise, the restaurant’s experience illustrates how broader geopolitical events and shifts in supply-chain expenses are affecting neighborhood dining spots that built their reputations on steady, affordable fare. For now, Alas is drawing on personal finances and community support while keeping the focus on the kitchen and the recipes that have defined Shish Kebab House for nearly 33 years.
The strain on Shish Kebab House mirrors wider industry pain from the ongoing conflict. Reuters reported in May that the Iran war drove U.S. gasoline prices up nearly 40% to an average of $4.43, contributing to falling restaurant sales and traffic as consumers cut back. Purdue University analysts have estimated the disruption could add 3 to 6 percentage points to food-at-home inflation over 12-18 months.
Shish Kebab House lists its location and contact information on its website and local business listings: 5855 East Broadway Blvd., Suite 118, Tucson, AZ 85711 (phone: 520‑745‑5308), with posted hours generally Monday–Saturday 11 a.m.–9 p.m. and Sunday noon–8 p.m.; the restaurant’s site and local listings also note outdoor seating, vegan options and a kids’ menu, and community writeups describe the dining room as seating no more than about 60 people.
Local governments in the Tucson area have set up small‑business relief programs that some restaurants have used; Pima County records show 271 CARES CRF grants totaling about $3.24 million were distributed to small businesses and that 109 Pima CARES small business grants totaled $730,391.58, with the county noting many local restaurants used those funds for expanded outdoor seating, rehiring staff and other operational needs.
The City of Tucson’s Office of Economic Initiatives operates ConnectTucson and the Tucson Small Business Center and advertises small‑business assistance resources for restaurateurs (small business assistance phone: 520‑837‑4100), which owners can contact to learn about local grant, loan and technical‑assistance programs.