Former Oasis in Boston's South End An Abandoned Mystery

From Dave Brigham:

The answer to why this former restaurant in Boston's fashionable South End has sat empty for nearly 50 years is as elusive as an Arctic blast in the desert. Built in 1847 as a German Lutheran church, the solid brick sentry is currently used as storage space by the owners, a family that also runs a nearby Syrian grocery store, according to this Boston Globe story about long-abandoned buildings (see bottom of this post for photos of the store).

With the odd name Sahara Syrian Restaurant (for those who struggle with geography, the Sahara desert covers large parts of North Africa, but not the land of the brutal Assad regime), this eatery was once a chic restaurant catering to the many Syrians who at one time lived in the neighborhood, according to a nearly 15-year-old discussion I found on Chowhound. "The Sahara is owned by the folks that run the Syrian grocery down the street," says a contributor named Tobin. "My parents tell me that it was a swank nightclub type place that was dark and very romantic!"

Per the Global Boston web site, Syrians began immigrating into Boston around 1890. They settled in the neighborhood that today is known as Chinatown, but which at the time was known as Syriatown. Eventually the community spread south of Kneeland Street and toward Shawmut Avenue, where the Sahara Syrian building stands.

"Like other immigrant groups from the Mediterranean, Syrians aspired to own property and start small businesses," the Global Boston article states. "Many used their earnings as peddlers or factory workers to buy small stores or South End town houses that they turned into rooming houses for local workers."

OK, but why would a family that has been in Boston for several decades, and which runs an evidently successful market, sit on a property for so long in the face of millions of dollars offered by developers?

Owner Ramon Mansour told the Globe his family has no plans to sell or develop the property. “It’s a solid building. When they built churches, they built them to last." One of the participants in the Chowhound discussion referenced above claims the family is a "contentious lot" and that they disagree on how to "best exploit" the property. That conversation is several years old and I have no idea if the people involved have first-hand knowledge of the situation.

I'll keep my eyes peeled for updates on this place.

Here are photos of the grocery store owned by the family.