Little Sesame Will Open a New Location for Fast-Casual Hummus Bowls by Metro Center

Little Sesame, the casual Middle Eastern counter that has quickly developed a loyal following for veggie-heavy hummus bowls, pita sandwiches, salatim, and tahina soft serve, will open a third location.

Co-owner Nick Wiseman tells Eater that the company has secured a space at 1120 G Street NW, right across the street from Metro Center in the heart of downtown. At 1,400 square feet, the one-time pop-up’s new store will mimic the size, menu, and desert oasis aesthetic of the other two stores, in Dupont Circle and Chinatown, respectively.

Little Sesame is hoping to open the third shop by late spring or early summer.

Wiseman reiterates a philosophy he espoused when Little Sesame opened its Chinatown outpost about a year ago. Although the Metro Center location will be the third Little Sesame shop to open in the span of about two years, he says the company isn’t shooting for a rapid expansion.

“Our goal always is sort of to build a community around each store, and if we’re successful, just keep growing,” Wiseman says.

Since opening in Chinatown, Little Sesame has added delivery (via Caviar) and a catering operation, which could come in handy amid a bevy of office buildings surrounding Metro Center.

Wiseman says the company is considering adding a breakfast menu at the new location. That would include burekas, savory pastries that are popular in Israel, stuffed with farmer’s cheese and breakfast potatoes. The Chinatown store (736 Sixth Street NW) will be selling them weekend.

Shakshuka and breakfast pitas could be in the works as well, Wiseman says.

While whipping up hummus bowls has been the driving force behind the operation, Wiseman says Little Sesame continues to experiment with new composed dishes. For its winter menu, Little Sesame debuted a chickpea tagine ($12) that includes the garbanzos, roasted cauliflower, preserved lemon, and couscous (made daily).

Wiseman partnered with his cousin, David Wiseman, to start Little Sesame as a basement pop-up below their (now-closed) DGS Delicatessen in 2016. The pair brought in Nick Wiseman’s former chef colleague, Ronen Tenne, as a partner and opened the first standalone shop at 1828 L Street NW in 2018.

The Wisemans closed their other D.C. restaurant, well-regarded Navy Yard raw bar Whaley’s, in November to focus all their efforts on Little Sesame.

• Hit Hummus Shop Little Sesame Opens a Chinatown Location [EDC]
• Little Sesame Fans Can Skip Hummus Lines With a New App [EDC]
• Downtown’s New Little Sesame Looks Like an Airy Desert Oasis [EDC]
• Seafood Tower Destination Whaley’s Will Close in Navy Yard This Sunday [EDC]
• Dupont’s DGS Delicatessen Is Closing [EDC]