A Taste of Petra Comes to Jacksonville: Jordanian-Owned Cafe Opens in Murray Hill

A new restaurant rooted in Jordanian hospitality is settling into one of Jacksonville's most eclectic dining corridors. Petra Cafe & Kitchen has opened at 1152 Edgewood Avenue South in the Murray Hill neighborhood, offering Mediterranean grill dishes, Turkish coffee, Syrian shawarma and a hookah lounge in a space designed to evoke the ancient Jordanian city it's named after, according to the Jacksonville Business Journal. The business is registered under Petra Cafe LLC, filed with the Florida Division of Corporations in February 2026, with Amer Mohammad and Ali Abuhgnaim listed as managers. A related entity, Petra Kitchen LLC, was filed in July. Plans for the restaurant were first reported publicly in August by the local outlet WhatNow, which described a concept combining Mediterranean grill favorites with specialty coffee in a relaxed cafe atmosphere. By September, the business's own social media accounts were teasing an opening, inviting the neighborhood to "come experience authentic Middle Eastern food, specialty coffee, hookah, a full bar, and beautiful indoor & outdoor seating — all inspired by the beauty and hospitality of Petra." The October 19 Business Journal report confirmed the opening was imminent, noting the addition of "an Arabian tent" to the restaurant's outdoor seating area — a design touch meant to transport diners somewhere closer to the ancient trade routes of the Levant than a strip of Jacksonville's Westside. Murray Hill has spent the past several years reinventing itself as one of Jacksonville's more walkable, food-forward neighborhoods, with Edgewood Avenue emerging as its restaurant row. Petra Cafe & Kitchen joins that growing lineup, adding a distinctly Middle Eastern option to a strip better known until recently for its brunch spots, breweries and ice cream shops. For Jacksonville's Arab American community — smaller and less concentrated than in cities like Dearborn, Michigan, or Paterson, New Jersey — a dedicated Mediterranean cafe with hookah service and an Arabian-tent patio represents more than a new place to eat. It's a visible, permanent cultural anchor in a city where Middle Eastern cuisine has typically been available only in scattered grocery stores or fast-casual counters rather than full sit-down restaurants built around hospitality traditions. The restaurant's name is itself a statement of intent. Petra, carved into rose-colored cliffs in southern Jordan more than two thousand years ago, remains one of the most recognized symbols of Arab heritage worldwide — a deliberate signal, in a storefront on a Florida avenue, of where the owners' roots and ambitions lie. Neither Mohammad nor Abuhgnaim has given an extended interview about their backgrounds or what led them to open in Murray Hill specifically, and the restaurant has not yet publicized exact opening hours or a full menu beyond the broad strokes reported by local outlets. What is clear from public filings and the restaurant's own announcements is that Petra Cafe & Kitchen is open for business, serving Mediterranean and Middle Eastern fare along one of Jacksonville's most-watched dining strips — and betting that a taste of Jordan will find an audience far from the Levant.