Maharaja Indian Restaurant at 525 Valencia Street has been closed for over a week now, yet it’s still unclear what happened to the restaurant, located in the heart of the Mission.
One reason could be the health department, but records show that in 2009 the restaurant received only two violations, lowering its score from 100 to 84. These were corrected by the November 2010 inspection.
Has Maharaja gone out of business? According to the recorder’s office, the property is still owned by Azzam Shalib, who bought the restaurant in 1996 and as of May 9, no intention to sell had been recorded. Maharaja has annual revenue of approximately $500,000, according to public records.
Azzam Shalib lives in San Mateo with his family, and efforts to contact him have been futile. Calls go to his voicemail 24/7, with the voice of a little girl indicating that this is the Shalib family. The restaurant phone number has been disconnected and its website has been offline for some time now.
Has the family gone for a vacation? Mission Local is investigating.
