New restaurant Fire & Fig Grill brings Persian flavors to the State College area

Sara Cyrus and her husband Samuel dreamed of opening a restaurant in State College. The two, originally from Iran, owned a Persian restaurant in California before relocating to the area for Penn State.

“We just love it. It is our passion. We just enjoy serving people good food, putting smiles on their faces — because good food equals smiles. So that was always our life dream, to have restaurants, but it never happened here in State College,” explained Sara. “We’ve been thinking about it for years actually, and finally it happened. We had to look for the perfect location and it took us a while to find this place.”

The two opened their restaurant Fire & Fig Grill on Feb. 14, with Samuel acting as the chef and Sara the general manager.

In California, Sara noted, there is a substantial Persian community, so it made sense to operate a Persian restaurant there. However, she added, “whenever we traveled in bigger cities, whenever we walked into Persian restaurants ... you see all Americans sitting at the table. We know this is a type of food Americans love.”

Persian cuisine isn’t typically spicy, she said, and all the restaurant’s dishes are gluten-free, alongside a large number of vegetarian dishes. Everything is made fresh daily and food is either slow-cooked over a matter of hours or grilled. There are no freezers or fryers. The couple likewise put a strong emphasis on high-quality ingredients, utilizing traditional items like saffron, barberries and sumac, which Sara said can be more difficult to find, as well as pricey.

“We [saw] a need for such a restaurant and cuisine here in this town. You see a lot of Mexican, Italian ... there are also a bunch of Middle Eastern restaurants here, a lot of Asian, and of course a lot of American diners,” Sara said.

For those who’ve maybe never tried authentic Persian cuisine, Sara provided a few suggestions from the Fire & Fig Grill menu.

The chicken fillet kabab, she noted, has been receiving rave reviews from customers thus far. It’s skewered, charbroiled chicken that’s been marinated in saffron, lemon juice and onions. The koobideh kabab, which features a mix of seasoned ground lamb and beef, is also highly recommended and Sara describes it as very authentic Persian option (and all the restaurant’s kababs are served with saffron rice). The slow-braised, fall-off-the-bone tender lamb shank and the zereshk polo with chicken are likewise popular.

Zereshk polo is, Sara explained, basically saffron rice with barberries. “Barberries are a fruit that only grows in Iran, so nobody knows about them. It’s an experience for everyone to try. It’s very delicious, kind of sweet and sour, very small — imagine cranberries,” she said. “We season them and top the rice with them and that comes with … braised chicken that we slow-cooked for hours with our spices, tomato and sauce. ... People love it. That’s one of our top-sellers.”

And as for your dessert? The from-scratch, house-made saffron ice cream, another Persian favorite that Sara said “cannot be found anywhere in State College, so if they really want to try saffron ice cream, they need to come to Fire & Fig Grill.”

Looking to the future, Sara and Samuel would eventually like to add a weekend Persian breakfast menu to their offerings, as well as a lunch buffet.

Fire & Fig Grill is located at 1100 N. Atherton St., and is open noon to 9:30 p.m, Tuesday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Sunday. Online orders can be placed at firenfig.com, or by phone at 814-237-2096. Delivery is available through DoorDash. Catering is also available.

Holly Riddle is a freelance food, travel and lifestyle writer. She can be reached at holly.ridd@gmail.com.