A viral New Hampshire halal restaurant opens location in Owings Mills

Sip Woodod has a knack for going viral.

Around a decade ago, he launched a music career by posting rap videos on Vine that drew millions of views. Years later, a highlight reel of food at his New Hampshire-based restaurant, The Halal Spot, went viral on TikTok.

One of Woodod’s TikToks caught the attention of Adnan Azan, a Pikesville-based restaurant operator. The two then partnered to expand The Halal Spot into western Baltimore County, home to a large Muslim population.

The fast-casual eatery opened last week in the Brookside Commons complex in Owings Mills, where it hopes to replicate its viral success.

“There’s a good Desi community here,” said Woodod, using a term to describe people from South Asia. “It seems like the type of community that’s going to embrace a new restaurant with open arms.”

The menu puts a halal spin on classic American comfort foods, including chicken and waffles, smashburgers and Nashville hot chicken sandwiches.

It also features dishes rooted in South Asian and Middle Eastern traditions. The build-your-own rice bowls are prepared assembly line-style, with a choice of gyro meat, vegetable toppings and sauces. A dessert called falooda layers vanilla ice cream with rose syrup, toasted almonds and rice vermicelli noodles.

Everything on the menu costs less than $15, and many of the burgers and sandwiches go for less than $10.

Woodod, 30, was born and raised by Afghan immigrant parents in Queens, a borough of New York. When he was a teenager, he and his family moved to New Hampshire, where his father opened a fried chicken restaurant.

Woodod said it was his idea to add chicken over rice — a halal street food dish featuring spiced meat served on aromatic rice — to the menu. Known as “The Spot,” it became one of the restaurant’s top sellers.

There weren’t many halal options for Muslims in New Hampshire, so in 2024, Woodod decided to open a restaurant of his own in Manchester. Soon, he added a second location in nearby Merrimack.

Videos of Woodod preparing an Oreo milkshake and building out the restaurant have each gotten more than 200,000 views on TikTok. Azam, the restaurant operator, said that after seeing one of the videos, he contacted Woodod about expanding to Maryland.

Within months, they met and developed a plan to open The Halal Spot’s first location outside New England. The Owings Mills restaurant is located at 9351 Lakeside Blvd.

“There is a growing community over here,” Azam said, referring to Muslims, “and I just think they needed something like this.”