The restaurant specializes in Middle Eastern cuisine, which is vegetarian by nature. Moe Mroueh, one of Mediterraneo’s owners, maintains that one of the primary reasons for serving the food is to emphasize healthy eating.

So far, DeKalb seems to have taken to the concept.

“I go through so much falafel, it is not even funny,” Mroueh said. “I was surprised how many vegetarians there are [in DeKalb].” Mroueh explained that the shop does serve some meat, but most of the entrées are vegetarian, and many are even vegan friendly.

Mroueh also expressed that he has seen a lot of positive attention so far, including some of NIU’s resident vegetarians.

The restaurant recently expanded its menu and there is now an open buffet, every Sunday from 11 am to 3 pm. Priced at just $7.95 per person, it’s a great way to taste some very unusual foods (though you’ll also find many you’re completely familiar with, such as humus and gyros).

Mediterraneo is located at 122 E. Lincoln Highway in downtown DeKalb. They are open Tuesday through Thursday, 11 am to 9pm; Friday and Saturday from 11 am to 10 pm; and Sunday from 11 am to 9 pm. They can be reached at 815-758-8450 and offer carry-out service as well.

Check out their web site at www.mediterraneodekalb.com for more details, including a menu and map.

Staff from New Values Magazine were there too, handing out the latest copies of our magazine, selling Kites Over Sycamore t-shirts and taking entries for our drawing of either a free Kites Over Sycamore t-shirt or a $25 gift certificate to Kar-Fre Flowers.

Dozens entered the drawing and the winners are….

Christy Oehlert as the winner of the free t-shirt and Marlo Oostmeyer as the winner of the Kar-Fre Flowers gift certificate!

Look for New Values Magazine at more upcoming events, including the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce’s Business After Hours at Amber Pines Banquet Center in Sycamore on Tuesday, May 10th from 5 to 7 pm.

The Kites Over Sycamore event starts at 10 am and ends about 4 pm. Weather permitting, this a great family fun event that is free and a great spring event.

Airbrush tanning: How does it work?
The tanning customer visits SunWorkz and can wear their bathing suit or shorts and a tank top. The tanning specialist will go through the basics of sunless tanning and answer any questions the tanner may have.

Next the tanning customer is air brushed. In a few short minutes they are tan. However, this initial tan is really just a bronzer that is airbrushed on so the tanning specialist can see where they have airbrushed and where they have not. In a few hours the customer will shower and wash this bronzer off.

The artificial tan takes 2 to 4 hours to begin appearing on the skin surface, and will continue to darken for 24 to 72 hours, depending on formulation type. Once a darkening effect has occurred, the tan will not sweat off or wash away with soap or water. Instead, it will fade gradually over 3 to 10 days, similar to the loss of a tan from being out in the sun.

So what causes this artificial tan?
DHA (Dihydroxyacetone) is responsible for this coloring of the skin. Since the 1960′s, DHA has been used as a topical tanning agent. In the 1970′s, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) added DHA permanently to their list of approved cosmetic ingredients. By the 1980′s, new sunless tanning formulations appeared on the market, and refinements in the DHA manufacturing process creating products that produced a more natural looking color and better fading.

Today, DHA is the main active ingredient in all sunless tanning skincare preparations DHA is considered the most effective FDA approved, sun-free tanning additive. DHA is the main ingredient used in the air brush tanning now offered at SunWorkz (located inside FitWorkz).

Why have it airbrushed on and not sprayed on in a booth?
Booths work great but often leave white spots on the sides of the midsection, under the arms and down the sides of the legs. Application by airbrush allows an even and complete tan to be applied. This is perfect if you are wearing a strapless dress or skirt and can not afford to have the sides of your shoulders, arms and legs white. The airbrush offers a more natural “out in the sun” tan.

SunWorkz, located inside FitWorkz, is offering tanning options this Prom and Wedding season! SunWorkz recently added two new Ergoline UV tanning beds along with a Suncapsule stand up bed. Tanners can tan in any bed with FREE upgrades for one low price.

Stop in for more information, call us at 815-756-1188 or visit our web site at www.FizWorkz.com.

You may have seen Blinky wandering around at the recent Sycamore-DeKalb Community Expo held at the Sycamore High School Fieldhouse. He also made an appearance this past winter at the Ben Gordon Center’s Walleyball Tournament. He’s been countless other places too and you’re going to be seeing a lot of him in the upcoming months.

Make plans to attend Spex Expressions’ Trunk Show on Friday, May 20th and Saturday, May 21st. We’re celebrating Binky’s birthday and we’ll have food, refreshments, a birthday cake and prizes, not to mention fantastic deals on designer frames and other eyewear.

So, the next time you see the giant eyeball at an event in Sycamore or DeKalb, come up and say “hi!” to Blinky!

Spex Expressions is located at 2570 DeKalb Avenue in Sycamore. For more information, visit our web site at www.SpexExpressions.com. Call 815-758-1039 to schedule an appointment.

Sunday, May 1st is the day, from 2 pm to 10 pm on Bill Johnson Boulevard, behind Taxco Restaurant.

We’d like to welcome some new advertisers to New Values Magazine this month, including:

• Mediterraneo Restaurant in downtown DeKalb
• Sunshine Scoop Shop and Bakery in DeKalb
• NB&T
• ServiceMASTER Clean
• Biolife of DeKalb
• LED Light Solutions in Sycamore
• Ralph’s Car Wash & Detail Center
• Amber Manor in DeKalb
• Pardridge Insurance of Sycamore

Welcome our new advertisers and be sure to check out their ads in our magazine and their helpful and informational articles here online.

A clean fuel system saves money at the pump. We guess you could say, it all starts and ends at the pump. One of the most important things you can do to keep your fuel system clean is to buy good quality gas. Major brands have detergents that keep gum and varnish from rapidly building up in the fuel system.

So buying cheaper gas can actually cost you in the long run. Now, most cars on the road are more than five or six years old. That means they’ve had time for some dirt and rust to start accumulating in the fuel tank. This junk needs to be filtered out of the fuel before it hits your engine. That’s the fuel filter’s job.

When the fuel filter is clogged, the dirty fuel will bypass the filter and go on up to the engine where it can clog fuel injectors and get into the cylinders. That could do some damage. So you should have your fuel filter changed when recommended. Check your owner’s manual or ask your service advisor if your fuel filter is due for replacement.

The fuel then goes up into the throttle body. This is another area where varnish and gum can accumulate. A professional fuel system cleaning will use a combination of special cleaning chemicals and old fashioned swabbing to clean out the throttle body. Now, the fuel injectors are the last stop in the fuel delivery system.

It’s real important to keep those fuel injectors clean. The fuel injectors need to deliver a precise amount of fuel, at exactly the right time, in a particular spray pattern. They just can’t do that if they’re dirty. Dirty fuel injectors really rob power and waste fuel.

It is important for the fuel system proper, but there are a couple other things that will help keep your engine clean as well. Of course, air is mixed with the fuel before it’s burned. Dirty air means dirt gets into your engine, so you need to replace your engine air filter when it’s dirty.

The PCV value routes unburned fuel that escapes into the lower engine back up into the intake system to be burned. A sticky PCV valve needs to be replaced to make sure that system is working properly and the breather filter needs to be replaced if it’s dirty as well.

Do all these things and your engine’s air and fuel will be as clean as possible. You’ll get much better fuel economy and better power.

Having trouble with your fuel system? Bring your SUV into Bockman’s Auto Care for a check up. We’re located at 2158 Oakland Drive in Sycamore. Call 815-756-7413 for more information or to make an appointment.