There used to be this somewhat dingy Greek restaurant on Olleros. It was, as best I know, the only…read moreGreek restaurant in town. A Greek friend of mine in the wine business commented, years ago, just, "Don't bother." That popped to mind when I spotted it on one of the local food delivery apps, but, on a whim, I decided to give it a shot. Surprisingly, given that past admonition, it was pretty good. A very well made spanakopita (spinach and feta cheese pie), some decent melanzanosalata (eggplant puree), and an acceptable gyro sandwich, albeit strangely stuffed with french fries. It was all good enough that I thought it would be a fun outing for my lunch group. And so, five of us met up at a no longer a dingy spot on Olleros, but a huge, well lit, modern dining space on Baéz. Apparently, new owners, staff, and menu. Fitting with the ghost town feel of the neighborhood, the whole time we were there only one other person came in, a solo diner who had a salad, a coffee, and then left.
I'd arrived a bit early, before the rest of the gang, and put in an order for a selection of cold apps and some pita bread. The bread basket has both pita and regular white bread, we quickly gobbled up the former and ordered more of just pita. The spreads - a decent and very tahini-packed hummus, more of the eggplant puree, an excellent roasted pepper and walnut puree (piperia), a very good tzatziki (yogurt and cucumber). They were, unfortunately, out of skordalia, a favorite puree of potato, garlic, and lemon, which seemed a bit weird - I mean, how hard is it to boil a potato and whip it with some garlic and lemon? We replaced it with some tabule, the only thing that hit the table that we really didn't like - it was mostly chopped, raw onion, with very little tomato, parsley, or bulgur wheat. 80 pesos apiece.
Instead of ordering a bunch of larger main courses, we decided on a round of hot appetizers and to split one big mixed grill main course. We could, if still hungry, order more. Again, an excellent spanakopita, and also an equally good tiropita, more or less the same, but packed with feta cheese and parsley instead of spinach. A decent if not wow kebbe cocido, of ground veal with onions and parsley. And, excellent keftedes, little beef meatballs, breaded and fried and served with lemon. 120 pesos apiece.
For our main course, the parrillada, or mixed grill - arrived with two skewers each of beef, lamb, and chicken souvlaki, and one large beef kafta (ground meat with spices). It was served over wedges of grilled pita, and, oddly, french fries once again. Boy would that be improved with a nice layer of lemon and garlic infused Greek potatoes underneath! Or perhaps the rice pilaf that the souvlakis and kafta are served with if you order any of them individually. These were just soggy french fries that had absorbed all the meat juices and grease dripping off the skewers. We also found the beef and chicken souvlakis to be overcooked, and all three of them lacking in seasoning. The kafta was quite good, and I'd happily order that by itself as a main course, with rice pilaf and some nice yogurt sauce for moisture, the way all four of these skewers are normally served as individual dishes. 720 pesos.
So, all told, we like the space, though it felt a bit cavernous with no one else there. Service was a bit scattered - I gather our waitress was fairly new, she clearly didn't know the food, at all. And the manager / bartender was just hanging out working on his laptop, paying no attention as she fumbled her way through things.
With the exception of the tabule we liked all the appetizers quite a bit, and would happily go back for any of them. Disappointed in the main course - maybe the individual kafta or souvlakis, served with their rice pilaf and yogurt sauce, would have been more interesting, but the way they serve the mixed grill, not so much. Beer on tap - Patagonia brand - 120 pesos apiece, and you get a solid 600ml, well over a pint. Greek coffee - nice and sludgy, and tasty, came in at 50 pesos apiece. The 40 peso apiece cubierto charge seems a bit excessive for paper napkins and a mediocre bread basket. All told, with tip, we shelled out 2850 pesos or just a shade over $70 - $14 apiece for good food, acceptable beer, and good company.
Overall recommended, other than pass on the two dishes we didn't like. But I'd happily go back for appetizers and a beer if I was in the area, or even one of the gyro sandwiches.
