Feeling a Little Greece-Y in LBC

Goerge's Greek Cafe

135 Pine Avenue

Long Beach, CA 90802

Katie knows how to get me to do what she wants. It was a few days before Halloween and her friends were having a party. I'm all for hanging out with her friends, but I had to work at 6am the next day and the party was up in Long Beach. I usually like to be home before 10, but she said the magic words that made me agree to a late evening. "You can pick a restaurant to go to before the party." That's all I had to hear, and I was off trying to find a spot for us to eat.

We do not make it up to Long Beach very often, so I was a little bit overwhelmed with the vast selection that I could choose from. I decided to pick a place near where the party was going to be, so that made Downtown Long Beach the logical choice. I went to Yelp and looked for the most reviewed and highest rated restaurant, which wasn't a sushi place, and found George's Greek Cafe.

It had been a while since we had Greek food, and we were both pretty excited to try George's, which had an impressive 4 and a half stars with over 2100 Yelp reviews. After a little research, I learned that this restaurant was started by George Loizides, a Greek immigrant living in Zimbabwe, who moved his family here in 1980 and saved up money to fulfill his and his son's American dream by opening a Greek deli. After a short move of location, the restaurant transitioned into George's Greek Cafe, and they subsequently added two other spots, one in Belmont Shore and another in nearby Lakewood.

George, unfortunately, passed away at the age of 83 about a week before we made our visit. His legacy is living on with the family still serving family recipes passed on from the older generations. Their menu is pretty extensive with plenty of items that you see in all Greek restaurants, (gyros, hummus, and falafel). That's just scratching the surface though. Dig deeper and you'll find other things that you just won't find at other Greek places, (melintzanosalata, scordalia, and kleftiko which you will see in a bit). Prices seemed pretty reasonable especially considering the area, with all entrees listed in the $8 to $23 range.

We had made a reservation on a recent Friday evening at 6pm. We did not really need them, as the dining room was pretty wide open, with only the front room and bar occupied when we first sat down. The dining room did fill in during our stay though. This dining space is accented by lots of dark wood, plenty of pictures of Greece and family members along the walls, and a rather large patio that extends from the front of the restaurant to the side of it, which I imagine would be a prime people-watching spot during the warmer months. Enough build-up, let's see the only thing that really matters to me, the food.

Hummus ($6.75) is one thing we always start out with when eating in any Mediterranean or Greek restaurant. This came out rather quickly and was surrounded by triangles of pita bread. This was an ultra-smooth version of the classic dip made up of mashed garbanzo beans. It was good but could have used a flavor boost with maybe some extra garlic or some more spice. Not bad but kind of humdrum.

I guess one starter was not enough for Katie, so we also got this Spanakopita ($7.50) before our main dishes came out. This filo dough was filled with feta cheese, spinach, and spices. It also came with a little salad of tomatoes, cucumber, and onions. These were made very well, but the feta kind of overpowered here. I'm not a big feta cheese lover, so these might not have been an ideal starter for me, but Katie liked this a lot. I did like the spinach in these and liked them a bit more when I dipped them in the leftover hummus.

Katie's meal came out first. She went with the Chicken Souvlaki ($14.75) which is chunks of seasoned chicken with onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, and plenty of tzatziki sauce wrapped in a pita. She really enjoyed the insides of this sandwich, which she found to be tender and flavorful, but the pita could not handle the amount they put inside of it and quickly dissolved into quite a mess. She upgraded her fries with Feta and Garlic (plus $2). The fries were nice and crisp and made even better for Katie because she loves feta cheese. A hearty meal that prepared her for the wild party that we were going to attend later.

It was a Friday evening, and at George's, that means Kleftico ($18.95). Honestly, I had never heard of this dish before I sat down here for dinner, but I decided to give it a shot anyway. The story goes that during the Turkish occupation of Greece centuries ago, the Greeks cooked their lamb in sealed underground pits to hide it from their enemies. Now at George's, they roast their lamb shoulder for six to eight hours so it comes out very tender. This was a pretty good-sized chunk of meat, with most bites being very good. The lamb was spiced well and lacked any of the gaminess you would expect when consuming lamb in some places. They also provided a nice gravy with this, which I used in alternating bites. This special also came with a Greek salad and roasted potatoes. The salad was good, but I really enjoyed the potatoes. The smaller potato cubes had a crunchiness to them that I liked, while the bigger ones were soft when bitten into. I liked the contrast. A good plate, and if you are here on a Friday and like lamb, this is what you should order. 

Although Goerge's Greek Cafe did not blow us away with their food, it still is a pretty solid spot for people who enjoy Greek cuisine. I liked my lamb and Katie enjoyed her souvlaki, but we've both had better. I thought the prices here were more than fair and the portion sizes are pretty generous for what you pay. The atmosphere at George's was very laid back and not pretentious in the least. Our server achieved that very delicate balance of giving us space and making sure we had our every need met in a timely manner. This visit has us looking forward to exploring more of the restaurants that call Long Beach home in the near future.

Out of five anchors, (because the city of Long Beach is home to the oldest tattoo parlor in the US, Bert Grimm's opened way back in 1927 and I'm sure they have done plenty of anchor tattoos in those 92 years), five being best to zero being worst, George's Greek Cafe gets 3 anchors.

For more information about George's Greek Cafe, head to their website here: https://www.georgesgreekcafe.com/

Going Greek in Fullerton

Kentro Greek Kitchen

100 S. Harbor Blvd. 

Fullerton, CA 92832

I promise this will be the last of my wedding preparation posts. I have reread our reviews since the start of this year, and I have mentioned our upcoming wedding so much that it's even driving me crazy. Yes, I know, that's a short drive.

Anyways, the one way Katie can get me involved with these wedding meetings is by enticing me with dinners near where the meetings are taking place. This was the case on this particular night as well. We were going to be meeting with our florist, the very personable Jenny B. I was actually pretty impressed with what she's going to be doing for us, but I'm not much of a flower guy, so I kind of let Katie do all the talking. Luckily, we were only here for about a half hour or so, and then we walked across the street to Kentro Greek Kitchen.

Kentro came across our radar when we visited their sister restaurant, El Amerikano for a media party. With so many restaurants in Fullerton, it's easy to miss a few, but Katie took notice of the menu at Kentro, and made me promise to take her back here to try their take on Greek food.

The restaurant does not really have the feel of an order at the register, and have the food delivered to your table vibe to it, but that's how things are done here. Also, if you are entering from the door off of Commonwealth, make sure to follow the signs that point you in the direction of the registers. We saw a few confused looks while we were here, so be advised of that.

Chef Konstantine Marougas has put together quite the menu. Not your typical Greek style menu. A lot of the items have a modern twist to them, and to be totally honest, I was not in the mood for Greek, but I knew Katie was up for it. See, not even married, and already sacrificing what I want. I guess I have this marriage thing down already. Let's check out the food we had on this night.

We started our night off with two appetizers, the first of which was Katie's selection, the Keftedes ($7). These beefy meatballs were bathed in a red tomato sauce, and sprinkled with kefalotiri cheese, which I learned is made from sheep or goats milk. Not sure which version we had, but these were a good start to our meal. The meatballs were dense, but still with a tenderness to the meat. The sauce had a nice kick to it. Not overly spicy, but it did awaken your taste buds. The bread went well with the extra sauce.

The week we were here at Kentro was the same week that our good friend, Anne Marie profiled Chef Konstantine in her On the Line column for the OC Weekly, (a story that you can see by clicking here). Anyways, in that piece she asked what his choices would be for first timers at his restaurant, so I decided to take his advice and have what he suggested, the first of which was Octopus ($9). This charbroiled octopus came with pickled vegetables and latholemono, a Greek sauce made of lemon and oil. The octopus was done very well. Good, slightly chewy texture to it, without being fishy. Very fresh octopus here. The lemon in the sauce kind of overpowered, but the pickled veggies helped to cut the sourness a bit. The best bites were when you combined all elements together. The bread was not needed for this plate, because the sauce was way too sour on its own.

Katie has really been feeling fish lately, and she kept her maritime mood in full effect by ordering this Psari Sti Skara ($16). Now my Greek is really rusty, but this translates to charbroiled sea bass. Okay, I had to go to Google for that, but still. The fish was very flaky and moist, but Kate felt it could have been seasoned a tad more. It was served alongside quinoa, which is definitely not my favorite thing in the world. Katie thought this version was good, but felt the olives really needed to be toned down a bit in this version. Even with these minor quibbles about her plate, she still would get this again on future visits.

The other item Chef Konstantine suggested newcomers try at his restaurant is the Paithakia ($18). These lamb chops came 5 to an order, and there was plenty of meat on these. The lamb here was some of the best I have had recently. Tender, and seasoned real well, I could not help myself from picking these chops clean. This came with some very good fries, which came out hot and crunchy. My only complaint from this meal was that they only gave you a dollop of their good tzatziki sauce, and I could have used a whole lot more of it. Still a great suggestion for lamb lovers.

For me not really feeling like eating here when we walked in, I really left enjoying my meal. I'd probably not get the octopus again, but everything else was pretty darn good. The food here is prepared simply, with just enough spices to avoid trying to do too much with it. A very delicate balance to achieve. The prices were not too crazy for the amount of food that you get. My plate was the most expensive thing on the menu, and it did not even set us back twenty dollars. In the end, I kind of liked the ordering system here. It probably keeps costs down, and the food runners were definitely quick with refills and making sure everything was good with us. It was well worth sitting through that 30 minute flower meeting to get the chance to eat here.

Out of five doctors, (because the country of Greece ranks number one in the world with the most doctors per capita), five being best to zero being worst, Kentro Greek Kitchen gets 3.5 doctors.

For more information about Kentro  Greek Kitchen, go to their website here: http://kentrogreekkitchen.com/

Athena Gyro Returns - CLOSED

Athena Gyro

25381 Alicia Parkway, Ste. Q

Laguna Hills, CA 92653

For ardent readers of the blog, you will notice that we have been to Athena Gyro before. It was way back in the early days of the blog. Over two years ago we went to the now-closed Athena Gyro in Mission Viejo. One of the readers of the blog, Amanda had given us the tip about this hidden gem, located right off of Alicia Parkway. Unfortunately, four months after our review, Athena's was no more.

About a month ago, I got another tip from Amanda that Athena's had opened back up. Still along Alicia Parkway, but now in the city of Laguna Hills. I pass this small shopping center almost every day on my way to work. This strip mall has been in desperate need of a remodel, and along with a new El Pollo Loco, they are finally getting that remodel.

We visited the new Athena Gyro on a recent Friday night. This small, ten table restaurant had a small trickle of customers the night we were here. At most, they had about three tables, including us at one time. Not exactly bustling, but enough that I think the word is getting out that they are back and in a new location. The first thing I noticed when getting here was the door. This is the first time I have ever mentioned a restaurants door, but it was not a normal door, it was a sliding glass door. Very unusual for a restaurant, and it was almost comical watching people maneuver it. Not sure if this is going to be a permanent feature, but keep an eye out for it.

We talked to the owner or someone we believed to be the owner briefly about where they have been. He sold the restaurant up the street to another guy, and that guy started taking shortcuts, and the business suffered and was forced to close. There is another location of Athena's in San Mateo. That restaurant has been in business since 2000 and gets average reviews on Yelp. We were hoping that our experience would be better than average. Let's check it out.

We will start with Maureen's plate first since it was the first to arrive. She knew what she wanted almost immediately, the Mousaka entree ($11.99). I did not know it before this, but Mousaka is eggplant and potatoes mixed with ground meat, then topped with meat sauce and tzatziki sauce. This sounded delicious to me, but Maureen was less excited by this. She called this, "good, but not the best I have had."

A meal that I was much more familiar with was this Gyro Plate ($9.99). This came with your choice of beef, chicken or lamb gyro meat, and Denis chose the lamb. Denis really liked this plate and seemed a little reluctant to share any with Maureen. The entrees here are served with a side Greek salad, rice pilaf, and pita bread. Not a bad amount of food for under ten dollars.

Katie and I started off our dining adventure at Athena Gyro by having the Humus with Pita ($5.75). This creamy mixture of chickpeas and tahini was seasoned with garlic and lemon. Not a bad plate of hummus, but it needed a little pop of flavor for me. Not bad, but average.

So after Maureen and Denis were done with their meals and their plates were taken away, we finally received our dinner. Not sure if they only had a limited number of plates or something, but it was one of the most awkwardly served meals we can think of in the time we have been doing the blog. There were other issues going on here as well, but for now, let's focus on the food. I selected the Zorba's Combo Mixed Grill ($15.99). This plate had a little sampling of everything. Lamb and chicken cubes, gyro slices, Greek meatballs, and chicken gyro slices with tzatziki sauce on the side. All of the meats were seasoned the same way, but they were all pretty good, and tender. I liked the gyro meat the best, with the Greek meatballs a close second. The chicken was not dry like some places can serve it. Overall, not a bad plate of food. The Greek side salad had fresh produce, but I did not touch much of it.

Katie's Chicken Gyro sandwich Plate ($8.99) may look pretty plain, but she was pretty happy with it. The salad and rice were just average, but what made her take notice was the gyro. The pita bread was soft and pillowy, the thinly shaved chicken was very tender and had a nice flavor to it. The produce here was fresh and added a nice crunch to the gyro. I am more of a traditionalist when it comes to gyros, but this one was pretty good.

Time for dessert. They were out of two of their four choices, so we went with the other two, the Baklava (3.50), and the Shekepare ($3.00). The Shekepare was a very forgettable dessert. It was described in the menu as honey syrup and crushed walnuts baked in a flour and semolina mix. It really suffered from a lack of flavor. The Baklava was another story though. It was very sweet, but not chalky. I have had a good number of Baklava, and some of them can be very dry, this one wasn't. I'm glad we split this one because I am not sure I could have eaten this rich dessert by myself.

Welcome back to the neighborhood Athena's. The food was just as we remembered, which was very good. The service, on the other hand, was kind of crazy. I know this restaurant just recently opened back up, so I am going to give them a pass on not having certain items that are on their menu, the weird way they served two of the meals to our table of four, and then served the other two meals twenty minutes later, and the lack of attention by a waitress that had three tables the whole night. Hopefully, these growing pains will be worked out by our next visit. I would sum up Athena Gyro as a good place to quench your Greek cravings. In an area where there is not a lot of Greek places, Athena's can be counted on to do that.

Out of five owls, (because the Greek Goddess Athena is the Goddess of Wisdom, and one of her symbols is the wise old owl), five being best to zero being worst, Athena Gyro gets 3 owls.

For more information about Athena Gyro, check out their web site right here: http://greeklagunahills.wix.com/anthenagryo

Christakis, Going for the Gold!

Christakis Greek Cuisine

13011 Newport Ave.

Tustin, CA 92780

Mexican restaurants dot our county in almost every strip mall. You could almost throw a rock in any direction and hit a restaurant specializing in sushi. Italian restaurants? Sure we have plenty. What we do not have is a plethora of Greek joints. I always forget how much I enjoy Greek food, until I actually have it. Does that even make sense? Greek food for me is one of my favorite forgotten food genres.

Luckily, I had been told about Christakis Greek Cuisine about a year ago, from a lady at my work. I was happy that I remembered to write it down. I was not so happy that it had taken me a year to get over there. Christakis is located in the odd shaped shopping center at the corner of Irvine Boulevard and Newport Avenue. When I have come to this retail center before, no matter the time, I have noticed the lack of decent parking. The lot almost always is filled. Of course Nieuport 17 and the Tustin Brewing Company share the same lot, so that might explain the lack of spaces.

Christakis has an elegant, without being pretentious feel to it. Of course the colors blue and white dominate the restaurant, subtly reminding the patrons of the national colors of Greece. On the Thursday night we arrive they have a guitar player adding to the bistro ambiance.  After perusing the not overly large menu, we ordered, and this was they way the food was brought out.

Humus is to a Greek restaurant, as chips and salsa is to a Mexican eatery. If this analogy was on the SAT I would have aced the test. Unfortunately it wasn't, and I do not want to let you know what I actually got on the test, but I digress. The humus here is a blend of garbanzo beans, Greek olive oil, tahini, garlic, and lemon juice. The result is a smooth tasting humus that is better than anything you can get in the grocery store. Katie called this one of the better humus's she has ever had. I would have to agree.

I was the only one at the table to order an entree, and the entrees come with a choice of soup or salad. As you can see from the picture above I went with the Greek Lemon Soup. This soup was not my favorite. I am not to big a fan of lemon in the first place, but this soup was way too sour. The sourness overwhelmed the taste for me. I would have liked this better if it was a little more creamy and had something to cut the sour taste.

They say the house specialty at Christakis is the Rack of Lamb, and after tasting this I would say they are correct in this statement. I went with the half rack of lamb, because the price listed was market priced. Glad I did because this half rack was $32. Even though this was a little pricey it was well worth the money. This could be one of the tastiest pieces of lamb I have had. Very tender, spiced well, and not gamy in the least. After eating these I wish I had taken out a loan at the bank, and ordered a full rack. The side items of oven baked lemon potatoes, rice, and green beans were present on the plate, but were totally over shadowed by the lamb. This is a must get when dining here.

Katie and Kathleen were not in a big dinner mood when we were eating here, so they went with the Spartan Salad, which is basically a Greek salad with grilled chicken breast placed on top of it. The salad included mixed greens, onions, feta cheese, tomatoes, olives, cucumbers, and a pink house dressing. They both remarked that the salad portions of this were made with fresh items, but they were not too excited by the heavy use of the pink hued dressing, which overtook the flavor of everything. The chicken was tender and cooked well here.

Tradition states that at least one of us has to try the most Greek of all desserts, the Baklava. This baklava was okay, not great. The outer portion of this was very hard to break off to get a good forkful. The inside was passable, but not overly sweet. This was not as rich as some other baklava's we have had.

The other dessert we had was not even close to being traditional Greek, the Brownie and Ice Cream Plate. This dessert started with a moist brownie as its base, then was surrounded by two small scoops of ice cream and whipped cream. The chocolate sauce drizzled on top of this was a nice touch as well. We would definitely get this again on future visits.

Christakis definitely quenched my Greek food yearnings. My dinner was very good, but maybe a little pricey for the amount of food you get. Other dinners here run in the $15 to $24 range. The girls liked their meals as well, but not as much as I liked mine. The service when we were here was competent, and not in your face, like some smaller places can be. Christakis is open for lunch Monday through Friday from 11:30 to 2:30, and then open seven days a week for dinner at 5 pm. If you have a yearning for a good lamb chop this is your place.

Out of five frat parties, (because the fraternities of most colleges are named after Greek letters), five being best to zero being worst, Christakis Greek Cuisine gets 3 frat parties.

For more information on Christakis Greek Cuisine, click here: http://christakisgreekcuisine.com/

It's All Greek to Me at Athena Gyro! - CLOSED

Athena Gyro and Grill

24000 Alicia Parkway

Mission Viejo, CA 92691

I love getting recommendations from people on where to go and blog about. This is one of those times. Amanda wrote me to tell me about Athena Gyro, and since it was close we had to put it on the list. I think that we have only had one other Greek restaurant on the blog so far, and wanting to get some diverse posts, we headed out on a Friday night.

According to their web site, Athena Gyro is owned by Mr. Gurel. He has operated restaurants in Greece, England and in the bay area. This is his first stab at a restaurant in Orange county. The restaurant is located right off of Alicia Parkway and Jeronimo. The place is kind of hidden in the middle of the strip mall. Let's see if it is worth finding.

We wanted to try two appetizers, and this was our first, the Humus with Pita Bread. This was not only presented well, but also tasted fresh. Every time I have humus, I wonder why I never pick up any in the store, because it is really good. This humus was chopped a little more roughly than others that I have had, but it worked well.

Our second appetizer was the Keftehakia Souvlaki, ( I know I butchered the name when I ordered this, but the waitress said I was close enough). Beef and lamb grilled in meatball form, served with tzatiziki sauce. This had a great flavor to it. I love lamb, and it is so infrequently that I get to have it, so it always is nice to come back to it.  The sauce paired with the meat was very good, but I did not like the sauce too much when I tasted it alone.

This is the Greek Salad that came with my meal. It is your basic dinner salad with feta cheese added. Like the other items so far, this was really fresh. One of my few complaints of the night would be about this salad. The lettuce was cut in long strips, and was hard to get on the fork. Not sure why they would cut the lettuce this way, but it was awkward in a salad. I am not much on oil based salad dressings, but this one worked here.

So you are in a Greek restaurant and you are not going to get a gyro? Not on my watch! We got the Beef Gyro. This was a very good gyro. It was a little heavy on the lettuce and tomato for me, but I tossed that aside easily enough. The meat was seasoned well, and the sauce was again very good with the meat.

Since this was our first time here, we wanted to sample a little bit of everything, so we could not pass on the Zorba's Combo Mixed Grill. This plate featured lamb and chicken kebab's, gyro slices, Greek meatballs, and chicken gyro slices. This was the Mount Olympus of meat, (see what I did there, Mount Olympus is the highest mountain in Greece, I know I did not have to explain that to you, but I did it for the other people reading this). So anyways, I really liked the lamb kebab the best. The meat was flavored the best, and Katie even liked it, even though she did not know she was eating lamb. You should have seen her face when I told her, it was priceless. The chicken kebab was the only thing that was a little dry. Even the rice was good, I mixed it with the sauce. Very good plate of food, and I recommend it for people who are skeptical about Greek food.

For dessert we got the Baklava. I let Katie pick this dessert. I am usually not too big of a fan of this dessert, but it was made well and was not too overly sweet. You could really taste the honey on this one. There was also no shortage of walnuts on this either. Very good end to a fine meal.

Athena Gyro really impressed us with their freshness of ingredients, and the presentation of the food. The service was good as well, but a little inexperienced. The food prices seemed to be good, the Zorba's feast set you back about $15, (the most expensive thing on the menu), and the gyro was $6.50. The atmosphere was casual and relaxed. As with all Greek people that I know, they are all proud of their heritage, and take pride in showing their culture off to other people. This seems to be the case here also. Thanks again for the tip on this place Amanda.

Out of five olive branches, (the Greek symbol of peace), five being best to zero being worst, Athena Gyro gets 3 solid olive branches.

To view their web site, click here: http://www.athenagyro.net/