New Arrivals – October 2022
Posted by estiator at 11 October, at 14 : 10 PM Print
A coast-to coast glance at some of the industry’s newest additions
Walnut Creek, CA ELIA [eliapleasanton.com] Known for brandy-flamed saganaki and grilled octapodaki, northern California’s Elia has expanded to nearby Walnut Creek, a local news site reported. With a concept of “seasonal Greek,” the original Elia opened in 2021. Owners Fatih Ulas and Chef Mehmet Duygu promise a similar menu of upscale Greek and other Mediterranean-inspired dishes. They hope to open the doors in the next few months and bring “a Mykonos and Santorini vibe to the city,” Ulas told the site. They’ll accomplish that with the design, a California interpretation of typical blue- and-white Greek tavernas.
Bellmore, NY SOUVLAKI STREET [souvlakistreetny.com] Greek native Alex Katehis bought a Mediterranean restaurant where he’d once worked in the kitchen, renamed it Souvlaki Street, and opened his very own Greek eatery in August. The menu is simple, emulating a gyro restaurant in Greece, he told a local news site. Along with gyros, offerings include souvlaki, burgers, salads, and pita wraps. Online reviews have been rapturous; “Needs a 6th star!!!!! Hands down the best chicken gyro in Nassau County by far,” one Yelper enthused.
Sacramento, CA JAYNA GYRO [jaynagyro.com] Janya Gyro general manager Demetri Gregorakis thinks the restaurant is opening at a good time, when the worst of Covid-19 has subsided. “People are coming out again into the world full-force,” he told the Sacramento Bee. A Sacramento native, Gregorakis started his career in Greece as a waiter. Jayna Gyro’s menu features traditional items including gyros, chicken, beef, and lamb pitas, and octopus salad. Dips include hummus, baba ghanoush and tzatziki; baklava’s among the desserts. Chef Kadriye Baspehlivan is an alum of the Culinary Institute of America.
Greenfield, IN GYROS GRILL [facebook.com/profile.php?id=100083995066006] Greek native Dimitrious Andriopoulos recently opened this quick-service spot east of Indianapolis. The menu on the wall is packed with gyros, hot dogs, barbecue, burgers, wraps, hand-breaded chicken and fish meals, a local news site reported. The business hopes to eventu- ally add homemade Greek dishes as well. “In the United States—you think of something, you put your body to work, and you can make it,” Andriopoulos said. Indiana’s open green spaces and welcoming people remind him of Greece, he said.
Poughkeepsie, NY DELTA PI REAL GREEK [delta314.com] With a slogan of “Fresh. Delicious. Healthy,” this family-owned quick-service spot opened last month near Vassar College. “We pride ourselves in our unique spin on Greek classics with our ‘Build Your Own’ concept, allowing you to enjoy traditional Greek food in whatever configuration you would like,” the restaurant’s web site proclaims. Bowls include protein choices like “traditional yeero” and bifteki, along with sauces inluding kaftero and tzatziki.
Richmond, VA THE CRAZY GREEK [crazygreekrestaurant.com/] Since its founding in the 1970s, The Crazy Greek has had a handful of homes throughout Richmond. Its newest, 2,800-square-foot location will be the fifth space to house The Crazy Creek, and its opening will mark a passing of the torch in its ownership. At the helm now: Peter Pergiotis, who’s taken over the business from parents Anna and Perry Pergiotis, a local news site reported. “My dad was tough on me. He didn’t give me a job right away,” Peter Pergiotis joked. A signature dish is Greek spaghetti, with feta in place of parmesan.
Chicago NISOS [nisosmediterranean.com] Nisos executive chef and partner Avgeria Stapaki was one of Estiator’s Ones to Watch in June. Her Chicago restaurant has finally opened on the hot Randolph Street Restaurant Row strip. Owner Brad Parker met Stapaki in Mykonos, where she was chef at 1,500-seat Principote; it felt like the meal had been “prepared especially for him,” Parker told Eater. At 170-seat Nisos, Stapaki estimates that she’s been able to import 60 percent of her ingredients from Greece, including regular shipments of fresh fish. An extensive Greek wine list complements Stapaki’s hearty but refined dinner menu.
Boston SALONIKI GREEK [salonikigreek.com] This local fast-casual chain expanded in September with two new locations, joining its three existing stores. “Newbury Street is amazing, and the location where we’re going into is where the old Steve’s Greek Cuisine used to be,” owner Jody Adams told Boston.com. “There’s huge interest in Greek food, and there’s enough room for us to put a mark.” Saloniki serves basics like spatchcock chicken with crispy smashed potatoes and tzatziki, chicken souvlaki, griddled spanakopita, salads, zucchini-feta fritters, and frozen yogurt.
Santa Rosa, CA NICK THE GREEK [nickthegreek.com] “I won’t lie. I nearly crashed my car scarfing down garlic fries from this newly opened gyro and souvlaki restaurant,” one local journalist raved about this new outpost of the regional Nick the Greek chain, which is based in nearby San Jose and founded by three cousins named Nick. “The menu is straightforward,” continued Sonoma magazine. “Pitas filled with meat, plates of meat, salads with meat or bowls of meat. There are, of course, non-meat items like falafel or the veggie gyro (zucchini, portobello mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, fries and tzatziki sauce); but this is Greek food, so, mostly meat.” Next: Expansions into Kansas, Nevada, and Arizona.
