Finally a Real Gyro at El Greco?



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I love Greek food. I mean one of my first jobs was as a dishwasher at a Greek Restaurant working for the Veriopolas Family. Here I learned how to behave like a good Greek boy. After I learned that, I was allowed to make salads and hang out in the kitchen.

At this restaurant I had my first Gyro and it was good. The pita, the tzikiki, the meat, the veggies were all perfectly united. It's a gyro that is quite hard to match and I have had many around the world.

So... El Greco is a new establishment over by Gyeonidan. It's a little bit hard to find since it is off the main road and down an alley. It's a small place run by a foreign guy (I think he is Australian because of his accent.) The place has about 8 seats inside. They serve beer and mainly gyros but they had some other sandwiches on the menu.

Since it was my first visit, I got a gyro and a Greek beer. The owner was friendly and cordial and 15 minutes later I got my massive gyro.

The pita was plush and looked fresh baked and the veggies were crunchy and seasoned. The tzikiki was very good as well. I judge Greek restaurants based on their yogurt cucumber sauce and here I could tell it was homemade. The sauce had a garlic lemon taste with bits of crunchy cucumber in creamy yogurt. Quite good.

Oh, I didn't mention the meat yet because... I think it could have been better. First of all, it was pork; not lamb. The meat was seasoned, but it was dry. I think chicken would have been a better option. It wasn't a deal breaker, but it's the one thing keeping me from going there often. For 8,000 won it was a decent meal (11,000 for a set with drink and fries.)

On my next visit I ordered the falafel and this was outstanding for the most part. The falafel were tasty. They were crisp outside and soft inside. The falafel balls had nice body as well. The pita was good like before and it had a nice smear of hummus and it had a nice tahini sauce. The veggies were good. There was red cabbage and red onions. The only problem I had were the inclusion of pickles. They were good pickles, but I don't know if they really fit in the mix. I think fresh cucumber would have been better. This was a filling meal for only 7,000 won.

The place was so good that I bought some hummus and tzikiki with pita for friends that were working late that night (6,000 won each).

I commend the chef for his efforts and I look forward to seeing the improvements.

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