On our own, we probably never would have stopped at George’s Famous Gyros. Located in a small strip mall on McKellips Rd., it looks like a fast food joint. But we had a $25 certificate that we had purchased from Restaurant.com for $3. We had done this without knowing anything about George’s, which is unusual for us. But our friend Pat was visiting and we wanted to try some new places. I was a little worried when we entered, then my attention was caught by the large (and inexpensive) selection of food printed on a huge menu on one wall.
In order to use our $25 certificate we had to order $35 worth of food (beverages don’t count). It was going to be tough, but we were up to the challenge. Our 3 entrees came to only $27, so we were, happily, forced to get some appetizers.
This is what we had to eat:
Hummus with Pita ($3.95) - very thick and mild, with yummy pita served oven hot. I like my hummus more lemony/garlicky, but Pat and Ken both liked it.
Spanikopita ($3.95) and Falafel ($3.95) - both deep fried to perfection. I know, I know, spanikopita isn’t supposed to be fried, but now I won’t like it any other way. Good tzatziki accompanied these.
Shrimp Myconos ($8.25) - the shrimp were served in an excellent lemon,wine,garlic sauce (unlike the hummus there was lots of garlic here) over spaghetti. It was supposed to have been sprinkled with feta, but Pat didn’t want any. She was chastised for this omission. When I reheated the leftovers a few days later I put lots of Parmesan (not having any feta) on top and it made the dish even better.
Steak sandwich ($7.25) - this was charbroiled sirloin. I thought it was just ok, but the cold leftover steak couldn’t have been better.
Gyros Platter ($7.95) - although this was gyros from a box and it arrived piping hot, it was nice and tender and juicy and didn’t turn to shoe leather as it cooled. Again, leftovers, warmed in the microwave on the defrost setting, were as good, if not better, than the original. Basamati rice topped with tomato sauce and feta, and a salad were served along side. There was enough meat for three meals.
All sandwiches, burgers and platters are served with a choice of salad or fries. I can only imagine the fries are fabulous, given the skill of the fry master. There are also pita pizzas, entree salads, several types of wings (at, get this, $4.50 a dozen). Baklave and chocolate cheese cake are the desserts.
If you add up our order, it did come to more than $35, but I had a great time finishing up the huge amount of leftovers while Ken was away.
The young man who took our order and served us was either the owner of the owner’s son. He sat down and chatted with us for a while. We’ll go back for more food and conversation.
George’s Famous Gyros (Real Greeks From Chicago)
7620 E. McKellips Rd. Scottsdale
480-874-1354
Monday - Friday 11 AM - 8 PM, Saturday 11 AM - 3 PM
We went back and learned that the young man is in fact George. More importantly, we learned that he is very honest. When we complimented the dolmados, he explained that they were bought elsewhere and even told us where.
ReplyDeleteTo say that the fries lived up to our expectations is an understatement. They were fabulous, most likely because this place changes its fryer oil regularly and often.