Da Beef wrote: The sauce was also top notch and the toppings were fresh.

That meat looks great. But, I don't see me no tzatziki. Did it have tzatziki? Not a gyro without, imho.

It came on the side in a little plastic cup along with a tasty hot sauce of some sort. In fact that was my one and only complaint was that I didnt ask for an extra tzasiki.

After reading this thread and realizing that two of the joints that make their own gyros were mere minutes from my place in Skokie, i headed out to Nicks Drive In and Psistaria to sample their gyros.

Psistaria - a finely ground mixture of meats that surrenders to the chew quite nicely. The spice notes, while certainly offering the "typical" gyros taste, also had a prominent aroma and taste of cloves, which actually complimented the meat quite well. I'll definitely head back.

Nick's Drive-In - been here twice in the past 2 weeks and its my favorite gyros place now. the meat is coarsely ground and hearty. I prefer this rough meaty texture to the cream-smooth grind of most gyros places. The spice level is on the heavier side, but with gyros this is not a problem, is it? Furher, the tzatziki sauce offers a nice balancing factor that combines to make this a cant-miss proposition.

After you've been to either, be sure to be within 20 minutes of a mattress. YOu will need it.

Had a fantastic lunch at Greek Islands this past weekend and was reminded why their gyros, which are made in-house, are pretty much my all-time favorites . . .


Gyros at Greek Islands

They had great flavor -- a nice balance of meats and spices -- wonderful definition and the browned edges on nearly every strip sent them over the top. I also love the rich tsatziki sauce at Greek Islands and their pitas, which are grilled until they are light in texture.

=R=

Greek Islands
200 S Halsted St
Chicago, IL 60661
(312) 782-9855

ronnie_suburban wrote:Had a fantastic lunch at Greek Islands this past weekend and was reminded why their gyros, which are made in-house, are pretty much my all-time favorites . . .

Seconded. Surprisingly, consistently great.

Incidentally, I had some of the best grilled octopus of my life here one week, and then some of the worst a week later.

I have been haunted for most of today by something I consumed in a drunken frenzy last night......

Its not the bad kind of haunting - bloated stomach, onion breath, nausea (although this does tend to happen with 2am drunken eating).

No, its a lingering memory of something delicious and otherworldly, a perfect blend of meat, spice and carbohydrate. It is Ghareeb Nawaz's gyros paratha!!!

At approximately 1:45am I the east side of Devon in search of food. Usually, I come home later than that, and am stuck eating at Lahore or Hyderabad House, as Ghareeb Nawaz closes at 2 or 3. They were out of my usual order of seekh kabob paratha (which is a good thing, I would still be burping up raw onion otherwise) so I ordered something that I have been curious about for some time - the gyros paratha.

Now, I never ordered it because I figured whatever gyros meat they are using, its definitely not homemade, and 90% likely not shaved off the rotating cone (unless it's hidden in back somewhere). I was remarkable surprised by what I got - tender chuncks of gyros meat, possible fried or griddled, coated in a rich, spicy masala of some sort. A splendid combination - the oregano of the gyros meat nestled perfectly between the familiar Paki spicing, all wrapped up in lamb goodness - a combination I would have thought unlikely to please. The paratha it was wrapped in was great for 15 minutes before closing - nicely toasted on the griddle, with a good greasy chew to it.

Doused with yogurt, this made a fine meal. I can't wait for my next one. Also very intrigued about gyros pizza at Italian Express now.

Habibi - your description has me salivating. I know what i'm getting for dinner tonight.

btw - the gyros pizza at Italian Express is definitely worth a try. While the pizza is nothing legendary, the addition of generous slices of gyros makes this one of those pizzas that you'll be stuffing in your mouth long after your stomach as advised you otherwise.

Ghazi wrote:Headed over to Nick's yesterday for a late breakfast ( i had just gotten off a plane and was starving!).

Being that it was homemade, it was certainly coarser and grainier than the typical gyros. The texture took a minute to get used to but i really enjoyed the near-chunkiness and substance of the meat. As far as flavor, it was bold and spicy. It reminded me of the garlic afterburn of a homemade sausage. It was certainly more potent than the pre-made gyros variety and carried a complexity that took me a few bites to get used to.
Once used to it, it was fantastic and i will certainly be stopping by again.

For those interested in sauce, the tzatsiki was a little runny, but the flavor was well balanced, which is the most important aspect to me. It also made a great dipping sauce for the fries.

Nick's Drive In
7216 N. Harlem Ave.
Chicago, IL
773-631-5045

I second Ghazi's assesment, almost to the letter. Meat, more coarse than most gyros, more complex and very tasty. Tzatsiki, runnier and definately house made.

While I don;t really have anything new to add, the reason I am posting is to endorse this great version of a classic. I love gyros, and Nick's is my new favorite.

Habibi wrote:I was remarkable surprised by what I got - tender chuncks of gyros meat, possible fried or griddled, coated in a rich, spicy masala of some sort. A splendid combination - the oregano of the gyros meat nestled perfectly between the familiar Paki spicing, all wrapped up in lamb goodness - a combination I would have thought unlikely to please.

A splendid combination indeed.

Ghareeb Nawaz, Gyros Paratha



Habibi, thanks for the heads up on Gyros Paratha, not something I likely would have ordered.

Enjoy,
Gary

Ghareeb Nawaz
2032 W Devon Ave
Chicago, IL 60659
773-761-5300

I have to add in my few votes for Chiggy's in Palatine and The Works on Golf, which has been metioned earlier.

To answer the person who inquired about Olympus in Mt Prospect, I grew up loving that place. Something happened though around the time the Sugar Bowl closed (not sure why I put those two together) and it just wasn't as great as I remembered it. Now that I think about it, the Sugar Bowl thing probably came to be as their old booths are in Olympus..at least the last time I was there.

Enjoy,

John

Deleted and placed in the CND thread...

FoodSnob77 wrote:Basically this was one of the worst Gyro's I've ever had, and I went right at the lunch rush hour as well.

At least you have to hand it to CND for being consistant.

FoodSnob77 wrote: I wonder if all the people on here that profess their love for Nick's, and other places have even tried the gyro's at Parthenon or Greek Islands in Greektown, because if they have I am dumfounded as to why they would prefer any other places, besides the cost and location if they are from the burbs.

Hey, don't throw Nick's under the bus with CND. Have you had Nick's? If so, what makes you so dumbfounded?

I have had the Parthenon and Greek Island version. Parthenon's (correction: Athena's) are good -- cooked well, but very similar to, if not exactly, Kronin's top of the line gyro offering, a bit more lemony than most, but dense like most gyros. That is not a bad thing, but Nick's is different. Aside from the great taste of oregano, lemon, garlic and lamb, it is the texture that distiguishes Nick's, less dense, and I hesitate to say lighter (a very relative term in gyro meat). You can really tell that it is homemade, and something better than every hot dog stand gyro out there.

GI's are very good. I admit to only having them once or twice. I do remember that they were tasty and also different from the mass produced product out there.

As an aside, when I do go to a Greektown restaurant, I view gyros as an appetizer. Plus it is a sit down, waitstaffed meal. Nick's, on the other hand, is a fast food in a basket joint. At those places the gyro sandwich is a quick meal. Not really apples to apples.

EDIT: After viewing the Parthenon thread, I have not had those gyros. Those do look good. I was thinking of another Greektown restaurant, Athena, in my review above. I do stick by my all my other comments.

I really miss Lincoln Town Gyros (RIP), and still haven't tried Central Gyros. So I recommend my childhood haunt (Gyros or Nikki Special).

Wilmette Chuck Wagon
1120 Central Avenue
Wilmette, IL 60091
(847) 256-0120

Making me hungry so I made a map.

My old standard Gyros place was Kostas (formerly Kourtis) in Palatine (Dundee & Hicks). They recently opened up a second location nearer to me in Algonquin (Algonquin Rd and Square Barn).

But the one that I remember for a slight twist on the old standard is Gyros King on the corner of Ogden and Main in Downers Grove. Crowded, greasy, just like a gyros place should be. But their signature King Gyro sandwich adds chunks of feta cheese to the classic. It was my favorite when I worked down that way.

The gyros at the Parthenon are really good!

For a quicker stop, I also like the Greek corner restaurant at Augusta and Damen in Wicker Park!

I am surprised that with all the places mentioned so far, no one has recommended

Wally's Gyros
1006 N. Northwest Hwy.
Park Ridge, IL 60068
847-825-2214

.

I've been twice recently to Charcoal Flame on Dempster, tasty all pork gyro recommended by both Da Beef, aka ChiBBQKing, where I first heard of the place, and Nick Kindelsperger in the recent Chicago Tribune gyro roundup.


Charcoal Flame, count me a fan.

Charcoal Flame Grill
6800 W Dempster St
Morton Grove, IL

G Wiv wrote:I've been twice recently to Charcoal Flame on Dempster, tasty all pork gyro recommended by both Da Beef, aka ChiBBQKing, where I first heard of the place, and Nick Kindelsperger in the recent Chicago Tribune gyro roundup.

For clarity, Nick expressed a preference for gyros made from pork in that article, but he did not call out Charcoal Flame by name.
I used to go to that place, but burnt product in takeout orders on two separate occasions put me off. Stick with the pork gyros, though (called "homemade gyros" on the menu), and you should be okay.

TomInSkokie wrote:

G Wiv wrote:I've been twice recently to Charcoal Flame on Dempster, tasty all pork gyro recommended by both Da Beef, ... and Nick Kindelsperger in the recent Chicago Tribune gyro roundup.

For clarity, Nick expressed a preference for gyros made from pork in that article, but he did not call out Charcoal Flame by name.

He mentions them specifically, as his favorite IIRC, in the slideshow at the top.

TomInSkokie wrote:For clarity, Nick expressed a preference for gyros made from pork in that article, but he did not call out Charcoal Flame by name.

That's actually incorect, if you scroll through the photo gallery at the top Nick K wrote
"As if to drive the point home that pork is more popular in Greece, the pork gyro is called a "Greek gyro" here, as opposed to the "American gyro," which is the standard beef-and-lamb version. The pork comes off the vertical rotisserie crispy and juicy, with seriously alluring cured-bacon aromas. It's wrapped up handsomely in a soft pita with thick slices of juicy tomato, red onion slices, a cucumber-heavy tzatziki and French fries. If there is one gyro that will convert you to the power of pork, it’s this one. 6800 Dempster St., Morton Grove, 847-966-1200, charcoalflamegrill.net"

Sorry about that. I actually read the damn thing both yesterday and today, but didn't look at the slide show and missed the URL.
Middle age is a sad thing.

Pigmon raved about and took me to Charcoal Flame about a year ago. It's very close to one of our offices. Really nice stuff. However, it was such a rapid-fire lunch, I neglected to post about it. Glad Nick K picked up my slack.

=R=

Here's a Greek Gyro Sandwich (as opposed to American Gyro, which is also on the menu), minus onions. Somewhere on the board is a discussion about gyro sandwiches served in Toronto that include fries as part of the sandwich. Sorry, I'm not able to search for a link right now. Anyway, this sandwich was similar in that included fries inside.

The meat itself was excellent. It was a little more restrained in the garlic department compared to a standard "American" cone. I thought it was nicely balanced. They also get an honorable mention for the quality of the tomatoes that they served.

In that same Nick K slideshow, he mentioned that It's Greek to Me on Clark serves a version that uses pork belly for their gyros. That's next on my list to try.

TomInSkokie wrote:For clarity, Nick expressed a preference for gyros made from pork in that article, but he did not call out Charcoal Flame by name.
I used to go to that place, but burnt product in takeout orders on two separate occasions put me off. Stick with the pork gyros, though (called "homemade gyros" on the menu), and you should be okay.

I've noted this elsewhere on the site, but when I was in Greece, gyros were pork or chicken; if it was beef or lamb it was called doner.

BrendanR wrote:

jrapacz wrote:How about the best possible gyro location in the Arlington Heights / Mount Prospect area? Any opinions of Olympus Gyros on Northwest Highway?

Buffalo Grove close enough? I've never been but Dengeos gets some love here.
http://www.dengeos.com/

Last night there was a fire at the BG location of Dengeos.

Dave148 wrote:

BrendanR wrote:

jrapacz wrote:How about the best possible gyro location in the Arlington Heights / Mount Prospect area? Any opinions of Olympus Gyros on Northwest Highway?

Buffalo Grove close enough? I've never been but Dengeos gets some love here.
http://www.dengeos.com/

Last night there was a fire at the BG location of Dengeos.

Apparently the fire was contained to the exterior of the building. The gyro cone is spinning again.

I'm no expert, but in my mouth's humble opinion, the gyros at Athenian Room (Webster just off Halsted) is above average.

Grecian Delight, Kronos Foods Merge to Bring New Innovation to Market

https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/grecia ... ion-market