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Gyrolicious East Meadow on Hempstead Tpke. Nice report of a place "making their own". There I was Thursday having a dissapointing meal at Anthony's right down the road when I could have tried this place instead. Anybody have any info on this place?
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re: stuartlafonda
All I know:
http://long-island.newsday.com/restau...
Which Anthony's disappointed you? Cheers.
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re: emarcus
Wow, I'm sorry, I forgot to add the link of your discovery. I had it copied, got distracted and forgot to attach it. I read you regularly and find the Feed Me Blog a great source of information.
As for Anthony's, (Carle Place) I went in with elevated expectations that were not met. Pizza was fine but I detected no "coal flavor" and my pie by was a bit soft, with flopping and sagging. I think it pales in comparison to Sal's in Port and more then a few non coal oven joints. The wings were a waste with charring and no other flavor. It did remind me why I love Buffalo Wings. As per the other post on Feed Me, I should have had the pork ribs. My disappointment also stemmed from the fact that nearby are other better choices I missed. Gyrolicious,RUB, Dominican Diner and one of my all time favorites L.L. Dent. A meal is a terrible thing to waste.
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re: stuartlafonda
I went to Anthony's once. I thought the pizza was a waste of time. But the wings were amazing! They were the best tasting non-buffalo wings i've ever had. How were they so different when you had them. I picked up a Gyro once at Gyrolicious, i didn't like it at all. After reading Newsday's Feed Me write up last week I will have to try the Pork Gyro. But I didn't enjoy the lamb/beef whatsover.
What and where is Dominican Diner?
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re: jpf1980
Dominican Diner- corner of Front street and Uniondale ave just south of Hofstra. Looks like an old LI diner from the outside, now serving delicious, cheap and huge portions of Dominican food. The pork mofongo and sancocho are usually fantastic, most everything else is very good.
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Dominican Restaurant # 2
1019 Front St, Uniondale, NY 11553
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A huge thumbs down to Gyro Time, but with a catch - I didn't order a gyro, but a falafel. The falafels themselves were fairly good, but everything else just came up (way) short. It was overloaded with vegetables, the sauce was very runny and the thing as a whole was just a large mess than almost tried to hide the fried goodness.
As for all this talk of house made and stuff, it's silly. If it's good, it's good. Take the falafel mess. They used commercial pita/wrap. Packaged ones can be respectable if it's the right selection, toasted and balanced. But, that wasn't the case here. Shake Shack is probably the most respected burger chain and they use martin's rolls as their bun. It's the right selection, properly toasted and balanced with the contents of their burger. It's a commercial product and it's great.
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Gyro Time
354 Larkfield Rd, E Northport, NY 11731›1 Reply-
re: ediblover
mcf
Jul 24, 2011 01:37 PM
I wouldn't give Gyro Time as a whole a thumbs down for bad falafel; I'd just make sure not to order it there. As for house made, that's of hyooge importance when it comes to gyro; the pre-formed stuff is crapola and theirs is very good. So is the grilled octopus, and the salads. I've never had an authentic falafel, btw, where the tahini sauce wasn't runny with lemon juice added to the tahini.
I love it that way, have never eaten it any other way, nor would I if it were thick and gloppy. As for the bread, yeah, it took a bad turn after the initial glow post opening. Can't argue there.-----
Gyro Time
354 Larkfield Rd, E Northport, NY 11731
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dont know if anyone has tried pete's pitaria (hopefully im spelling that right) but its in island park, very small place & super casual, but its a fav of mine. i get the chicken gyro platter & they can come with salad & hummus. lamb gyro is good too & they have whole wheat pitas...their hummus is delicious (i will admit to being VERY picky about that) & their spicy feta dip is good too.
only downside, if you wanna call it that, is parking can be tricky & they onlt take cash!
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We visited last weekend and found the slices in the gyro sandwiches were full length not the shards of the cut slices from the hanging meat; an improvement from the last visit. Of the three hanging gyro cones, I selected the fullest one, disregarding the kind of meat it contained, in order to get these slices by reasoning that this cone would be easiest to cut and I was right.When one gets the shards, they are more dried out and less tasty than full slices. The tzatziki sauce could have had some additional flavoring, but I guess the flavorless Chinese restaurant syndrome applies to Greek restaurants on LI, too. The owners surmise that bland is in when it applies to seasonings. Why it doesn't apply to the meat cones, I don't know. Unfortunately, there was only one waitress covering the place on a fairly busy Sat night and she relentlessly scurried to cover her duties. Why, only one? The pita which had lacked the soft freshness on a prior visit was fresh. The night was chilly and the only warm table was the one immediately to the left of the door as a prior poster had said.Unfortunately, it was occupied so we couldn't get it. The place had made a comeback in mho.
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re: budcar
mcf
Apr 28, 2010 08:17 AM
We've noted the same improvements in our last few visits and take out orders. If you're in the area, Spice Village Grill n Main St. in Huntington has a different menu, but is very good, too. They're revising/extending what's been a very small takeout menu so far.
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re: mcf
Slightly mixed experience at Spice Village. My main course (the Mixed Grill, or something like that) was very tasty. The naan was disappointing: heavy and doughy. The appetizer was inexplicable: served AFTER we received the main course (I'd thought they'd forgotten it, but there it was just as I was taking the first bites of my meal).
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Spice Village
8 Columbus Ave, Tuckahoe, NY 10707-
re: Scott_R
mcf
Apr 29, 2010 07:21 AM
I had one disappointment there when they first opened; I ordered the most expensive thing on the menu, the lamb chops, med rare and they were very well done. They offered to make new ones, but they were so thin, and came out on such a sizzling hot metal platter that all but the first bite was well done soon, too. I don't eat bread, so can't comment, but on balance, the flavors are very good, and we've had mostly very enjoyable food from them.
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re: mcf
"There" being Spice Village?
The lamb chops, were they the things aka "baby lamb chops," about half palm-sized and maybe a half-inch thick? If so, I've rarely (no pun intended) found places that get the doneness on those just right. They have to basically be just seared; they'll self-cook on their own after that, and if served on a sizzling platter, should be placed on rice or anything else to insulate them from the plate.-----
Spice Village
8 Columbus Ave, Tuckahoe, NY 10707-
re: Scott_R
mcf
Apr 29, 2010 01:29 PM
"There" being Spice Village?"
Yes.
They were more like baby shoulder chops, and very thin. Should not have been put on a sizzling platter as you say. I told the owners I wouldn't order them again, but would be back for the otherwise wonderful food and gracious service.
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I was just in Ephesus in Massapequa Park for lunch, and I watched them making the gyro, building it on the spit layer by layer.
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re: mcf
Well, I've posted in the past and said how much I enjoy the food in general at Ephesus--don't recall if I specifically mentioned the gyro, but I do like that too. In this case, though, I'd gotten there a bit early and ordered the gyro, but the owner pointed out (literally: he pointed to where it was being put together) that it was in the process of being made so I had the adana kebab instead (the gyro had a ways to go before it was cooked).
I was just posting in response to the discussion about places that make their own, having just seen with my own eyes it being made at Ephesus.
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Aloha,
I've eaten at many, many Gryo joints, but Gyro Palace Cafe in Rocky Point is probably the best. Everything is made fresh, even the pita's. The tarama is out of this world, the portions are immense.
Anything I've ever ordered is out of sight with right balance of herbs, meats, and freshness. It's hole in the wall place, near KFC on the corner of 25a and Rocky Point rd.BTW, I'm a new poster but read often and an avid foodie - LI is in no way, shape or form a chowhound wasteland. Just because people don't post, doesn't reflect the chowhound situation.
Here's the link -
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re: lisurf
coll
Feb 15, 2010 11:05 AM
I drive by there all the time, guess I'll have to stop in and sample, so thanks. I usually stop at the pizza place next to Del Fiore when I'm in the area, it's sort of strange to me around there, destination wise.
Hmmm... just glanced at their menu, their gyros are made of 100% beef? I don't know...
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re: mcf
Yeah, Rocky point can be a "behind god's back" destination. Del Fiore is still there as is the pizzeria. However, the pizzeria also attached to a great restaurant "Caruso's" which is also owned (as someone mentioned) by the guy who runs "La Plage".
Caruso's used to have a very adventurous menu - for example, they had an app of tuna/avocado/grapefuit crudo to die for. Now their menu is a mix of old style Italian (for the demographic - though it's still great) and new combinations that are still delicious. I highly recommend it. They also have a cocktail called the "Caruso" which is phenomenal, though you have to ask for it.
As far as "La Plage" goes, I've never had a bad meal there. The menu is always fresh, local and changing.
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re: coll
Coll, no the waiter won't sing an aria - but the drink probably will. This cocktail got me really got into "Bulldog" gin and I'm definitely not much of a gin drinker. Wayne's not there anymore - but Pat is. She knows her way around food - we ended sitting next to her one time at Kotubuki.
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re: lisurf
mcf
Feb 16, 2010 08:42 AM
It was so awfully bad that one time that we've since stayed away, but I've never heard anyone else complain of a similar experience. We had awful, slow service, received fried calamari thick with greasy gobs of uncooked batter. We'd brought an out of town guest and promised her a rave meal, so it was really embarrassing, since the server also was terrible. I'm sure it was highly irregular for them. I don't think we really liked a single dish that night, like the regular staff were all MIA.
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re: mcf
I never let a single bad experience out of many very good experiences keep me away. Any restaurant can have a bad/off night due to whatever factors, just like everyone else.
Seriously, optimism helps - if I walked into every restaurant with a "LI sucks" attitude, it would affect my meal. There are some things I don't put up with and will cut a meal short. If a dish is that bad, I'd send it back. But out of all the great experiences I have had at "Caruso's" - I wouldn't let a bad meal deter me.
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re: lisurf
mcf
Feb 16, 2010 09:16 AM
I don't have that attitude at all. But it was about as bad an experience in every way that one can have, including no attempt to make up for it. We found other places that always served us food we liked to go to instead. Then we moved to Huntington, so it's less convenient to give it another go.
We did send the dish back; then our guest waited forever for a replacement that was cooked, but still not very good. And the management never came over nor made any attempt to make amends. I'm not saying we would never try the place again, but we sure didn't feel like it much after that.
BTW, you know I'm talking about La Plage, not Caruso's, right?
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re: mcf
My apologies, mcf. That wasn't clear.
I agree, many things that can go wrong, can really spoil a meal. Poor food is just one of them. I'm sorry to hear that your experience then was bad, soup to nuts, so to speak. Still, I would really urge you to try La Plage again. They were definitely not having a great night. My experience with them has been stellar.
I was just reacting to LI bashing - the food here is great - you just have to travel. Some of the BBQ joints (Bobbique in patchogue in particular) I've eaten at on LI are better than the so-called "Holy Grail" places BBQ I've eaten at, all over the US. This summer I ate at about a dozen of them as I was driving out West, they weren't even close to Bobbique.
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re: lisurf
mcf
Feb 16, 2010 10:17 AM
My apologies, mcf. That wasn't clear."
Actually, it was, you just have to follow all the posts in the thread. It's the only one of the two I described.
As for LI bashing, I haven't seen it, and I don't do it. As a rule, I try to address only the information in a person's posts rather than to attack a poster's character.
Nuff said? :-)
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re: lisurf
mcf
Feb 15, 2010 12:51 PM
Are you certain that they make their own gyro meat in the store, rather than purchasing it and cooking them there? I used to live out that way, and did take out there once, and I don't remember it as having been good at all. Maybe it's changed hands since then?
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mcf
Feb 12, 2010 04:14 PM
Just got back from our most recent visit to Gyro Time, and it was as satisfying as all our other visits, except for the arctic type breezes every time someone opened the door, despite the heat blasting away to compensate.
The gyro my husband ordered was as good as ever, definitely much better than is typical of most Greek storefront restaurants, IMO. It was very thinly shaved but still extremely moist. I thought it was very well seasoned. Our salads were huge even though we specifically said not to give us extra to replace the rice/potatoes we asked not to have on our plates. There were lots of big cubes of feta, olives and roma tomatoes. I really appreciate that they don't just pile a plate with iceberg lettuce, the greens and salad overall are very mixed. I often get charcoal calamari, and it was moist and very smoky, totally addictive.
This was our second or third visit with the newest server there, and things run so much more smoothly in the dining room now, she's very sweet and on top of everything.
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re: mcf
Does anyone else notice the following at Gyro Time? 1. the pita which, when the restaurant opened, was soft and fresh and almost home made now seems as commercially made as anywhere else 2. the chicken donner gyro which should be thin strips of the hanging cone now is bits and pieces of the stuff that has initially escaped the blade or is it just me?
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re: budcar
mcf
Feb 14, 2010 06:14 AM
I didn't like the grilled pita as much this past visit. Haven't had the chicken gyro, though.
My husband's gyro pieces were definitely smaller than the long strips, but just as moist and tasty. When I looked over at the gyro station, I could see that they were down to the inner part of the cone and that it was solid pieces of meat stacked there, but small in cirucmference. -
re: budcar
Went to Gyro Time last week for first time in a few months. The pita definitely lacked the freshness I've experienced in the past. I usually get the charcoal calamari but instead opted for combo plate of gyro and souvlaki. Both overcooked and dry and delivered w/o yogurt sauce. My daughter had falafel plate (she's a vegetarian). It, too was overcooked and delivered w/o sauce.. It was extremely difficult to get the one wait person's attention with a full house. Disappointed to say the least.
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Gyro Time
354 Larkfield Rd, E Northport, NY 11731
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We went to Gyro Time this past weekend - wasn't that impressed. I had the gyro - it tasted like every other gyro I have ever had, maye even a little underseasoned. The lemon potatoes had no lemon flavor and were undercooked. The place was freezing. The service though was very very nice - the waitress was very friendly and was super nice to my son
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byrd
Feb 5, 2010 07:32 AM
Name me one place that makes their own gyro on the island (I didn't say doner. souvlaki, schwaarma, or chicken gyro). It does not exist.
I'll even take it further, and add Brooklyn and Queens...
There are just a handful left.›23 Replies-
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re: byrd
mcf
Feb 5, 2010 10:08 AM
I promise to re-confirm when I go, which will be soon. Or you can call them yourself from your car on the way: 631 266 3300.. ;-) Did you note MrPhil's response? I'm pretty sure I didn't hallucinate the conversation I had, but I won't give a flat out assurance until I verify it once more.
Edit: I saved you a phone call and did it myself. They make their own gyro meat IN THE STORE. Try it, you'll like it! I expect to read your review in an hour or two. ;-)
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re: mcf
I would just add a link to their menu:
http://www.gyrotimeny.com/OUTGOING_ME...
which also notes that their gyro is homemade.
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re: byrd
coll
Feb 5, 2010 11:38 AM
Pita House in Patchogue buys his own lamb and marinades and cooks himself. I shouldn't say it because it's probably against health board regulations, but he hates Kronos gyros and is very proud that everything, including grape leaves, are made from scratch following his family recipes from his humble Turkish roots.
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re: byrd
Though this may be subject to interpretation, the recent Long Island Press review of Pita House in East Setauket
http://www.longislandpress.com/2010/0...
refers to "the moist, greaseless, homemade lamb and beef that makes up the Gyro-Doner Kebab Sandwich."Yes, it says doner, but it also says gyro.
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re: mcf
Yep, that's them. :)
Seriously though... I've spoken to them about those ridiculous "Best of..." listings, and they basically say they can't help it, it's how the people voted. Whether that's true or not, it's still a different issue than them possibly making a false assertion of fact (compared to silly opinions). The only reason I put the quote in was for the claim that the meat is homemade, not as to how good it is.
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