North Central News, November 2012 – Page 45

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Café ChatHearty gyros servedwith a hearty attitudeBy Patty Talahongva

“Hey, I missed you bro,” calls outTomas Soro as he greets a customer whohas been traveling recently. “That is howI talk to my customers,” he says. “I wentto his house and watched a footballgame. I was for one team, he was foranother.” Then Soro lets loose with agreat big laugh in his booming voice.

He’s been greeting his customers-turned regulars-turned friends at hisquaint restaurant, Athens Gyros at 830E. Indian School Road, for three years.Soro is Lebanese and embraces allMediterranean food but he also has aChicago-style hotdog on his menu andit’s a pretty good seller. Served withatomic green relish, mustard, celerysalt, onions and tomato, he jokes thatit’s the extent of his kid’s menu ... butadults like it, too.

Soro purchases his gyro meat, amixture of 85 percent beef and 15 per-cent lamb, on a skewer and slow cooksit in an open rotisserie. As orders comein, he slices off a portion and sautés itin a pan, each gyro cooked to order.

“I make everything fresh,” he says,explaining why it might take a littlemore time to prepare. Among his spe-cialties are beef or chicken shish kabobsthat come with regular or spicy sauce.He makes all of his tahini sauces, too,

which are sesame-seed based.“I come from the garlic part of the

world,” Soro points out, so much of hisfood is flavored with garlic along withlemon juice.

Athens Gyros also serves severalvegetarian dishes. There are five salads,including fattoush, a Lebanese cucum-ber salad made with diced tomatoes,parsley and pita chips rather than crou-tons. You also can get a tabouli, Greek,Caesar or house salad.

Two types of hummus also areserved: traditional or roasted red pep-pers. The house dressing is so popularthat Soro consents to selling it to a fewregular customers who bring in theirown bottle.

Prices range from $4 for a gyro upto a $14 for some shish kabobs. Youcan get a plate of food, a combo or justa gyro ala carte. The Chicago hotdog is$5.99. Each day Soro will pick one ortwo items to feature and the price willbe reduced for the day. Dessert is bakla-va for just $2.

Housed in a small 500-square-footspace, it’s easy to shout your order intothe kitchen when things get busy andcustomers come in hungry. That’s howLynsey and David Bellis placed theirorder. They happened to be driving byand looking for a place to eat. A shortsearch for local restaurants on theirsmart phone led them to the highlyrated Athens Gyros. “I love the falafel,

Tomas Soro, owner of Athens Gyros, carves a hunk of gyro meat that is slow roasted on askewer and then sliced and pan finished when ordered (photo by Patty Talahongva).

please see ATHENS on page 46

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Page 46 – North Central News, November 2012 www.northcentralnews.net

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

it’s very fresh,” Lynsey proclaims.David got the chicken souvlaki.“Everything is really good,” he says,adding, “I like how we can just yell ourorder back there, I think it’s fun.”

Marcus Bailey recently came in forthe fourth time. He likes the gyros. “It’sgot a good flavor,” he says of the food,“lots of spices, always fresh too.” Thecompetitive prices are also a draw forthis customer.

All this noshing takes place with avariety of music in the backgroundranging from rock to Latin, Arabic,Turkish and holiday tunes. Soro likes tomix it up.

Like many restaurant owners, Sorodoes it all. As he cleans tables he careful-ly places aluminum cans in a bag. Hesaves them for a customer who recyclesthem. It’s that kind of consideration thatkeeps customers like Sergio Perez.

“I stayed in the neighborhoodbecause of Tom. His food has soul!”Perez is from Chicago and likes theauthenticity of Athens Gyros; he eatsthere two to three times a week.

Shawn Carpenter, also fromChicago, is now a regular at the neigh-borhood eatery. “I’ve been coming hereforever. I helped with the remodel,” hesays proudly. Regulars will see the newmurals that grace the walls, and thefloor now all tiled. The Greek chickensalad is Carpenter’s favorite but he alsoenjoys the gyro plate.

All this praise makes Soro smile. Hewants people to enjoy his food and be

comfortable, to not feel rushed. Nowthat cool evening weather is here, din-ers can enjoy their meal al fresco at oneof the few tables that are set up on thesidewalk in front. No alcohol is served;however, bring your own wine or beerand pay a $5 corkage fee per group.

Athens Gyros is open Mondaythrough Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8p.m. Closed on Sundays. Call 602-265-6606 to place to-go orders.

Dining BriefsDuck and Decantercelebrates 40 years

The Duck and Decanter will cele-brate its 40th anniversary on Saturday,Nov. 24, at its Camelback location,1641 E. Camelback Road. The celebra-tion will feature food, beverages, livemusic and time with friends.

The fourth generation is embracingthe challenges and prospects of continu-ing to grow the family business. “Back in1972, when we first purchased the‘Duck,’ we weren’t considering longevi-ty,” remembers Dort Mettler, who co-founded Duck and Decanter with herhusband, Early. “[We] were too busy fig-uring out how to run a gourmet shop.”

It was the creative partnership ofthe husband-wife team, with the finan-cial and physical support of their par-ents, that created a unique concept inselling handcrafted sandwiches. TheDuck also became known as an innov-ative retail pioneer, offering fresh roast-ed coffee beans, espresso drinks, wineby the glass, imported delicacies,

ATHENS continued from page 45

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North Central News, November 2012 – Page 47www.northcentralnews.net

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

unique kitchen gadgets and exotic pro-duce while earning many local andnational awards.For more information, call Karen

Mettler-Mason at the Downtown Duckand Decanter at 602-266-6637.

Brunch optionsadded at eateriesWith temperatures dropping and

football invading the airwaves, it mustbe fall, which means that dining al fres-co isn’t just for late night anymore.

Del Frisco’s Grille, known for itstwo breezy patios, is firing up thekitchen early on the weekends forbrunch. Offered every Saturday andSunday from 11 a.m.-4 p.m., the menuincludes items such as banana-mascar-pone-stuffed French toast with thick-cut hickory smoked bacon, and a crab-cake benedict with asparagus andpoached eggs in a Cajun lobster sauceon toasted focaccia.Other brunch items include chi-

laquiles—tortillas layered with salsa,shaved lettuce, tomato, queso cojitaand crema—and chicken-fried steakand eggs doused in chorizo gravy andserved with a jumbo biscuit. Morningcocktails, including a build-your-ownBloody Mary also will liven up theweekend morning.Del Frisco’s Grille is located at 2425

E. Camelback Road. For more infor-mation, call 602-466-2890 or visitwww.delfriscosgrille.com.

The Grind at 3691 E. CamelbackRoad also recently added weekendbreakfast. The restaurant will open at 9a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, offer-ing all the NCAA and NFL games.New breakfast menu items include

a “Grind Burger Scramble” with scram-bled eggs, chopped cheeseburger patty,cheese, sautéed onions and diced toma-to and served with hash browns andtoast, and “Breakfast Grind Style,” acheeseburger topped with hash browns,fried egg and bacon.The kids will be happy with choco-

late chip pancakes with a choice ofjuice or milk for $6.To view the full breakfast menu,

visit: http://www.thegrindaz.com/the-menu. For more information, call602.95.GRIND.

Gypsy Bar opensat CityScapeThe owner of Lucky Strike Lanes

has opened a new nightclub next to thepopular bowling lounge. Gypsy Bar,

located at 50 W. Jefferson in CityScape,is physically connected to Lucky Strikebut boasts a hip look and feel of itsown. Among the club’s focal points is araised stage and DJ booth flanked bymassive state-of-the-art video screens.Gypsy Bar also has a fully loaded

game lounge featuring 40 arcade gamesin an adult-oriented environment.Games will be accessible through anelectronic rechargeable game card thataccumulates reward points that can beredeemed for prizes. Cards can be pur-chased with a credit card or cash.Gypsy Bar will offer a full dinner

menu featuring everything from tacosand hamburgers to lobster and primerib. For more information, visitwww.gypsybarphoenix.com.

Two new eateriesjoin CenPho selectionsUpward Projects, a group of locally

focused restaurateurs headed by Craigand Kris DeMarco and Lauren andWyatt Bailey, opened its latest restau-rant concept in the North CentralPhoenix on Oct. 9.

Federal Pizza is housed in the oldplease see EATERIES on page 48

TACOTUESDAYS$2 Specialty TacosHalf Off Sangria

Half Off Dos Equis Amber Ale$2 Off House MargaritasEVERY TUESDAY ALL DAY!

CCOOMMEE UUSS!!Membership is available to all - you don’t need to be Italian to join.

7509 N. 12th St.602-944-3090 • www.azaiclub.org

BingoMondays and Fridays at 6 p.m., Sundays at 1 p.m. Over $3,000 in payouts each session.

Newly remodeled air conditioned room, snack bar and smoking patio.

EventsFriday Night Buffet: Come enjoy our buffet, live entertainment and dancing every Friday night.

Buffet opens at 5:30 p.m. and music starts at 7:30 p.m; $11 per person.

Saturday, Nov. 10: Rare Fine Art Exhibit & Offering from the “Barr Collection” 1 p.m. to 6 p.m Come meet the artist, Gary Barr and enjoy light h’ordeuvres. $5 donation to charity.

New Year’s Eve PartyMonday, Dec. 31: Join now for 2013 and reserve your place for the BEST NEW YEAR’S

EVE PARTY IN TOWN. Music and dancing in two different rooms featuring ROCKING BLUES BY“THE ROCKET 88s” in one and Adult Contemporary band (TBA) in the other.

Spectacular Dinner Buffet, Choice of 2 Live bands, Champagne and Breakfast at midnight.$55 per person includes 4 drink tickets. Advance tickets and reservations required.

Call 602-944-3090 for information. Membership required for one member of your party.

BUSINESS DIRECTORY

www.northcentralnews.netPage 48 – North Central News, November 2012

First Federal Savings & Loan Bank at5210 N. Central Ave., designed byarchitect Al Beadle. Diners can expect amenu of big salads, sharable appetizers,and wood-fired pizzas designed by mas-ter baker MJ Coe. The wine list is sea-sonal and progressive, and beers arelocal and regional with an emphasis onsmall-batch craft selections. Federalalso offers custom Growlers, largereusable glass jugs that can be filledwith any of the local and regional craftbeers on tap, taken to go.The bank’s old teller lane has been

converted into a pickup window forthose dining on the go.Federal Pizza is open for lunch and

dinner service seven days a week. Hours

are 11a.m.-11 p.m. Sunday throughThursday, and 11 a.m.-12 p.m. Fridayand Saturday. For more information,visit www.upwardprojects.com.

Central Bistro, a concept fromGerman Osio and Chef Andrea Volpi,opened on Oct. 14 serving lunch anddinner. The space that once housedZen32, located at 3160 E. CamelbackRoad, has been rebuilt from the groundup and expanded to nearly twice the size.Osio and Volpi bring flavors of Italy

and France to the Biltmore neighbor-hood. All items at the bistro are madefrom scratch daily, including the hand-made pasta, sauces and salad dressings.A large portion of the ingredients willbe sourced from local purveyors andfarmers.At lunch, freshly made soups, salads

and sandwiches take precedence. As theday transitions to evening, hearty fla-vors reign with handmade pastas,Neapolitan style pizza, and substantialentrées. Meals are complemented withmore than 250 wine selections.Central Bistro also offers a

Champagne Sunday brunch. The restau-rant will serve variations of the classicBenedict, a selection of gourmet omelets,sweet morning morsels, and more.For more information, call 480-

646-8560 or visit the website atwww.facebook.com/CentralBistroAZ.

Pie-tasting eventset for Nov. 3Chow Bella and Roosevelt Row pre-

sent the Third-Annual Pie Social (andCroquet Tournament) 2-6 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 3, at 2nd Street andRoosevelt.The annual Pie Social features the

culinary masterpieces of celebrity chefsand community members alike. Youcan purchase five pie tastings for $10,or you can bake and bring two pies (nomeat or dairy fillings) in exchange forfive pie tasting.In addition to the pies, there will be

a limited number of arts, craft, or vin-tage pop-up shops.A portion of the proceeds benefits

Phoenix Union Bioscience High Schoolart programs. For more information, e-mail cindy@rooseveltrow.org or visitwww.rooseveltrow.org.

EATERIES continued from page 47

For local restaurant listings,visit our Dining Guide at

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