The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill - Byron Center, MI — Restaurant in Byron Township

Grand Rapids hasn't had an authentic Greek restaurant since the city lost the place in Burton Heights at the beginning of the COVID pandemic. So when I read about the Great Greek Mediterranean Grill on Reddit, I was very hopeful. Unfortunately, we left disappointed.

Walking in you order at the counter cafeteria style and then seat yourself. Despite the lack of full service, they use that annoying iPad with tips starting at 18%. The menu was promising although it lacks some common Greek dishes like pastitsio and moussaka.

Unfortunately, the quality is subpar. I ordered the mezze plate and all the food on it tasted like it was made somewhere else and then assembled on site. GFS style. The spanikopita, rather than being flaky, tasted like it had been reheated from frozen. The pita is gummy, definitely not baked fresh in house. The falafel has that bitter off-taste common with grocery store falafel box mixes. At least the salad was fresh.

Items like the hummus and tzatziki which are advertised with the mezze plate didn't come out with it. We had to ask twice. There doesn't appear to be a manager on site doing quality control checks of what's coming out of the kitchen.

In short, this is mall food court quality food being offered at full service restaurant prices. The restaurant appears to be an investment for absent owners rather than a labor of love. This isn't how Greek food should be offered. While the desserts looked promising, we decided to skip them based on the low quality of our main meal.

While there is not an alternative Greek place in the Grand Rapids area at present, you can get close by going to Sheshco in Knapp Corner which does have homemade eastern Mediterranean food at a similar...

Owner, thanks for your reply and encouraging feedback :) Here are my thoughts behind my average rating:

Room to improve: While I really appreciate the actual greek style pitas, they should be grilled more. Most of the time they feel like they were used out of a bag or thawed, unlike shops from the homeland.

Room to improve: Re: the gyro and souvlaki - The gyro meat is not the kind that is being carved in pieces from a rotating spit. Also, I was scratching my head when I saw a shrimp option for souvlaki (which I've never seen in my life growing up in Greece) but no pork souvlaki option (hirino/χοιρινό) which is among the most popular, along with chicken.

Good stuff: This place is the place to go for tyrokafteri and melitzanosalata, things that are hard to find anywhere else in Grand Rapids.

Misc: I wish the "sandwich" menu or "sides" had the option for just buying a couple of souvlakis by the stick on a pita and not having to shell out 15 usd to get an entire platter with the salad and tzatziki. Maybe it is not profitable in the business...

Overall, food is about average, and the cashiers can range from neutral to mildly friendly. I did get an apology for an order taking longer than expected.

Others may be fine with the options offered, but to me some of the limitations and menu/price structure makes it hard for me to justify coming too often aside from when feeling homesick enough to stop by for a chicken souvlaki taste that can approximate Greek...

Not much of a Mediterranean fan, but this was delicious! The food had a lighter flavor that felt healthier and yet did not lose flavor in the least.

The Great Greek Gyro: I chickened out (literally) and got the chicken version. The shell was soft and overall a great foundation. The fillings were plentiful, juicy, and crispy. I had to juggle it a bit because it is so big, but I am used to it with my preferences of big foods. I had a friend with me who got the beef and lamb version and he let me try a slice of lamb. It was WONDERFUL. I am NOT chickening out next time (though the chicken was good).

Athenian Burger: Squish it down, it's pretty big. It has a great balance of Mediterranean flavor, but it still fits within the taste buds of most Americans. I liked how they incorporated the salad-like lettuce with the cheese. It surprised me how good it was.

French Fries: They stayed hot for a while. I usually eat fries first because they cool fast, but I saved them for last. They were crispy on the outside and light on the inside. They were filling and flavorful. However, they only come in one size and it is what I'd consider larger than what most would want and that comes with the larger price tag. May you get a smaller batch...