Athenian Corner Restaurant — Restaurant in Lowell

This restaurant left a bad taste in my mouth. I was excited to take my family there for my mother's birthday. Let me just say, the food was very mediocre. The chicken souvlaki I got tasted like the chicken was raw, after stressing to the waitress that I would like it well-done. Our waitress (I cannot remember her name) was pleasant, but some of the waitresses looked like they were having a bad night and were not particularly nice. When I walked in, I was rather disappointed at its small size. In no part of the restaurant can two people walk side by side. One person has to move to one side so another can get by. However, that's not really a big deal if the food, staff, and experience are pleasant...right? But that wasn't the case for me. Cleanliness is huge, especially at a restaurant where I will be EATING. So I immediately noticed how dirty the carpet was, which was extremely very off-putting. They were so dirty that the original carpet patterns were hardly visible. The edges of the carpet had its colors and patterns preserved due to inactivity in those areas, so the contrast is very noticeable. The chairs and everything else in the restaurant is so old. When I went to use the restroom upstairs, it looked like it was falling apart and smelled awful. I can't actually recall being anywhere in my life that was more in need of renovation. Why the owner thinks this is okay and apparently unwilling to invest some money in renovation and carpet cleaning is beyond me. I don't even want to imagine what their kitchen looks like!

Now for the entertainment. There were three older gentlemen that played pleasant music, but they did NOT look like they wanted to be there. They all had flat affects and were not lively. The music at Byblos (and everything else for that matter) is a million times better. One of the musicians was casually picking at his tooth while up there. Gross. The belly dancer was absolutely cringe-worthy. And get this - after she finished performing, she sat at one of the tables and started counting the tips she gathered while dancing from table to table! She took out all the single dollars and started counting, then handed the money over to her partner and he counted the money as well. Where everyone can see. How unprofessional and distasteful. Needless to say, I will not be...

Flaming Greek cheese, belly dancers on the weekends, Grape Leaves, Spanakopita and surprises, This is Athenian Corner, For over 40 years the Panagiotopoulos Family has been delivering the best greek food to hungry patrons. The Lamb Athenian Shish-Ke-Bob was my personal favorite. But the Saganaki is a showstopper. For a great dinner and a show, Athenian Corner is the place to go. Featured Items: Saganaki - Imported Broiled Kasseri Cheese & Greek Sausage, served flaming Broiled Greek Sausage with a characteristic orange flavor Lamb Athenian Shish-Ke-Bob -The Specialty of the House Tender cubes of Lamb in our special marinade, skewered with Onions & Peppers & charbroiled to perfection Spanakopita - Layers of Spinach & Feta Cheese Pie with Flaky Filo Dough @athenian Corner Pastitsio - Layers of Macaroni and Ground Beef, topped with a Creamy Béchamel Topping Grape Leaves - Stuffed with Ground Beef, Rice, Seasonings & served with an Egg‐Lemon...

Sometimes, mistakes are made, and that's ok. It's ok if an employee has a bad day and maybe isn't as friendly as many expect in this culture. I didn't experience anything like that here, but what I did experience on my last visit was far worse. When I stopped in to pick up a delivery order, the place was completely packed with people standing in about every possible square foot of space. There was a woman spewing right-wing conspiracies into a microphone as some in the crowd expressed their agreement. Clearly, some rally of the uninformed was occurring. How could a restaurant provide a platform for such dangerous rhetoric? How could they expect the team members to work under such verbally abusive conditions? You might have the best food I've ever had, but you can be sure I'll never care...