John The Greek Restaurant — Restaurant in San Antonio

The best time to venture to this eatery would be between 11AM and 2 PM to Avoid the 5pm rush hour. But honestly what ever time you go... Be prepared to be amazed!

Our place of choice was John the Greek! 16602 San Pedro Ave. 78232. In San Antonio. In Park Oaks center, a hidden jewel in the City known for Mexican food.  Our Hostess, Gloria was very knowledgeable both in the knowledge of Greek food and the experience that her patrons have.  With the tile floors, in the colors of adobe and Blue just like the Grecian flag, it was a Treet both for the palette and the visual senses.

The food.

I have always said, not so much from personal experience alone, but from my exploratory adventures... That the best restaurant isn't one that is on a down town strip, or located in a five star hotel in the middle of a grand metropolis.  The best restaurants are the ones you find a humble cook.  Either a grandmother or people who have been taught by her.  John the Greek has both.  The food was simple yet delicious, you can taste the extra care that goes in to the preparation of every course, from the salad to the Gyro, even the French Fries, which I am sure is a totally Western creation was hand made And perfectly prepared to perfection!

The food in it's simplicity was and is a very delicate and well balanced Choreography, a ballet of flavor. A romantic dance that incorporated flavor, and ingredients, tradition and technique.  A well balanced meal that both gave me sustenance, and sensation. The sensation that I got was is this how I would be eating if I was in Athens Greece?  Yes, I believe it would be.

My last thought on this our exploration is atmosphere... A place either has it or it doesn't. Atmosphere is not something you can cook up, bottle or sell... It is a living breathing organism all of its own.  It is created, I believe, when people cook good food.  Cooking is, and always will be an art form. But atmosphere is something totally different. It is given birth in the passion that a chef has in preparing a meal for hungry travelers... And John the Greek has, in my personal opinion, the best atmosphere I have experienced in a very long time.  It can be seen in the smile of the waitress, the faces of the patrons, the hand shake of the chef and the cashier.  And tasted in the excellent food they prepare... In closing I would just like to add, that even though I come from a different culture from the one I experienced today, and even though we have difference of opinions on what our food (Mexican) tastes like.  The food at John the Greek had one thing that can be found in a little hole in the wall Mexican eatery and that's this... Loyal patrons, who don't have to think about the food they are going to eat... They KNOW it's good! Real Good...

What a great lil restaurant and so well worth visiting with their great atmosphere! I've been here twice in the last two months (I live 45 minutes away). Once for lunch on a fluke while shopping in SA, and last night we drove all the way out for dinner. Had the same waiter both times, I think his name is Cole, what a wonderful waiter, he is attentive, kind and very professional and impressive despite his youth! For service, I'd give 10 stars if I could, thank you Cole!! The manager came out and made personal visits to all the tables and was very warm. The menu is very authentic and delicious, very much a taste of home! Many dishes are just like what we fix at home with no labor lol. Staff is detail oriented and were happy to accommodate changes for my dietary needs in every dish! Saganaki, brandied flaming cheese, prepared at table side is really is a must. The avgolemono soup is on point and like a warm hug! I had the lamb souvlaki which was amazing on my first visit but a bit tough last night (one star down for the tough meat). The salad with a 5 star dressing and my side, eggplant, was delicious to say the least! We also had their combo plate, a very very good way to try a little of so many dishes. Pita was buttered, seasoned and toasted, can easily turn into an obsession which is by far better than my homemade version. An absolute MUST try is their shrimp appetizer OMG!! talk about flavor town, I've never had shrimp that was this flavourful! I was disappointed that they were out of braised leg of lamb but everything we had was so good, we'll be happy to go again maybe a bit earlier for dinner and hopefully before they sell out again. We ended the meal with baklava which tasted freshly home made and just like mine but less work. The only other disappointment was the lamb gyro, it was underseasoned and tasted highly processed. Considering the rest of the menu tasted so good, I expected better so I wouldn't recommend the gyro (the other reason one star was dropped). Give this place a try, the menu is large and price point is low to moderate, about $11-$30 per main dish. We spent around $60 for shared appetizer, two full meals with add-ons and...

Dinner on Saturday with a group of 3. One Star for the pleasant atmosphere and the Pita bread. I ordered the Octopus dinner with Vegetables and Spinach rice for 12.95$. I was disappointed when my meal was served. Goya Octopus can product? The Octopus looked, tasted and was the same amount as the Goya product you can buy at HEB in a 4 oz can, just heated up. It was served with, what looked and tasted to me like frozen mixed vegetables (2 pieces of Broccoli, 2 pieces of Cauliflower & 2 pieces of sliced carrots), no seasoning was added, the Spinach rice had a boring non seasoned flavor. We also ordered the Tzatziki appetizer; this about 1/2 cup sized Tzatziki was more like a Cucumber salad with a light Tzatziki dressing. The Pita Bread was good. My two Dinner companions ordered the Pork Souvlaki and the Shrimp Souvlaki, both were very disappointed with the Taste/flavor, quality, amount & texture. We than ordered 4 pieces of Beef Gyro and 4 pieces of Chicken Gyro, the taste of the meat was not tasteable, since it just tasted like a texture with lots of pepper. To our Dinner we first ordered the Retsina wine, which I asked to have returned because of the Vinegar moldy flavor. The Server exchanged me the wine with a short hesitation to the Elios wine, which was good. Later I went to the Restroom, while I was waiting outside to wait for my turn a female pregnant Server came up and with loud noise complained that "now to all of it, she has to wait in line for her to use the Restroom". I wanted to offer her to use the Restroom before me, but she was than involved in active talking with people sitting there and took no notice of my offer. Overall, very unprofessional and we don't know how this place received so many review stars. I have been to Greece and also have numerous native Greek friends, the similarity in food...