Nick the Greek — Restaurant in Santa Cruz

I remember when Nick the Greek was a mom and pop place over closer to the boardwalk more or less. Now their franchised and it's nothing like the original. I took my daughter and grandson here on our annual Santa Cruz trip - takes his 2 and 1/2 hours to get here - because the Thai place was closed until 5:00 (which is kind of late to start a dinner service) and I thought the next best thing, right? falafels, Souvlaki chicken, Greek fries... My daughter enjoyed her salad okay but said that the chicken wasn't really that interesting although it was good. I remember Greek souvlaki chicken being amazing, especially at Opa! in Willow Glen and at the original Nick the Greeks. The falafels were dry and under spiced with too much heat - not something most people would probably enjoy and not typical of westernized Greek restaurant nor typical of Nick the Greek from downtown. The fries were skinnier than McDonald's and we're not very hot. Greek fries are supposed to be fat, not like steak fries but just old fashioned french fries like you might find at a dairy Queen or Opa!. So overall we satiated our appetite but it wasn't wow in any way. The only upside is that my grandson, who normally only eats cheeseburgers from In-N-Out, enjoyed the burger. It was expensive, which I guess everything is nowadays - but when you're talking about people forking over their hardened money, you really need to serve hot food that is properly prepared. I will say that the salad and vegetables were fresh and firm and the tahini was decent and enough was served with the falafels, which all the falafel eaters out there will know what I'm talking about. So, sadly this is no longer one of my favorite places to eat. Very disappointing compared to the original where the Greek owner was a delightful proud cook who served amazing food. I'm not really sure how this franchise got the name from him without using any of...

You should probably know I’ve never eaten here—it’s just not my type of food. But DoorDash, be warned: the guy made a DoorDash customer wait an extra 5 minutes for no reason.

The order was just sitting there on the counter, and he acted like he had short-term memory loss. I said, “I’m here for Abby,” and he said, “It’ll be ready in a couple minutes.” A couple minutes later, it comes out and just sits there on the counter.

He’s looking right at me for like 5 minutes. I’m standing there waiting for the order, finally asking, “Is this customer’s order ready?” and he goes, “What are you talking about?” I said, “This customer—Abby,” and he’s like, “Yeah, it’s right here.”

I’m like, “That’s the bag that’s been sitting there for 5 minutes, bro.”

I’ve picked up a lot of orders in my career, and most places really don’t like it when you come back up to ask if the order that just came out is yours. Otherwise, I would’ve. They always remember you asked the first time and usually tell you when it’s ready—but if you go back up before they do, they tend to get annoyed. That’s...

I’d like to start off this review by saying I normally don’t write bad reviews unless I feel it absolutely necessary(put up with a lot/let things slide). Anyone who knows me also knows I’m a very loud talker. That being said, just tried to order lunch with my significant other. He ordered first, and I told the cashier I’d have the same. She even asked me questions about my order. So it came as a complete surprise when our name was called and only one combo plate was on the tray in front of me. I told her that it was supposed to be two. She abruptly said no, and tried to tell me I was wrong. Again I’m a very loud talker so when she said I didn’t hear me, I was very surprised. What surprised me more is that if this was the case, I would have been more understanding and receptive if she said something along the lines of honey I’m so sorry I didn’t hear you, let’s go fix that, as opposed to being told I was wrong. Just remember, yes we are all human, and yes we make mistakes, but don’t be afraid to admit those mistakes, and remember service with a smile makes all the...