Greek House

Greek House is one of only a few Greek restaurants in Fort Worth.  Most people have heard of King Tut on Magnolia, the more famous Greek restaurant (though technically Egyptian.)  Greek House is less known, located at Park Hill and Forest Park in the TCU area.

I arrived at 7:30PM, 30 minutes before closing, to an empty restaurant. All around me were a hodge-podge of random decorations that didn't really seem to go together.  Mexican flag colored chili pepper christmas lights mixed with Japanese art and paper maps of Fort Worth.  I wasn't sure what to make of it.  The decor felt kitschy and just added to the confusion of how to order.  The menu is on the side wall and not visible from the doorway.  The counter doesn't really look like one you would order from, so I can see where diners might sit down at a table and wait for service.  Overall, not an impressive interior.

I walked up to the counter after staring at the large menu on the wall and ordered a Gyro sandwich ($5.54) and a side of Hummus ($5.40).  Right away, I wondered if I had made a mistake by coming.  The manager/owner asked me if it was to-go and when I said no, he looked at the clock behind him, implicitly telling me to get out of the restaurant so he could finish cleaning and go home.  I handed him my credit card where I was charged $18.50 without explanation.  I assumed I had misread the menu and had actually ordered something bigger, so I sat down and waited to see.

The hummus came out first with four pieces of buttered/oiled and grilled pita break with seasoning.  At first, I rather liked the grilled version as a nice variation, but by the second piece I yearned for the traditional soft version.  The oil/butter and seasoning overpowered the hummus and turned a normally healthy snack into a greasy one.  Some may like it, and it wasn't awful, but I would prefer normal pita bread.

The gyro sandwich came next.  Unfortunately, it was wrapped in the same grilled pita break with the same seasoning!  Also, the tomatoes in the picture were nowhere to be found.  Meat, onions, and tzatziki were present, but not in the normal quantities.  The gyro wasn't very well made.  While the meat was spread evenly, all the onions and tzatziki were on one half.  I rebalanced the sandwich myself and bit in.  I felt the same way about the sandwich as I did the hummus.  The pita bread's flavor interfered with the filling.  I had no issue with the insides; they tasted as would be expected.  The meat seemed a little dry, but I had come in late, so the heat may have dried out part of the meat I received.

After placing my food on the counter, the manager/owner and his wife disappeared into the back although I could hear them speaking in another language. (Greek?)  They never asked me if my food was good or handed me my credit card receipt which laid behind the counter.  It just wasn't worth it to me to try for my $5 back, so I left.

Verdict: Greek House may survive because there are simply too few alternatives to provide competition.  That said, if everyone had my experience it would probably close next month.  The food was average and the service was lacking.  I won't be back.

Food: 2.5/5
Service: 1/5
Atmosphere: 2/5

Greek House is located at 2426 Forest Park Blvd in Fort Worth.