New York, Sunday, March 26, 1995
A LA CARTE
Some Places to Eat Near the Theater
By ANNE SEMMES
After choosing what performance to see at the John Harms Center for the Arts in Englewood, theatergoers are faced with a second decision - where to eat. The not-for-profit theater, which is in the midst of a $5 million makeover, presents musicals, concerts and headline entertainers.
For a meal within distance of the theater, casual ethnic eating places are the best resort.
Here are some restaurants for a meal before or, when appropriate, after a performance at the John Harms Theater. Those offering discounts to ticket holders are noted.
It's Greek to Me, 36 East Palisade Avenue, Englewood. (201) 568-0440.
This cheerful, no frills Greek storefront, part cafe and part take-out shop, has a formula so successful that it is growing into a small local chain. The Mediterranean food, fresh, simple and moderately priced, ranges from garlicky appetizers of eggplant, white beans or spinach in phyllo to main courses of seafood and lamb from the grill. No liquor license.
Theater patrons can receive a 10 percent discount.
Friday, March 10, 1995
DINING OUT
At It's Greek to Me in Englewood
By DEBORAH JEROME-COHEN, Restaurant Reviewer
It's Greek to Me is a concept whose time has come; tasty, frankly traditional, reasonably priced Greek food in a setting that's somewhat more manicured than a fast-food place. The Englewood restaurant is the second It's Greek to Me; the first was established on Anderson Avenue in Cliffside Park. A Westfield branch is in the works.
The Englewood storefront, with its blue-and-white awning and picture window, is a cheerful, clean place, with blue-and-white tile tabletops and large panoramic photos of Greek fishing boats and harbors. The spare, tableclothless and paper-napkin decor - and the occasionally indifferent service - make the place appear to be one where you grab a bite to eat rather than relax and dine. Also, tables are close together, people with carryout orders bustle in and out; and there's no liquor, although people feel free to bring their own. In terms of ambience, then, this isn't quite at the restaurant level.
The food, however, is unquestionably restaurant quality, and fine value. Greek food at its best is straightforward and unfussy, with a premium on fresh ingredients. It's Greek to Me delivers that, with a menu centers around such standards as pastitio, moussaka, and some grilled fish. there also are some pizzas, souvlaki platters, and peinerli, which is dough filled with baked kasseri cheese - a sheep's milk cheese that tastes like a cross between cheddar and Parmesan - and a variety of stuffings.
Mediterranean appetizers always are good, and the ones served here are no exceptions. Garlic, always welcome, spikes the potato purée called skordalia ($4.25) as well as the eggplant salad, melizanosalata ($4.75), which is a Greek variant on the perhaps more familiar babaganoush. A plate of tender gigante beans in a sweet, reduced tomato sauce is wonderful, as is a square of grilled feta cheese served with tomato and pepper. Revithosalata (a.k.a. hummus, $4.75) needs the punch of extra garlic or lemon (or did when we were there), but the tzatziki ($4.25) is lively - a slightly chunky, and, of course, garlic. All are served with lots of pita bread.
Seafood is found largely among the specials, not on the regular menu. One of a couple of exceptions to this is the grilled calamari with grilled vegetables ($8.95), a plain but tasty platter of perfectly grilled squid with grilled eggplant, zucchini, and other vegetables. Several other entrees, equally fresh, cry out for added seasonings or sauces to lift them from the stedgy to the impressive. These included the chicken and the spinach pie, in a phyllo, crust with feta cheese ($7.95) and the exohiko ($7.95), with lamb and potatoes baked in phyllo.
Pastitso ($7.95), a large square of baked macaroni and ground meat with a béchamel crust, tastes like home cooking, as does the moussaka ($9.95), another large square, this time of eggplant, potato, and ground meat, also with a béchamel crust. Neither of these is a dish for the calorie-shy. Also good, and less intensely rich, is the imam bayildi casserole of eggplant and onion in a parsley and garlic-zapped tomato sauce.
For some people, Greek desserts are too much alike to be interesting, but the ones at It's Greek to Me (each $2.75) are too good to pass up. They include baklava and the shredded-wheat look-alike, kataifi. There's also a cylinder of phyllo pastry wrapped around a sweetened cheese, and a semolina cake that crumbles in your hand as you eat it. All fine, especially washed down with thick Greek coffee ($1.50).
February 11, 1994
By SETH E. HAUBENSTOCK, Pennysaver Food Critic
Who needs to travel to Astoria these days when you can get authentic Greek cuisine in Englewood ? It's Greek to Me, started in 1986 by Jimmy Papavasiliou, opened it's third location last year in Englewood.
A friendly, comfortable atmosphere lends itself well when trying Greek specialties such as the eight different types of souvlaki. The traditional, ever present gyros are made with beef cut off a rotary skewer. They almost melt in your mouth.
A deeper look into the menu proves worthwhile. Cold appetizers should be tried regardless of how foreign their names may seem. Eggplant salad, caviar and chick pea dips are served with warm pita bread. Try the octopus salad - be brave - it's terrific served with a light, lemony vinaigrette. The Greek Salad is large enough to split. So dive in.
Desserts are for those with an extreme sweet tooth. Although the yogurt with walnuts and honey didn't turn me on, the pistachio turnover is wonderful.
April 10, 1998
AT YOUR LEISURE / BITES
By DORIS LICAMELI
Even if the sign outside were not so specific, the ceramic tile underfoot and the pottery and pastel paintings on the walls inside the island-bright Fort Lee restaurant conjure up images of a faraway Aegean isle and almost instantaneously spark a desire for some souvlaki or moussaka.
"Our food is very authentic" says Stacy Pappas, the amiable owner of It's Greek to Me. "It's also the healthy side of Greek cuisine." (Pappas is a shortened form of Papavasiliou).
Sitting a a small, tile-topped table amid a swirl of activity before the hungry lunchtime crowd sweeps in to occupy the 40 available seats or to order their take-out favorites, Pappas who was born in Greece, explains the road to success for his four It's Greek to Me restaurants. "In the beginning we experimented with the food and tried different things. Then we narrowed the menu down to what we have now, because we found this is what people like." The wide variety of vegetarian dishes, grilled chicken and daily specials hold wide appeal for his diet-conscious clientele, he says, about 70% of whom are women, and who represent a whole spectrum of ethnic groups. "We use no butter, and almost everything is made to order, totally fresh. Nothing is pre-grilled."
Souvlaki, Spanakopita and Greek salads (set apart from the ordinary with their tasty additions of feta cheese, stuffed grape leaves and Greek olives) rank high in popularity, and the octopus salad, according to Pappas, has to be made three or four times a day to keep up with demand. Another crowd-pleaser is a vegetarian dish of grilled zucchini, eggplant, tomato and peppers with a light garlic seasoning, especially popular in summer.
Pappas and his brother, James, had been clothing manufacturers at the time they opened their first It's Greek to Me restaurant in Cliffside Park (mainly take-out) as a side venture in 1986. they drew on their experience working in their father's food business when they were younger. "It was so successful, that when the economy went sour in the garment business, we put all our attention into this business. We expended and grew."
Surely the Greek God of Foods must be smiling down from Mt. Olympus on the Pappas clan. Their Fort Lee restaurant, which opened eight years ago, was followed by one in Englewood a couple of years later, and more recently another in Ridgewood. Family members oversee operations at each restaurant.
Are there any more IGTM openings on the horizon ? "We're running out of brothers and sisters," Pappas laughs. But if an opportunity arises, why not ?
Pappas credits his mother, Ero, "a fine cook," with developing many of the dishes on the menu. "She used recipes handed from grandmother to grandmother and was able to give the people authentic, delicious recipes she used to make at home. She was very involved in the beginning and ran the stores like she used to run the house," he laughs. Ero Pappas still makes almost daily stops at the restaurants to sample the foods in the kitchen, making sure they're the way she wants them. "We call her the General".
The friendly, casual atmosphere is another lure for a faithful following of regulars who stop in anywhere from two to six times a week. "We even have customers who frequent us for lunch and dinner on the same day, which is a very unusual thing in this business," Pappas says. "They can come and spend 20 minutes and eat fresh healthy food. They don't have to stick around for an hour or pay tremendous prices." He says that after working here for one month, his cooks, waitresses and waiters know every customer by name. "And we know exactly what they're going to order !" he laughs again. "Once we see them in the parking lot, we have the food waiting for them on the table when they come in."
It's Greek to Me is open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner. It's in Englewood at 36 E. Palisade Avenue; for delivery call (201) 568-0440. The original location is at 352 B Anderson Avenue in Fort Lee. Two years ago a second Fort Lee location opened at 1636 Palisades Avenue. Prices are inexpensive; appetizers are less than $6 and complete dinners are normally less than $10.
NO NEED TO FLY - GREECE IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER -
IT'S GREEK TO ME IN FORT LEE, CLIFFSIDE PARK AND NOW ENGLEWOOD (36 E. Palisade Avenue)
In 1986 James Papavasiliou and his mother, Ero, opened It's Greek to Me restaurant in Cliffside Park. Success spawned a second location in Fort Lee with James's brother Stacy at the helm.
Devotees of the Papavasiliou family's flavorful, healthful cuisine now have a third choice - the new It's Greek to Me restaurant in Englewood at 36 East Palisades Avenue.
The sunny, Greek Island decor that is the restaurant's signature provides a cheerful, honey setting for an informal, moderately priced lunch or dinner. (It's a short walk to the John Harms theater - convenient for pre-theater dining).
Souvlaki, the house specialty, and all the Greek dishes that the Papavasilious are known for are at the new location. Alcoholic beverages are not available, but guests may bring their own wine.
GREEK TO EVERYBODY
ENGLEWOOD GETS ITS OWN TAVERNA, AND THE FOOD IS AS SUNNY AS THE AEGEAN
By FRAN SCHUMER
When people in my town talk about what's missing there, they speak in general terms about a restaurant that's pleasant to sit in and inexpensive, and serves food that you wouldn't mind eating two, even three, times a week.
The restaurant they long for sounds very much like It's Greek to Me in Englewood, a small, whitewashed storefront that is the largest and most ambitious addition to a family-owned chain.
Lunch or dinner in these popular Greek-style tavernas can be as big a deal as you wish to make it, or as little a one.
It's the little-deal meals here that interest me. Grilled chicken and a cold Greek salad ? I could eat it every day. And when it started to bore me, I'd order the grilled calamari instead.
James Papavasiliou, who owns the Englewood branch as well as the ones in Fort Lee and Cliffside Park with his brother, Anastasios, buys all slender squid to insure that his calamari won't be rubbery. Grilled they taste like an entirely different species from fried calamari. Chew a piece. You can actually taste the flavor of the calamari, which is sweet and delicate, and slightly smoky because of the grill.
Mr. Papavasiliou said he had introduced both the grilled chicken and the grilled calamari over salad "for the ladies", but the person I am looking at right now enjoying his grilled calamari over salad is very much a male. Next to him, a customer waiting for his wife and two small children seems content with one of the lighter dishes on the menu and my favorite appetizer : the sautéed greens with garlic and fresh chopped tomatoes. Who could ever imagine that hot and wilted romaine lettuce could have so much character ?
As far as I can tell, the Greek salad is also universally admired. If lines are to be drawn, then it is between ethnic groups.
A TASTE OF THE GREEK ISLES ON E. PALISADE AVENUE
Three years ago, Englewood became home to the authentic Mediterranean atmospheric setting known to locals as "It's Greek to Me" on Palisade Avenue. Owners, Stacy and Jimmy Pappas preside over the restaurant daily, assuring guests that they will not only enjoy the Greek Island decor, the casual, friendly atmosphere, but also the Greek foods and specialties ... which will be perfect every time ! These brothers arrived in America in 1960, and opened their first restaurant in Cliffside Park ten years ago - the very first Greek restaurant in this area ! Their Fort Lee restaurant, bearing the same name, was opened seven years ago. In July, a fourth "It's Greek to Me" will open in Ridgewood.
According to owner Stacy, "It's all the family involvement in the business that makes sure that our quality remains consistent. We use homemade recipes that were handed down to us by our grandmother and then, our mother."
The restaurant also takes a "healthy approach" to cooking and eating. Olive oils are used rather than butter, and all the items are grilled with the very freshest ingredients available. No artificial flavors or additives are used in the dishes.
Fans of the restaurant know that you don't need a Greek vocabulary nor a grasp of Greek foods to order from the menu !
In fact, the favorites are easily translated : Spinach Pie, Greek Salad, Grilled Vegetables, Three-Cheese Pizza, Souvlakis, Gyros, Moussaka, Grilled Calamari, Grilled Chicken, Grilled Feta Cheese ... and Fresh, Delicious Warm Pita Bread of course !
"It's Greek to Me" is no secret - the establishments have received numerous reviews and write-ups in the New York Times and radio programs.
Dishes begin at $4.00; liquor is not available. The restaurant is open from 11 am to 10 p.m. daily.
