Greek food kicks ass. Specifically, gyros kick ass. What is it about these bundles of strange mystery meats that is so good? The wacky yogurt sauce, the slowly rotating logs of meat, the phatty pita bread… everything about them contributes to their wonder. And it is that very wonder that I often seek out; luckily for me, the University area hosts quite a few different options for your Greek restaurant needs. Today’s meat palace: Gogos Greek Grill.
And there’s a little Greek dude. Fun.
A few months back, my brother reported to me a magical place near USF where they sold Greek vittles, and most excitingly, had a spicy tzatziki sauce. But, like an idiot, I sat on this pressing information for many weeks, missing chance after chance to experience something wacky and fun. BUT THAT MISTAKE HAS BEEN RESOLVED!! I went today with a chum, and ordered up some grub.
Boy did I ever order up some grub.
The place is small, dinky hole in the wall among the many holes-in-walls that make up the University Collection, a crappy group of shops featuring some surprisingly great places – Five Guys (best burgers ever), Wing Stop (great fucking wings), First Watch (snooty BRUNCH, yes, brunch establishment), Trang Viet Cuisine (Vietnamese sometimes with bugs!), and a bunch of other delights. Gogos recently joined their ranks, and may go unnoticed (there was one other customer in the restaurant when we got there).
Right up front, the guy working asked me if this was my first time. I, bashfully looking down at my shoes, told him that it was. He described the place as a sort of Greek Chipotle, where you pick either wrap, pita, or salad, then what type of meat (fresh chicken, free-trade steak, dirty dirty gyro, that sort of thing), and then toppings and sauce. I liked this place already. I elected to get a combo of a Greek salad with a pita. I got gyro meat, a few wonderful toppings (including sliced pepperoncini), and the spicy tzatziki sauce. It came out in a pinkish color, almost like thousand island dressing. I resisted the urge to pick up some baklava.
The first thing I noticed about this bountiful meal was the price – 12 bucks. A bit steep for a simple meal. But this was ADVENTURE TIME! So whatever. I was going to attack the salad first, but both the salad and pita were crammed onto one bowl dealy, and so if I hoped to have any sort of even distribution of dressing on my salad, I would have to clear some space. Instead of moving my pita elsewhere, I devoured it.
The pita itself was somewhat poorly constructed, all the tzaziki having just been squirted on top, ready to blend itself into my beard with every bite. And it was difficult to get some with each bite, which I like to have in a gyro – pretty complete tzatziki coverage. Its taste was not too unlike other tzatziki sauces, but it did have a little peppery bite to it – nothing overpowering, just a hint. The pepperoncini aided in this. Sadly, that is about all this pita had going for it. It was by no means bad, just average. The meat was a bit dry, and lacked any exciting flavors. The toppings were pretty good. Fresh.
The salad was the best part of the meal. They plopped a dollop of potato salad underneath the rest of the Greek salad, a practice which (so I’ve heard) has its origins in Tarpon Springs. And that is always fantastic. The potato salad mixes in so well with the Greek dressing. But once again, this salad was nothing special. Good. Not great. And if I were to go back, I would probably just spend my money on the salad, and hopefully save a few bucks.
Sorry guys… it seems to me that Gogos is a NO-gos (HAHAHA I just made that up!!! GOD I’M HYSTERICAL.). Better bang for your buck, in my opinion, is found at Athenos, right across from MOSI. You can get a combo there with a wrap and two extra sides for under 10 bucks. And, honestly, the taste is superior.
