By Dennis Chu on June 19, 2011 • ( 1 Comment )

MAD GREEK

Address: 2889 State Route 35, Hazlet, NJ 07730

My thoughts of what Greek food should taste like come from one of my friends from school who is 100% Greek, and introduced me to some Greek restaurants in the area that he said served very authentic Greek-tasting dishes. Sure, I know some Greek dishes like gyros, souvlaki, spanakopita, or saganaki, but I’m not proclaiming myself to be an expert with Greek food. That being said, I stopped by Mad Greek the other night to try it out, since I have been looking for a good Greek place in the area. Needless to say, the visit was just… okay.

I think that the reviews did a lot to hype the food up a bit and it was kind of underwhelming when I got there. I ordered a regular lamb and beef gyro with a side order of Greek fries (regular French fries with oregano and feta cheese crumbles on top) and overall, the taste of the gyro meat wasn’t too bad. The only thing I had an issue with was the portion size, especially for how much I paid (close to $11.50 for the pita sandwich, Greek fries, and drink). The gyro itself was stuffed with gyro meat, onions, tomatoes, Tzatziki sauce, and French fries. Personally, I’d say take out the French fries and just put some more gyro meat in there; I definitely felt like the gyro was lacking a bit in that respect. Back at school, a Greek restaurant my friends and I frequent has a meal option that for $8.50, I can get a gyro, fries, and a drink. That gyro has twice as much gyro meat, twice as much Tzatziki sauce, onions, tomatoes, and no French fries in it. That, to me, gives you much more bang for your buck.

The staff themselves, however, were very polite and courteous, and the restaurant is decorated very nicely. Open dining area (cafeteria-style) with a statue, some decorations on the walls, and Greek music playing in the background. It’s a completely open kitchen, so you can look over to see your food being prepared right from your dining room table. My experience at Mad Greek was good; it’s just that the amount of food did not justify the amount of money coming out of my wallet.

Here are my rankings for Mad Greek:

Food: 4 / 5
The food tasted pretty good, and the menu looked like it offered a ton of other Greek dishes as well. I just really wished the portion size was larger.

Atmosphere: 4 / 5
The dining room was nicely decorated, and the background music added a nice touch. Add that to the aroma of freshly cooked food in the dining room, and it was an overall pleasant experience.

Service: 4 / 5
The employee that took my order and my food to the table was nice and accommodating.

Price: 3 / 5
Like I mentioned above, I feel like the things on the menu are a little overpriced. The same money I’m spending could have been taken to another restaurant and I could get a larger meal. I would have been comfortable paying anywhere from $8 to $9.50 for the meal I had, but definitely not $11.50.

Overall: 15 / 20 (75%)