I usually get my Greek food fix once a year, at the annual festival sponsored by St. George Greek Orthodox Church (trust me, those ladies can cook!) but I recently stumbled on another fabulous Greek cook: Nina, of Nina's Pita N Pizza in Palm Springs.
Yep, the restaurant's namesake is a real person, and as it says right on the menu, "Nina's kitchen does not prepare junk food."
What she does prepare is an eclectic combination of Greek and Italian favorites, plus pizza, calzones, salads and sandwiches, and serves them from a tidy little shop in a strip center at the corner of Ramon and Sunrise Way.
I had planned on eating a slice of pizza, but was quickly seduced by the lure of Greece.
Instead, I went with the "world famous gyro" because how can you argue with fame?
It turned out to be an excellent choice.
Thick slices of a spicy, seasoned beef and lamb mixture were piled onto a fluffy pita, then covered with chopped tomato, thin red onion slices, and tzatziki sauce — a tangy, cucumber and yogurt concoction that brings it all together.
I finished every bite, mopping up globs of fallen tzatziki with the edge of the pita as I went.
It was a deal at $6.50.
Also available on the Greek menu: Mousaka (layers of potato, eggplant, zucchini covered in Bechamel sauce); pastichio (macaroni and beef with both marinara and Bechamel sauce); dolmades (stuffed grape leaves) and hummus (a dip made from garbanzo beans and tahini).
Prefer Italian? Choose lasagna, baked ziti, ravioli or spaghetti.
The restaurant itself is tiny, just four tables inside and a few outside on the sidewalk, but it's super-clean and efficiently appointed.
Near the cash register, there's room on the counter to display pizzas and fat calzones behind a glass partition; on the other side, a serve-yourself cooler holding drinks.
Save room for dessert — Nina also makes homemade baklava and other goodies.
It's enough to make you scream "Opa!"
