July 10, 2007
Cuisine: Greek

7749 University Avenue
La Mesa, CA 91941

Phone: 619-464-1915
Website: http://www.jksgreekcafe.com/

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Gyro Plate – a perfect blend of ground beef and lamb broiled rotisserie-style served with two sides ($8.95)

Gyro – Thin slices of gyro meat rolled in pita bread served with tomatoes & onions with Tzatziki sauce on the side ($4.65)

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I tasted my first gyro in 1998. It was the summer before my junior year of high school and I was taking Drivers Ed at Helix High School. One day after class, my high school BF surprised me with the Greek treat for lunch. We enjoyed our gyros from J.K’s on a picnic table outside the adult education classes, which was super romantic at the time. Since that fateful afternoon, I’ve consumed a lot of Greek food in a number of different cities, including Athens, and have developed an affinity for the cuisine.

I returned to J.K’s the other day with my cousins Michael and Jimmy to see if their gyros were still delightful after all these years and fortunately, I was not disappointed.

Jimmy, Michael

Located on University Avenue, J.K’s doesn’t boast the prettiest interior (or exterior for that matter). For that reason, I highly recommend getting food to go, which is exactly what we did. Although the restaurant’s space is dark and dated, the service is always polite and friendly.

Michael and I both ordered gyro sandwiches, while Jimmy went with a gyro plate. The gyro sandwiches were stuffed to the brim with savory slices of lamb and beef, tomatoes, and red onions. I feel that the tomatoes are negligible, but the onions are essential for an outstanding sandwich. J.K’s gyro meat is well-seasoned and its texture is the perfect combination of charred and moist thanks to hours of slow roasting on the rotisserie. The Tzatziki sauce served on the side is cool, mild, and creamy—it cuts through the meat’s saltiness beautifully. The toasted pita bread is fragrant, thick, and effortlessly holds everything together. J.K’s gyro sandwich is truly as spectacular as it was nearly a decade ago.

Jimmy’s gyro plate contained the same meat as the gyro sandwiches with the addition of a small Greek salad and stewed green beans in a tomato broth. Jimmy enjoyed each component of the plate and ate every last morsel. I had a bite of the stewed green beans and found them mushy and flavorless. I’ll stick with the gyro sandwich.