[Ecuadog]

Amerikanos Grille in Spanish Springs

Went there a little over three years ago and it was just OK, IMHO. That surprised me because the Suleiman family owned the business then and they usually do a pretty good job.

New owners now and a couple of the guys decided to give it a shot. We sat inside yesterday because of the heat. I really enjoyed my Reuben sandwich. Yeah... I know... I know. It wasn’t Katz’s, but it wasn’t $26 either.

Get a Reuben, a side salad and two draft Yuenglings for $17.11. The service was great too.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

That's good to know. I tried Amerikanos a couple of years ago too and was unimpressed. The first time we went I tried the falafel pita and it was pretty bad. The falafels were REALLY mushy, more like mashed potatoes. Consistency was horrible. The tsatziki tasted like ranch dressing with bits of cucumber in it. The second time I tried the greek-style chicken tacos. Much better than the falafels, but still nothing to write home about.

[ohiosbestus]

I and We have been there several times and have been served great food each time. Maybe the best place surrounding the Spanish Springs Square.

[spd2918]

We have always had great food and great service. Try the flaming cheese Saganaki. I do wish they had a deeper Greek menu. We would go more often.

[graciegirl]

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[graciegirl]

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[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

I barely understood a thing you said. I have never had a falafel anything or a tsatziki..or did I know they made "Greek-style" chicken Taco's. I ate my very first Taco when I was 32 in Cincinnati. Do Greek-style chicken Taco's have black olives in them? What is in a falafel? I thought that was Italian?

I am not trying to start something. I am just saying I am often amused and enjoy the really different cultural backgrounds we Villagers come from.

Amerikano's is a Greek-American restaurant. You can find their menu online. Or you can bing the individual food types.

taco is not a proper noun, therefore not capitalized. The plural of taco is tacos, no apostrophe.

Falafel is a middle-eastern vegetarian meat-ball looking thing made with chick-peas (also known as a garbanzo bean) and spices. It's deep fried or pan-fried until the outside is crispy and the inside is at least somewhat firm. It's typically served with tahini, which is sesame paste, garlic, lemon juice, and water. Tahini is also a common salad dressing in the middle-east. Falafels tend to be included in some Greek menus, even though Greece isn't in the Middle-East; it's in southeastern Europe and borders Turkey - which IS in the Middle-East.

Tzatziki is also a dressing, typically made with thinned yogurt, cucumber, and dill. It is a standard Greek sauce drizzled on any lamb dish that doesn't have a tomato sauce base, and over chicken in the greek version of a taco, which is known in Greece (and most of the rest of the world) as a gyro.

I'm not Greek, and I'm not Middle-eastern. But I grew up in New Haven County, where we had an enormously diverse population and were exposed to cultures from all over the world.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

I would like to point out that I have dined in seven five star restaurants in my life. I am not at all ashamed of my ride on the turnip truck either. I like turnips. (Mashed with butter, lots of pepper.)

I dined in one five-star restaurant in New Orleans. The service was impeccable, I felt like a princess. The food was good too.

You don't have to dine in fancy gourmet high-end expensive restaurants to get decent food from other cultures. The best tacos come from taquerias - which are sort of like a hot-dog stand with walls, that sell tacos instead of hotdogs.

The best Indian restaurant will be whichever one you see the most Indians eating in.

The best Chinese food comes from wherever the Chinese congregate.

And if you want the best greek food - you'll probably find it at a greek diner along the coast, or at a big truck stop off I-95 somewhere.

[graciegirl]

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[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Meanwhile, back at the Amerikanos Grille in Spanish Springs where this topic is located...

If they use real fresh shaved roasted lamb off the spit for their gyros, I'll definitely try one next time I'm there. I'm not a lamb fan at all but if they're shaved to order, the gyro can be amazing.

I won't have their falafels again though, until they learn to make tahini. And no calamata olives in their salads? If there's no calamata olives, then it's not a greek salad.

[graciegirl]

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[Kenswing]

Damn.. Would you two just get a room? It's like watching a slow motion cat fight.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by Kenswing

Damn.. Would you two just get a room? It's like watching a slow motion cat fight.

I will take it down.

[txfan]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

I will take it down.

Don’t take anything down, you’re 249 from 40k. The countdown now is real!

[New Englander]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

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