Midtown Lunch

While looking for lunch somewhere near the Barne’s Museum, I remembered wanting to try Zorba’s, a sort of casual Greek restaurant that is unfortunately uncommon in Philadelphia (the other ones that comes to mind are Sandy’s and  South Street Souvlaki, which I liked and owe  revisits to).

I first tried the gyro sandwich ($6.95) , figuring a classic was a good way to start. It came neatly packaged with shredded green lettuce, bright red tomato slices, red onion, and tzatziki. It was a decent gyro, though I like my meat slices to be more fire scorched.

What I was most excited for was the roast lamb platter; a lunch sized portion of slow cooked lamb with sides of rice, vegetables, a  potato, tzatziki, and pita was $9.50. If you hadn’t already guessed, this was awesome. I just love lamb, they are so gosh darn cute and they taste so gosh darn good. I especially love ordering it because I don’t often cook it at home. This platter provided thick shreds of lamb that needed no knife. It wasn’t overly seasoned; the lamb flavor came through nicely. I love a lemony potato and the vegetables were more than just a bland afterthought. Zorba’s thick tzatziki is fabulous, I covered my warm pita in it.  The portion size was perfect; this is truly a stellar lunch plate.

If for some reason you needed another option, Soutzoukakia, are two  spiced ground lamb and beef balls, roasted in red wine sauce with the same sides as our lamb. The sauce had a nice flavor but the ground meat was just a smidge dry- the lamb is really the best choice at Zorba’s and why would you want anything else?

THE + (What somebody who likes this place would say)

• under $10 lamb platter with sides!
• indoor and outdoor seating with efficient waiter service

THE – (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)

• Other menu items are quite as impressive

Zorba’s Tavern, 2230 Fairmount Ave (Btwn N 22nd & 23rd St), 215 978-5990