El Greco < Raw Food Bar at Whole Foods

I’d been wanting to try El Greco for awhile, ever since my mom met the head chef and told me how nice he was and that I needed to go try his restaurant. It’s on 31st & Guadalupe, behind the Mangia–which is a disadvantage for me, because I’d rather eat the delicious Mangia pizza I know and love than strange food I haven’t yet identified with–but on a cold Saturday I bypassed my standby and popped into El Greco for lunch.

I like Greek food, especially the seasonings on the meat, but as I now only eat free-range, I am limited to the vegetarian or vegan options–vegan?! That’s rare! I was initially impressed by the number of vegetarian options, including a delicious-sounding casserole of sorts. Unfortauntely, at $15, it hardly seemed like a prudent lunch choice. Instead I went for the vegan plate, which ended up being $13 anyway. I had severalchoices, but I ended up with some of the veggie casserole, a salad, and tabouleh. I wanted the hummus but was trying to avoid white bread and they don’t have whole wheat pitas, so I went all veg.

Of course, my dish arrived with pitas anyway. Jerks! 😉

The woman who brought out the food was very attentive, wanted to know how everything was, and generally just eager to please, which is nice. The food, while good, was not great. My veggie casserole was a bit greasy, which was disappointing. A friend’s gyro was good but she didn’t rave about it. Another’s stuffed peppers were also good, but not rave worthy. Which might be fine, if our dishes were $2 or $3 cheaper. But when you’re paying a premium for lunch, you expect greatness. And I’m sad to report that El Greco disappointed.

Which isn’t to say that you shouldn’t go there. It fits a nice niche of “nice” food that’s quick and easy, a nice place to dine without having to dress up but being better than fast food. If that’s what you’re looking for, by all means, check out El Greco. The staff is sweet and the food good enough.

But I’m pretty sure I’ll be taking my $13 to the raw foods bar at Whole Foods–I just discovered that they serve entrees! They have a delicious Pad Thai served over zuchinni noodles, and you can stick to the raw or they’ll sautee your veggies for just a little warmth over the raw noodles. Amazing!! I want to go back and try the other dishes as well…