ZORBA’S Restaurant:
First Rate Greek Food in the Tri-cities
Until Zorba’s Restaurant came to town those who wanted to experience the fun of flaming cheese, dally over dolmades, or ease into Ouzo had to drive to Detroit’s Greektown for the evening.
The Greeks have long held food in a position of ore than nourishment. Food is a way to link people together and is associated with dancing, games and merriment. Greek cooking was at its peak during the Classical Period, with the first cookbooks originating in the 5th Century, B.C. Indeed, the best of the Byzantine, Persian, Judaic influences can still be tasted in today[s most popular Greek dishes.
Few things can be more festive than treating guests to a display of Saganaki. They’ll soon not forget watching the server light a platter of brandy doused Kaseri cheese to the cry of ‘Opa!” and then hear it sizzle out as a fresh lemon is squeezed above it.
I like taverns. Unlike a ‘bar’, a tavern is comfortable. Nobody’s hustling. The regulars usually live nearby and the atmosphere is congenial, not strained. With a little luck, a favorite tavern might serve great hamburgers of some other specialty that’s ‘the best in town’….but no big deal. No fuss. No frills. The purpose of food in a tavern is usually to add to the fun of it, not to be an end in itself.
 Zorba’s Lounge is a tavern in all ways but one: the food there is worthy of recognition in any list of top restaurants. Located at 617 S. Harrison in Saginaw, Zorba’s is serving up respectable Greek food in a unique manner, as it has been doing for 25 years now.
Tucked into the first block off Gratiot, there is both a dining room and the bar area where one can dine. The decorating is strictly ‘tavern’ and ungimmicky, and it is very clean and orderly.
The menu is varied and contains items familiar to anyone who has sampled Greek street food at an ethnic festival. I ordered a gyro (yee-ro) which is a Greek taco of sorts, featuring highly seasoned compressed meat that is spit roasted and sliced, served in pita bread, and sauced with yogurt as well as tomato, chopped onions, and lettuce. Sometimes the spiciness of a gyro lingers with me for days, but Zorba’s gyro is assertive yet pleasant. The bread was warm, fresh tasting, and partially wrapped in foil for easier handling.
With the gyro I ordered the small Greek salad, which also comes heaped with Greek feta cheese, several Greek olives, green peppers, tomato, cucumber, onion, oregano, all tossed in a deliciously blended vinegar and oil dressing with just the right proportion of tartness. In short, a most refreshing salad.
The dolmades are tender grape leaves stuffed with ground meat and rice and these were exceptionally light and, again, not overly spiced. The slight lemony taste was just enough to make these little rolls delicious and addictive.
I also sampled my friend’s souvlaki. This is marinated skewered meat tucked into warm pita bread, like a gyro. Additionally I sampled pastitsio, which is a macaroni, cheese and meat pie, very rich and hearty. The seasoning in pastitsio is generally cinnamon and tomato paste, which adds a unique flavor and is a foil for the macaroni and cheese and thick custard, which binds it.
Additionally there is a panoply of excellent Greek desserts at Zorba’s, such as baklava – the rich, luxuriously moist, honey nut dessert with endless layers of thin phyllo dough. It’s not chocolate but just as wicked.
By planning ahead one can dine on succulent roast leg of lamb, Spanakopita (a scrumptious spinach and filo pastry pie) or tasty Grecian chicken. In an attempt to reaffirm the old ways and values, Greeks who migrated to America brought their traditional recipes and celebrations with them to maintain a kinship with their native Greece.
Fortunately, we are able to share some of the oldest and most delicious secrets known to the human palate.
The congenial owner, Mr. Thomas Veremis, is cordial and a mid-Michigan treasure. Here’s to longevity. Yazou!
By Lou Garth of the Review Magazine
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