Grecian Gyro

855 Virginia Ave., 404-762-1627.

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Grecian Gyro in Hapeville is one of those increasingly rare mom-and-pop places that seems to be immune to changing times and tastes. The spartan décor is an ode to the classic 1950s American diner. You line up to order at the front and your food is prepared to order. Juicy, Mediterranean-spiced beef and lamb gyro meat is shaved from the vertical skewer machine, finished on the grill and served on fluffy warm pita bread with onions, tomatoes, and a creamy tzatziki sauce. Other choices range from souvlaki (pork), chicken and loukaniko (Greek sausage) to a plain grilled-cheese sandwich or a feta-stuffed pita.

— Bob Townsend

Kyma

3085 Piedmont Road N.E., 404-262-0702.

Chef Pano Karatassos (son of the Buckhead Life founder) strikes the right notes of homey authenticity and gourmet finesse with everything that comes from the kitchen. The menu offers what reads like a hit list of your favorite pop songs: Big beautiful fish, deboned at the table; crisply seasoned Greek potatoes, sprinkled with a dusting of tangy kefalotiri cheese; sweet, thick imported honey over creamy Greek yogurt; and baby calamari so sweet and delicate it melts in your mouth. All these, plus the royal atmosphere drenched in blue and white and the regal treatment from the seasoned staff, make you feel as pampered as a kitty cat.

— Meridith Ford

White House Restaurant

3172 Peachtree Rd. N.W., 404-237-7601.

Part Greek diner, part Southern meat-and-three, White House Restaurant in Buckhead is an Atlanta classic that's been open in one form or another since 1948. Steam-table lunch specials, including barbecue, fried chicken and salmon croquettes, are served cafeteria-style, with cornbread and sweet tea. And Greek specialties like moussaka and pastitsio are featured on different days of the week. But you can also get everything from a club sandwich to a steak — plus big breakfasts with pork chops, eggs and grits.

— Bob Townsend

Avra Greek Tavern

794 Juniper St., 404-892-8890.

Finally we have a Greek restaurant within the city limits that embraces the wholesomeness of the Greek table, and you can wear blue jeans or Betsey Johnson. Is there anything particularly dazzling about this restaurant? No. The fare is solid, standard Greek, high on the moussaka-and-marinated-meat meter. Yet there's enough sophistication to make an evening here stand out, and you'll leave with your pockets as full as your belly. Opa!

— Meridith Ford