You may have passed Nick's Food to Go and wondered just what was going on there. Perched on the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Hill Street, near Oakland Cemetery, the windowless painted brick building isn't exactly inviting. But the sign on the side pictures a grinning, mustached chef, carrying a tray with a burger, fries and drink. And inside, there's Nick himself — colorful as his cartoon character, serving up hearty Greek and American food, along with his wife, Helen, who does most of the cooking.

MOM-AND-POP PLACE: The menu exclaims: "Your Greek corner take-out!!" Which means there's no dining room at Nick's. You can order at a window adjacent to the parking lot on the backside of the building or go through a door that leads to a hallway-like room and the main order counter. In addition to the menu, the walls are covered with newspaper clippings, advertisements for gyros, and several pictures of chef Kevin Rathbun (of nearby Rathbun's Steak and Iron Chef fame), who may be Nick's No. 1 fan.

Becky Stein/special (ENLARGE)
Classic Greek choices include (of course) the gyro wrap at Nick's Food to Go near Oakland Cemetery.
Becky Stein/special (ENLARGE)
Nick's Food to Go looks like a hole in the wall – literally – but a sign with a grinning chef offers clues about what's inside as customers pick up their Greek and American food.
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GOOD GREEK GRUB: Last week, Rathbun stood in line to order one of his Nick's favorites, the juicy lamb gyro. He says he particularly likes it topped with the tangy, garlic-laced tzatziki sauce, which is made from scratch, sometimes with homegrown cucumbers. Rathbun is also partial to the pastitsio (Greek lasagna), layered with buttery noodles, aromatic meat sauce flavored with nutmeg and creamy Béchamel sauce. It's the special on Thursdays. Other daily offerings (all $7.50) include lemon-and-olive-oil-marinated baked chicken and potatoes on Tuesdays, and spaghetti with meat sauce on Wednesdays. Squares of spanakopita, baked with fresh spinach and feta in a flaky phyllo dough crust make a good side or starter.

PLATES AND SALADS: Gyro, souvlaki (marinated pork) or chicken plates come with good and lemony, Greek-style fried potatoes (crispy-crusted with pillowy innards) and a Greek salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, feta, black olives, and vinegar-and-oil dressing. You can also get the salad with gyro meat, grilled chicken or pork. In Southern diner tradition, there's sweet tea and lemonade. And for dessert, look for baklava, brownies, lemon cake and cookies.

Nick's Food to Go, 240 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive S.E., 404-521-2220.

HOURS: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Mondays-Fridays, noon-8 p.m. Saturdays (closed Sundays)

CREDIT CARDS: MasterCard and Visa on orders over $7

PRICES: Sandwiches and gyros $2.50-$5; salads, $3-$7.50; combos and plates, $7-$9; daily specials, $7.50.

RESERVATIONS: No

RECOMMENDED DISHES: Gyro wraps and Greek plates; daily specials, including pastitsio; spanakopita

PARKING: On-site parking

WHEELCHAIR ACCESS: Yes

SMOKING POLICY: Nonsmoking

NOISE LEVEL: Moderate

TAKEOUT: Yes

VERDICT: Get good Greek food to go at this hole in the wall with character near Oakland Cemetery.

More Greek to eat

Grecian Gyro

855 Virginia Ave., 404-762-1627.

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