Chipotle Mexican Grill might have been the fast-casual restaurant idea forerunner, offering diners on the transfer with one thing more energizing and often more healthy than fast-food alternate options and extra rapidly than informal table-service institutions, however the pattern has proven no signal of slowing down. Marin County newcomer Nick the Greek Souvlaki & Gyro Home is amongst a trio of eating places that lately opened at Novato’s Classic Oaks Procuring Middle. This additionally contains the fifth location of ALOH-O Poke and Tea, and a Chipotle Mexican Grill that relocated from downtown Novato in July.
Marin’s first Nick the Greek, a 47-unit California restaurant franchise chain with extra opening by the day, together with exterior the state, fills a Greek delicacies void within the county that Novato resident and franchise co-owner Sam Zeidan was impressed to fill. He had his first gyros at Novato’s annual Memorial Day weekend Greek Pageant when he moved again to Marin 13 years in the past. “I’d go 12 months after 12 months,” he says. “There was such a protracted line that I questioned why we don’t we’ve got these obtainable on a regular basis?”
The unique thought behind the Nick the Greek franchise additionally surfaced from a way that the pleasures of Greek meals must be extra accessible. Its founder Nick Tsigaris isn’t one particular person however three, all cousins with the identify which might be known as Child, Little and Huge Nick.
The youngest returned dwelling to San Jose after a visit to Greece and was decided to deal with a dearth of the true deal gyros he’d grow to be accustomed to within the Mediterranean nation. So, in 2014, the cousins and second-generation restaurateurs opened their first in San Jose and at the moment are approaching 80 with new places opening quickly in Nevada, Kansas, Arizona, Texas and Utah.
Zeidan’s dad and mom, Nick and Mary, opened their first café on the Northgate Mall after transferring the household from San Francisco to San Rafael when Sam was a younger teenager, and so they owned Mary’s Place in downtown Novato for greater than a decade earlier than retiring 4 years in the past.
The prolonged Tsigaris and Zeidan households fashioned a restaurant business friendship, so it was pure that when Zeidan was contemplating Greek eating places choices that the Tsigaris household would encourage him to open a Marin franchise. Sam’s enterprise companion is his cousin, Zee Zeidan, who additionally co-owns and operates Nick the Greek places in Vallejo, Napa and Vacaville.
Souvlaki (skewered meat or greens) and gyros (meat shaved from a vertical rotisserie) are served in pitas, bowls, salads and on plates and incorporate beef, rooster, lamb, pork, falafel or combined greens.
Fries are seasoned with salt and oregano or topped with feta cheese, garlic and inexperienced onion with the choice so as to add spicy yogurt and a selection of protein.
End the meal with baklava, loukoumades (bite-sized Greek donuts coated in honey syrup) or Greek-style frozen yogurt.
A handful of tables line the partitions, certainly one of which is blazoned with the menu’s substances, and there are just a few exterior, however the restaurant open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day is extra oriented to takeout. Discover extra particulars at nickthegreeksj.com or name 415-895-2620.
Aloha ALOH-O
The demolished Classic Oaks Procuring Middle constructing that was previously a Chevys Contemporary Mex additionally now homes the fifth fast-casual ALOH-O poke restaurant owned by sushi chef Jerry Zhang and his spouse, Jasmina Luo. They opened the primary 4 years in the past in Terra Linda with an intention to interrupt the stereotype of quick meals with the poke bowls they tout as quick, tasty, colourful, customizable, nutritious and handy.
Alan Dep/Marin Impartial Journal
ALOH-O opened its fifth location in Novato.
Their newest enterprise, ALOH-O Poke and Tea, has the identical poke and boba tea menu as their three-year-old Petaluma location. The one-year-old Mill Valley outpost additionally presents sushi; Santa Rosa that debuted in 2020 has sushi, sides and bento bins; and their unique in San Rafael has all of it plus ramen.
Within the curiosity of innovating the standard marinated uncooked fish centered Hawaiian poke bowl, the ALOH-O bowls embrace a broader set of ingredient choices. Select a white, brown or sushi rice, lettuce, tortilla chips or a two merchandise mixture base; a sauce (spicy or non-spicy unique, Hawaiian, sesame, ponzu, spicy shoyu, mayo or garlic, miso ginger or wasabi sauce), and proteins — two scoops of chilly or uncooked salmon, ahi tuna, yellowtail, imitation crab meat, spicy tuna, scallops, EBI or meatless rooster, or one serving of rooster or salmon teriyaki, beef sukiyaki or unagi.
The restaurant additionally has a collection of milk and fruit-flavored teas and Japanese snacks.
Go to between 11 a.m. and eight p.m. every day or place your order at aloh-o.com.
Chipotle drive-thru
Marin’s newest Chipotle Mexican Grill options the realm’s first Chipotlane, a drive-thru byway that enables prospects to choose up digital orders with out leaving their vehicles. It’s open from 10:45 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day.
All three eating places are at 128 Classic Means in Novato. Opening subsequent on the purchasing heart are Crumbl Cookies, Sourdough & Co. and Dave’s Scorching Rooster.
Leanne Battelle is a contract meals author and restaurant columnist. Electronic mail her at ij.lbattelle@gmail.com with information and proposals and comply with on Instagram @therealdealmarin for updates on the launch of The Actual Deal Marin restaurant search information.
