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The Parthenon Restaurant
Categories: Restaurants Greek Restaurants Mediterranean Greek, Mediterranean [Edit]
314 S Halsted St(between Gladys Ave & Jackson Blvd)
Chicago, IL 60661
Neighborhoods: Greektown, Near West Side, West Loop
(312) 726-2407
- Nearest Transit:
-
UIC-Halsted (Blue Line)
Clinton-Blue (Blue Line)
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 11 am - 12 am
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street, Valet
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- Free
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
205 reviews for The Parthenon Restaurant
Review Highlights
"Plus the free valet is a HUGE plus in Greektown."
(in 27 reviews)
"The saganaki was hot and super tasty."
(in 78 reviews)
"I shared the vegetarian family style dinner."
(in 12 reviews)
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205 reviews in English
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Review from Paul S.
Orland Park, IL
2/1/2012
Soooo much to eat & delicious - let me tell you.
Our meal. The yummy Saganaki - can you say "Ooooppah". Also had delicious mini spinach cheese pies
Entrees Kotopita (Greek chicken pot pie)
And Scallops Saganaki a LaSoto. Huge scallops with a tomatoe based sauce and rice.
Our server was Elias - very friendly. -
Review from Meredith B.
Pittsburgh, PA
1/24/2012 1 Check-in Here
I can't believe I'd never been to Greektown before, but now that I've gone, I see no reason not to return many times! First of all, tons of places have free valet, including the Parthenon, so that cannot be beat. My friend and I got a table right away on a Saturday night at around 830 pm, which was also fantastic. We split a carafe of their house "light red wine" which was sweet and drinkable.
We ordered only appetizers - but many of them! We began with the saganaki - because you have to - and it was delivered to our table by our super-Greek waiter with a half-hearted "opa." They probably say that hundreds of times per week. I imagine it gets old. But I don't care if he isn't excited by flaming cheese anymore, I sure as heck am, and it was deeelicious!
Because cheese is awesome, we also got the feta and kalamata olives platter. I'd recommend this to anybody who hasn't had feta and olives anywhere but the regular grocery store. This cheese was the BOMB. I have to find somewhere down here where they actually sell it, because I can never buy the stuff from Dominick's again. Get the grilled pita on the side, it goes brilliantly with all the appetizers (better than the bread from the bread basket).
We got the "Special Platter," the cold version, which contained one dolma, eggplant spread, fish roe spread, bean salad, and octopus in wine sauce. Everything was very tasty. I even liked the eggplant, which I'm not normally crazy about. The fish roe spread was my favorite - it sounded a bit weird but it was just marvelous. Go eat it, and surprise yourself with how good it is. It's pink and creamy and light. The bean salad was great, and the octopus had good flavor too.
The prices are fairly reasonable for what you get (lots of yummy food) and the free valet makes it a great deal. You also get the pleasure of watching lots of Greek waiters carry whole roasted lambs in a giant silver tray, with a sparkler sticking out of the center of the lamb. Maybe this is what the Parthenon does on your birthday, instead of bring you a cake?
First adventure in Greektown was a great success, and I can't wait to come back for more yumminess. -
Review from Nam D.
Chicago, IL
1/23/2012
Honestly the food is okay but the service was very good at Parthenon Restaurant. I honestly find the dive Greek places to have better food but if you want a sit down atmosphere or have a large party Parthenon isn't a bad choice.
I usual go for the Family Style dining choice which you can have little bit of everything. The appetizers are mostly going to be your favorite thing during the dining experience. Later you can pick from lamb, pork, or chicken as your entree picks. The chicken I found to be dry and the best meat I thought they prepared was the roasted pork. So I'd review this joint as OK ..... -
Review from Evan A.
Chicago, IL
2/8/2012
Best gyro in Chicago for sure. Go for lunch. For under $10 you can get a gyro, fries, salad and a soup.
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Review from Tom M.
Chicago, IL
12/19/2011
Lamb heaven!
Get the stuffed lamb leg with spinach and feta - it's marvelous! Or try the braised lamb if you like the "pot roast of lamb" effect!
Great flavors all around (though the baklava was NOT impressive). -
Review from Matt C.
Rochester, NY
12/18/2011
As I stated in my Mr. Greek Gyro review, I am Greek. Very much so! So when I stayed in Greektown during my first visit to Chicago, I stayed in the Parthenon Hostel which also has a restaurant right next to it! When I checked in I discussed with the person who was working there about a good Greek restaurant to eat at for dinner and she told me that the Parthenon next door is good AND I get a discount for staying at the Hostel! This was perfect for a 21 year old with a budget! So, I went and had the best food experience that I had in Chicago.
I've been to Greek restaurants, I've eaten Greek food. We have a nice Mediterranean restaurant here in Upstate NY called Aladdin's, but this place is what I have been looking for. When you first walk in the decor, the people, everything says traditional Greek and as I walked in I got excited because I knew that I was in for a good experience.
We sat down and checked out the menu and I was excited to read all of these delicious foods that my YiaYia and her friends would make homemade on different occasions. Spanakopita, Gyro, Saganaki, Moussaka - so many choices. My fiancee ordered the Spanakopita and I ordered the Moussaka for our entrees and we ordered Saganaki for an appetizer. If you didn't know Saganaki is a traditional cheese dish that when the waiter brings it out for you they actually start it on fire, yelling 'Opa'! According to Wikipedia, this actually started here at this restaurant. I don't know if that's true or not, but it's pretty cool nonetheless.
The entrees were delicious. The Moussaka was perfect and just like my YiaYia and her friends make! The Béchamel sauce was delicious, as was the meat and eggplant. I am unsure about whether the meat was traditional lamb or beef, but it didn't matter to me because I actually have never (knowingly) ate it with lamb and it was delicious anyway! I have yet to find a Spanakopita that I can successfully compare to my YiaYia's, but this is as close as it comes! My YiaYia's is less spinach and more cheese, when most Spanakopita that I find is the opposite.
In conclusion, this is definitely my favorite place that I have eaten at in Chicago thus far and I'd be interested in finding more Greek restaurants that I can compare to this!
Opa! -
Review from Joan O.
Chicago, IL
12/15/2011
I had a night out with my girlfriends and we choice a Greek Restaurant. My first time trying a full meal at a Greek Restaurant, and wow! I love the ambiance, the wait staff were excellent, the food OMG!
We started out with bread and flaming Saganaki, Chicken Lemon Soup. For dinner I had Macaroni Pasticsio mouth watering awesome. My friend had Lima Beans in tomato sauce, the other had Pasta with Chicken and peas in a cream sauce. We each taste test each others dish. We close out our dining pleasure with coffee and share a slice of Baklava, Yummo! I must say 2 thumbs up to the Chief and I will return again. -
Review from Hope K.
Skokie, IL
12/9/2011
I was contemplating between 1 star or 2 stars...
I only went with 2 stars because the 2 appetizers were pretty decent.
It was just one bad experience after another...
First, when we walked in, no one acknowledged us for a while.
Once we were finally seated, we were again, being ignored. No one came to us.
We didn't even get any water... nor did anyone come by us AT ALL for literally like 10 mins... we just sat there looking for someone to come to our table...
I had to go back up to the front and told the lady that our server hadn't come by our table yet and that we haven't even gotten water yet...
She was nice and immediately got someone to come to our table...
Our appetizers came out pretty quick. We ordered the hummus and the grilled calamari.
They were both really good.
Now our entree. It took about 30 minutes after we've ordered our entree.
It was a combination plate of different things.
When it FINALLY came out... the food was cold and nothing tasted right.
What I didn't understand is that by the time that we had ordered our entree the restaurant was quieting down.
Our dish consisted of items that were not freshly prepared... meaning these items were made ahead in big batches... so if all they had to do was scoop small portions onto the plate ... since they were ALL pre-made... then why did it take 30mins and why was it COLD?????
There was no way that we were going to eat that food.
I called our server and told him that our food was cold and it just didn't taste good.
He got defensive ... in the end he asked if we wanted to get another item instead...
but we were just fed up and wanted to get out of there...
We were pretty much full from the water and the bread...
There are plenty of other delicious Greek restaurants on that street...
I WILL NOT BE BACK HERE!!!! -
Review from Svitlana P.
Buffalo Grove, IL
11/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
There's not much to say about The Parthenon. Yes it has free valet parking and yes, it serves ok Greek food. Maybe it's because I've been spoiled at Greek Islands Taverna, Ft Lauderdale, FL. Or maybe it's because I have high standards.....either way, I was not impressed. After dining at Greek Islands Taverna, I expect that homemade hummus and fresh baked bread and pita should be complimentary at a Greek place. Here all you get is bread and butter.
The food is just ok. And there's not much to say about the service. The waiter took forever to take our order, left the squeezed lemon on my menu after bringing out the saganaki, and I'm pretty sure I was spit on while he was talking.
I doubt I'll be coming back. -
Review from adam C.
Chicago, IL
1/1/2012
My favorite salad is a Village salad. I just got one from these guy. It had ONE olive, and 4 slices of cucumber. It was as piss-poor a Village salad as I've ever gotten. How sad :(
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Review from Char Y.
Chicago, IL
We came with a coupon for meal for two. We ordered
braised octopus - good but greasy
saganaki - good, melting cheese!
special combination - good, a selection of entrees
scallops - ok, very greasy
crema caramel - great, not too sweet and very soft
baklava - ok
galaktobeureka - ok
I thought the food was ok, but tend to be on the fatty & greasy side. -
Review from Marjorie F.
Chicago, IL
11/19/2011
I should always listen to my Greek friend when it comes to dining in Greektown. This was the site of a Meetup event, so I thought I would sample the fare while I was here trying learn how to write a screenplay.
First of all, the server seemed bothered by the fact that he was assigned to our group. Geez... Cheer up, big guy! I wanted to remind him that there are lots of people out of jobs, so he should be happy that he has one.
My order was very simple: taramosalata (fish roe dip), egg lemon soup, and the gyros plate. The taramosalata looked good, but what I tasted was AWFUL. One bit and I was done with it. Blech. The waiter did not give me any pitas so I sampled it sans bread. Why would you serve me a dip without something to dip into it??? I'm wondering. Next, the egg lemon soup was delicious. It was perfect for a chilly November evening. It made me hopeful for the main course.
When my main entree finally arrived, there was only ONE pita and a plateful of overcooked meat with a bunch of chopped onions underneath. The tzitziki sauce was OK, but served long before my plate arriving. It was all very unpleasant. Maybe I'm a food snob, but having wonderful experiences at other establishments in the area, I expected more.
As for the restaurant as a venue for a workshop, I think that this Meetup group should investigate other options. There were two other events going on simultaneously which was very distracting as I was trying to focus on what our speaker was saying.
Overall, I was not impressed by the Parthenon. There are so many other options in that part of town --- skip this one! -
Review from Dee C.
10/30/2011 1 Check-in Here
I was not to impressed. Maybe it's because I'm not a Greek food kinda person or it's because I am a vegetarian. But nonetheless I had ordered:
Flaming saganaki- mild kaseri cheese flame in brandy. I have had it before. Tasted fine.
Cheese pies- whipped feta blend wrapped in phyllo. I felt like the taste was a little overwhelming.
Greek salad- lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, feta, olives, peppers, oregano. meh.....just a plain old salad....nothing fancy.
Vegetarian moussaka- layered eggplants, zucchini and potatoes, bechamel sauce and kefalotiri. blah....it was just mush bland stuff...not a fan at all....
crema caramel-custard baked with syrup: the only good thing I liked. This was sooo good...only reason I gave it 2 stars.
GALAKTOBOUREKO: not a fan of this either. Not a great dessert in my eye.
iced coffee: meh....just coffee
Friend had the wild fresh salmon. He did not like it that much.
The staff was friendly, but that was all. There was nothing else appealing to this place. -
Review from Michael B.
Chicago, IL
1/25/2012
Amazing experience tonight with my wife! Owner is great and our waiter Salvadore is the best! Can't wait to go back for the broiled octopus entree :)
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Review from Riley B.
Palatine, IL
8/28/2011
My fiance insisted we go to The Parthenon one evening as she had been eating their all her life. I thought to myself, like an idiot, (like I'm sure many of you do when walking/driving down Halsted/Greek Town) that the other more "posh" looking places had to have better food, service, etc. But man was I wrong!
We pulled up. Got free valet parking. Walked in to friendly smiles. Sat down. The old waiter (who had been my fiance's server millions of times previously) was reminiscing that he knew her when she was just a little baby. He remembered exactly what she wanted to order (without asking) - Roditis and a Cold Combo Appetizer. Holy moly was it delicious! I couldn't stop eating the delicious foods in the appetizer (cold octopus, bean salad, taramosalata = the best, melitzanosalata, dolmade, and a cheese puff).
Then came the meal, Tigania (slow cooked pork medallions in a wine-tomato sauce). After the appetizer and bread I was nearing belt-busting but it was too delicious to not finish! On subsequent visits I've managed to save some to take home in a doggie-bag and, man oh man, is it delicious the next day!
Also, according to wikipedia (with references) The Parthenon invented saganaki - which, of course, their's is delicious.
All in all, go to the Parthenon for great food, great service, great value, and an overall amazing experience. Keep going and the dedicated staff (which seems like they've all been their forever) will get to know you. -
Review from Elizabeth H.
Palatine, IL
8/28/2011
I have been coming to the Parthenon for about 30 years - literally since I was born. I am a HUGE Greek food fanatic, and can honestly say that no other restaurant in Greek town compares. The food here is consistently awesome and the owners are friendly and wonderful.
But now onto the most important part - THE FOOD! I think with any restaurant there are standout dishes. I can't say I've ever had a bad meal here, but there are certainly dishes that I always order, and are the best Greek meals I've ever had in chicago. Here are my ultimate go tos - the all time favorites!
1) Cold Combination Appetizer plate: I ALWAYS order this. This cold combination plate is the best I've had anywhere PERIOD. Included in this plate is marinated cold octopus (frickin delicious!), bean salad with dill and olives, taramosalata (fish roe spread), melitzanosalata (eggplant-garlic spread), a dolmade and a cheese puff. This cold plate alone, for one, is enough with bread to be a meal. If there are two of you, only order the cold combo plate for one - it is PLENTY of food. If you have four guests, order it for two.
Another excellent appetizer is the broiled octopus - the most tender octopus I've ever had. Order it, you won't be sorry!
2) Tigania: at the Parthenon, their Tigania is slow cooked pork medallions in a wine-tomato based sauce. AH-MAZING. Not only is it my favorite dish at the Parthenon, but it's my favorite Greek dish period. The pork is soft and melts in your mouth, the sauce is soooooo flavorful, and the rice absorbs all the goodness. It's an easy dish to overlook. Don't overlook it! Order order order!!!
3) I am not a pork chop fan. Typically I don't like them at all. BUT, the pork chops at the Parthenon are the JUICIEST pork chops I've ever had in my life. GET THEM.
4) Best Moussaka I've had.
5) Whole fish of the day prepared Greek-style. GET IT. My dad's favorite, along with the lamb chops.
6) Lamp chops - GET THEM. Huge, and like butter.
7) Lamb with artichokes is delicious.
8) My favorite avgolemono (egg-lemon soup).
9) For vegetarians, their veggie combination entree is delicious and huge.
10) The rotisserie roasted greek chicken is AMAZING. SOOOO juicy and delicious. When you bite into it you will be shocked. Another easy dish to overlook on the menu and assume is boring. DON'T overlook it!!! SOOOO good!!!!!!!!
11) All the entrees come with a side - I highly recommend going with the braised eggplant, braised okra, or the spinach rice (served on weekends). Typically they just give you rice or potatoes as a side. Ask specifically for one of the above dishes.
There are waiters that have been working here for thirty years. It's an institution. Get a bottle of house Roditis wine, put some lemons in it the Greek way, sit with your cold combo plate, and enjoy! The other places in Greektown just don't compare. Don't follow the sheeple and tourists and go to other places like the Greek Islands. Over the years I have tried other places and always felt disappointed and underwhelmed. The Parthenon is a Chicago classic and probably my favorite place in Chi-town! I have never made a reservation here in my life, so I wouldn't worry about trying...I didn't even know they took them, except for large parties! The wait is usually very very quick, so no worries about this issue. Oh - and free Valet parking, of course :)
Oh, and just FYI, the Parthenon invented the deeeeeelicious flaming saganaki!!!! 'Nough said. -
Review from Courtney W.
Chicago, IL
11/20/2011 2 Check-ins Here
This is hands down my favorite place in Greek Town and quite possibly my favorite Greek restaurant period! What do I love about this place? First, they provide free valet parking. Not many places do this anymore and finding street parking in the area is almost impossible. When you walk in, everyone is extremely friendly and you are treated like royalty the minute you walk in. I have eaten here about fifteen times and I have never received poor service. They handle large groups well and it doesn't take three hours for all of the food to come out.
Now, for the food. Start out with an order of the saganaki (goat cheese). It isn't rubbery like most places and it has just the right amount of salt. Scoop some onto one of the poppy seed slices of bread at the table and you've got a winning appetizer. Get the greek salad, they'll even give you some extra amazing feta on the side. It's a huge salad and easily feeds a large group. The dressing is amazing. For the main course, get the supreme lamb chops. They are rather large and deliciously juicy. They come with a plate of rice and some lemon potatoes and both could be great meals by themselves. For dessert, the lemon custard pastry with honey is fantastic. I can never remember the Greek name of it but it's heavenly. Let me not forget the alcohol, the rodidas wine is to die for. I brought home an entire jug of it the other day for some friends. It comes from Greece and they store it in giant jugs in the basement.
Everything considered, this is a great spot in Greek Town. I haven't found a better place for lamb chops. It's a no frill establishment that has been in the area for quite some time. -
Review from Jake P.
Chicago, IL
1/14/2012
Moved down near Greek Town so I had to try the place, and there's nothing to complain about. Great greek food, but the atmosphere is really what makes the place. The owner is always upbeat and friendly, and greets all guests when you're seated. What's even better is that they always come check to make sure you're enjoying your food.
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Review from B L.
Burbank, IL
9/9/2011
If I had to choose the best in Greektown, Greek Isles would be it, but Parthenon is a very close second.
I've had a banquet here with about 30 people and the prices were extremely, extremely reasonable. The servers were very nice and I was very pleased with the experience.
On a side note I tried booking the banquet at Greek Isles first but was unable to. I think it was a blessing in disguise because it let me try this place out.
Give it a whirl! -
Review from J S.
Las Vegas, NV
12/4/2011
Wait staff is friendly, though I don't really go for the overly-familiar way they treated us. I tend to like them to just do their job and not befriend me. Food was acceptable. Place is a little large, so it is rather noisy. It seems this is one of two places to go for Greek food in Chicago, but I guess I don't like Greek food that much.
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Review from Shannon S.
Chicago, IL
6/27/2011 5 Check-ins Here
I get the dolmades almost every single time. The only time I stray away from it is to get the combination plate so I can eat dolmades and a bit of everything else.
I've never had anything I didn't like here. Every dinner starts with sagnaki, consists of constant flowing roditis and ends with a very happy (and full) girl.
The service and that atmosphere are great. The free valet is a major bonus and even if you don't want to use it street parking is usually pretty easy to find. -
Review from Gina K.
Ah Chicago, who does gyros better than you.
I walked in to this restaurant and i seriously felt like I was walking onto a set from My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
Super warm greetings from everyone. It's in your face hospitality and like the movie, lots and lots of food. The lunch plate is more than enough food but it's tradition for us to indulge in Saganaki, flaming goat cheese. http://www.yelp.com/bi...
Rumour has it that the Parthenon was the one to start with the blazing cheese. The warmth from the flash flame can felt from across the room. It amazes me that such a huge fire can be put out with a puny lemon wedge as shown in the picture. I'm almost tempted to try extinguishing the next fire with a lemon. Well almost...
Even though they were super busy with a large tour bus sized party in the other room and large tables in the main dining room, service from our server and kitchen did not suffer and that a big deal during a lunch time rush.
Good service, decent food, add the time saved from the free valet service and the Parthenon becomes one of my Chicago gems. Ef-kari-shto Thank you Parthenon. =) -
Review from Nicolas L.
Chicago, IL
6/24/2011
No offense, but you people are crazy. Do not come to this restaurant if you have any hopes of having a decent meal. I will say that the service was fantastic--prompt and friendly. The service was the only good thing about our experience here.
Drink menu--the wine list leaves much to be desired.
Course one--appetizer: we ordered the saganaki and gyros. The saganaki was good (standard for saganaki). The gyros were tasteless and fatty. Very strange. I've never had fat strips on gyros meat, and there was virtually no seasoning on the meat. It was dry as well.
Course two--greek salad--skip itand save yourself 5 bucks. Iceburg lettuce with a few veggies.
Course three--We ordered two meals--Pork chops and the combo platter: The pork chop was decent. Could have been better. There was nothing "stand out" about it. I could have cooked it at home. The combo platter was a disaster. It looked like banquet hall food. The "lamb" was actually a slice of beef (who are you trying to fool!) and the dolmades were gooey and tasteless. The moussaka was pretty yummy though.
Course four: the baklava was yummy, the flan was blah and the vanilla custard with phyllo dough was pretty good.
Bottom line: The server was great and the food was awful. We had tons of leftovers and didn't bring any home. An overall disappointment. We will not be coming back. Even though the prices are cheap, the food isn't worth it. You'd be better off making a frozen meal at home!! -
Review from So Hui C.
Winnetka, IL
5/5/2011
I love this place!
I will not eat Gyros from anywhere else unless I'm super desperate. I love the food there and love seeing the same friendly faces everytime I'm there.
FREE VALET!!!
Did I mention free valet?!
It's a great thing not to have to think about where you are going to park. I can use the time I save enjoying a wonderful dish of Saganake. Oh-pah!!
Love it! -
Review from Amy H.
I had such high hopes for the Parthenon, but I was underwhelmed after reading their awesome story and rave reviews on the website. Sadface. A super sweet guy brought me here on a first date, and I was excited to be WOWed by both him and this restaurant, but only he ended up WOWing me.
PARKING: Free valet!! Sooo awesome! Sets up a dinner date nicely.
SERVICE: This aspect of my experience underwhelmed me the most. Our waiter was not very attentive, and whenever he lit up the Saganaki, and said OPA, his face and voice showed that he had done it 1000 times already...which he probably has, but it was my first time! He kinda killed the excitement of the blazing fire for me.
FOOD: I originally wanted the Vegetarian Special Combination, but they didn't have pastitsios (booo), so I went for the Vegetarian Moussaka. I regret my choice, as it was just too intensely flavored for me. Too salty. However, my date loved it, and I loved his Sea Scallops, so he was super sweet in basically trading dishes with me =) Sighh the scallops...so plump and flavored just right. Yummy.
Oh and of course we had the Saganaki, which was heavenly. I definitely wouldn't eat it too often, though, because it's oily...I thought about how many extra minutes I would have to hit the elliptical for after each bite.
AMBIANCE: Love the decor! I wish we had been seated in the room with the beautiful murals of calming Greece scenes. Maybe next time.
I'll definitely come back for the decor, Saganaki, and Sea Scallops...hopefully I'll have a more enthusiastic waiter next time. =) -
Review from Mark G.
Chicago, IL
11/2/2011
I had a half hour to kill and went in the other day. The free parking made it easy. I just sat at the bar and had a glass of roditys and a plate of flaming cheese. This restaurant invented the dish and few places do it so well. Served with their great bread, this was a great snack. Nice to know that the old reliable still has it.
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Review from Amanda T.
Chicago, IL
5/29/2011 1 Check-in Here
After a long hiatus I have returned to the Parthenon. When I was younger Parthenon was my favorite Greek restaurant, probably because it was the only one my family ever went to besides little corner greasy gyro places. And I loved it. I tried saganaki here for the first time and learned the phrase OPA! As I got older and maybe wiser, I discovered some of the other restaurants in Greektown that I liked more than good old Parth.
But my grandparents still love this place and this is were we went one Sunday evening. Everything looked as I remembered. The walls filled with all sorts of Grecian fare. The staff was attentive. Our saganaki was pretty good, the Greek salad with anchovies was delicious and the calamari was decent. For my main dish I ordered a gyro. The entree comes unassembled so you have to put it together yourself and I liked it this way. It allowed me to put as however much meat and tzatziki and whatever as I pleased. The gyro wasn't a complete bust, but not as good as I remembered. The gyro meat was very dry, so it wasn't as enjoyable as I had hoped. Parthenon will probably not be on the itinerary for my next Greektown adventure, but the place is not a bad at all. And if my grandparents enjoy it, I will more than happily go with them again. -
Review from Brad M.
Mission Viejo, CA
10/15/2011 1 Check-in Here
Had another fantastic dinner at the Parthenon as usual! Always great servive and fun times!
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Review from mary e.
Chicago, IL
1/29/2011
I think the Parthenon has some of the most authentically Greek food in the city (my best friend is Greek so I have been subjected to lots of Greek cuisine). The other day I came here with a small group and we ordered the "Traditional" family style dinner. It was incredible. They brought us so much food including bread, salad, saganaki, gyro, chicken, lamb, greek lasagna, egg plant lasagna, and desert (vanilla custard and baklava). Plus drinks were included. The service was fantastic and the restaurant was clean and attractive. We had so much fun. The Parthenon is a must of anyone venturing into Greektown.
Did I mention I only paid $13 (ordinarily $19 per person but they were having a special)? -
Review from Rita B.
7/23/2011
First off, I love Greektown. I've been to many of the restaurants on Halsted but for some reason, never stopped at The Parthenon.
I purchased a travelzoo voucher last year and finally made time to head to Greektown. I'm giving a lot of background so you readers can understand the type of quality, quantity and service we received.
I informed our server that we had a voucher (in case we needed to order off of a different menu)...which is what we expected to do.
We were able to order (get this...you sitting down?) 2 apps, 2 salads, 2 entrees, 2 desserts and 2 coffees for $49. Wow!
The apps were delicious! Saganaki was good but needed a bit more lemon. The second app was some kind of ground beef in phyllo dough. Couldn't finish the second app. Greeks salad was to die for! We would have loved the extra feta cheese and kalamata olives but it didn't make the salad any less delicious.
For the entrees we had the spinach and feta stuffed chicken breast (which was the size of a man's palm). It came with rice and potatoes AND a size of ... Rice. HUH? More rice? Ok!
My husband had the lamb chops which also came with rice, potatoes and more rice!
We couldn't take more than one bite out of our entrees so we packed them up to take home.
Dessert was this genius concoction of custard and phyllo dough (yes, I love phyllo dough as much as the Greeks do). The second dessert was a flan-type called crema caramel. Literally, only one bite of each and those too were packed to go.
Complimentary parking is always a plus.
Service was slow but good. Never got our order wrong, always made sure our cups were filled with our beverage of choice.
I have to say....I'll be back to visit this awesome restaurant again. -
Review from Michael R.
Wheaton, IL
9/10/2011 1 Check-in Here
Three stars for the festive party atmosphere. Three stars for the location, in Chicago's fun Greektown neighborhood. Two stars for the food, which is about as good as you'd expect at an average Greek diner. Great for large groups who want to drink Roditys wine and make a lot of noise.The lamb with artichokes was fairly bland and short on meat. The greek salads were pedestrian. The pastitsio was also fairly bland, but filling. Go for the fun, not the food.
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Review from Mahsa T.
11/15/2010
Lunch special is a good value ($10) and includes soup, salad and entree. Portions are small but enough for lunch. Egg lemon soup and Greek salad were good but my gyros entree had too much fat on the meat, never seen gyros with that much visible fat on it. Probably the worst gyros I've had. I had a taste of my friend's tilapia and that was good.
Service was friendly but painfully slow, especially if you're in a hurry to get back to work. Free valet is a plus. The food and service at Greek Islands is much better. -
Review from Vy T.
Chicago, IL
12/11/2011
Worst food ever!!!! The hummus was the most disgusting thing I've ever tasted....and the gyros..fat, dry, and tasted like cardboard.
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Review from Sam K.
Chicago, IL
10/20/2010
Thirty five years ago, my father, a modest immigrant, came to Chicago and stayed in a guesthouse just west of downtown. That evening, he went out for a meal near his guesthouse. The place he ended up was a dingy hole in the wall that actually fitted his tiny budget, but the people were warm and friendly and the food was delicious. He did remember one thing in particular. They had cheese (which was a novelty in itself for most Indian immigrants) and before they served it, they set it on fire.
This is what he told me when he last came to visit.
"Saganaki Dad. It's called saganaki."
"Yes! That must be it."
After a bit of research, it turned out that the Parthenon not only was considered to have the best saganaki in town, but was the birth of it. And it just so happens, it's the same restaurant (with the same owners, and whose daughter is the hostess) my dad came to thirty five years ago.
The Parthenon, according to my father, has gone through a remarkable makeover. On the Saturday night we went, it was bright and bustling and quite beautiful. Our hostess, whose father owned the restaurant, was incredibly charming and friendly.
My father, a vegetarian, had plenty of options, contrary to the popular stereotypes about Greek food. He settled on a traditional vegetarian combo, which includes veggie mousakka, veggie pastitsio, dolmas and some sort of leafy lasagna type dish. I got the same, but with roasted lamb (for which they didn't charge me extra). There were probably other good choices, but we were hungry and too impatient to go through the whole menu. We also got saganaki and mini spanakopita as apps.
The saganaki, of course, was fun and delicious, and better than the saganaki I've had in other Chicago Greek restaurants. The spanakopita was also exceptionally good, and better than most spanikopita I've had.
My father was very happy with his meal. I was almost happy - the leafy dish I ate has a floral taste that I wasn't too fond of, and I wasn't that big a fan of the roasted lamb, which seemed a little too wet and slightly spongy. Everything else on my plate was great, though. The mousakka in particular was amazing.
The service: Our waiter put forth his best effort, but was clearly overworked and dealing with far too many tables. It was difficult to get his attention, and he was clearly rushed and flustered. But A+ for sincerity and effort.
Our meal came out to less than $50, which is amazingly cheap for the quality and quantity of what we got, the location, and the ambiance. A hell of a lot better and cheaper than the meal we got at mana's vegetarian food bar a couple days later.
Overall, excellent and delicious experience, and very Chicago.Listed in: Vegetarianism in Chicago
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Review from Jaz P.
Chicago, IL
10/16/2010
Tried to get into Meli's for brunch with my friends from out of town @11am Saturday. Once my buzz of the wait buzzer wore off after 1 minute of our 50 minute- wait to get seated, we switched gears to have some Greek for lunch.. So we walked across the street to the spacious and inviting Parthenon. The three of us ordered the flaming cheese, a Greek salad with anchovies, the combination platter, a small gyros platter, and the meatballs platter.
The $15.95 combination platter is a great way to become acquainted with Greek food for a newbie like me. It features grape leaves, moussaka, pasticizis, and roast lamb. I've never been one to understand the allure of Greek dishes aside from gyros, but this time, the moussaka, an eggplant meat lasagna dish, had me sold! The noodle had the perfect amount of crusty chewy texture, layered with an equally perfect mixture of eggplant and meat. (Pardon me for a digression. To explain the mechanics of me, Jaz MO, once I'm hooked on a dish, it becomes a regular life-long addiction. It might be too early to tell, but the warning signs are there. I may have officially developed a new love of moussaka.) Thus, optimistically, I will soon proclaim moussaka at the Parthenon is the standard bearer for moussaka.
The gyros was savory, much more naturally textured, less sweet, and less oily than other gyros platters I've had in Chicago. My friend explained it's likely because it was closer to being authentic lamb rather than the lamb/pork mixtures ubiquitously served elsewhere. Whatever it was, I will definitely be coming back and ordering it again. Ahh the origins of a future conundrum. It's going to be a tough toss up between the meal size portion of moussaka and the gyros. Will likely need to plan to go family style in my next visit.
I am glad we got the appetizer portion of the gyros. We were stuffed and couldn't even finish what we ordered.
There's a separate room for the bar, with flat screen TVs featuring sports, and at least 2 ample sized tables. If you're craving football and Greek food on Sunday for lunch, this might be the perfect place. -
Review from Kristy H.
Trigg, KY
10/27/2010 2 Check-ins Here
On my first trip to Chicago, I was told that regardless of my schedule, I had to eat at The Parthenon. I managed to work out the timing and went over to UIC-Halstead. At 3 PM on an abysmally hot July afternoon, I was the only diner in attendance. I walked in, apparently a little bedraggled-looking, and was immediately brought water with lemon and my waiter (who looked remarkably like Kurt Vonnegut) suggested a glass of white wine. I enthusiastically agreed.
As I was eating alone, a mostly-vegetarian, and not looking forward to returning to the heat, I ordered three appetizers. Two other people could've eaten with me, without a doubt. I had Dolmades, Bean Salad, and Melopita, which was on the "special" appetizer list. The melopita was amazing: feta baked in sheets of filo, then drizzled in warm, thyme-scented honey.
I was allowed, no, encouraged, to stay and linger over my meal. The Kurt look-alike brought me more wine, and even poured something far better than the house white I started with at no extra cost. I sat, cooled off, read a book, and relaxed while enjoying one of the best meals I've ever had.
Four days later, my husband got in to town. After he'd driven eight hours, the last thing he really wanted to do was get on a train and head back into the city from our suburban hotel. But we did, and he still gets a little moony-eyed when remembering that meal. Again, we ordered appetizers. He had some little meat pies, octopodi, spinach pies, and some little chicken tart-like things. I had two appetizers that night, having learned my lesson. The feta-stuffed cubanelle peppers were so delicious, I stopped at the grocery store when I got home and got two pounds of the peppers and some cheese.
The evening meal was much busier, but the servers were no less attentive. They remembered my visit from earlier in the week and were bemused at my quick return, and one of the owners came by to chat. When I asked about a drink I'd had in a Greek restaurant in Vienna, she took the time to sit down and chat with me about the drink and the memories of her childhood its mention recalled.
I worked in food service for long enough to know that making your customers feel like they're dining solo in a busy room is a feat few servers and cooks can manage. The staff at The Parthenon do it in spades. Their food is remarkably delicious, wine list phenomenal, and the service impeccable. If you're able to get there for dinner, you should go. -
Review from Jean C.
12/27/2010 1 Check-in Here
I ordered the avoglemono out from here a few weeks ago with my friend. She was in the mood for soup or rice so I said, why not both? She hadn't tried this before and I told her that she would love it. We placed the order to be ready for an 11:15am pick up. They were on time and when we brought our soup back, it was still piping hot. The bread was plentiful and perfect for dipping into the soup. It wasn't the best avoglemono I've had in Greektown but it still hit the spot.
The price for the soup was inexpensive and the service was friendly. I'll definitely be ordering from here again since it's so damn close to work. -
Review from Grant N.
Chicago, IL
6/15/2011
The best ROASTED POTATOES ever.
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Review from Janet E.
9/30/2010
We came here straight off the blue line (Halsted stop). Super easy to get to. Snagging a table here was easy too because the restaurant is very large. They had a private party in their party room that did not disrupt our dinner or food service at all. (And if it did, I did not notice)
We shared the pan fried zucchini with skordalia (cold garlic mashed potato dip), egg lemon soup, and braised lamb with rice pilaf. Plenty of food for two people and we even had left overs. The service here was good but not better than Greek Islands. The servers didn't seem happy themselves so I could sense they were not going to go out of their way to make us happy. We saw two waiters standing around talking to each other. When we called them to tell them we were ready to order, they said they would call our waiter over to take our order. I guess they don't do team work service here? -
Review from august b.
Chicago, IL
9/18/2011
I'm not totally sold. Food was good, not great. Service was fine, my tablemates were slow. lot's of pizzaz, guys flaming food around you...if you like that. I don't know, gyro is a gyro is a gyro...i tried the combo plate. nothing to write about
