Sometimes more is more. Granted, there’s something gloriously simple about a fistful of pita wrapped around grilled meat, tomato, red onions and tzatziki, and it’s no wonder there are so very many souvlaki joints in Athens, but if you’re truly in the mood for something meaty, make sure to ask yourself before you grab a quick solution from one of those joints, “Should I perhaps be thinking bigger?”

Beyond the undeniably tasty but rather limited world of skewers and gyro lies the psitopoleio, the Greek grill house, where meat masters cook not just souvlaki but a whole range of chicken, beef, pork and lamb cuts over charcoal, either suspended on spits or flat down over the fire. One of the best of these grill houses is a place called Tzimis (“Jimmy’s”), in Vyronas on a small square that it shares with cafés, other eateries and the tiny white-washed Church of Aghios Lazaros, or St Lazarus. (Yes, that Lazarus.) Tzimis first opened its doors here in 1977, and when it changed ownership about five years ago, management was careful to maintain continuity and keep its very popular menu much the same.

 

 

 

 

 

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Vyronas isn’t really tourist territory, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t lively, particularly around this square. A twenty-four-hour store on one corner draws a steady stream of teenagers, while the cafés and dining spots here pull in both older clientele and younger families eager to let their little ones loose between the tables. Tzimis in particular is a neighborhood gathering-place, and you’ll hear warm hellos and gentle teasing between patrons and staff everywhere around you. Here, service with a smile is a spontaneous and natural occurrence, and there’s certainly no great formality about the table set-up; all of them, and there are plenty to go around, are lined up outdoors on the square itself, cooled by fans and shaded by awnings in the summer. 

It’s all very casual, and very welcoming, unless, of course, you’re … Vegans and vegetarians should look away now; Tzimis is for carnivores. There are literally dozens of meat options, including chicken, lamb, mutton and pork chops by the kilo or as individual portions; a full selection of pita wraps, including pork belly and spicy kebab; sausage; veal liver and veal chops; kokoretsi, made with lamb offal wrapped in crisply roasted intestines; kontosouvli, either pork or sometimes lamb chunks spit-cooked to extra-yummy tenderness; and exohiko, pork slow-cooked with peppers and cheese. 

 

 

 

 

 

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From this embarrassment of riches, I find their kokoretsi to be exceptional and their exohiko to be divine, but perhaps the best thing on the menu is a rather humble, modified classic: yes, it is wrapped in a pita, but what’s wrapped in that pita is pork kontosouvli rather than pork souvlaki. All the other flavors are there – the toasted pita, the tzatziki, the tomato, the red onion and the fries – but it is the meat, this ultra-satisfying tender roast pork filling, that puts this selection in a category of its own. 

To go with whatever dish you do choose, there’s a fair selection of Greek beers, and the red, white and rosé wines that you can order by the kilo are all sourced from northern or northwestern Greece. Still, it’s the food and not the drink that keeps the regulars returning time and time again. But don’t just take my word for it; come to the saint’s square and find out why sometimes too much is just enough. 

Don Domonkos has been an Athens resident off and on since 1985. He has also been the Head of Editorial at Greece Is magazine since 2016. Traditional Greek eateries, outdoor movie theaters, watching sports at crowded kafeneia, and getting lost down out-of-the-way side streets are some of his favorite things in life, topped only by spending time with his wonderful family.