As we’ve settled into fall, we’ve been out and about all around New York, and that means we’ve been checking out a bunch of cool places to eat.  Today we wanted to highlight two spots that are similar on the surface – they both serve Greek food – but in every other way they’re very different.  You’ll have to travel to two separate boroughs to get to both these places, and the food and the atmosphere at each is very distinct as well.  Check out what we got at both of these restaurants and you’ll see that even within the same cuisine you can get very different food experiences – but just be warned that we have one image of meat in this post.

The first place we went was BZ Grill, in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens.  Astoria has had a Greek community for the past 60 years or so, which is why you can find some excellent Greek spots there.  BZ Grill is a place to grab a quick bite – their menu is mostly sandwiches and other finger foods, and you can get your order to go or have it in the small seating area at the back.  Miriam’s choice these was the halloumi sandwich, made with grilled strips of halloumi cheese plus lettuce, tomatoes, onions and a white sauce, all wrapped up in a pita.

And Cyril had to try their gyro, because they advertise it as the best in the city.  Here it is on a pita, with tomatoes, onions, lettuce, and a tzatziki sauce.

And we also shared an order of Greek fries, baked with feta, oregano and olive oil.

But if you want to head over to the Lower East Side in Manhattan, you can find a Greek restaurant with an entirely different vibe.  Kiki’s is a spot that exploded in popularity over the summer – when we went, it was absolutely mobbed with people, many celebrating and snapping dozens of pictures with their food and their friends.  We liked that the menu goes beyond what you typically see at a Greek restaurant and offers some dishes that are lesser-known in this country, plus there’s a ton of vegetarian options.  We were actually able to put together an entirely meat-free meal, starting with this tirokafteri:  a cheese and red pepper dip, served with pita wedges.

Then we sampled the saganaki, which is kefalograviera cheese baked into phyllo dough and then topped with honey and sesame seeds.

We also got the briam, made with potato, zucchini, eggplant, onions and peppers, all in a tomato sauce …

… plus some roasted potatoes in a lemon butter sauce.

But the best thing we tried was these fried zucchini chips, covered with grated kefalograviera cheese.

We don’t eat Greek food all that often, because in our experience many Greek restaurants tend to serve just the same few dishes:  moussaka, souvlaki, Greek salad – many meat-based foods, and the vegetarian options can sometimes be a little boring.  But we think both of these places show just how expansive and vegetarian-friendly Greek cuisine can be.  And you’ve got two different restaurant scenes going on here too:  one quick and unassuming spot in a traditional Greek neighborhood, and one mega-popular place where you can sit and enjoy a meal.  If Greek food is on your mind, both these places are excellent for trying some interesting things to eat in New York.