Niko's Trapezi, A Greek Taverna

Okay, so I haven't posted forever, but I was in a bit of a restaurant rut, which then got overtaken by family difficulties. Excuses, excuses. But now I want to catch up and I'll start with this new Greek place, in Ursula Plaza, Long Branch.

I didn't realize it was called Niko's Trapezi till I looked at the takeout menu. For months before they opened, the big sign across the front said "Greek Grill/Taverna (I can't remember which) Opening Soon." Now the big electric sign on the front says, Greek Grill. Identity issues. We just call it the Greek place down the road. They're in the location formerly occupied by Dino's, a truly strange restaurant: it had a great arugula salad, but ordering anything else was pretty risky. And the service was terrible, except for the owner who would make the rounds at the end of the night with a bottle of Sambuca. Gone.

Niko's opened a month ago and we went there a week or so after they opened. The decor was standard Greek restaurant, but not overdone. I'd put it somewhere between diner and upscale. One thing that bothered me was the lights--really bright overhead lights. That, the early closing time, and the menu, tells me they are looking to make this a "family friendly" place.
Somewhere cheap but fairly nice that won't be bothered by kids.

The best part of Niko's is the menu: the price is right and there are lots of choices. Prices range from $5 for some appetizers/sides, to $20 for a rib eye dinner. Katja got the traditional Greek salad, which was fairly good--not spectacular--and the garlic potato dip and roasted eggplant dip. The potato dip turned out to be kind of boring if very garlicky, and the eggplant dip was good, but again very garlicky. I got the souvlaki platter, a steal at $10, with grilled pork, small Greek salad, tsatziki sauce, pita bread, and lemon potatoes. The pork skewer was a bit small (then again, how much do you expect for $10?) but it was very good: tender and well cooked. I liked the rest of the platter too--especially the lemon potatoes, which come with many of the meals.

The waiter was a very friendly guy who has a professional job and does this just for fun on weekends. First time I'd ever heard that! I hope he has lots of fun and sticks around.
We were the only people left in this very brightly-lit place at 9:30, and we'd been the only people for quite a while. We wondered about this and then our waiter (quite nicely) told us they closed at 9. 9! We were appalled. But he explained they would switch to summer hours soon--I'm sure they're on summer hours now, though not sure what the new closing time is.
I hope it's not only open later on weekends because they are exactly set up to be inundated with Bennies then, looking for cheap eats near the beach. So we'll only go on week nights.

Nice little neighborhood place. Food is good, service is good. My advice: lower the lights, cut down on the garlic, and stay open later.