It’s YiaSSOO good

I’d driven by the Greek restaurant Yiassoo probably more than 100 times before I actually stopped in to give it a try. I was always curious, so when I was recently feeling adventurous, I decided to check it out. 

With the high turnover rate of restaurants in Cupertino, I'd been wondering how such a place in an unassuming spot along De Anza Boulevard survived all these years. Now I know.

The first thought I had when I arrived in the parking lot was how quaint the restaurant itself was. It's kind of a small place to dine-in, but it has a nice area for outdoor seating. The only drawback is that it is right by the street, which I don’t really mind much anyway since I was so impressed by the food.

Yiassoo is an order-at-the-counter joint that offers a host of Greek plates and pita wraps. I opted for the $9 chicken souvlaki plate, which comes with a side of Greek salad, pita wedges, tzatziki, and your choice of rice pilaf or french fries. To be honest, I'm neither an expert on nor a huge fan of Greek food, but I thought this was culinary perfection. 

The pita bread was fluffy, soft and airy. I could tell they make it fresh every day. The chicken came freshly and perfectly cooked, the rice was flavorful enough and the feta atop the salad was nothing like the salty, tangy stuff sold in stores. 

I also ordered one of the restaurant’s best-known items: the gyro. The Gyro plate came with a big side of fries and a Mediterranean salad consisting of tomatoes, cucumbers, kalamata olives and homemade feta cheese. 

The $5.75 gyro itself features a thick, soft pocketless pita, warmed on the grill, stuffed to the max with thinly shaved pieces of gyro meat that are incredibly juicy and tender. The crunchy red onions, thick delicious, garlicky tzatziki sauce with cucumber and fresh chopped tomatoes add just the right amount of flavor.  The sauce, the meat, the pita — everything comes together in a warm, delicious bundle.

The delicious and beyond reasonably priced food at Yiassoo makes it a great little “hole-in-the-wall” restaurant that I highly recommend to anyone. Another plus? The restaurant’s servings are gyro-normous.