Zorba’s Restaurant

I’ve had Niro’s Gyros, Downtown Dogs in Chicago and finally Zorba’s. Except, this foodie adventure was full of fun because I used the Unilocal Eat 24, in the comforts of my casita– laundry day. I ordered the giant gyro 8oz and I swear to you it was more of like 16oz– ohh yeeeaaah this gyro was loaded! They should call it more like Gyro: Fully Loaded. I ordered tomatoes, cucumber and cucumber sauce, as well as the falafel and French fries. Little olé’ me… Now if I’d eaten all of this, surely I wouldn’t be able to write a Unilocal review and my jeans would shed tears. Sad. Thus saying there will be Zorba’s lunch tomorrow and Zorba’s snack. Now, the gyro was very standard– I did love the moist and flavorful meat but it wasn’t mind blowing, secondly the falafel was very fried and a bit too crunchy for my liking. The fries were just okay. I’ll say the whole order was standard and expected. However, I do like the cucumber sauce, it was super yummy and it paired well with Pepsi and the little falafels. The Eat 24 driver was amazing, fast and friendly– yet I’m an outdoors girl and ready for new adventures! Now… where am I going to put all this food???

I felt too nostalgic here to give this place one star. I used to come here in the mid 90’s as an undergrad. Cut to 20 years later, and this is one of the few staples still left from that era.
That it has lasted this long is a testament to the simplicity of the business model and loyalty of its following. But coming here so many years later, and without the influence of alcohol to impair my judgement, I have no idea how this place has survived.
The gyros are good, not great, and the tzatziki sauce is below average. We were here in the mid-​afternoon, so it wasn’t like we had a sitting batch. The prices were decent, if not a little on the high side for a greasy spoon.
The most disappointing was the chicken fingers, or what they called «chicken fingers». More apropos would be chicken cake (think McDonald’s hash brown shape, but chicken), sliced into 6 pieces. It was shockingly small and if I was smart I would’ve taken a picture and returned it, but the kids were hungry.
The best part of this place is the history that is catalogued on the walls in the form of painted murals, photos, and memorabilia of years gone by. I also thought the fries were pretty good and the staff were kind and friendly.
Order a gyro if you’re craving one, but there’s plenty of better food values and quality down the street.

I was in college in the 90s and used to go Zorba’s all the time. Then I continued to return to campus annually, and would always go to Zorba’s for gyros. The food is always nothing short of excellent. On our last trip, even my kids asked to go two days in a row. Plus the service of course. It is run by a family that carries on the tradition of a local family style joint with a loyalty to the campus town. It is a staple, and a local landmark. Long live!

They serve average store bought food. When asked if they make anything in the restaurant, the answer was NO! Staff is not friendly. Also, most places serve halal gyros and shawarma as it’s easily available at Restaurant Depot but here nothing is halal.

The food is bland and average. Also got yelled at by staff for hanging around too long even though I was still eating fries and the place was empty (they didn’t like that I had my laptop out). Overall just not really worth it when there’s mashawi almost next door.

How ironic that in the middle of a college town, Zorba’s thinks that PLAGIARIZING an image for use on their website is acceptable. If you look at my picture on Unilocal and look at their website you’ll see it’s the same image. Did they ask my permission to use it? NO. Did they credit me with the image? Also NO.
This is incredibly dishonest and ungrateful. Moreover, it’s a sign of pure laziness by the owners. My picture is that of a salad and I’m not even that great a photographer. How hard would it have been to take a picture with a cellphone or real camera and use it? And yet they didn’t. To me, it brings up reasonable concerns about whether they cut corners in their preparation of food and in other matters of business.
My gratitude to a fellow Unilocaler for pointing out this completely unethical and disgraceful business practice.

Not a big fan. Sometimes they got deals on Hook. The people who work there seem to be confused with orders and not exactly friendly either.

Good good fast! Pricing was reasonable. I was a bit taken aback by my hummus and pita arriving as a sandwich instead of separate. The bread was great, the hummus was just average. I really liked my gyro though!

Really delicious! This is a good place to stop by for some quick and tasty food. It is near campus, which is convenient for students. It was my first time there and I took a while deciding what I wanted, but the person behind the counter was patient. I will definitely go back if I’m ever in the area!

This is some incredibly tasty and greasy food. I walked around like a confused tourist for a moment while looking for the menu. I’m pretty indecisive so I would prefer a menu that wasn’t taped to the counter where you order. Being able to peruse a bit would have been nice. Even so, I ordered a falafel with feta and jalapenos and it was fantastic. Even the fries were delicious and I’m just not a potato fan. The biggest pro — They have a tzatziki dispenser! Most places charge you for extra and considering condiments are the highlight of my meal, this was fantastic! I also thought the gyros were delicious although it is tough to mess that up I think. The price is great, you can eat here for just about $ 5.

Love the food at atmosphere. And they keep that line moving. Fries are something special and if you get the combo you get a small enough portion so satisfy your fryer need. They don’t have beer anymore which has helped university productivity.

Tender gyros meat at decent prices. Just stick with a gyros sandwich (the fries are mediocre). This place has been around since my parents were on UIUC’s campus in the early-​mid 70s and it’s a great place to take them. I can’t speak to the seating during peak hours because I usually would drop by here if there was a deal on Hooked midafternoon if I hadn’t eaten lunch.

You like gyros? You like fresh fries? You like Green Street? Well, then you’ll love Zorbas.
Zorbas was a staple during undergrad and it hasn’t lost its taste in the years since I’ve left. Regardless of where I move or visit, every gyro I have is compared to Zorbas — they’re the gold standard in my mind. The meat is always juicey and the fries always salty. Perfect for a social lunch or a recovery meal.
Word to the wise — load that sucker up with extra meat and tzatziki sauce (or «cucumber sauce») for maximum flavor.

Best gyros (authentic, taste great, and affordable) on campus.
This place is a U of I must-​eat!

The pita and meat were good, but the gyro was rather lacking in the tomatoes, onions, and sauce department. The crinkle cut fries didn’t taste particularly good, it reminded me a lot of those frozen fries that you can make in the microwave. Despite going in on a Tuesday, when it’s supposed to be cheaper, it still cost me $ 7 for a medium combo. Hardly enough food for the money, but decent if you want some greek.

Restaurant review:
Look for gyros in Champaign, you can choose Niro or Zorba’s as the most popular restaurants around, but on my recent lunch visit I was not that impressed. This location is right in the middle of campus and is super busy during lunch hours. We arrived before the rush and easily found a table, but if you come late, good luck. There is no large menu on the wall, but rather a menu at the table where you order which is sort of annoying as you can hold up the line if you are waiting to order or the menu along the wall. There are daily specials which is posted on the sign outside. Today Tuesday was dollar off classic gyro or ½ price fries. Other than that the combos are about 7 – 8 dollars a pop. This is where it falls short. The fries that come with the combo is a very small portion. I can’t imagine that it is just a small helping of fries on a little serving basket. Usually that is a highlight when you go to gyro restaurants because it adds to the grease appeal. Additionally, they are quite stingy with the meat, i.e. they actually weigh and measure how much gyro meat you are getting. I have never been to one where you can get 4 different sizes of gyro meat. Overall a little disappointing. I can’t say the large was very filling for me. but who knows. One plus is that they have a dispenser for yogurt sauce so you can douse your gyro to your heart desire.
Pro: fast service, self service no need to tip
Cons: limited seating, very small fries portion, personally the gyro sizes that are measured seems a little stingy come on…
Hidden gem:
1. You can use the belly card to earn points toward free items
2. Daily specials
Monday– Medium gyro, sm greek salad, pepsi 8.25, large greek salad and pepsi 6.25
Tuesday– 1 dollar of gyro and ½ price fries, 1 dollar off veggie sandwiches
Wednesday– ¼ lb beef hot dog, fries, and pepsi 6 dollars
Thursday– BBQ pulled pork, fries, pepsi 7 dollars
Friday– Fish sandwich, fries, pepsi 7.50

After my horrendous experience with Niro’s I was optimistic that Zorba’s might have a better gyro.
The store is right on Green street and impossible to miss walking by. Inside is pretty cool, open style kitchen and lots of indoor seating. The menu is on the counter where you order, which could be problematic if you are like me and take 5 minutes to look at a menu and there are people behind you!
I decided on a 4oz gyro and mac and cheese bites. My name was taken and I was called when it was ready. Interestingly enough, you also pay right when your food is ready, which was different, but I liked it!
I dashed home and unwrapped everything, anxious to try it. My gyro was actually pretty small and almost resembled a taco in size and shape. I did think that this gyro was really on point though. The meat was thicker, flavorful, not too greasy and of a good consistency. The tzatziki was really good, too! Kind of creamy but not too yogurt-​y or watered down like some places. The mac and cheese bites were also surprisingly good. Usually these are just dry pieces of mush but on the inside they were warm, gooey and tasty!
Overall I would definitely say the Zorba’s has the best gyro in the CU area, but I still need to try more places.
The only thing I did not like was the portion/​price. My gyro was not very big, I probably could have ate 2 – 3 of them. However, quality over quantity any day of the week and this was one tasty gyro that would really give my suburban favorites a run for their money.
I’ll be back to try more!

They sell their gyros in 4 sizes: 2 oz, 4 oz, 6 oz, and 8 oz. This is pretty neat as a large or medium gyro should be enough to suffice a hungry person. However, I have to say that their gyro meat isn’t as succulent as I thought it’d be. The Greek salad wasn’t anything special either. I gotta say that I prefer Niro’s Gyros more.

This is simply one of my favorite spots in town. They say that consistency is the hallmark of excellence. Well I’ve been stuffing my face with their delicious gyros and assorted fried side dishes since high school, and I’ve yet to eat one that wasn’t just totally fulfilling and delicious. Actually, the hallmark of excellence is probably just making really fantastic gyros, which is a thing that Zorba’s is all about. The staff is always friendly, and even at their busiest you’re going to get your order quickly.
My go to order has generally been the large chicken, however you can’t go wrong with the classic. You can take either and pick a size to fit your small-​large appetite, and then customize it from there, which is a little different, and better, than most other gyro joints I’ve visited. I also prefer subbing in onion rings or fried mushrooms for fries.
The location is a little small, so it can get packed during the lunch hour, but even so there is usually a table open, or you can easily get your meal to go.
If you find yourself on campus and don’t check this place out, you’re doing yourself an enormous disservice.

Yep, it lived up to the hype. Great gyro sandwiches with a cool local feel. The pita is soft and the gyro meat is some of the most tender I’ve found. Brilliantly seasoned too, the meat is definitely what sets these gyros apart. I also liked that there are multiple size options for the sandwiches.
The place has a nice, local college hotspot feel. Not wild and crazy, but more the kind of place students stop by on their way to and from class.