Steve’s Gyros

I’m from Chicago where gyro’s are a mainstay of fast dining. Steve’s tzatziki sauce is phenomenal. I recommend getting the jumbo. Definitely worth the wait in line on a Saturday.

You can find Steve’s Gyros on this map of Westside Market all the way on the right, in the middle (
).
I visited Westside Market spontaneously the other day around 10am and was pleasantly surprised to see that not only was Steve’s open, but there was NO LINE. After a few minutes weighing whether I was hungry enough for an extremely early lunch (I’d already had breakfast) against the fact that I might never again see this opportunity, I took my place in front of the counter.
Normally I would have stood there for another few minutes pondering what to order, but Steve’s really simplifies things for the indecisive customer because you really only have two choices: a Regular Gyro, or a Jumbo Gyro. [You can also purchase a soft drink, water, a four-​pack of pita bread, and extra sauce/​bread, but I digress.] Before you start asking about customization be sure to read the Rules on the counter because they have reserve every right to refuse service to an overly picky or unfriendly customer. And also, bring cash.
I was asked whether I wanted «everything on it» and nodded because I figured they knew their product best. I saw heaping portions of lettuce, tomato, and onions (oh, my, God the amount of onions in there) thrown in — but the biggest heap of all was the spiced lamb. Then came a generous lather of creamy sauce. The foil-​wrapped end product was comparable in size to a Chipotle burrito. And price, since the regular is $ 8. I was handed my gyro in a brown paper bag with two napkins — but I could definitely have used more because eating was a REALLY messy affair. The Regular was enough to sustain me for the next five hours.
Okay, I have a confession to make: I don’t like lamb. But Steve’s is Steve’s and there’s no alternative, so I went with my gut (which actually makes many of my life decisions) and decided to try it.
I loved it — I would have loved it more if the pita was heated. The strips and chunks of meat were flavor-​blasted to perfection with spices and didn’t have any of the heavy, gamey flavor I was hesitant about. The sauce — I’m not even sure what was in it, but it was well-​balanced without being too rich. I might have overdosed on onions during this meal, but the little pieces give such a satisfying crunch and aroma to the rest of the meal I’m tempted to coerce you into getting them even if you don’t like onions. Beware the after-​breath though!
If you have the opportunity, I’d definitely give Steve’s Gyros a try. They’ve worked out the recipe for a no frills tasteful, texture-​ful, (over-)filling meal that you can eat on the go. Now, if they only had late-​night delivery…

Fat and greasy great for a hangover cure. I appreciate the quality and that the meat is shaved in front of the stand. Make sure you have some good reading material ready though if you know what I mean…

I’m not sure if I went on a off day or fellow Unilocalers in the cleveland area have never had a really amazing gyro. Food wise I think Steve’s gets a 3.75 to 4 stars, total experience its 3 stars for me.
For starters to get the gyro there was a 40 minute wait. This gyro in my opinion isn’t worth a 40 minute wait. 10 to 20 minutes perhaps, but definitely not 40 minutes.
Food: The meat was good, well seasoned and tasty, however it could have used a bit more crispyness to it. The sauce is strange but good in its own special way. I do wish they put more sauce on the gyro. The onions are pickled in vinegar I believe so they have a nice kick to them. I also really like how they are cut so they give a nice texture. The pita however was soaked in oil from the meat which I wasn’t a fan of.
Lasty as everyone said the lady behind the counter doesn’t wear glove and has a lot of responsibilities. Such as cutting the meat, rolling the gyros, and touching money. Which freaked me out she touched the dirtiest thing in the world (Money) and my gyro. They also don’t provide forks and this gyro can get messy with the amount of meat there is, and being they dont have tables to eat it.

Ahhh, this was a tough one! The first time I had it, and waited in line for 30 minutes it was awesome and totally worth the wait!
The second time I had it was a shorter wait, still really good, but not great.
This last time I went there was no wait, and we both agreed it was just «okay».
I’m not sure if they are going down hill, the novelty for us wore off, or it is inconsistent and the last few times were just on bad days. It’s a bummer, and I’m not sure with all the other choices I am going to chance it again!

Steve’s Gyros broke my scale, guuuurl. We waited in line for probably about 15 – 20 minutes and the order is simple: you choose a regular gyro or a jumbo gyro and either one will blow your mind. The jumbo is simply just more meat, and after watching them make the regular piled high with meat, we passed on the jumbo. There is no way anyone could eat it without getting food all over and/​or making a spectacle of themselves. The gyro was amazing. We perched on the tiny 2^nd floor walkway of the market and devoured it. This place is worth every minute of your time, so do not let the long line deter you!

If this place is good enough for my spirit animal Adam Richman, then it is good enough for me and everyone else. The gyro was the best thing I have ever eaten in all of my lives. This single gyro has completed my hunger quest.

This gyro was like if Buddy Holly came back from the grave, made an album collaborating with Big Bird, and then gave it away on band camp with a free knitted coaster with every download! Highly recommend!!!

When we got there the line was kinda long, but it was so worth the wait. The waitress chick made a Seinfeld reference while we were in line so that was awesome! I got the jumbo sized gyro and it definitely satisfied my need to engorge myself

Gyros were good but nothing worth a 45+ minute wait. I’m giving 3 stars cuz it didn’t taste bad but all of us ended up in the bathroom later with some «issues» (if ya know what I mean…)
Maybe the person who commented about the cleanliness had a point? I did see the lady who made the sandwiches opening the back doors to the loading area for the entire market and wheeling carts back and forth go right back to making the sandwiches without any gloves on or a hand wash. There’s lots of time to watch that stuff when you stand in line for a long time.
So for the actual gyro if you still want to eat at your own risk — the tzatziki sauce is not the traditional one you find but not bad. Kind of reminded me of Thousand Island w/​more herbs. The meat is flavorful.
The tomato and onion has been tossed in a vinaigrette so it’s got a little tang instead of just bland tomatoes and a strong onion taste.
My brother and hubby said they would wait again before they ended up in the bathroom for an hour. I guess try at your own risk? They tasted good! Worth some quality time on the can? Debatable.
UPDATED — We all spent some more QT in the bathroom since writing this post so I’m taking away a star. That was all we ate that day so… what else could it have been?

Ok so I HAD to go to this place because I’ve seen it on the food network and I’ve had people rant and rave about the gyro’s here. So I was in Cleveland recently and made it necessary to stop here and eat a gyro. I got to the place about 1:30pm and it’s a good thing I did. I understand that the west side market place closes about 4pm? Or from what I’m told. Regardless, I didn’t want to get there close to 4pm because I was also told that once they run out of gyro meat for the day they are done — and they usually run out before 4pm.
When I got on the line to get my gyro– I could see they had three spits going and two of them were empty and the third one was almost finished. So I assume I got there just in time to get a gyro. Now remember– these are things I’ve «heard» from people so I don’t know for a fact if they just stop serving gyro meat when they run out even if it’s way before closing time so you’d have to verify that when and if you go– but anyway– back to my story lol So they had meat left which I was happy about. The line wasn’t long at all– just about 4 people in front of me. I liked the little sign they had on the table explaining the «rules» of what you can’t ask them for haha So I ordered my gyro and they certainly do pack them! Holy crap lol You definitely get what you pay for!
My only complaint– we all know how messy a gyro can be. Sauce everywhere. They don’t have any plastic forks or knives for the food?! That was annoying actually. And on top of it– I didn’t know this place didn’t have any place to sit and eat the food. You gotta take all your stuff to go. Bummer. But upstairs I saw people sitting on this long radiator which actually over looks the entire market. So I made my way up there to sit on the radiator. Again– a fork and knife would have been ideal! So needless to say it was a big mess trying to eat this huge messy gyro sitting Indian style on a radiator. Good thing I grabbed extra napkins because I certainly needed it.
Over all– the gyro was delicious! I know the difference though. I’m from New York and I’ve had the best damn gyros you can imagine lol Everything about this gyro was exactly the same as any other gyro — EXCEPT the sauce. That’s the trick here haha The sauce was similar to traditional Greek style tzatziki sauce but there was something different about it which made the gyro taste different– but still delicious. The sauce is also pinkish in color compared to it being all white. I almost ate the whole thing– and I can never finish one of those! So it definitely was good. No complaints about the food at all. Definitely grab one of these if you’re in Cleveland! But be sure to get extra napkins– you’re gonna need it.

Awesome awesome gyro’s with enormous portions! Only problem West Market has no real indoor seating to eat what you buy which needs to be remedied.

The best gyro I’ve ever had. Coming from NY, where food is abundant and immaculate, nothing beats the gyros here. Not an ounce of fatty meat, fresh raw onion and tomato, and the best gyro sauce you will ever taste. And the regular size was the size of my head! They’re huge, priced just right, and will make you crave a million more!

No, their gyros are not worth waiting on a long line.
I went there on Wednesday, and it took me 45 minutes to finally order my gyro. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the lady who was making gyros because she didn’t have gloves on. She was sweating badly, kept wiping the sweat off of her face with a dirty towel, and continued making gyros with the same sweaty hands! I was totally turned off and grossed out. If you want to see what poor hygiene looks like, this is the place to go.
The gyro tasted good, but I don’t think it’s worth waiting for 45 minutes. I have had much better gyros before with much better services. I think it is arrogant to say to the customers, «We have our own rules, so don’t ask us to do anything that is not our rule.»
Nope, I’m not going back there.

Went back Two days ago and it was STELLAR like I was used to. Friendly counter experience, line moved in twenty minutes or so & the taste was out of bounds!
I think the ppl going to Steve’s can make the difference too — as no one in front of me asked for one of the 5 deadly sins — and no one behind me was a jerk.
I still had more shopping to do so I even ate it in the rain on a bench outside to get it while it’s «hot» — love me some Steve’s — thanks ladies!

Most delicious gyros ever! The meat was so tender and literally melted In my mouth. There was heaps of meat on it too!
Only downside was the service… the lady behind the counter was a bit rude and there was only one person serving

Other than finding parking that can challenging, I have nothing negative to say about Steve’s Gyros. The food taste and quality is excellent, the quantity of meat is, to put it plainly, very generous. We went slightly early, around 10:30am on a Saturday and there were only about eight people in line. The only disappointment was that from reading other reviews I sort of expected rude treatment, but that didn’t happen. They were friendly and efficient in preparing our order of three Jumbo Gyros with a bag of extra pita bread. We took it all to our son’s family home to share and we ate two meals from it for four adults and three kids. We will definitely be back.

My family and I try to get to the West Side Market once a month for grocery shopping, we always go on a Saturday (extremely busy) but so worth it because lunch @ Steve’s Gyros.
Yes the line is long like all of the reviews say. Yes you can’t cut your Gyro in half. Yes the staff can sometimes not be the best. BUT seriously this is GYRO HEAVEN!
We went last Saturday and we got lucky with the line being short. The staff was very friendly on this particular occasion. I ordered a JUMBO (enough for 2 people) gyro without tomato. The pita bread is fresh, the meat is tender and juicy and melts in your mouth. The veggies are a nice touch but like many say the SAUCE! It’s not typical tzatziki sauce but more of a tzatziki with a little heat, its like crack, seriously can’t get enough.
A regular is $ 8 and a JUMBO is $ 10 (well worth the extra 2 bucks). Make sure you have extra napkins as this gyro is messy, I would recommend that you also bring a pillow as you’re going to need a nap once you finish in my opinion the best gyro around. Very deserving of 5 stars!

Featured on man vs food and lives up to the hype! There tends to be a long line but it is worth it.
They pile heaping amounts of meat on the gyro that you have to figure out a plan to maneuver your mouth through it. It is definitely a two hand job, holding the base to ensure that the precious meat does not fall to the ground.
The sauce has some type of crack in it because we kept wanting more!
We opted to sit up top overlooking the market. Good stuff indeed!

Apparently this place is very famous? I’m not from Cleveland so that’s perhaps why I’ve never heard of it until I tried it. I went on a Saturday, so there was a crazy long line… with one person handling the cash and making the gyros. It seems like they’re banking in keeping a long line to give a desirability lure.
The gyro itself is indeed quite big. $ 8 for a «regular» gyro, which is essentially a large or jumbo at another place. The sauce is somewhat special… but it just seems to be tzatziki sauce with some hot sauce. Overalls, I enjoyed my gyro, but I didn’t think it was THAT good. Not good enough to warrant standing in such a long line again. Not good enough to warrant getting waited on by seemingly misanthropes. They hae several signs up — one saying how they basically don’t take any requests so you take it or leave it, another by the cash register emphatically stating nothing is free. I can understand not wanting to waste supplies since you’re a small shop, but the way they write stuff sounds straight bitchy. If they’re trying to appear rude and stingy, they sure got that down.