Ultimate Souvlaki

Had the swordfish gyro at the Alameda Antiques Fair today. It was sooo delicious. I will definitely seek this food truck out again!

At San Rafael farmers market. Got the $ 14 souvlaki sandwich. It was pre-​assembled, no longer hot and shockingly small for $ 14. More importantly the meat was tough, over-​cooked, and utterly flavorless. A little olive oil, garlic, herbs, even salt would have been nice. But no. Just three bites of dried out chewy tasteless sustainably raised lamb on an oily old pita. If you’re ever at the market head for the French place or the Thai. But be sure you keep your $ 14 and skip Ultimate Souvlaki.

Having just climbed out of the BART station at Civic Center from SFO, I walked into my first farmers market of the week. Heart of the City Farmers Market at UN Plaza was just perfect for picking up some fresh fruit before heading to my hotel. Walking around I smell some fantasticly smelling cooking food. Looking about I find the Ultimate Souvlaki tent and immediately decide that I need a grilled baby octopus gyro. Did it take awhile to cook? Yes, just as I would expect it to, being made fresh to order. Was it pricey? A resounding NO given the lengths this business goes to to provide fresh locally sourced product and the time and effort spent qualifying their business to serve in the city. A bit of econ for you less business inclined folks. Every dollar spent at local businesses results in $.70 staying in the local economy vs $ 1 spent at a national chain which results in $.30 staying in the local economy. These people put their money where their mouths are. As for the gyro that I got it was cooked to perfection. The octopus was crispy and the whole time it was being cooked the guy was squeezing just the right amount of lemon over it so that when it was done it was perfect. I found Ultimate Souvlaki to be an excellent value for my money.

I had the pleasure of meeting Bobby (and who I’m assuming is his lovely wife) at the Heirloom Expo in September. They were so cool and down to earth.
I had the rack of lamb with an heirloom tomato salad. All I can say is mmmm!
The food is a little pricey BUT you have to remember something very important. They use great quality meat, dairy, veggies, and fruit (grass fed beef/​lamb and organic greens). You really do get what you pay for. It tastes great and you’ll feel great knowing your food wasn’t raised in a sad little cage before it made it onto your plate.

Had to find Bobby ’ s Ultimate at the Lafayette Wine & Art event today. Delicious authentic high quality freshly prepared Greek food. Swordfish and lamb wrapped in pitas with fixings and it was de-​li-​cious! Other fans of his food were hanging out and eating too, enjoying octopus, chicken, etc. He also has figs and a few other goodies, but I only had eyes for the swordfish!

We came here for an early lunch at the Alameda Antiques Fair. It was probably the only Greek option there and my boyfriend had a sudden craving for a wrap.
* Sheftalia (hand crafted artisan meatballs of lamb & pork w/​onions & parsley wrapped in caul fat. $ 13) — 3 stars
pic:
The wrap was thick and soft. I didn’t find the meat particularly great. It did its job of feeding us and not being too terrible.
Menu:

I visited Athens Greece a few times during summer vacations growing up (visiting grandparents and cousins), and I would ask around to find the best tasting souvlaki in Athens. When I finally found the best souvlaki place I would try to eat there 5 or 6 times a week. Sadly, my favorite Athenian souvlaki restaurant was demolished before the 2004 Olympics, and I never found one to fully replace it.
But now after happening upon Ultimate Souvlaki at Heart of the City Farmers Market on Wednesday, I have found an equal replacement, a new souvlaki & Greek food truck that tastes as good and authentic as the best restaurants in Athens. Whenever I am in San Francisco, I always hunt Bobby (the owner) down, and enjoy either the lamb, baby octopus or swordfish souvlaki. All of the meat is organic, sustainable, and local, which is very important to me, and I will spend $ 14 on a delicious souvlaki that is as good as what used to require a plane trip to GREECE to enjoy. Each grilled souvlaki has its own delicate taste, and I cannot get enough! As a drink to wash it all down, I recommend Vissinada, a sparkling cherry juice that I did not know was imported to America until Bobby pulled it from his cooler — I was overjoyed!
I go to Ultimate Souvlaki to chow down when they are in San Francisco at United Nations Plaza from the morning to 3:30pm on Wednesdays. You can Google them, or check twitter for other places and times.
ENJOY!

I’ve had worse gyros but not by far.
Their gyros aren’t really that bad but when you charge $ 15 for one and it has a third of the meat of what you’ll get with a quality one, you really shouldn’t be using words like artisan or ultimate.
There was nothing special about the lamb. In fact I think it was over cooked.
Anyone looking for quality check out Myconos on Pine.

Went to their booth at the Lafayette Art and wine Festival.
Grossly overpriced.
Ordered the swordfish and shrimp entrees.
The seafood was fresh but the bread rolls were stale and the tomatoes were hardly heirloom.
Not worth the 12 minute wait :-(

It’s rare to see authentic Greek souvlaki in the Bay Area like that served by Ultimate Souvlaki, especially with top sirloin lamb instead of the typical ground mystery meet served in gyros. The taste was great and ingredient quality very good. Unfortunately, however, the pricing is exorbitant: for $ 12 I would expect a good-​sized wrap with plenty of meat, at least enough to feel full afterwards. Instead we were served a hand-​sized pita with two measly pieces of lamb and a couple of slices of tomato. If the price had been $ 5 instead of $ 12 I’d be giving it four stars.

The other review is spot on. This place is good, the lamb was really really tender and tasty, the feta/​yogurt/​paprika/​other stuff complimented the lamb really well, and the pita bread was great.
But you do have to sink $ 12 in for the lamb, +$ 1 for feta cheese. I was still a bit hungry after the souvlaki, and I’m not a big eater! Imagine all the hungry dudes after eating at this place…
I’d come back again because the food is really good, but if you care about bang for the buck… don’t bother.

+4 stars for cool octopus and swordfish.
–3 stars for $ 12 street food w/​o drink or sides.
+1 star for insisting on clean, local sourcing.
+1 star for honest, friendly, passionate folk.