One of the very greatest joys of living and working in East Baltimore is the variety of excellent ethnic restaurants. There’s Little Italy, of course. There is Spanish Town north of Fells Point, with all sorts of bodegas and tortillerias, and its Polish restaurants and delis are renowned. Highlandtown has its own batch of excellent Hispanic eateries.
And then there is Greektown.
Greektown’s restaurants serve up a variety of delicious healthy food—lamb, chicken and fish, with more than your recommended allotment of fresh vegetables. You can eat well and happily just about anywhere in Greektown, and your cardiologist might even approve.
Zorba’s, at 4710 Eastern Avenue, is one of Greektown’s gems. It’s a rowhouse bar and grill nestled into the row between Newkirk and Oldham streets. The bar is in front and the grill’s behind.
There is a window between the tables and the kitchen, and behind that window is a slowly spinning rotisserie of lamb, pork and chicken over red-hot charcoal. It is this rotisserie that makes Zorba’s special—order something from that grill and chances are you will be happy.
We certainly were. I ordered the fish of the day, branzini, which is called Mediterranean sea bass over here. What I got was a whole gutted fish, grilled to charred perfection outside and lovely, soft, moist and flaky inside. The fish was fragrant with herbs, lemon and oil. The skin was crispy and redolent of smoke. The flesh inside was sweet and tender. It was the best fish I have ever had.
Mary Helen had the lamb chops, pretty little chops on the bone, which have been Frenched, or scraped clean to provide a handle for gnawing. They were nicely seasoned with rosemary and pepper and grilled mediium as ordered.
Sides were horta, quickly cooked fresh spinach with a little wedge of lemon for squeezing, and Zorba Fries, wonderful thick-cut potato chips fried crisp and sprinkled with salt and herbs.
I had the more traditional roast potatoes and green beans in tomato sauce. The sauce is delicious, pureed tomatoes thinned with a little wine and spiced with a little nutmeg to cut the acid. The green beans are fresh and cooked soft. The oven roasted potatoes are infused with tomato and pepper.
We also shared a basket of soft, crusty Greek bread that had been introduced briefly to the grill for toasting.
Zorba’s is famous for its large portions, and we took home plenty for another meal. We finished that fish though. We couldn’t resist.
We turned down dessert and coffee—we were too stuffed to continue. Zorba’s serves a choice of baklava, galatoboureko (silky custard encased in crisp phyllo dough), rice pudding or flan.
We sat at the long, polished oaken bar, but the tables in back are nice too. Both areas have an excellent view of the kitchen, where the cooks perform an intricate dance of grilling, slicing and plating for service. It is well worth the price of admission. We chatted with our amiable bartender/waitress, Nicole, about the Orioles and Ravens as bouzouki music played in the background. There is a very nice and spacious second-floor dining room.
Our engaging evening in ethnic Eastside ran us $51 including tax but not the tip.
Zorba’s is open 5 p.m.-midnight daily.
