LEGACY GYROS
Hoppen Hierarchy:★★
District: Legacy
Gyros & Greek Cuisine
Perfect For: Casual Dining; Takeout; Lunch
Standout Dishes: Gyro; Dolmades
Early in 2018, a group of journalists at the Omaha World-Herald embarked on a food prowl to find Omaha’s best gyro. After sampling the finest the city has to offer, the OWH settled on Legacy Gyros, a small shop in the Legacy district.
I have great respect for the taste buds of the World-Herald’s fine reporters, but I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with their call.
Don’t get me wrong, Legacy Gyros is not a bad spot by any means. I like the gyros there, and it’s a pleasant little joint.
But best in the city? Over Feta’s and El Basha? Over Jim & Jennie’s and the Greek Islands?
I can’t go that far.
Located in the Fallbrook area near 168th and Center, Legacy is a small, order-at-the-counter joint serving salads, kabobs, mousakka and other Greek specialties. But the highlight is the gyro, and the sight of the meat cones roasting on the vertical broilers was a beautiful, welcome sight. You’re hit with the smell of Greek spices (garlic, basil, oregano, pepper, etc.) the moment you walk in the door.
Gyros can be ordered with chicken, beef/lamb, falafel, or philly steak and cheese. The gyro supreme adds grilled onions, green peppers and mushrooms, and these additions bring a nice freshness to the dish. The traditional gyro is heavy on raw white onions and a few slices of tomato.
It’s immediately apparent how much smaller Legacy’s Gyro is when compared to its Omaha brethern. It’s still not small, but it plaes in comparison to the others, which typically have meat spilling over the sides of the pita.
The thin, flat slices of beef/lamb are cooked to a near-perfect tenderness. They’re well-seasoned and moist, but not incredibly flavorful on their own. The pita bread is light and airy, but it typically begins cracking about halfway through the meal, making the last few bites a bit of an adventure. I highly recommend adding sumac, a tangy Mediterranean spice that is available in a shaker.
The tzatziki sauce is flavorful and very reminiscent of its thick, creamy yogurt base. It’s a bit heavy on garlic, but it brings a cooling element to the hot meat, and the hint of cucumber adds a fresh element.
The gyro supreme costs 60 cents more than the traditional gyro, and I’d recommend paying up. While the basic gyro may be more traditional, it has a lot of onions and doesn’t quite have the fresh burst that the peppers and mushroom from the supreme option.
The gyros are the menu’s highlight, though there are a few other traditional Greek dishes, such as kabobs, keftedes, and moussaka. I’d recommend trying the Dolmades, which consist of rice and ground beef rolled up in grape leaves. The leaves are wrapped well enough to contain the fillings, yet soft enough to cut through easily with a knife and not completely crumble. The beef/rice mixture is enhanced with notes of dill and parsley, and dipping a forkful in the provided tzatziki sauce only moves it up a notch.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with Legacy Gyros, and it’s a fine lunch spot. But, to this appetite at least, the gyros are large or flavorful enough to stack up with Omaha’s best.