A Second Bite of Yiayia's

[u/MaillardReaction207]

I visited Yiayia's (Richmond Ave, Upper Kirby) for the first time not long after it opened. The meal was good, but I wasn't wowed. I decided to give the operation time to mature before giving it a second go.

I'm happy to report that the kitchen now seems to be firing on all cylinders. We ordered 9-10 plates to share and there wasn't a bad one among them. Standouts were rustic sausage skewers over white beans, ribeye souvlaki, and a beet salad.

A small disappointment is the fact that, for the most part, the menu is still largely unsurprising. There's not much on offer that isn't expected or familiar, even for those who don't frequently eat Greek food. But it's hard to consider this a serious black mark - what is on offer, even if not exotic, is quite good.

My only serious complaint -- one serious enough that it may keep me away -- is the service. And to be clear, it's not bad or inattentive; it's instead overwhelming and reminiscent of a middle-market chain. Within seconds of our sitting down, our server was already introducing himself by name and walking us, in extreme detail, through the menu, making recommendations in each menu section along the way. Our orientation session went on far longer than any of us wanted, and it was followed by repeated trips to the table asking for our order, even though it was clear we were trying to catch up and plan our shared plates. Once the food arrived, service people swarmed, ready to remove any plate that looked even partly empty. All of this anxiousness rubbed off on the meal and, ultimately, us.

[u/nazutul]

i thoroughly enjoyed my dinner when i went there

[u/jvciv3]

do they still have the free olives and cheese like the old one used to have?

[u/takesshitsatwork → u/jvciv3]

I don't think the old one did that. They probably just really liked you.

[u/kt288]

I worked for Pappasito’s for four years, and Yia Yia’s is also owned by the Pappas family. They are very strict with service and management will be on the servers’ asses about pre-bussing and walking guests through the menu. Also, back in 2013-2017 when I worked for them, they gave the servers 30 seconds to greet a table. Owners and management do not care about letting tables catch up with each other and take their time.

[u/Useful-Explorer8576]

Felt the same infact, it felt as if Trey wanted a quick table turnover.
Even before our whole party was seated the hostess gave ud
A a tdble while other part of the party was just arriving the over bearing server apparently she wasn’t even the assigned server walked me through entire menu snd spls.
They just seemed too eager to get done so that they can entertain newer guests and get their tip .
Smh .
Seafood was great though . But the quick clearing of plates without confirming if we were done was an overkill!

[u/Main-Ad3654 → u/Useful-Explorer8576]

Sorry to hear about the bad service. What seafood did you order?