The 10 best Greek restaurants in Chicago

Greektown still runs along Halsted Street between Monroe Street and Van Buren Street in the West Loop, where saganaki gets lit at the table and lamb comes by the shank. Plenty of the Greek restaurants in Chicago now sit miles north, in Lincoln Park, Lincoln Square, Andersonville and Logan Square. This list is for anyone planning a group dinner on Halsted or hunting for spinach pie on a Saturday morning.

The picks lean toward places with a long record and recent reviews, from a bakery open since the 1960s to tavernas opened since 2018. A roasted half chicken over Greek fries, with a side salad, runs about $16 in Lincoln Park, while a two-pound whole branzino served tableside in Fulton Market costs $69. Two North Side picks don’t sell alcohol: one is BYOB, and at the other the bar next door takes your drink order.

How we chose

Each place earned a spot through years on the same block, a dated honor or repeat coverage from more than one news outlet or critic, and each one held an active city food license when checked in November 2026. Greektown has thinned out. City Cast Chicago counted about nine Greek eateries on the Halsted strip in 2025, down from at least 13 in 2010, so seven of the ten picks sit outside Greektown. Two picks also appear on the list of the best Mediterranean restaurants in Chicago. The list is unranked. Entries are grouped by area, Greektown first, and run alphabetically inside each group.

Hours and prices below come from each business and change without notice. Call ahead if you are making a special trip.

Greektown and the West Loop

Athena Restaurant

Halsted Street has fewer Greek dining rooms than it did in 2010, and one of the survivors, Athena Restaurant, has a patio with a retractable roof and a waterfall. Start with the house spreads (InsideHook’s 2024 Greektown guide counted six), then order saganaki and move on to kabobs or lamb. The kitchen opens at 11 a.m. every day, so the patio works for lunch, too. Valet parking is free for every diner, according to the restaurant’s site.

Hours: Sun-Thu 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Address: 212 S Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60661

Why they made the list

• Tasting Table’s 2024 Greek roundup pointed diners to the gyros plate, the Athenian chicken and galaktoboureko, a custard pie baked in phyllo.
• The restaurant also caters, and the catering menu prices a half pan of pastitsio at $55 and a half pan of gyros at $75.
• Reservations go through the form on the restaurant’s site or by phone at (312) 655-0000.

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Greek Islands

A group of friends opened Greek Islands on Halsted in 1971, and the restaurant’s history page says the same owners still run the restaurant. The dining rooms have white tablecloths and a large fireplace, and a small sidewalk patio opens in warm months, Islands.com noted in March 2026. Expect the old Greektown script of flaming saganaki and lamb several ways. The restaurant is closed Mondays, which the site blames on a staffing shortage. Big groups should call ahead before a Friday or Saturday dinner.

Hours: Tue-Thu 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Sun 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; closed Mon

Address: 200 S Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60661

Why they made the list

• The Infatuation’s Greek guide, updated November 5, 2025, recommends the avgolemono soup, lamb shank kokkinisto and grilled octopus.
• House specialties on the restaurant’s site include suckling pig fournou and lamb with hilopites, a Greek egg noodle.
• The same owners run a second location at 300 E. 22nd St. in Lombard.

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Lýra

Partners David Rekhson and Luke Stoioff run Lýra on Fulton Market, with Mykonos chef Athinagoras Kostakos in the kitchen. Most plates come off a wood and charcoal hearth: charred octopus is $29, lamb chops are $42 for a half order or $62 for a full one, and a two-pound whole branzino is $69, served tableside. Dips are $8 each. On Fridays and Saturdays the room turns into a late supper club at 10:30 p.m., with a DJ and live musicians, so book a table before then for a quiet dinner.

Hours: Mon-Thu 5 to 11 p.m.; Fri-Sat 5 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Sun 4 to 8 p.m.

Address: 905 W Fulton Market, Chicago, IL 60607

Why they made the list

• The restaurant opened on January 29, 2022, What Now Chicago reported that week.
• Reservations open 60 days ahead on OpenTable, and the bar seats walk-ins first come, first served.
• Golden hour runs 5 to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and valet parking is available.

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Mr. Greek Gyros

For a gyro on the run, head to the counter at Mr. Greek Gyros. Pete Vitogiannis opened the shop at 234 S. Halsted, and What Now Chicago described the shop in December 2022 as a 24-hour counter run by his family. You build the gyro with your choice of toppings and sauces, and the menu also runs to burgers, hot dogs, fries and grilled chicken sandwiches. Ask at the counter about the house sauce, which the Greektown business district’s merchant profile calls a secret. Hours have been reported differently over the years, so check before a late-night trip.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 234 S Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60661

Why they made the list

• City license records show the shop holding a food license at 234 S. Halsted since at least 2002.
• Time Out Chicago’s listing puts Italian beef and pizza puffs on the menu next to the gyros.
• The UIC-Halsted Blue Line station is a few blocks south on Halsted Street.

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North Side

Athenian Room

On Webster Avenue, Athenian Room has been open since 1972, and the plate to order is chicken kalamata style, a roasted half chicken laid over Greek fries. The Infatuation put that dinner, with a side salad, at about $16 in a review updated November 5, 2025. The restaurant doesn’t serve alcohol, but a walkway connects the dining room to the bar next door, and that bar’s servers will take drink orders at your table. Start with spanakopita or a plate of feta in olive oil, or get the gyro sandwich as a dinner platter.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 807 W Webster Ave, Chicago, IL 60614

Why they made the list

• Tasting Table reported in June 2024 that the restaurant takes cash only and no reservations, so bring cash.
• Lemon rice soup is on the menu only in winter, according to The Infatuation.
• On WTTW’s Check, Please!, guest Kevin Au recommended the restaurant for the kalamata chicken.

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Avli Taverna

Owner Louie Alexakis opened Avli Taverna on Wrightwood Avenue in 2018 as a city follow-up to the Winnetka original, with sportscaster Lou Canellis among the partners, Patch reported at the time. The opening menu leaned on dishes from Crete and the Ionian Islands. The Infatuation recommends the feta salads, the moussaka, lavraki (branzino) and the lamb chops. Weekend brunch has bottomless mimosas, and happy hour is 3 to 6 p.m. on weekdays. OpenTable lists street parking only, so leave time to circle the block.

Hours: Mon-Thu 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fri 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sun 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Address: 1335 W Wrightwood Ave, Chicago, IL 60614

Why they made the list

• The restaurant’s site lists Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition in 2020 and 2021.
• The 50 seats are split between a front room and a back room, plus a seasonal patio.
• OpenTable books parties of six or fewer online; larger groups call (773) 857-5577.

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Hellas Pastry Shop

At the corner of Lawrence Avenue and Talman Avenue, Hellas Pastry Shop has been baking since the 1960s, according to The Infatuation. The case holds bougatsa, several kinds of baklava, eclairs, galaktoboureko, almond cookies and spinach pies. Third Coast Review wrote in May 2024 that the spinach pie, made with feta and dill, comes out fresh each day and that prices are low enough to buy cookies with it. There are only a few chairs inside, so plan to take your box home.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 2627 W Lawrence Ave, Chicago, IL 60625

Why they made the list

• Islands.com’s March 2026 roundup dates the family-owned shop to 1969.
• The cookie trays include powdered almond crescents and chocolate-dipped butter sandwich cookies, Third Coast Review reported.
• The Rockwell Brown Line stop is a few blocks from the shop.

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It’s Greek 2 U Grill

This small Andersonville grill on Clark Street is BYOB and takes walk-ins, so pick up a bottle on the way. The order at It’s Greek 2 U Grill is the pork belly gyro, crisp at the edges and wrapped with onion, tomato and tzatziki. Add the saucy gigantes beans and the zucchini fritters with skordalia, a whipped garlic dip. The Infatuation recommended all three dishes in a review updated November 5, 2025. A back patio opens in warm months, Islands.com reported in March 2026.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 5449 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60640

Why they made the list

• City records show the food license at 5449 N. Clark St. was first issued in February 2018, under the name It’s Greek to You.
• The Infatuation’s review notes that pork is the traditional gyro meat in Greece.
• Grilled meats, skewers and sandwiches fill out the menu beyond the gyros, according to Islands.com.

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Logan Square and Wicker Park

Andros Taverna

Chef Doug Psaltis opened Andros Taverna on Milwaukee Avenue in 2021, with pastry chef Hsing Chen on desserts. A wood-fired oven handles nearly everything, according to the Michelin Guide, which lists the restaurant. Build a meal from dips such as whipped feta, charred eggplant and taramasalata with warm pita, then add the kataifi cheese pie, prawn saganaki or a whole grilled sea bass that the server bones at the table. The wine list is all Greek, and The Infatuation calls dinner reservations fairly easy to get.

Hours: Mon-Thu 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sun 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Address: 2542 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60647

Why they made the list

• The Infatuation’s Greek guide, updated November 5, 2025, lists baklava frozen yogurt among the dishes to order.
• Weekend brunch, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., includes tsoureki French toast.
• Islands.com’s March 2026 roundup recommends the spicy whipped feta and the dry-aged lamb chops.

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Taxim

Chef-owner David Schneider cooks regional Greek food at Taxim, with Cypriot and Turkish influences, in a Wicker Park room of arches and brass lanterns. The duck gyro comes in house-made Pontian-style bread, the lamb chops arrive five or six to an order over bulgur, and the whole sea bass is boned at the table. The wine list focuses on Greek bottles. The Infatuation suggests skipping the two-tops at the front, so ask for a table farther back when you book.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 1558 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60622

Why they made the list

• City records show the food license at 1558 N. Milwaukee Ave. was first issued on March 26, 2009.
• Before the restaurant moved in, the storefront held a dive bar and taqueria, critic Michael Nagrant wrote in 2009.
• Reservations go through OpenTable, and the phone number is (773) 252-1558.

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Also worth knowing

Down in Bridgeport, Greek Prime at 901 W. 35th St. has a sports-bar feel, down to a car hood from the 2003 MLB All-Star Game hung over the bar. The Infatuation’s Greek guide, updated November 5, 2025, points to the avgolemono, the lamb chops with tzatziki and egg rolls filled with cheese and giardiniera.

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Back on Halsted, 9 Muses Bar & Grill at 315 S. Halsted St. is a bar and grill with a graffiti-style interior and a large patio. InsideHook’s 2024 Greektown guide lists keftedes, grilled octopus and the pork souvlaki, the house signature.

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See a place we missed or a detail that has changed? Send us a correction.