DINING FEATURE
BY SHAWN ARRAJJ
Manny’s Greek Cafe Local restaurateur builds customer base on ‘old-school’ fundamentals M anny Yiakras knows the correct way to pronounce “gyro,” but he said he will not hold it against his customers if they get it wrong. The Greek native and Cy-Fair restaurateur said he combines a passion for food with a love of people when running Manny’s Greek Cafe on Hwy. 6. “I love people because that’s my culture; it’s all about hospitality,” he said. “My plumber is my customer. My dentist next door is my customer. My chiropractor down the street is my customer. That’s the old-school way.” Yiakras rst opened Manny’s in 2004. Over time, he said he has had to overcome multiple challenges to keep his restaurant open—including road construction and increasing costs—but has remained committed to using quality ingredients and following recipes passed down to him from his grandmother. Yiakras said the quality of ingredients and atten- tion to detail are two of the most crucial needs in his kitchen. Precision is required when preparing the tzatziki sauce—a process done by hand that involves dehydrating the cucumbers in a way that keeps them from being too watery while also preserving the avor— as well as when grilling the pita bread to perfection and carving the gyro meat. “A lot of people overcook the gyro, and it becomes too dry, and it starts to taste like jerky or bacon,” he said. “The gyro has to have juice inside. It has to have a little tenderness.” Yiakras said he also strives for freshness, preparing new batches of ingredients throughout the day. When certain items are sold out, such as the spanakopita—a savory pie make with aky phyllo dough, spinach and feta cheese—they are done for the day, although Yiakras said some customers are willing to wait up to 25 minutes for a new one to be made fresh. “The reason I stay in business is because I microman- age everything,” he said. “These are simple ingredients, but you have to do them right and put them all together in the right way.” Gyros are the top seller at Manny’s, but the eatery also o ers Greek burgers, pasta dishes and other Greek staples such as hummus, dolmades and spanakopita. While many items are prepared in traditional Greek style, others are made with a twist, Yiakras said, including the Italy-inspired pasta Alfredo and Manny’s Fire Fries, which are served with a mix of hot sauce and tzatziki. Yiakras, a natural extrovert, said many of his cus- tomers have opened up to him and come to him for advice in the past. For those he has helped, many often come back and end up helping him later on. He said he also likes to get involved with the broader Cy-Fair community, including donating food to local schools for various events. “It’s all a part of my philosophy,” he said. “If all of us do something for the community, we’re going to have a stronger community.”
Manny Yiakras has been running Manny’s Greek Cafe on Hwy. 6 in Cy-Fair since 2004.
DISHES TO TRY
GYRO COMBO $16.24 A traditional Greek gyro is served on warm pita bread lled with spiced, chopped lamb and beef; tzatziki sauce; onion; and tomato. Combos are also served with fries and a drink.
MANNY’S CLASSIC $10 Penne pasta is served with virgin olive oil and sauteed with kalamata olives, fresh garlic and diced tomatoes and topped with parmesan cheese.
TONIA’S FAVORITE SALAD $4.27 SMALL, $7.55MEDIUM, $13.20 LARGE Penne pasta, fresh spinach and kalamata olives are served with parmesan and a lemon olive oil dressing.
1960
Manny’s Greek Cafe 8475 Hwy. 6 N., Ste. E, Houston 281-856-9075 www.facebook.com/mannysgreekcafe Hours: Mon.-Fri. 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m.-4 p.m., closed Sun.
6
290
N
35
CY FAIR EDITION • MARCH 2020
Powered by FlippingBook