306 King
Greek/Mediterranean
$
How to save $: Use either FREE HUMMUS coupon, CHICKEN ROLL UP FOR $5.95 coupon, or Restaurant.com gift card.

If John Stamos were coming to Charleston, I bet he’d eat at Taziki’s for lunch.

The name gives it away: Taziki’s Cafe is a Greek not-so-hole-in-the-wall, literally busting at the seams at 12:30 p.m. on a weekday with co-workers and families grabbing a quick lunch. Don’t waste time waiting to be seated, just grab the only empty chairs you can find (we sat on the stools overlooking King St.). Once seated, you can go up to the counter and place your order, then they’ll bring it to your table when it’s ready.

We had a few coupons from our C of C coupon book : one of them was for a free HUMMUS with any lunch order (usually $3.99). The hummus was unusually fresh-tasting…almost like it had been made to order, with a prevalent lemon flavor. And the pita chips were also tasty and not too oily or greasy (and real pita chips- Leaf, take note), tasting like they, too, were homemade. All-in-all, a good effort at being “healthy.”

And, before we could finish our hummus, the extra-fast service had our lunches at the table. I ordered the FRIDAY PASTA ($8.49), which seems to be different every Friday. On the day I went, it was a delicious blend of mixed lettuces with penne pasta (sort of like a pasta salad) and grilled chicken, tossed in a very good homemade balsamic vinaigrette and topped with tomatoes, feta and fresh basil. One word to describe this pasta: fresh! The balsamic has an interesting flavor– not as vinegar-y tasting as most balsamic I’ve had before, and a bit more sweet than normal. I’d recommend this dish over and over again, but I’m not sure you’ll find it on their everyday menu.

As for Jeff, he tried the GRILLED CHICKEN ROLL UP ($7.29), a pretty simple roll up with grilled bread and no shortage of cheese. Tomatoes and feta and four strips of chicken breast were rolled up and grilled into the flat bread pita. It was pretty good — you can’t mess up tomatoes and feta cheese — but we agreed it was a little plain. With so many yummy-sounding options on the menu, I’d definitely try something else before getting this again. And, the best part about Tazkiki’s? You won’t find the standard mystery beef/lamb mixture of “gyro meat,” just grilled or roasted chicken here.

BOTTOM LINE: This is a restaurant any Greek family would be proud to run. And, coming from someone who likes Greek food almost as much as John Stamos, I give this restaurant a big thumbs up (metaphorically, of course – a real thumbs up would be nerdy). Hands down, a good, inexpensive place for a light, quick lunch.