Gyros, The Food of the Gods

Gyros…..

Oh gyros how I love you. All that garlicky, lamby goodness. Piled on a warm pita with sauce and tomatoes and…..

Maybe I had better back up just a bit. We wouldn’t want confusion to reign any more than usual around here.

So, this past weekend we were out in Northwest Indiana at the lake cottage of the parental units, Mimi and Papa. HHBL had meetings at his alma mater, Valparaiso, and I tagged along so that I could play. TMO, TSiL and Shoe Queen drove over for a visit on Saturday because they love us and miss us so much..

{Cough, Cough, Cough}

The one thing that TMO had requested was that we go over to Crown Point and have lunch at Papa’s Deli. Specifically she wanted to have gyros at Papa’s Deli. To be perfectly honest we know that Papa sells other food at the deli but we just don’t know what they are. For us there is always and only the gyros.

Ah Papa’s Deli. Can you hear the angels singing.

This is it, the scene of our joy and eating. I must go there at least once a year or life just isn’t worth going on. I need my gyros, that is all there is to it. We were trying to remember how long we have been driving over to Papa’s Deli and I am thinking it is over 25 years. The interior really doesn’t change and perhaps that is one of the more comforting things. Papa (not my father but gyros Papa) doesn’t seem to feel that anything needs to be updated.

The thought that Gyros Papa would ever retire and close up shop strikes fear in our hearts.

We are creatures of habit and this time was no different.

We walk in. Gyros Papa is usually always doing the same thing, sitting at a back table reading the paper. We mill around like we are thinking about what to order but really there is no question.

We will all have the gyros plate please. 7 of them thankyouverymuch. And this year, for the first time EVER, Shoe Queen also had gyros. The earth almost stood still because she has always refused to eat “that stuff”. But you see, she dates that Nice Greek Boy and she has learned to appreciate gyros. I knew we were going to  like FJ and Helene a lot when we went over to their house and they were serving…..GYROS! Oh yeah.

There is much scratching of heads and decisions made on what to have to drink. If you look at the above picture Papa (my father Papa) is clutching the other tradition, BBQ potato chips. We always eat a bag of these while waiting for the gyros.

I always have one of these. It wouldn’t be Papa’s Deli without my Sunkist. My father always has a Dr. Pepper.

Find a table in the back and sit down to wait. And wait. That is the one thing that we know. The gyros doesn’t pop right out. It takes a bit but is so worth the wait. That is why we have potato chips.

The wait gives us time to….

Chat a bit. Solve the problems of the world. You know, the usual.

Take a picture or two…..

Sorry, we just couldn’t help ourselves.

These pictures just seem to happen when we are together. I don’t know what happens but something just comes over us and it just happens.

I will try to be better next time…

But I wouldn’t hold my breath on that.

And then finally, after waiting and drooling and smelling……

GYROS!!!!

I seem to have gained extra Pepperoncini peppers. It seemed that the progeny started to pitch them onto my sandwich, knowing that I love them. But at one point I had 8 of them so I shared them with my Papa who also loves them.

This is Gyros Papa in his usual spot. He always seems grumpy and it seems as if you have messed up his schedule by coming in and actually ordering food from him….

But we know the truth. He is happy to see us. We just know it. In fact, he actually came over and chatted for about a minute. It was the stamp of approval for the day.

  I do not believe that the menu has changed in all the years that we have been eating here. Well, all except the prices that is.

Wow, where did my sandwich go?

And all too soon we were done.

We didn’t eat the rest of the day. It just wasn’t possible. There was no room in the stomach inn for anything else.

And I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening burping up garlic.

Sort of reliving the whole meal you know.