Photography by Kelsey Shoemaker
Hummus and baba ganoush, dolmas and falafel, kebabs and shawarma: AJ Greek & Gyro’s menu serves every Mediterranean staple over a deli-style counter. Tucked into a back corner of Westcliff Plaza on the corner of Hampton and Ledbetter, it’s a humble, hidden gem.
“We’re in an area that may still be invisible,” says owner Liali Abushanab. “But when people do start eating here, they come back for more. And they bring their friends or family members, or they tell their co-workers about us.”
She bought AJ Greek & Gyro from a previous owner in November 2020. At a time restaurants across the country were shutting down because of COVID-19, Abushanab used her background as a corporate operations manager for McDonald’s and Panera Bread to keep the restaurant afloat throughout the changing restrictions of the pandemic.
While Abushanab is Middle Eastern, taking over a Greek restaurant was a natural choice because of the shared emphasis on quality and hospitality between the cultures, she says.
“It comes from the culture. Falafel is the traditional culture, the recipe is from your grandpa, and generations. And we are doing it here from scratch,” Abushanab says. “We actually are providing very tasty food.”
Other signature dishes include the shawarma and gyro platters. Both dishes are available for catering. A chicken shawarma family plate feeds up to five people for $49, or a pound of gyro — served with pita and tzatziki — rings up at $35.
The catering options can be ordered over the phone day of. She also has plans to expand the restaurant’s space in the shopping center to develop a more robust catering system, and to revamp the dining room in the near future.
Abushanab has noticed the wave of development and Dallas’s growing population trickling into South Oak Cliff, and hopes AJ Greek & Gyro will become the comfort restaurant for new residents of Greek or Middle Eastern heritage, or anyone who appreciates the cuisine.
“People need to know we are an affordable restaurant your family can eat at, ” Abushanab says. “For three to four people you can spend $60, and you can have a good meal (that will) fill your stomach with a good taste and the good quality of the food.”
