“This is definitely a passion project for me,” says Tom Galis, owner of The Greek, which opened last night in the former Turks & Frogs space on Greenwich. Galis’s background is in what the restaurant industry calls fast-casual: He owns Mexicue and Crave Sandwiches, he used to own Goodburger (before selling it to P.J. Clarke’s), and he ran Café Metro. But he always knew he wanted a full-service restaurant, and in particular, given his heritage, a Greek one. “I wasn’t planning on doing it right now, but the space sort of fell in my lap,” he says. “I saw cobblestones, the quiet street, the wine barrels on ceiling—the only thing we kept—and it all just felt right.”

Click to read the menu

His goal was to create a restaurant that felt Greek through and through. “I wanted to design something comfortable, something that exemplified the meaning of going to a Greek taverna—from attitude to design elements to food.” While his experience certainly helped, he says that the difference between opening a full-service restaurant and a fast-casual one is night and day. “I look at it as a positive,” he says. “Because we’ve never done this before, we’re doing things out of the box. We don’t have the same napkins, silverware, or plates that everyone else has.”

Those expecting a menu heavy on seafood are in for a surprise. The Greek is more inspired by the mainland (versus the islands), so the offerings lean toward meat and vegetables, although there are a few seafood options. The wine list is exclusively Greek, and what’s more, you’ll be able to get what Galis says is the country’s most popular drink: a Nescafé frappe, or instant Nescafé blended over ice.

“We want to be a neighborhood Greek restaurant worthy of being in Tribeca,” says Galis. “A place where you can hang out and where everyone’s welcome.”

The Greek is serving dinner seven days a week, and in time it will open for lunch. There are no plans for delivery—the lack of a side entrance is a hindrance—but you will be able to order food for pick-up.

458 Greenwich (between Watts and Desbrosses), 646-476-3941; thegreektribeca.com.

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