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This West Village joint, epitomizing the typically tacky but cheerful eighties-era Greek diner, serves a smattering of American dishes alongside nicely charred chicken souvlaki, tender calamari, and greasy but tasty spinach pie. A series of tall, rotating gyro pillars stacked with meat dominates one side of the room, along with huge piles of chopped-up salad ready to be dished out. The restaurant, furnished with clunky wood furniture, is still a fine place to people-watch when the full-length windows that line the opposite wall are thrown open. Tasty, if perhaps tired, plates of Greek mezze come with towers of hot flat bread, and there are a dozen beers on tap. The adjoining bar, smelly, dark, and cheap, is a hangout for local stand-ups like “East Side Dave” of the Ron and Fez show, as well as owner/comedian Carrie Karavas. The whole place goes until at least 3:30 in the morning; if you’ve drunk enough there’s a downstairs lounge open on the weekends where you can indulge in amusements you might live to regret. — S.L. Allen

Calamari, $10