Houston Greek Fest

This was my first time taking part in Houston Greek Fest but I have been to the original festival on Montrose. The festival is held at the Greek Church in the Energy Corridor and the entrance fee is only $ 3.
Started things out by heading to the beverage area and I was happy to see they had Greek beer. The festival on Montrose only had Bud Light, Budweiser, etc. which was an outrage. It’s a Greek festival come on! They also have margaritas spiked with a splash of uzo (Greek hard liquor) which is pretty hilarious. I didn’t dare take the plunge.
Then proceeded to stuff my face with gyros, tyropita (puff pastry with cheese), and loudamedes (I hope I spelled that right– hot donuts sprinkled with powdered sugar and honey). All the food was amazing and they have some seating under tents which help’s with the Houston heat. They had some performers doing traditional Greek dances which was nothing spectacular but a cool cultural thing to see.
Had to knock off one star because the souvlaki (beef on a stick) was $ 8 which is too expensive. I’m a big fan of souvlaki so I was hoping they had a better deal on that. I very well might be making this a yearly thing.

Good for lunch and walking around about 15 minutes. Really, not much to it for the $ 5 parking, $ 3 entrance fee and $ 7 gyro. Missed the gyro eating contest, got there to early to want to wait for it.

Ive been going for a few years. This past year I only went because my friend lives in the neighborhood and got free tickets. (but tickets this year were cheaper than last year, thank god) Its just so hot and there isn’t a variety. same gyro, same dessert, I guess you say, if you’ve been there once., you’re done. I love festivals too. But I think Ive seen enough of this one.

This year’s Houston Greek Fest was a good experience! First time here, and didn’t realize at all that it is pretty much held in a church parking lot. Still, had a good vibe, delicious food (albiet a little overpriced), good entertainment and a mini carnival. Dancing, music, and good people made this event fun, and they had a few vendors to boot selling little odds and ends. If nothing else, grab some spanikopita and some fried donuts with honey and powdered sugar if you’re in the area next year! Look for a free admission flyer in the mail, otherwise its $ 3 at the door!

Attended the Houston Greek Fest for the first time today and I’m glad to say it was a good first experience overall. If you are a fan of Niko Niko’s food and Greek food in general, you must come here, if only for the food itself. As for entertainment, the annual Gyro Eating Contest is held here. This year’s line-​up included the renowned competitive eating «athlete» Joey Chestnut, among other high-​ranked «athletes» and a couple of average joes trying their best to hang with the big boys. Seeing adults of varying shapes and sizes try to scarf down as many gyro’s as fast as humanly possible was definitely an entertaining sight, albeit somewhat disgusting. Other than the eating contest, there’s not much in the way of entertainment except for a group of performers that perform traditional Greek dances and a couple of carnival rides for the kiddos.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t bring myself to give this festival a five-​star rating. Although I didn’t buy any water, I take issue with the fact that Niko Niko’s, or whomever is responsible for pricing the water, decided to charge $ 5 for a 16.9 oz water bottle. Now you might be calling me cheap or whatever, but I see it as a matter of principle. I understand it’s a business, but it’s just not right to take advantage of people this way, especially considering how much money the festival likely generates through food sales alone, not to mention admission and other various expenses.
Other than that, the Houston Greek Fest is definitely an event worth checking out for its great food.

The Houston Greek Fest never disappoints. The food is made by Greek women in their 70’s, and it is absolutely fantastic. The Spanikopita, Baklava, and Gyros are wonderful. NIko Niko’s always sponsors a Gyro eating contest that is fun to watch. The festival is usually free on the first Friday, so I always love going then. You should definitely try the Oparitas. They are a nice twist on frozen margaritas.

Just come here to eat and for the free greek dancing entertainment. Get some sunlight and hopefully its not too hot, but can find shaded seating.

I hadn’t been to this Greek Festival when I meandered in on the day it opened. They have many food options, and I opted to try something different with the Greek pizza ($ 7). I was very happy with my selection. Very cheesy and tasty with the addition of the Gyro meat. However, the margarita wasn’t good at all being watered down tasting. I think it was supposed to be frozen too, and it was not that, and at $ 7 a pop it was disappointing. The beef skewers were nice but could have used more seasoning, and been a bit cheaper for a better value. The loukoumades were my favorite, and a great value and plentiful for the price ($ 3). They also have a few rides for the kiddos. They also had a couple of booths selling wares, but they could definitely use more to entice you to stay and peruse longer. In addition, they offer church tours and music and dancing. I would go again just for the food.

Nice expierence, only good for eating and that’s about it. Try the Greek pizza

Having patronized the Annunciation Greek Festival for years, I often wondered what this upstart Greek Fest on the west side was all about. My modest Greek heritage was excited when some friends and a beautiful weekend suggested we make the drive.
We walked up and paid the paltry $ 3 entrance fee, got the lay of the land, and almost immediately got in the souvlaki line. St. Basil the Great Greek Orthodox Church is a beautiful complex, with a sanctuary, chapel, and bell tower newly constructed in recent years in the style of traditional Orthodox churches in Greece, while nodding to their Houston home with Spanish tile roofs and native stone. The central courtyard, or very nearly a plaza, makes an ideal venue for the festival, spacious enough for the crowds and a view of the main stage while still offering smaller nooks for various food and gift stalls that radiate off the central space in a way that means you never have to walk too far.
That first souvlaki skewer really set the tone for the afternoon. Beef cubes pulled fresh off the grill, then liberally brushed with juices and drippings before being wrapped up in half a pita and covered in foil. The pita soaked up those delicious drippings, and the meat was perfectly grilled with a slight char at the edges but tender with the slightest pink in the middle. It may be treasonous, but I dare say this souvlaki was better than the Original Greek Fest in the ‘Trose.
Next we got in line for a couple of dinner plates, one of lamb and one of pastitsio — both of which came with plenty of extras like spanakopita and tiropita, Greek salad, dolmades, and rice. The lamb was sliced thin from a roast, again, juicy and tender, while the pastitsio — basically a Greek lasagna — was incredible, with layers of pasta, ground meat, and a thick, creamy layer of Bechamel, all seasoned in the Greek style with hints of nutmeg and cinnamon. The flaky phyllo pastry stuffed with spinach or cheese (spanako and tiro, respectively) were excellent, as were the grape leaves stuffed with seasoned beef (dolmades). Our group shared these dinner plates as the gyro eating competition got underway.
Every year, Niko Niko’s owner Dimitri Fetokakis sponsors the Major League Eating officially sanctioned World Gyro Eating Championship on the Sunday of the festival. The likes of competitive eating heavy hitters Joey «Jaws» Chestnut and Patrick «Deep Dish» Bertoletti show up for this thing, as well as a number of local contenders seeing if they can cut the mustard. Or in this case, the tzatziki. On this day, however, it was Chestnut who emerged victorious, with 21.5 gyros in 10 minutes. Just think about that, I’ll wait. It was something to behold. The event inspired us to get gyros of our own, which were delicious, but led to the only curious drawback of the day. We saw what looked to be a septuagenarian assembly line behind the gyro counter, and we discovered that the elderly parishioners were separating the slices of frozen gyro meat. I understand the volume the Greek fest was putting out, but perhaps this activity should be performed elsewhere, or simply hidden from view.
After the gyros, we made our way over to the shaded seating area with long tables full of happy patrons eating, drinking their Mythos lager or Greek wine, and watching the goings-​on, which by now included the traditional Greek dancers on the main stage. Nearby were the sweets booths, and it just wouldn’t be a complete Greek Fest experience without some desserts. There was of course the sweet and sticky baklava that everyone expects, but there were also loukoumades (puff cake donuts soaked in honey syrup), amygthalotas (Greek almond cookies), and kourambides (crescent-​shaped almond cookie dusted in powdered sugar). It was a completely indulgent spread, but thoroughly decadent and delicious.
In the end, I’m glad I made it out to the «other» Greek Fest on the west side of town, and I put it right up there with the original one familiar to many. I’m looking forward to returning next year. Opa!

If you’ve enjoyed going to The Original Greek Festival that’s held in the fall over by the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral, then you’ll definitely enjoy going to The Greek Fest that’s being held at St Basil’s Greek Orthodox Church located on Eldridge. Yes, it’s OTL for you ITLers so once you get over that, just go.
I really wanted to give the festival 3.5 stars but there’s no half star, so keep that in mind. I couldn’t bring myself to downgrade it to 3 stars because I think this festival is WAY better than the Original Greek one. It’s smaller, but better. I was there yesterday — yeah, remember all the bad weather earlier in the day? Luckily, the weather cleared up so it was a great night but I think that kept the crowds away for opening night.
Because crowd attendance wasn’t high, I can’t make much of a comment on parking. I’m sure it’ll be more of a hassle this weekend. There’s no parking information on the website so you’re on your own.
Entrance to the festival is $ 3 or free for kids 12 and under. The set up is quite nice. The main part of the festival is located in the courtyard of the church. There is a nicely raised stage to the center left for the dance performances and plenty of tables and seating to the right so that everyone can eat and enjoy the shows. This setup is so MUCH better than the Original Greek Festival, where I still have no idea where the dancing occurs. Yesterday’s crowd was sparse, but enthusiastic it so I can easily see the weekend crowd clapping their hands, yelling OPA and really getting into the spirit of the festival. Because of the height of the raised stage, I think everyone will be able to see the performances. The groups are fun to watch and definitely get the crowd going. Kudos to all the dancers. Be sure to give them a big hand.
One thing this festival has that the original one doesn’t is a small carnival area great for the kids. There’s a mini ferris wheel, a rock wall, a spinning ride a la the Disney teacup ride and a few others I can’t remember right now. You’ll need to get tickets for the rides but I have no idea how much they cost.
The drink tent is set up on the immediate right as you walk into the festival. It looks like there’s only one drink tent so you might wait a while if there’s a crowd. You have your choice of frappes, sports drinks, sodas, bottled water, beer, wine (by the glass or by the bottle) and OPA! Ritas. If you like licorice, you might like the OPA! Rita since they put a shot of ouzo in it. Prices are on par with what you’d expect at a festival, but the Opa! Rita is pricey at $ 7, especially if you discover that you don’t like ouzo.
If meat’s what you’re looking for, then the head to the left as you walk in. The souvlaki tent is the first one you’ll come across but I question the location of this tent because there was so much smoke blowing towards the stage and seating area. Further back are the gyros, pizzas and dinner plates (your choice of pastichio or lamb, complemented by (depending on your choice) spanakopita, tiropita, keftedes, dolmades, rice and bread. You can also get single servings of spanakopita, tiropita, keftedes and dolmades. Pricewise, I thought the souvlaki was WAY overpriced, at $ 7 a skewer (and nothing else). Your best bet is to get the gyro ($ 7) or the dinner plate ($ 12). Still pricey (hey, it’s a festival), but you’ll be more satisfied. I don’t recall how much the pizzas were.
If sweets are your thing, then head straight across the courtyard to the tent closest to the church to get your fill of baklava, loukamades (greek honey balls), finikia, ktaifi and kourambiethes — sugar heaven! Dessert was definintely my favorite part. The loukamades are a great deal at $ 3 for a personal serving, $ 5 for a double serving and $ 10 for a family size. The personal serving is generous enough to split with a friend, especially if you want to try the other sweets. If you want the baklava, finikia, etc, these’ll run you $ 2 a pop or $ 6 for a box of four.
I wasn’t impressed with the nonfood vendors but if you want some jewelry, art, books and whatnots, then check them out.
There are also tours of the church, cooking demonstrations, and an eating contest so there should be something for everyone.
From the website: Proceeds from Houston’s Greek Fest benefit the parish and help support its growth within the community.