Sam’s Place

This place is aweful! Service was bad. The owner tells you how to eat your salad and drink your Turkish coffee which was also bad…

I have been coming to Sam’s since I was little. The food is what I consider to be comfort food and always makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Sam is a delight and always happy to see us. The food is always yummy and I take everyone I know here. The greek salad is SPECTACULAR, he makes the sauce himself and it is awesome. The hummus is super garlicy and perfect, I could eat it with a spoon. Everything about this place is wonderful to me. It’s nothing fancy, but it’s exactly the type of place you can hang out and feel comfortable. I have since moved out of town, and whenever I visit I get a huge tupperware of the hummus and salad dressing to take back with me. I love it that much.

I went to Sam’s yesterday with my sister had a great times n the foods was very gooooooooooooooood n the turkist coffee was excenlent.
will b back again.

Terrible ambiance, weak Greek cuisine, awful Greek salad, and being Greek I have grown up in the restaurant world. Feels like Sam doesn’t care. Baklava tasted weird, too. I wanted to like this place, but was horribly disappointed.

Just ate here tonight for the first time and we are fans and will definitely be back! The atmosphere is very casual and you can tell it attracts many regulars. The owner, Sam, spent the evening either cooking or «working the room» saying hello to his patrons, checking on them, etc. I for one really appreciate. It is great to see a local owner present in his business.
The food was great. I had fish & chips and my husband had the falafel. The service was friendly and not rushed; we were able to really sit back and enjoy our dinner.
We will definitely be back soon. I can’t wait to try the gyro plate!

Very average food and overpriced.
Honestly the Daphnes chain makes better food, and at a more reasonable price.
A single small soggy gyros (with little meat) will set you back over $ 6 with no sides.
There are plenty of other nicer eateries in that are worth the business. I would even hit Subway up across the road before this place again.
And as for the service, the guy running the shop (I assume «Sam») is only nice to the ladies. If your a guy, he is short, blunt, and plain rude.
BTW a real gyros has real pieces of juicy tender marinated lamb, not this commercial shaved processed meat that comes in a brick. A real greek should know this and would never serve processed beef/​lamb crap.

My family and I have been coming to Sam’s Place for over 15 years. We’ve tried everything on the menu, but the Gyros plate is still our favorite. You can find us there at least once every 3 weeks pickingup take out and chatting with Sam and his son. Sam’s origin is Lebanese and his food is traditional and fantastic! I recommend for take out, a quick bite to eat before the Belly Up or a movie at Flower Hill, or a yummy weekend lunch with friends. Versitile food served with a lot of love!

This is not a 5 star restaurant, but you would never come here for that. This is a place you go on a weeknight when you need comfort food and you don’t want to cook. Sam is pretty entertaining too. His gyros and the white sauce that comes on the side have the best flavor combo in SD. Trust me on the greek food, I am an expert. The kabobs and other dishes are not as good in my experience. If you have trouble deciding, Sam will just stand over you and make a suggestion. He’s funny that way and a large man to boot. I am sure somebody can take it the wrong way, but it is Sam’s Place.

when i visit encinitas, sam’s place is always a must– can’t miss the yummy gyro!

My favorite Solana Beach spot.
Big pluses:
1. Food. I have had the Fish and Chips, the Falafel, and the Kabobs. Of the three, the Lamb and Chicken Kabobs are AMAZING. Really. Loved them. The house salad is good too, which comes with each of these.
2. Owner/​Opperator. Sam and his son who combine to run the place are amazing people. They are concientious, and they remember people exceptionally well. It pays to become a regular because these are people who will bend over backwards for you. Sam opened once just for my parents because they had nowhere to go for dinner with some guests after returning from my sisters wedding (hence no food in the house). He made a special dinner just for them.
3. The Coffee. OMG. Traditional, brewed in an open pot with cardamom! Yikers soooooo good it hurts.
4. Baklava. Heaven. SOOOO good.

Staring into Sam’s eyes and finding myself falling deeper and deeper into his soul I made the decision to order a Gyro Sandwich. Sam barked the order at his cook as he moved toward the man who gave his reproductive gene’s to my mother to create Ronald D.
He had already had a mild confrontation with my Father who made the mistake of taking a cell phone call at the bar where Samuel had sat us. He asked the cell phoned culprit, «are you going to talk on the phone or order». Politely, my Father moved into the empty dining room and finished his conversation. Father returned to order the fried chicken.
Sam is a no nonsense guy. He fry’s chicken, makes fish and chips and sticks to his Mediterranean roots with Gyro’s and other offerings such as hummus and falafel.
Sam served watermelon to the other middle eastern gentleman in attendance at the bar who had just finished his plate of fried everything. He then followed by enjoying an espresso, which he poured into little glasses that looked as if they were from a young girls tea cup set, and conversed with his client in some far away tongue.
Meanwhile I sat and ate my Gyro and I realized it had just tied the number one spot in my heart for best Gyro in San Diego. A very dubious distinction if I do say so myself.
Father’s fried chicken looked delicious, but I wouldn’t dare ask for a bite.

Although I might consider going to this place for lunch, I would not go there again for dinner. Below was my dining experience.
Arrived there at 7:15pm on a Saturday night for dinner. The place was pretty empty (two four-​tops in the midst of their meals, and another five people hanging at the bar having some drinks). The big reason they are getting two stars instead of three is because the service was ridiculously slow, especially considering how empty it was. Although our very tasty order of baba ganoush arrived quickly, our two main courses (which were simply a Greek Salad with Grilled Shrimp, and a Gyros Plate) took seemingly forever to be delivered… I do not think I am exaggerating when I say it took about 45 minutes to get these dishes. Additionally, our water glasses must have sat empty for 15 minutes or so before they refilled them. This amazes me when I consider that it appeared to be the owner who was waiting on us, the place was empty, and there were three other employees working in the kitchen. there were three people working in the kitchen. Additionally, the table next to me sat there with dirty dishes on it from the previous customers for at least 15 minutes. The salad was about average, and although the gyro meat was very moist and tasty. So, I give the quality of the food a thumbs up. But, there was nothing so special in these dishes to warrant me spending another evening in this place when I consider the poor service and price-​point combination, especially considering the blah atmosphere (they did not have the nice room open, so we were seated in a small diner style table next to the bar).

Great food, good prices and friendly service. Only reason I’m not giving 5 stars is because the menu is pretty limited. Another reviewer noted that regulars get somewhat preferential treatment, which although true certainly doesn’t mean newbies don’t get good service. Sam is super friendly and all you have to do is strike up a bit of conversation and he’ll treat you like he’s known you for years from then on out.

Great food, very authentic… run by the owner (so you know there is always someone actually gives a sh*t working)
One of my top favorite spots for lunch or dinner to go!

The outside is decieving — very non descript. I wasn’t expecting a Greek restaurant but Iwas starving. Good thing I LOVE greek food. I had the Gyro plate — gyro meat, pita, rice and salad. It was absolutely decious. Pretty expensive, but they do give you a lot of food and it is cooked fresh right in front of you. Highly recommend.

The Greek salad is supreme! Very fast take out and Sam is a nice guy. Not as fancy as other café’s in the area but the food is definitely up to par.

I have lived in the area for 11 years and just discovered Sam’s. Best Gyro in San Diego… bar none. The fish and chips are great too. He will cater dinner parties and his hummus is not to be missed.
My son is named Samuel and he loves to go to Sam’s because Sam will let him sit and the bar and have a Dr. Pepper.
He is now doing breakfast on Thurs-Sun…I think.

Went to a pre-​wedding party here; we were served buffet style. They also have a bar (yay).
The hummus and spanikopita (or whatever you call it in Armenia: D) were good, as were the salad, hot wings, and gyro meat — some of the most flavorful I’ve ever had.
Seemed like a nice family run place!

i go for the fish and chips which are excellent
i like mom and pop shops

Good food, chill atmosphere. Not bad if you like Mediterranean food. No happy hour specials, but it was still really good and a lot of food for the money. I don’t give it 5 stars because we hadn’t eaten there before and they seemed more attentive to their local «regulars» which is either good or bad depending on which side you’re on!