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Some restaurateurs take offense if you call their food fast. Not Nick Cretekos of Papa Jack's Grill. He takes pride in his diner's speedy food delivery.
Perhaps that is why my gyro pita arrived in less than five minutes. On days when the Victor traffic is especially fierce, it can take longer to make a left turn into the eatery's parking lot.
The secret to this efficiency is keeping the menu simple, or so Cretekos says. The grill basically cranks out chicken breasts and burgers, he says. Never mind that each comes in 26 variations, same as the alphabet.
A few more reasons not to believe him entirely: The lunch and dinner menu also has fried things such as shrimp and chicken fingers, cold things such as salads and tuna sandwiches and hot dinner plates featuring meatloaf, spaghetti and roasted turkey. And I'm not even mentioning breakfast, which you can read about on the Web site.
You can also read about local happenings on Papa Jack's Jamen TV, an interactive community news and bulletin board that welcomes stories or announcements from non-profit organizations in the Farmington and Victor area.
By the way, the gyro was terrific: a warm blend of pressed, sliced lamb and beef, slathered in yogurt sauce, tomatoes and onions and wrapped in a soft pita. It comes in a paper-lined basket with Cretekos' house-made potato chips, also perfectly done. At only $6.20, I had plenty of cash to stroll next door to Cretekos' other business, Papa Jack's Ice Cream, where I bought a supposedly small but very large banana ice cream for $2.50.
Cretekos changed the name of his restaurant from Cretekos Diner to Papa Jack's a few years back to match the name of the ice cream business he acquired earlier and then relocated next door. Before, many grill customers thought the ice cream shop was competition. Now they don't have to feel so bad when they decline the grill's pies and rice pudding for a sundae, shake or cone.
Once at the ice cream parlor, you still have some hard choices to make, as Papa Jack's offers dozens of flavors, all courtesy of Perry's Ice Cream.
