Acropolis is on Otley Road, in normal times located in the perfect spot, close to the cinema, gym, university and cafes. But as the restaurant opened its doors in autumn 2020 during a pandemic, it’s not had the best start.
Acropolis has had to navigate changing tier levels, uncertainty around Christmas and new year, two national lockdowns, and a lot of snow. But, despite all these challenges, this eatery remains open for takeaway and is well worth a try.
Cooking for one can be tiresome and boring, so, after a couple of weeks of a lot of beans on toast, when Friday night came around, I thought it would be a good opportunity to give some new food a go – and that is where Acropolis came to the rescue. The menu is extensive – with dips, hot and cold starters, pizzas, kebabs, pasta dishes and more. Such a large menu is overwhelming and usually puts me off from ordering – suggesting that the restaurant isn’t confident in their food. But I gave Acropolis the benefit of the doubt as I was hungry and really wanted to try something new, so waded my way through.
To try and reduce my meal options, I ordered only Greek dishes. I opted for the mixed dips, the tiropitakia, some potato keftedes and the kota souvlaki. I went down to Acropolis to collect the meal and whilst I was waiting for the food to be packed, I chatted with the lovely front of house staff, which made me miss eating in a restaurant.
After the short drive back, I was excited to unpack the food. I wasn’t sure what I would get in the mixed dip selection but was pleased when I saw a generous helping of three different options. The first was tzatziki – a refreshing yogurt, cucumber and herb combo which was lovely and light – an ideal side to the main dish. The second dip was hummus – which although pretty standard was well made and delicious. The third and
final dip in the selection was melitzanosalata. I had to look up what it was, but it was pretty much like baba ghanoush – a combination of aubergine, olive oil, garlic and lemon. I enjoyed all three dips, which came with a toasted pitta, ideal for scooping up the condiments, but the dips also went well as a side with the rest of the meal.
In addition to the dips, I wanted to try some of the other side/ starter dishes. I thought tiropitakia seemed tasty and I wasn’t wrong. The warm pastry parcels were filled with soft cheese and herbs. The pastry was light and crunchy and the filling was well seasoned and rich. I could have eaten all three parcels with some tzatziki and I would have had a very satisfying meal indeed.
But, as I still had more dishes to go, I decided to hold back. The other starter dish was the potato keftedes. This unusual sounding dish consisted of potato, cheese and parsley sausages which had been seasoned with spices and herbs and were served with a tomato and onion salsa. I really enjoyed their unusual texture and heavily spiced flavour. I will definitely be looking out for potato keftedes on menus in the future.
For the main dish, I opted for the kota souvlaki (chicken kebab) and I am glad I did, because the chicken was well seasoned and perfectly cooked. The roasted vegetables were also delicious and helped to keep the chicken moist. The dish came with ‘special’ rice which was also packed with flavour thanks to herbs and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, and another side of tzatziki.
Overall, the dishes were well cooked and tasty. The portions were generous and all were well presented even though they were in takeaway boxes. I particularly enjoyed the perfectly cooked chicken and the unusual potato sausages – and I’ll go back to the Acropolis even if just for these.
I recommend Acropolis to anyone in the Headingly/ West Park area. The restaurant is currently open from 2pm until late every day, and offers delivery via Deliveroo – so why not give it a go next time you fancy some tasty, affordable food, served with a smile?
To order your take-away or delivery, visit here.
