Express Lunch at Kapnos Taverna

Lunching during the week can quickly become routine. For example, I routinely donate large amounts of my money to Sweetgreen for delicious, fresh salads or I sit at my desk and shovel in last night’s leftovers while frantically working to meet a deadline. But sometimes, you want something a little bit special that can still fit into your allotted lunch hour. Enter the Express Lunch at Kapnos Taverna in Ballston.
This special offers a starter, a very sizable gyro and a drink for $15. I work in Ballston and Tom had an eye doctor appointment in the area, so we decided to have a mid-day date at the popular Greek restaurant. We both chose salads as our starters, the marousalata for me and the Greek caesar for him.
The marousalata is a simple mixed green salad with mizithra cheese and a tangy citrus vinaigrette. Tom’s caesar was had more going on with fresh radishes and red peppers, croutons and feta. Both were fresh and light, a tasty start to the meal.
Not that you need the extra help to get full, with gyros bigger than your face arriving at your table in around five minutes flat.
I had chicken, and Tom had lamb. I liked his better (why does that always seem to happen?), but both meats were cooked well and had loads of flavor. My only complaint is that they could have used a smidge more tzatziki.
I could not get over how massive the gyros were, with the pita comparable in size to a jumbo pizza slice. I tried, and failed, to eat it with my hands and thus resorted to the more civilized, but less fun, knife and fork method.
I couldn’t come close to finishing it, meaning this meal can easily stretch into two – making it even more budget friendly. While I certainly won’t be eating here every day, it was a fun mid-day treat that took around the same time as waiting in line for my usual at Sweetgreen, for around the same price. A nice option for those days when you need a little something extra.

Kapnos Taverna has a full lunch menu and opens for lunch at 11:30 on weekdays at 4000 Wilson Blvd. in Arlington. Check it. (They also offer online ordering, but the express lunch option does not seem to be included.