Kiki's is THE Greek Spot in the LES, Bring Anyone Here to Look Like You Know What You're Doing.

Tucked into a back corner just above Two Bridges and nestled nicely amongst a sneaky lively street at the edge of the Lower East Side is the most unassuming Greek tavern. Not grandly labeled and hard to find unless you know where you're going- Kiki's was the epitome of a NYC gem.

With the large and open airy windows, once we stepped into the aged brick paved lowkey wine & beer spot, the wood ceiling beams, strong smell of meat and olives and the lack of that bright blue crowd pleasing design work we're used to seeing at Greek restaurants assures us we're in the right place.

We'd be remiss if we didn't do a tzatziki check right away, we also had the Tirokafteri (spicy feta dip) and enjoyed it to the last bite and especially through the second large basket of pita.

If saganaki is on the menu, it's getting ordered. We were thrown off by the phyllo dough and amount of honey that somehow managed to turn a fried cheesy appetizer into a dessert, but that's not to say it wasn't absolutely delicious in it's own right. The flakiness of the pastry was a delicate balance alongside the cheese. I prefer a seasoned to perfection saganaki, but I understand that the salt content required for that would've definitely been jarring in contrast to the sweetness we were presented with.

The $17 lamb was the showstopper. Self-described as melt-off-the-bone, it completely delivered on that description. The mind reels at what the $29 rack of lamb would've tasted like, as this was spectacular. The lemon potatoes were juicy and well prepared. The souvlaki was great, they add pita and tzatziki on the side of the kebab as well, which is to say.. Kiki's knows what it's doing.

Add this to your LES itinerary, follow it up with delicious espresso martini's at Bar Belly, and then just walk up Orchard Street for abundant hot spots- you'll look like you know where you're going. It's a short jaunt to the coolest streets in Chinatown, rainbow paved streets and Chinese lantern lit skies- head to Apotheke for a cool speakeasy type vibe cocktail place or Pinklady Cheese Tart for some fresh desserts!