From The New Orleans Menu Daily By Tom Fitzmorris Originally published July 13, 2007 Acropolis Cuisine 2$ Metairie: 3841 Veterans Blvd. 888-9046 Lunch and dinner seven days. AE, DC, DS, MC, V. Greek. We never had many Greek restaurants in New Orleans here, but we've always had a few. They seem to be rarer now than ever. Lebanese and other Middle Eastern restaurants, which experienced a surge in popularity in recent years, filled the niche formerly occupied by Greek restaurants. Not only is Lebanese food similar in many ways to Greek cooking (they spring from the same Turkish roots), but a lot of the guys who used to run Greek restaurants were actually Middle Easterners. The Acropolis Cuisine may be unprepossessing, but by default it's become the best Greek restaurant in town. It's a single small, usually full dining room in a small strip mall. You won't see it unless you're looking for it, even though it's in a very busy section of Veterans Boulevard (at Taft Park). It appears that there are virtually no parking spaces in front, but there are more behind the restaurant (and a rear entrance, too). The best Greek cooking has a homestyle aspect to it that rarely translates well to a restaurant. Acropolis manages that trick well, particularly among the day's specials. Many of those are dishes you may never have encountered before, even though they're Greek standards. All fresh-tasting and even light--a rare state of affairs for Greek restaurant cooking, which has an unfortunate tendency to heaviness. The specials are listed on a markerboard, and are quite a bargain. For prices in the low teens, they send out a three-course lunch. At dinner, they create four-course repasts for prices in the low twenties, and test the limits of your appetite. Even if you're intrigued by one of the appetizers, it's probably a good idea to split it with one or two other people rather than try to fit it into a meal with an entree. Although most of the cooking is Greek, most of the appetizers are actually Lebanese. Hummus, baba ghanooj, and the like are essential these days, and they serve them well. But they also do a fine job with fried calamari (which is getting to be a hard thing to find in a restaurant these days, for some reason). The table d'hote dinners begin with a fine homemade soup and a small Greek salad, then move on to anty of several entree specials. A great example of the table d'hote dinners was a special one night that I've wanted to have again ever since. The entree was a Greek-style cabbage roll stuffed with beef, and topped with avgolemono sauce. That last long word translates "egg and lemon" sauce, which puts it into the same category as hollandaise, but the flavor is totally different. Anyway, the platter have a very homely aspect that I find heart-warming. Greek restaurants almost always have a great roast chicken, well seasoned with the herbs for which the cuisine is famous. No exception here: the half-chicken is one of the best dishes in the house. And here's the moussaka you know will be here, too: a layered casserole of ground beef and lamb with eggplant and bechamel, baked till crusty and very hot (be careful eating). Much of the food comes off the grill, which renders everything crusty and seasoned with verve. Lamb and pork chops are especially good, and not nearly as expensive as those things often are. They also make several kinds of grilled kebabs, including one made with big shrimp--although the kebabs of pork tenderloin are the best of the lot.            The menu plays out with pizzas and pastas for those who haven't acquired a Greek taste yet (kids, mostly). I think this is good, because it allows guys like me to bring the whole family and make everybody happy. For many dinners, I've arrived just in time to get the last table in the house. They're even busier at lunch. Lots of regular customers here. Click here to return to today's edition. Click here for an index of all restaurant reviews. © 2006 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com.