Merge

In this day and age, when a place of business still doesn't accept credit cards as a payment option yet is still overflowing with patrons, you have to assume that a high quality product is an integral part of their equation. So it goes with the Pita House, a Greenville staple for Middle Eastern cuisine and the ceremonial first of Merge's newly established lunchtime tradition: Phunky Phriday.

A few of us had sampled their wares before---I myself had visited one time previously, played it safe and ordered a gyro platter. For my second go-round, I chose not to stray too far from my comfort zone by getting the beef shawarma, a do-it-yourself kit featuring pita bread, lettuce and onions, a mound of beef, and various intriguing sauces. My coworkers mostly adhered to this basic meat/veggies/pita formula, but Kim fixated on the grape leaves from moment one. These were notable for reminding me far more of egg rolls than anything grape-related, and indeed they apparently earned high marks for taste.

By the end of our glorious meal, we relaxed in the satisfaction of a choice well made. As we sat there at our two hastily adjoined tables in an atmosphere that could be duly described as "no frills," we knew that Phunky Phriday had started off on the right foot. Before leaving, a few of us perused the nearby grocery section, chuckled immaturely at some of the wild and wacky offerings (just how much can you do with chickpeas anyway?) and exited stage left. The Pita House menu offers excellent value---I assembled three hefty sandwiches for the reasonable price of $7.55 and had to abort plans for baklava upon realizing how full I was. The other attendees promptly began brainstorming our future mealtime endeavors, which we can only hope offer similar contentment.