Houston-based restaurant group Pappas Restaurants is set to open Yiayia’s Pappas Greek Kitchen in August, according to an email from the Pappas Restaurants group.

The gist

The new concept is inspired by the original Yiayia Mary, a former Greek restaurant in the Galleria area that served a Mediterranean menu and closed during the pandemic.

Yiayia's Pappas Greek Kitchen is an homage to yiayiades, or grandmothers, of Greece, who embody the art of hospitality, according to the email. Yiayia’s offers a contemporary take on home cooking and honors the Pappas family's roots of authentic flavors passed down through generations.

The restaurant will serve elevated Greek and Mediterranean dishes such as:
  • Pasta Lena: Served with little neck clams, trofie pasta, Calabrian chili and pesto
  • Prime Ribeye Souvlaki: Served with blistered tomato, pickled fennel and tzatziki
  • Saganaki: Fried kefalograviera cheese, bosc pear, medjool date and toasted sesame
  • Moussaka: Braised beef, roasted eggplant, potato and sheep’s milk béchamel
Guests can expect the menu to include sections for dips such as hummus, tzatziki, eggplant dip and tytokafteri, as well as salads such as patzaria, a salad with red and golden beets, charred labneh, feta, walnuts, and honey.


A focused cocktail list leans into Greek spirits like ouzo and mastiha, while the wine program small-production bottles from the Greek Isles and beyond.