Kosta’s Bar & Grill

Kosta’s Bar and Grill is located at 105 Grant Ave. in Auburn NY. It’s open all week for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s a family restaurant. It’s a great place to stop with friends for a quick snack or a full meal.It’s a pizza, burgers and a beer sports bar. It’s a salad, fish on Friday, specialty of the day, everybody in your party can find something on the menu they love place to simply relax and enjoy the food and atmosphere neighborhood spot. As the owner says: “Seafood, steak and pasta’s. Come down to Kosta’s!”

Kosta’s Bar and Grill is all that – and more. But that’s not surprising once you’ve spoken to owner, John Gotsis. He’s been in the restaurant business since first coming to the United States from Greece as a teenager with his family (they “took a chance,” he says, and remembers that it was July 31st when they arrived) – starting as a bus boy and working his way up to cook, chef, and ultimately, acquiring the Port Byron Diner. Eventually, he opened Kosta’s – it had been an ice cream parlor – and is, in his heart, his outlook, and the evident care with which he does everything, a genuine “restaurateur.” That, of course, is an expensive word for someone who does a great job of running a great place to eat.

Walking into the neat, newly renovated spot – carefully landscaped and recently expanded, with plenty of parking in the adjacent lot and across the street – it’s clear that care has gone into all the choices: a dining room with large round-top tables and plenty of light; a slightly darker area with cozy booths featuring soft, cushiony banquettes; a bar area with high top tables and expanded seating. And 64 – that’s right, sixty-four – flat screen TVs, featuring all the major premium sports channels (yes, there is even one in the bathroom so you don’t have to miss an inning or a play), and enough SU signage to give credence to Gotsis’s claim that his restaurant is a “home away from the Dome!” On any given big game night, the bar and restaurant will be full to capacity. When we stopped in for a late lunch on a warm Wednesday afternoon, a comfortable crowd of mixed visitors was in attendance: families in the dining room, some bar-and-a-sandwich patrons (who invited Ioannis to share a birthday drink with one of them – clearly, he knows his regulars and they know and enjoy him!), some people comfortably enjoying heaping platters of delicious-looking food in the booths.

Gotsis joined us to tell us the history of his restaurant, which was named in honor of his brother, Konstantine (Kostas), who passed away in 1981. Gotsis is a genial host who, in the best tradition of a family restaurant, offers a menu so extensive it’s almost impossible to know where to start. After 21 years at this location, he still enjoys doing some of his own cooking, and favors (for his own dining pleasure) some of his Greek specialties (gyros, stuffed peppers, and Greek salads, among them). But if you’d prefer pizza – he has either white or red, with a variety of toppings ranging from meat lovers to a Philly steak version, and most anything else you can imagine in between. If you’d like lasagne, or scallops, a Hoffman hot dog, or for that matter, a diet platter, it’s all on the menu. And since the restaurant opens at 8am (7 on weekends) you are also welcome to join them for a full range of breakfast items.

Oh, and then there are specials: Mondays, try the half-priced burger; Tuesday is a prime rib special, Wednesday is a rib-sticking scalloped potatoes and ham. Personally, I’d favor the Thursday all-you-can-eat crab legs, or perhaps Friday’s traditional beer batter fried haddock. Gotsis says the restaurant is famous for its wings, and suggests you try the new smoked variety. They even make their own pastrami and corned beef, as well as sauces and specialty dishes.

Prices match the family atmosphere – you can have a fine lunch with entrees ranging from $8-12 on average; you’ll pay a bit more for the crab legs dinner ($27.99), but when it’s all you can eat, it’s hard to complain. Dinner entrees range in price, with choices including steak, seafood, and even a variety of pasta dishes: as noted, something for everyone!

The restaurant is fun, spotless, and the service was prompt and cheerful. Plenty of laughter coming from the bar let us know that the bartender was friendly and fun, and there was a full bar as well as a variety of drafts and bottled beers, including popular specialty brews.

I opted for a Caesar salad, which arrived with a huge portion of juicy, chilled chicken, Texas sized croutons, onion and a dressing-to-die-for, with my preferred slightly lemony tang. My friend wanted a Philly steak – no onions, no peppers – so you can definitely have it your way. The sandwich was eaten to the last bite, so I can only assume it was as good as it looked: lots of juicy, flavored, thin-sliced beef with a generous amount of melted cheese. I stole one (or two) of the accompanying fries, and they were as crisp and well-cooked as they looked. Nothing is more disappointing that a soggy fry. No problem here. As always, it’s the little things that count, and besides some pickle slices, there was a thoughtful couple of bites of slaw to add a little sass to the dish, served in its own little dish to allow you to blend your flavors as you like!

One more small observation: everywhere we looked there were plaques and signs and indications that Kosta’s is a part of the Auburn community: teams and outings and town events saying “thank you” for the interest the restaurant, and its owner, takes in not just his food and his restaurant, but the town he serves. Thank you, Ioannis Gotsis – we will be back!

Jess LaCelle