http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/365170,CST-FTR-center01.article

Frank Georgacopoulos, the 29-year-old chef at Greektown's Meli Cafe, is a surgeon of breakfast. The former pre-med student mixes culinary imagination with a dash of science to stitch together airy fritatas and moist banana pancakes.

For him, even an egg is never just an egg. Before opening Meli, he and the cafe's owners blind-cooked and taste-tested 10 different eggs, including standard, organic and cage-free versions, until they settled on Illinois producer Phil's Cage-Free as the foundation for the restaurant.

Georgacopoulos, who also graduated from culinary school with honors, manned the kitchens at family-style dining spots in the Chicago suburbs before landing at Meli. He says, "I was the big fish in the little pond. Now I'm the small fish, and I'll work my way up."

But there's no flopping like a fish in the Meli kitchen. As the place fills with plates on busy Sunday mornings, there's a silent, precise dance between him and his cooks. Georgacopoulos refers to this harmony amid the rush as "vibration" and says, "I need a little bit of craziness, a little ruckus, or my day is not complete."

Q. What do you wish you could change about the Chicago restaurant scene?

A. I wish that there were more places that offer the comfort and quality that we had as children. Nowadays, it's fusion this, fusion that with platings that are 16 inches high. That's all good, and we'll do some interesting things at Meli, but we like to preserve the essence of a dish, and try to capture those moments where you were sitting and waiting for lunch from Mom. You won't see us mixing wasabi with the feta.

Q. What would your last meal be?

A. Freshly baked bread, hot out of the oven, with kalamata olives, ripe tomatoes, olive oil and imported feta.

Q. Where do you eat before or after a shift?

A. Seeing as I get up at 3:30 a.m. for work, I usually prepare a bowl of oatmeal, with fresh fruit, and homemade granola at Meli to get me through the day.

Q. What's the can't-miss dish at your restaurant?

A. My "Cloud 9" crepes -- a sinful combination of chocolate-infused crepes filled with fresh strawberries and sweetened mascarpone and garnished with fresh whipped vanilla cream, powdered sugar and drizzled chocolate.

Q. What should we know about your restaurant that we probably don't?

A. We prepare all the marmalades from scratch along with our signature honey butter. We believe everything should be in its most natural state. You won't find any pre-packaged items at your table.

For a bigger taste of Chicago,
visit centerstagechicago.com/restaurants.

Reviewed By:  Michael Nagrant

Those who might bemoan the ebb of old-fashioned Chicago patronage need only look at Greektown to change their mind. The Near West Side neighborhood is one where waiters still beget restaurateurs who beget waiters who beget more restaurateurs, a place where family and immigration isn’t a random mingling of bloodlines, but a concrete strategy in the business plan. Meli Café (301 South Halsted), a fantastic breakfast and lunch spot, and the newest addition to the Halsted strip, serves as the perfect business case.

Read more •

Hot spot of the week: I dropped in for breakfast at Meli Cafe & Juice Bar in Greektown (301 S. Halsted, 312-454-0748), and it has fast become one of my favorite breakfast stops (it's in Greektown, but it's not Greek). Light, bright, clean, cheery service staff. Big omelets (asparagus and Gruyere is a beaut). Excellent French toast (don't miss the raspberry-mascarpone version). Lots of frittata choices, too. Juices are fresh and flowing. Panini, wraps and such are served at lunch, but breakfast is the ticket. Sunday brunch can be a bear (very crowded). Go during the week.

Reviewed By: Pat Bruno
Chicago Sun-Times

Opened in 2006, this smallish Greektown breakfast-and-lunch spot quickly gained a rep as the bee's knees with nearby condo dwellers for its updated, super-fresh take on usual diner fare. Instead of a classic Denver, try the popular pancetta-studded signature omelet filled with Boursin cheese, chives and shallots -- plus, it's made with cage-free eggs. Even the accompaniments get tasty tweaks: Each table is set with seasonal, housemade marmalades and a ramekin of honey butter. (Meli is the Greek word for honey, which gets ample use elsewhere on the menu, too.) Lunch offers a lineup of salads, wraps, panini, and sandwiches. Though Meli closes at 4 p.m., there are some dinner entrees on the lengthy menu like lemon chicken pasta and skirt steak as well. Morning commuters can swing by for smoothies, fresh-squeezed juices, and a strong cup of imported, high-end Lavazza coffee.

Reviewer: Anonymous
Metromix.com

Hours: 6 a.m.-4 p.m., daily

Meli Cafe & Juice Bar, which opened in the fall, is smack in the middle of Greektown. Peach-cream walls and oversize floral paintings brighten two dining rooms accented by warm woods.

Owners Nikos Karabelas and Yiamis Theoharis (of Nine Muses across the street) and chef Frank Georgacopoulos insert Greek touches into dishes such as a frittata ($8) with artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers and kefalograviera, a hard, salty Greek cheese. They also appear in the daily specials, like the Mediterranean-style chicken sandwich ($9) with kalamata olives and imported feta cheese.

The menu emphasizes eggs (they serve breakfast all day), including a half-dozen kinds each of frittatas and Benedicts ($8 to $11), as well as a long list of wraps, paninis and other sandwiches ($7 to $11). Omelets are tender and light; a daily special with mushrooms and ricotta ($9) oozed fresh cheese.

"Meli" is Greek for honey, which pops up in marinades, batters, glazes and addictive whipped butter that arrives on the table with house-made marmalades. Meli crepes ($7), filled with fluffy honeyed mascarpone, are dreamy.

Freshness of ingredients and attention to detail stand out. The cafe uses Phil's Fresh Eggs and coffee from Lavazza. On the terrific chicken aioli sandwich ($8), garlic mayonnaise has bite, the ciabatta roll is toasted and the side salad is crisp and lightly dressed — not the usual limp pile of greens many places throw on the plate as an afterthought.

Order a fresh-squeezed juice or smoothie on your way out. The carrot-apple-celery combo ($4) is a hit and not too sweet.

Service is polite and quick. Nearby parking lots run about $6.

Reviewed By:  Alison Neumer Lara
Chicago Business

Taking its name from the Greek word for honey, many visitors might be surprised by the lack of Greek standards at Meli—particularly given its address. Instead of gyros and kebabs, you'll find a spruced-up cafe menu with a focus on high-grade ingredients and pleasant presentation.

Items like the chicken aioli sandwich approach standard diner recipes with an original (in this case garlicky) twist, and the red pepper shavings around the edge of the plate make you feel fancy, even if you're in a T-shirt and jeans. Plenty of healthy options (including a full juice bar with unusual treats like a maple pecan smoothie) sit alongside deliciously unhealthy ones (like the Cloud 9 crepes, which are stuffed with a strawberry filling that makes you fell like you're eating a big plate of fancy truffles).

The Greek influence is absent from the decor as well. Forget columns and statues of Zeus; here it's bright colors and lightly stained wood. The space itself is divided into two large rooms, each with its own big painting of flowers, and the seating, while perhaps a little too close together, is comfortable. Don't be surprised to find everyone from businessfolk in suits to cops in uniform to slackers in sandals (weather permitting), all feeling a-OK at Meli's tables. And with most entrees priced below $10, they're all going to leave happy.

Reviewed By: Mac McCormick
Centerstage Chicago