Mediterranean food in Madison, WI: gyros, falafel, shawarma and Turkish grills

Gyros and Greek

• Parthenon Gyros (316 State St.): serving gyros since 1972, run by the third generation of a Greek family. The menu has the Gyro, the Mega Gyro, the Spicy Gyro and the Freaky Greek, plus Greek fries, a Greek salad and baklava.
• Toast (a food cart; follow its Instagram for where it parks): paninis and gyros with homemade sauces, plus fresh lemonade and smoothies. The name comes from the Hebrew word for panini.

Falafel, shawarma and Middle Eastern plates

• Banzo (2105 Sherman Ave.): started as a campus food cart in 2011. Scratch-made falafel (including a sweet potato version), hummus, baba ghanoush and chicken shawarma platters, with baklava and Turkish coffee. Gluten-free pita and vegan and vegetarian dishes are available.
• Petra Bakery And Restaurant (6119 Odana Rd.): a Middle Eastern bakery and restaurant that bakes flatbread each morning. Look for chicken and beef shawarma in pita or saj wraps, falafel, kibbeh, the Petra Mixed Grill, shish tawook, and Arabic coffee and tea.

Turkish and modern Mediterranean

• Turkish Kitchen (2616 Monroe St.): a Turkish restaurant cooking over charcoal, with beef and chicken kabobs, lamb chops, sucuk ekmek, hummus, baba ganoush and stuffed grape leaves. A traditional Turkish breakfast is served on weekends.
• Eloura Cafe (10 W. Mifflin St.): a modern Mediterranean restaurant on the Capitol Square with a cafe, a bar and weekend brunch. Dishes include spanakopita spring rolls, a falafel burger and grilled octopus.
• Otto's Restaurant (6405 Mineral Point Rd.): an upscale Mediterranean restaurant in an 1870s farmhouse. Gluten-free items are marked on the menu, and reservations are required.

Around the area

• Waunakee (Westport): Athens Grill of Westport (5430 Willow Rd.) makes its gyros from hand-crafted gyro cones and has a drive-thru and a bar with craft cocktails.
• Middleton: Taza Mediterranean Kitchen (1900 Cayuga St.) cooks from Greek, Turkish, Fertile Crescent and North African traditions, with dine-in, carryout and catering.
• Sun Prairie: Meze Mediterranean Grill (503 W. Main St.) serves kebabs, gyro, shawarma, falafel and fresh meze, with vegan and vegetarian dishes.

Browse every Mediterranean restaurant in the directory, or see where to eat in Madison.