By Robert Haugh

Kudos to Achilles Restaurant for being ranked 9th on Yelp’s 2019 “Must Try” restaurants.

The restaurant specializing in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food is located at 2521 Newhall Street.

Here’s what Yelp said about their list:

With the help of our Yelp community, who contributed more than 25 million new reviews over the course of the past year, we are thrilled to announce this year’s Top 100 Places to Eat.

In our sixth annual list, we are honoring eateries from across the US that rank so highly in the Yelp community’s opinion that they earned the status of “must try this year.”

Achilles is co-owned by Elias Stanon (head chef) and Diaa Altali. It’s known for great food and friendly customer service.

They serve gyro beef and chicken shawarma. Their falafel is heart-shaped and made fresh to order with a choice of sauces. The Achilles spread is a yogurt-based sauce that’s really garlicky. The Achilles chicken is marinated in a mix of spices and is outstanding. The also give complimentary items like hummus, tabbouleh and olives.  

Achilles is only one of two establishments in the Bay Area on the national list of 100. Wow.

Big H Deli in Fairfield is the other one.  It’s ranked No. 60. I’m sure it’s great. But that’s too far to drive when you can just go to Achilles on Newhall Street and get great food with excellent customer service.