Pan Am Family Restaurant and Pizza

Pan Am sets the standard for locally-​owned, family restaurants in the DC area. Not modern, not fancy, not overly-​friendly but never unwelcoming either, the Pan Am serves a quality meal for a good price.
My meal tonight: An awesome steak and cheese sub (on special – a steal at $ 6.75), loaded with hot peppers (they don’t skimp). My daughter’s hot roast beef special was a classic – hot roast beef served open-​faced with mashed potatoes. The stuffed grape leaves were nice as well.
There aren’t many places like Pan Am left these days, but don’t come for the nostalgia – the food more than holds its own.

A great local place. The restaurant has decent variety, a fairly standard salad bar (nothing extravagant), and good size, good quality servings. Greek, Italian, and standard American food.
My kids were happy with the kids menu options, and the adults were pleased with the other dishes. We’ll definitely be going back for other family outings.

We have a long history with the Pan Am Family Restaurant. My husband and I first started going here in the late ‘90s, when we were dating. I am a nut for their incomparable lasagne, and their spaghetti with meat sauce. The chicken souvlaki is excellent. We ate here regularly through the early ‘00s, by which time we had two toddlers. After that, the combination of budgetary constraints and small children made our visits infrequent. However, this past weekend we chose to celebrate our wedding anniversary here. Would you believe that our waitress, as well as the guy behind the counter, remembered us. Pizza was great, moussaka was OK, chicken souvlaki was terrific. We have noted the price increases over the years, but I guess that can’t be helped. Both the pizza and the chicken souvlaki sandwich were reasonably priced. And — nobody but a long-​time Northern Virginia resident might appreciate this, but the clan who runs the Pan Am Family Restaurant is the same family who once owned La Guinguette in Merrifield. Just sayin’.

I can’t seem to order anything other than gyros or souvlaki. It’s my fault though. I feel like my head will explode if I get something other than these menu items because they’re just so GD good. I tried once, but called the waiter back when I started sweating the fact I wasn’t going to taste the perfect blend of ground up angels (I’m sure it’s an ingredient.) I tried another time, but sprinted to the front and slapped the order ticket out of the guy’s hand and pretended I saw a bee. «Oh you don’t need this paper, I had the chicken souvlak, son!»
Their tzaziki is so on point you need a cigarette and a kleenex after having it. The only reason I’m giving them a 4 is because they charge over $ 10 for this beloved wrap and I’m bitter. They got me hooked and marked up the prices and I’m a broken-​hearted tweenager over it. Why’d you do that Pan Am Family restaurant? Weren’t we good together at $ 8? Can I get a half one for $ 5? Meet me half way! I will compromise.

One of my favorite lunch and dinner spots in the area. Food is good and decently priced. Gyros and pizza are especially tasty. The wait staff is friendly, but you might have to get their attention. It may not look like much but is definitely good value.

I found myself heading to this location with my Sunday brunch group. I was a little skeptical. I had been to this shopping strip before and was not impressed and not sure what to expect on the food front but I was pleasantly surprised.
First, let’s talk about what this place is not. This place is not modern. I laughed when I read Kimberly S.‘s assessment of the brunch seen. This place is local and old school, right down to the pay at the register before leaving. BTW, the bill they give you is one of the old school tear-​off a copy from the pad style which you take to the front register to pay.
I ordered their Greek omelette (spinach and feta) and added Gyro meat. It came with a potato side and toast. My total was $ 10.
We had a group of 12 folks arriving at different times and everyone got what they ordered in a timely fashion.
Pan Am Family Restaurant and Pizza has good service and good food at low prices in a no rush environment. We had no problem getting individual bills. They are a good spot for group to enjoy a meal and some conversation for a very reasonable price. These things make me a fan of a this location, particularly for a relaxed Sunday afternoon meal, especially if you are hungry.

As someone who grew up in NY, I’m always keeping my eye out for a NY-​style greek diner, unfortunately I missed seeing this place for a very long time. This is a family run Greek diner/​pizza shop, and while it lacks the 15 page menu you find in NY/​NJ/​Long Island, it more than makes up for it in terms of charm and quality. We had a mix of items — stuffed cabbage, Gyros, kebobs, and lasagna, all of which came with either soup or salad (or a trip to the salad bar). Portion sizes weren’t NY-​sized, but were plenty to have a meal and take home some for a lunch the next day. The servers were obviously part of the family and were both friendly and funny. A special shout-​out to the deserts (your typical massive cakes in a display case). The tiramisu was outstanding and obviously homemade.
I can’t wait to go back.

Pretty good food, price and service. I enjoyed that it seemed like a normal «family» place and not chain. Check it out!

First the food:
What I like:
Gyro platter: this is one of my favorite entrees at Pan Am. However, if you eat this I recommend only eating half or else you will be laying on the couch all day regretting eating more. It is delicious and definitely hard to stop eating it once you start! I recommend this platter if you go here!
what I don’t like:
Biscuits: Ordered the biscuits and it was dry and stale. I dont recommend it
Bacon: Waaaaayyyyy too crispy for my liking
Pancakes: they were aight. a little dry
Now my story and experience:
I’ve been here a few times and gotten the gyro platter the majority of those times. One of the times I brought some friends, one of which ordered eggs. The eggs were a little cold so we asked for them to be cooked again… they brought them back 1 minute later hot as could be… and said that they had been microwaved… We weren’t very happy with that. This place is good. They make great egg white omelets and gyro platters but im not much of a fan of anything else on their menu. I still keep coming back though cause its close by where I live and a decent breakfast spot… without the biscuits.

Holy crap huge portions! I came here with a big group of people and they seriously give you enough food to share. It’s funny that I look through the other reviews and other people talk about the huge portions. So why the 3 stars? It was just ok. I got the bbq sandwich, and I think the bbq was store bought. Nothing special. I don’t see myself rushing back here.

I have a friend that LOVES this place. He loves their Chicken Parmesan. I’ve tried it and, meh. It’s okay but I don’t think it’s their specialty. I come here with him about once a year (he comes way more frequently) and I tried to get something different each time. This last time, I had the chopped beef steak with fries and asked for it «well done.» I can honestly say it was the best chopped beef steak I’ve had in a long time or maybe even ever. It was well done but not dry and it came with grilled onions on top. While I would have preferred more onions because I love onions, I think that the there was a generous portion on the steak and the steak itself was huge. The fries were typical but came nice and hot. The portions were so generous there was not question that I would not have dessert but they did look nice in the case.
As for the service, my friend is a regular so that may account for why the service was great. Our glasses were kept filled and service was prompt and pleasant.

Um, yum! This was not the reaction I expected when I first tried this Pan Am shopping center jewel. We came at my boyfriend’s recommendation, and I was a little turned off by the outdated décor. The place does not have great curb appeal but don’t let that fool you. Yes, it’s no frills inside and there is zero ambiance but the food will make up for it. Still, do not take a first date here if you know what’s good for you. The light is not flattering and you will also undoubtedly emerge with a hefty food baby. This is strictly for the established dating couple, friends, or family.
On to the food. We have tried a lot of the items, some which we liked a lot better than others. Let’s start with the favorites:
Lasagna: hot bubbly and delicious. Everything you want in a lasagna, including feeling like a doting grandma made it for you. It would hurt her feelings if you DIDN’T take the last bite! You can nurse your food baby later.
Gyro sandwich: they know their gyro! I’ll bet their souvlaki is great too but I haven’t had a chance to try it.
Pizza: oily but YUM! Just blot it with some paper towels and you will be good to go. Not thin crust, not thick crust, but a perfect happy medium. We tried the gyro and feta pizza, which was good but really salty. I prefer regular old pepperoni!
Tiramisu: they make it without alcohol but who cares? It’s delicious anyways and made fresh by a cute older gentleman, who obviously puts a lot of love into what he does.
Cheesecake: if you like a thick, dense, creamy cheesecake, this is for you.
Other things we tried that we didn’t hate, but weren’t crazy about were the manicotti and the chicken piccata. The manicotti was okay but not very flavorful compared to the lasagna. The chicken piccata was super bland — maybe it was an off day but it seemed like they forgot to use salt!
One more great thing about Pan Am — the SALAD BAR! It’s very simple, but so delicious. Many of the entrees come with a free trip to the salad bar!

**Main takeaway: Horrible, non-​existent service.**
I’ve known of this location for years but never gave it a shot because it never seemed that welcoming when peering in, and everyone I asked had never turned into repeat customers. I should have stayed away.
Sunday morning we arrived at 10 for a standard omelette breakfast and while the food was reasonably decent (nothing to write home about), the service was horrible. Our waitress was very short, rude and inattentive. As in, she never checked on us, once. We were also stared at throughout our meal by the owner. What the heck? The whole staff was very downtrodden and the restaurant was poorly lit — just a very gloomy atmosphere overall.
At the end of the meal, no-​one came to get our plates, no-​one had ever offered to refill our coffees, and I had to seek out management for the bill and to pay. The waitress saw me in line at the countertop and frustratedly asked me why I was there. Hello… because we’ve not been checked on once and we’d like to pay. Cmon!
Although Spartan’s a bit longer drive for us after our recent move, we’ll be going there and only there for quality Greek-​American dining with friendly, consistent service.
Pan Am Restaurant — you guys are shining example of how much of a failure the general dining quality is in this area. It doesn’t have to be this way! Try… just a little bit. Is that too much to ask? Truly unfortunate.

We were looking for a breakfast place and wanted to avoid the typical chain restaurants. You do feel like you are stepping back in time when you enter this place. The décor is unchanged since what looks like the place opened. Service was friendly and quick. The food was good. Eggs benedict and a regular eggs and bacon plate. I would like to come back and check out dinner before i give the third star. The only setback was the cashier charged us for another customers meal ticket. Then charged us for our own twice. Everything was cleared up but it was annoying waiting for the bank to clean things up.

Loved this place… right near the Vienna metro station. Worked out perfectly since we were starving after a day trip with the kids. Very close to the Safeway.
Looks like a little old school diner when you go in and seat yourself. We were immediately welcomed by two men telling us to pick a seat where we wanted.
Kids got a pizza and loved it, wife got the baked ziti and loved it, I got the gyro platter and loved it.
Everything was exactly how I wanted it. Salad and dressing was great, gyro meat was great, fries were cooked well. Zero issues with any of our food.
For dessert we had a lemon meringue pie, and some baklava. Both were awesome. Lemon pie was unique in that it had a layer of like a pound cake between the lemon and the meringue. Daughter loved it. Baklava was a nice thick piece, not overly sweet and the hit of cinnamon/​nutmeg was perfect. Everything else in the dessert case looked awesome too.
I’m not sure if all those desserts are made in-​house or not, but if so that would be doubly impressive.
Okay, so here goes:
The Great:
— The service! Friendly people, very nice but not hovering at all. Made some jokes and small talk, but nothing that was ever invasive. Quick on refills and everything else. Feels like good family oriented service, just as any Greek place should be!
— The food! Exactly what we expected and needed.
— Desserts were better than I had expected with the two we tried.
The Good:
— Had a salad bar as well which is nice to be able to pick out what you want instead of just getting a house salad. Gyro platter came with a pre-​made salad/​condiment plate, but you get to make your own with the ziti.
— Close to the metro! Great place to grab some food after a long day down town.
The maybe not good?
— Inside is a little dated. Might be a turn off for some, just made me think it was more nostalgic.
— Portions were huge. This isn’t a bad thing for me, but if you want to make it to dessert then you’ll need a to-​go box. I got two very filling meals out of the one gyro platter, and my wife got 3 meals out of the baked ziti.
That’s about it… I’d recommend this place to anyone in the area. I’d love to try their brunch as well, looks spectacular.
Normally this would all give it 4 stars in my book, but the 5^th star was for the friendly service and the perfect balance of fun, joking and personable without hovering over you or staying too long at the table.
Great work, keep it up!

Some people say that brunch is a young people’s game. That is not the case at Pan Am Family Restaurant and Pizza — Saturday morning is hopping with aspiring Golden Girls (and the occasional Stan’s) of Northern Virginia looking to get their breakfast game on.
At heart, this is a family owned Greek restaurant that is so small and charming, I half expected to see Nia Vardalos and Joey Fatone come bumbling out of the kitchen at any moment.
But alas, brunch was the name of the game and I was there for my canned meat fix. For less than $ 10 I was able to get pretty much two cans worth of corned beef, home fries, two eggs, and two slices of heavily buttered toast. I’m a girl who can down her corned beef but even I had to take home some leftovers.
While most diner food I have had in the past usually leaves my sodium level on high, I was actually surprised to see that the seasoning on my dish was rather lacking. Also while I prefer my potatoes and hash to be on the crispier side, they were also both on the mushier side. Next time I’ll ask them to leave it on the skillet some more.
Other breakfast specials included the requisite waffles, pancakes and omelets while my friend raved about her biscuits and gravy.
Service was a bit slow and gruff but it was not terrible. I’d definitely give it another try for their lunch and dinner options which looked amazing!
Bottom line = = for brunch on the cheap and with no wait, Pan Am has got your back.

We’ve been here 3 times and really enjoyed it. Think «good olé ‘Merican staples» like omelettes, burgers, and iceberg lettuce salads, crossed with the little olé Greek granny who lives downstairs cooking a big Sunday dinner for her extended family. It’s nothing fancy but your mouth will be happy with whatever you order.
Great value and the portions are HUGE. We should ask for a to go box before we order, cause we leave stuffed and enough leftovers for another meal.
The staff is really nice. It’s always busy but not so much that the wait staff is overwhelmed enough to forget about you.
We’ll be back.

Yet another place I wouldn’t have tried… Thank you Unilocal!I may have discovered a new «favorite» diner.
I stopped by for the first time today, Saturday, for breakfast. I had corned beef hash (crispy), eggs (over easy), sliced tomatoes instead of hashed browns, and rye (because it’s the best) toast. It was delicious. I will be back.
This place has the deliciousness of Bob and Edith combined with the size of City Diner. Except the parking is better than City Diner. The food may well be better too, City Diner has been slipping lately.

Heard about this place from a coworker and then saw it on Unilocal.Would never have tried or found this place on my own.
Love greek food and diners are awesome. Had to have the gyro sandwich, it was huge! Lots of yummy lamb/​beef and taziki sauce. Fries were extra.
Good food, big portions, authentic atmosphere. Definitely will go back. The breakfast (only served on weekends) looks amazing.

I am so mad at myself for not stopping into this place sooner. I have lived within walking distance to this little gem of a restaurant for years but it always looked so unassuming that I never bothered to stop in. Worst mistake ever because I missed out on so many delicious meals.
It is good home-​style/​diner food, very mom and pop. In fact, I feel like we were the only «non regulars» in the restaurant, but we are going to change that!
The food portions are huge. One meal always equals two meals for me. And the prices are crazy reasonable.
My favorite meals are:
Breakfast — Eggs Benedict
Dinner — Eggplant Parmesan