Souvla's Clone Opens on Divis

Here's what you need to know about the second location of Souvla: It's located at 531 Divisadero St. Otherwise, it's the exact same. Which is the entire point — when owner Charles Bililies started what he insists on calling the "fine casual" Greek restaurant with rotisserie meats in salad and wrap form, plus sides and Greek froyo, his intention was always to have more than one. Two years later, that day has arrived, with the opening of the 1,800 square feet (with a backyard!) Nopa store, but it's only a matter of time until the Nopa one is old news, and that day will probably be faster than another two years from now.

June marked the seven-month "Souvla-versary" (as he puts it) for Ben Pote, Souvla's director of development. Pote joined the team from The Culinary Edge, a restaurant consulting firm that specializes in brand expansion, but has also spent time in kitchens of SF restaurants like Wayfare Tavern and Bar Jules. "I'm in charge of all things related to new store growth," Pote told Eater. "If I could boil it all down, my goal at the end of the day is consistency." Which is why when you walk into Souvla Nopa, you won't have to learn anything new. You'll know to order at the counter. You'll know what you want (shoutout to the chicken wrap with fries, house rosé, and frozen Greek yogurt topped with olive oil and sea salt). You'll know to take your number and find a seat. You'll know it will arrive within minutes, and it will be a step above the norm.

That's because Pote (and the entire Souvla team) has spent the last few months ensuring all operations, systems, and processes were in place to exactly duplicate the Souvla experience here, and at all future locations. "We're making sure they can apply from store to store to store, as well as looking ahead and making sure all new locations we seek out meet this criteria," Pote said. "Now that we have two, we learned a lot about what makes the most sense so the final product doesn't suffer when we look for stores 5, 10, 15, 20, 30."

So you can take a look around at the new, airy location below. (But you basically already know what it looks like.)

Patricia Chang

The entrance

The full view of the space, leading toward the backyard

The front counter provides the mesmerizing rotisserie view

A copper-top communal table in the front

Ordering is done at the start of the narrow hall

It's the same menu as the original

The delightful two-tiered backyard space

Patricia Chang

Souvla will rent this out for private parties, otherwise opening it to the public