JRs Grill / G Street Deli

**What makes this different:** While the Gaslamp's Mexican spots duke it out over who does tacos most authentically, JRs quietly serves both a breakfast burrito people cry about *and* a gyro platter that confuses regulars in the best way. This isn't specialization—it's the convenience-store model applied to actual cooking. You can walk in for beer and walk out with a massive Mediterranean plate for under twenty bucks, and somehow neither transaction feels like a compromise.

The space functions as bodega, liquor store, and kitchen all at once. Family-owned since the early 2010s, they've survived downtown's churn by being useful at odd hours—before hotel breakfast kicks in, after the fancy spots close, when you just need *food* without the Gaslamp performance. Staff knows the regulars, tolerates the confused tourists, and plates portions that turn one meal into two.

The gyro platter is the move if you want to understand what they're doing—meat shaved from the spit, rice with a polarizing spice blend, hummus that lands right. It won't taste like the Greek place you're comparing it to, and that's the point. The breakfast burrito pulls a different crowd entirely, the kind who've tried every burrito in a six-block radius and keep coming back here.

Don't order the Italian torpedo. Bread arrives dry, fillings uninspired—this kitchen's strengths live elsewhere. Stick to what they're known for: the stuff that benefits from a hot grill and a family recipe, not deli case assembly. It's takeout-first by design, though a few seats exist if you need them. Parking is Gaslamp parking, meaning you're better off walking. Open hours remain unofficial, but the lights are usually on when you need them.