"We don't want to change too much," John said. "Our customers, many of them, have been coming here since we opened in 1976."

The Kouretas family purchased the restaurant that year when it was named Mike's XLNT Foods and began remodeling.

At one time, the restaurant was covered with red-velour wallpaper and gold tablecloths and, Chris said, "It was very loud."

This time the changes are not to the interior but on the menu.

"I want to put more specials on for our customers. We are going to add some more fresh-fish dishes and some more lamb specials," John said.

John, who came to America from Olympia, Greece, in 1970, has worked most of his life in the restaurant business.

Before opening his own restaurant, he worked as a busboy in Salinas and Monterey. While working in Salinas, John met his wife, Sophia.

"Coming here from Greece means that I know how good Greek food should taste. That is one of the things that draws in our customers," he said.

One of the Greek dishes served at John's XLNT Food is the moussaka, an old Greek recipe of baked eggplant, squash and potatoes with ground beef and a cheese sauce. It's one of the house specialties.

"People come from all over the Bay Area for our dolmas (stuffed grape leaves with a lemon sauce), and we never disappoint them. It is always fresh and very good," he said.

Seafood is also a regular menu item served fresh at John's.

"Frozen food never tastes as good as fresh. Our customers would know if we were not serving the freshest foods that we could," John said.

Two of the more popular fish dishes at John's are broiled swordfish filets and grilled "scalones"—a mixed patty of abalone and scallops served with a tartar sauce. "We serve a large variety of meals here," John said. "Our customers can come here every day for weeks and not have to eat the same thing twice. We all like variety, and that's what I do for my customers."

Lunches at John's XLNT Food can be as simple as a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich or as extravagant as a prime New York steak sandwich.

"You have to offer people variety. But good variety that they don't have to pay too much to enjoy. Especially in these times," John said.

There are several salads to choose from as well. From John's combination salad, which has lettuce, tomato, onion, green peppers, shrimp, olives and feta cheese, to the souvlakia mezze- style salads, there is one for almost every taste.

"We serve a great breakfast here. But we save some of our dishes just for the weekends," John said.

One of those saved dishes is John's own eggs Benedict.

"Our eggs Benedict have been called the best in San Jose by many of our customers. How can anyone argue with that?" John said.

The linguica, Western, Mexican and fresh spinach with feta cheese omelets are just a few of the daily breakfast specials served at John's XLNT Food.

"We serve good food, we keep our prices reasonable, we offer great service and we keep the restaurant clean. That's what keeps our customers coming back," John said.

John's XLNT Food is located at 1238 Lincoln Ave. The restaurant is open Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. until 8:30 p.m., Friday through Saturday from 7 a.m. until 9 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. For more information or reservations, call 408.998.1440.