When it opened in 1993, G&M was a humble pizza shop along an industrial stretch of road near BWI airport in Linthicum Heights. Business partners John Zoulis and George Ieromonahos purchased the former pizza shop (named for its previous owners Gerry and Michael) at auction.

“The pizza place sold crab cakes but we tweaked the recipe,” says Zoulis, who also owns Estiatorio Plaka in Greektown. “When we took over G&M, we started testing recipes. We figured out that it’s all about the spices.”

More than three decades later, the blue crab recipe stands the test of time—and G&M has become a premier place to indulge in oversized crab cakes, as well as steaks and chicken Chesapeake.

Through the years, in addition to their regular customers, they’ve had a few VIPs. Director Steven Spielberg, writer Tom Clancy, and Sen. Ben Cardin (who hired G&M to cater a White House party) have all stopped by to get a taste of the Chesapeake-style menu.

The next generation now helps run the place but it can get confusing—ironically, both business partners have a son named Dimitrios and a daughter named Anna. “It’s a Greek thing,” says Zoulis with a laugh.

We chatted with him about three decades of success.

How did you refine your signature crab cake recipe?
The pizza shop sold a crab cake but we weren’t happy with it. We kept asking our customers, how do you like your crab cake and we took their feedback—you have to listen to the customers.

How much crab do you sell a day?
I can’t tell you because we also ship them all over the country, including Alaska and Hawaii, but I can tell you it’s 1,500 pounds of crab a day and 2,000 pounds on a busy weekend. During the holidays, we sell 20,000 pounds weekly of crabmeat. We can’t ship internationally, because the meat could sit in customs for who knows how long, but we have had customers come here from Australia who take them home.

Where do you source the meat?
We are using blue crab. People will tell you they are using blue crab from Maryland, but it’s impossible to get the meat. We have a Maryland-style crab cake but there’s not enough Maryland crabmeat to support our need for jumbo lump. I wish we could get it from Maryland—I try every year. We get ours from the Gulf and Indonesia and Maryland when in season.

Do you come from a restaurant family?
M father, Minas, owned Tom’s Restaurant in New York from Seinfeld. My uncles and cousins took over after my father’s death, and my family still runs it today. In addition to inspiring Seinfeld, it’s mentioned in the song “Tom’s Diner” by Suzanne Vega. When I first came here, I worked at Timbuktu Restaurant & Lounge [in Hanover]. I was born in New York, moved back to Greece, then came to Baltimore for college. I wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps.

What do you think keeps people coming back to G&M?
You cannot become stale—we are always introducing new stuff and trying to stay trendy without losing our consistency. We are known for our portions, our prices, and our consistency of product.

When he decided to open a new Greek restaurant on Eastern Avenue in Highlandtown, John Zoulis knew he wanted to feature dishes that moved beyond the usual moussaka, souvlaki, and fried calamari so often found on Greek-American menus.

Enter Estiatorio Plaka, named after the historic neighborhood near the Acropolis in Athens and open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Though you will find the usual offerings, like eggplant dip, grape leaves, and a truly exceptional moussaka, as well as respectable renditions of souvlaki and fried calamari, there are also less familiar dishes fashioned from recipes passed down by Zoulis’ Greek-born maternal grandmother, Evagelia.

Offerings like braised lamb shank served with rice pilaf and delicate dolmades, or the Cretan dakos salad (think Greek panzanella) made with Greek barley rusk, cherry tomatoes, and fetalike manouri goat cheese, are far from what you typically find even in the heart of Baltimore’s Greek community.

“We are trying to introduce new flavors and tastes to Baltimore,” says Zoulis. “We wanted to carry some new dishes that have never been in the area before.”

The entrepreneur, who also owns G&M in Linthicum Heights, is a real-estate developer by day, but he’s equally passionate about hospitality. His interest was piqued at an early age when his father, Minas, opened Tom’s Restaurant of Seinfeld fame on the Upper West Side of New York. “I always wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps,” says Zoulis, who was born in New York City but whose roots remain on the Aegean island of Kasos, where his family is from.

After years in the making, the restaurant at the corner of Eastern Avenue and Oldham Street is like something straight out of the Greek islands, with its sun-dappled dining room, stucco, stone, and light wood surfaces, and décor details such as clay vases sourced from the island of Sifnos.

The menu also reflects Zoulis’ love of country, with all the fish flown in daily from the Mediterranean and a wine list filled with Hellenic highlights. On our visit, must-order appetizers included the salty-sweet combination of feta baked in phyllo. The rectangle of cheese was enrobed in a blanket of dough, baked until it softened, trickled with thyme-infused honey, then showered with sesame seeds.

Another classic, the grilled octopus slicked with olive oil and a sprinkling of oregano, was a great way to start the meal. The one disappointment was a whole baked bronzino, served simply with olive oil, oregano, and garlic. It was a tad overcooked and could have used a little more zing. The red snapper, a generous filet of flavorful fish sitting atop a bed of dill-flecked tomato orzo, was a more successful offering.

Dessert is not optional here, as all of the sweets are made in-house and can be previewed from behind the glass case at the adjacent bakeshop. The baklava, tissue-thin layers of phyllo laced with walnuts and pistachios, is an excellent example of the Greek treat, but the orange cake portokalopita—redolent of sun, sea and the sweetness of island life—will truly transport you.

ESTIATORIO PLAKA 4718 Eastern Ave., 443-833- 0330. HOURS: Sun.-Thurs., 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sat.-Sun. 7 a.m.-10 p.m. PRICES: Appetizers: $9-22; entrees: $20-33; desserts: $5-9