Look out, Gyro Man — there’s a new after-hours snack shop in town. With a sizable menu and some of the latest hours in town (4 a.m.!), Pita Pit may give a bit of competition to everyone’s favorite late-night munchie stop. But can Welch Avenue’s latest compete with the reigning champ of alcohol aftermath? The Daily’s resident critics find out.

Atmosphere:

AL: Eating at Pita Pit is a bit like stepping into the Looney Tunes universe. Colorful, larger-than-life cartoon characters based on menu items line the walls while a larger-than-life manager introduces customers to the deceivingly simple food choices. The seating, however, is less than exciting. Undoubtedly, the store plans to cater toward post-bar patrons who could care less about standing, but eating off of trash cans isn’t very pleasant for sober daytime customers.

ER: When you first walk into Pita Pit, you’re greeted with oversized cartoon art and a Subway-like bar setup, so you can make sure your pita is made to your liking. But the atmosphere is where Pita Pit takes its biggest blow. The seating is lacking, if not nonexistent. Only five tables hosting 13 seats lined the walls in the dinning room. At this point, I really wished I had a table, even if it was next to the trash can. Pita Pit’s door claims they’ll be open until 4 a.m., and if that’s the case, they’re going to have passed out Welch-goers on the floor with a pita hanging from their mouths. They need more seating.

Service:

AL: AL: Despite eating at the restaurant during a friendly visit from the entire University of Michigan-Dearborn hockey team, the staff was as accommodating as possible. Preparation of my meal took less than 10 minutes — slightly longer than the Gyro Man early in the evening, but significantly faster than the cart pushers after last call. Pita Pit’s salvation, however, arrived in the form of two words emblazoned on the wall — “We Deliver.”

ER: I wasn’t served my pita in six minutes like my Speedy Gonzales at El Azteca, which in the back of my mind disappointed me. The bar has been set, I guess. Three employees armed as slingers cut up and dished out pitas. A bit short-staffed for the lunch hour rush, the line extended around the counter. I had to wait a bit for my pita, which was OK because I was treated with the best of Greek hospitality.

Quantity/Value:

AL: AL: For approximately the same cost as the competition, Pita Pit is poised to be a key player in the drunken delicacy market. The Pita Pit gyro looks slightly larger than the final Gyro Man product, yet the amount of ingredients used and the size of the meal seem almost identical. And, for less than two bucks more, I was able to wash my meal down with a cold soda and a bag of chips — a nice perk.

ER: Quantity isn’t a problem at the Pita Pit. Its menu is huge and diverse. They even have babaganoush for the vegetarians — a nice addition to Campustown. The biggest plus is its hours. Open until 4 a.m., there is now another option when you’re hungry after a long night on Welch Avenue. Now when you’re almost ready to eat that leftover sandwich in the back of the fridge that you swear has moved on its own, all you have to do is pick up the phone and enjoy a delivered pita. As for the quantity, I was still a bit hungry after the combo pita meal. Will it slay the uncontrollable hunger of a nightly Welch-goer? That is yet to be seen. Will it slay a lunch time urge? You bet.

Quality/Taste:

AL: AL: It’s hard to compare Pita Pit’s gyro to the Gyro Man’s gyro, since I’m not sure I’ve ever been in full mental capacity for the latter. With that in mind, Pita Pit falls just a little short. It’s not that anything was inherently wrong with the gyro — the portions of meat and veggies were enormous; the store’s unique pita shell design made eating the late-night delicacy a mess-free breeze and, although a little less flavorful than the competition, the tzatziki sauce complemented the whole package quite well. But it’s still hard to beat the near-perfect pita positioned across the street.

ER: I ordered the Philly steak pita with green peppers, onions, cheese and mushrooms, hoping it would be similar to the Dog Wagon’s Philly cheese steak — an all-time favorite. While in line, I watched as all the luscious ingredients sizzled on the open grill in the back of the preparation area. Where else can you get hummus and falafel at a restaurant in Ames? I was salivating like a Pavlovian experiment, and once they added the “secret” sauce, I wasn’t sure if the counter was going to be able to hold me back. But once I had the pita in my hand, I was a bit disappointed. It was good, but not as good as the Dog Wagon. The Philly steak meat wasn’t quite done the way I like it. The veggies were nice, adding some well needed flavor to the drab steak meat, which was a bit too tough and not nearly greasy enough.

Final Say:

AL: 3 of 5 forks

ER: 2 of 5 forks