Going Greek in Montreal
I'd like some feedback on mid-range Greek restaurants in Montreal. By that I mean no souvlaki joints and nothing too high-end. I've compiled a quick list of places that I think
fit the bill, although I certainly haven't been to all of them ... Rotisserie Panama (Jean-
Talon), Philinos (Parc), New Tripolis (St-Roch), Le Jardin de Panos (Duluth), Mythos
(Parc), Marven's (Ball) and Mykonos (Monkland). I'm sure there are lots that I've missed,
so don't hesitate to add to the list. If you have any favorites, please tell me what makes
them special and, conversely, if any of these places have disappointed you, tell me
why.
Cheers,
red sauce.
By red sauce
on Jan 15, 2008 01:28 PM
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Check out Orama on Parc avenue, near Jean-Talon. Fresh ingredients, delicious Greek food. The octopus is my favourite.
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I used to really like Symposium on Park, haven't been simply b/c I haven't done Greek in a while. My friends have recommended Elounda in Ville-St-Laurent to me as well.
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I second Elounda. They have really good 'appetizers'. Our party of 4 got so full w/o ordering any main dishes.
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Philinos is a favorite of mine because the food is excellent, the portions are huge, the atmosphere is very pleasant but not overly fancy, the prices are reasonable given the quality of the food and the amount of food, the wine list is interesting and gives many different choices at many different price points, and I can walk there really easily. Octopus appetizer: yum. Saganaki (fried cheese): yum. Even the side vegetables and side potatoes are delicious. You can tell a restaurant cares when they put effort into the side vegetables.
I also had a very good meal at the Ouzeri St. Denis, but it was a while back.
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I agree wholeheartedly about Elounda and Ouzeri. Also excellent are Ellada (not your usual greek fare, more dishes from the islands, fantastic decor) on L'Acadie and Orexi on Bernard. Nostos further up on L'acadie is great for grilled chicken, lamb chops and the absolute best gyro pita in Mtl IMHO. If you're ever out in Laval Atomic has great calamari ansd other home-cooked delicacies (especially the roast pork on the weekends and the greens called vlita). On a sidenote, Panama is still good but it was amazing up until 1999 with the original owners because the qualty of the food was the same if not better and the prices were less than half what they are now. Lezvos on Decarie is also quite good but it's a bit more expensive. That's all I can think of for now.
P.S. Does anyone have opinions on Ella grill and Vegera?
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Howdy!
Ella Grill is only fun if you are there to be seen. I would only eat or drink there under duress.
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Check the lunch special at Milos. While it's extremely expensive during the evenings, the $22 lunch table d'hote special is fantastic!
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Would definitely agree about the Milos lunch special. One of the few places I'll order cooked fish willingly! But if you start adding in wine and coffee, it gets more expensive.
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Harry Darmo and his sons, at Philino's are a perfect example of hands on management by owners that love their work. Having done many office parties at Philino's I can say I have tried everything on the menu, and have not been disappointed. This is a great place to bring a crowd, and have to do nothing more than just ask them to bring food, and expect to be served family style. The biggest surprise will be the very reasonable bill.
The Octopus is some of the better in the city. If you ask Mr. Darmo his secret to tender octopus, he will gladly indulge you. It starts with Tunisian Octopus... The oven roasted potatoes are sinfully good too.
The last time I was at Marvins, something was different, Not only was the menagerie of stuffed beasts missing from the walls, but the food was not as good. Was this place sold in the past few years? It is not the same as it used to be.
Panama may have good food, but I feel like I am dining in a cafeteria when I am there. But, how can you damn a place that has kokoretzi on the menu. Sheep lung wrapped in Liver and grilled on a spit. o.k. so I have not yet tried this, but then again, neither have I tried bolut.
Ouzeria is a charming restaurant, but I have had mixed experiences there. Nothing bad, just some meals better than others. I prefer to go there for drinks and a bunch of small plates.
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Is kokoretzi still available on the Panama menu? If I'm thinking of the same dish, I'd asked for kokoretzi when I ate at Panama around 6 months ago, but they told me they don't make it anymore. Any other Greek grill restaurant in Montreal making kokoretzi?
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What is kokoretzi? Please elaborate!
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Fedelst described it above.
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Oops, sorry, laughing too hard over the bagel thread, lacking oxygen to brain...
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If I may intervene, kokoretsi consists mainly of seasoned lamb offal such as chopped intestines, sweetbreads, hearts, lungs and/or kidneys, marinated in lemon, olive oil and oregano and then wrapped in pieces of small intestine and roast on a traditional charcoal spit. The original owners used to have it on most weekends and especially for Easter festivities. It has not been offered for many years now.
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Ook, Ouzeria, is this the one in the Quality Hotel at 3440 av du Parc?
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I think it's Ouzeri, not Ouzeria, but I could be mistaken.
In any case Ouzeri is a greek restaurant located at 4690 rue Saint-Denis. The one meal I've had there has been really great.
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I eat every 2-3 months at Ouzeri, and I never had a bad experience there. It is a fun restaurant with good service and the quality of the dishes is very reliable. The Saganaki and the Beef martini are to die for in my opinion..! (And no, there is no martini in the beef martini..) I also hear that the lamb is very good.
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Ahhh okie, see, that's funny 'cos there's Ouzeria at the hotel we're staying at. :) Thanks for clarifying.
We're going to Philino, then. :) Thanks!
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Can someone give me an idea of the price ranges for the appetizers at Philino? I'm trying to do our budget and we'll probably just be eating off that part of the menu.
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Appetizer plates run from about $8-15, but they are huge plates. For two people, you would only need 3 appetizers to be full, and 4 to overstuff yourself. Two appetizers are probably sufficient for a light meal, but then you don't get the variety. I do stress, the appetizers are huge. For example, I would never order their calamari plate as an appetizer for myself, and then attempt to eat a main. The appetizer would be enough.
The saganaki is a must. The octopus appetizer is one of my favorites as well. I usually get one of the dips, the cheese, the octopus and maybe a greek salad for fiber (the greek salad is lovely as they use very excellent feta and olive oil), all for two people, this would probably put you back about $30-40 total. Of course, they bring you bread too. Wine or other drinks will be extra.
Now the biggest problem for me is the eyes. I always want more than I can possibly eat. So I'll go, well surely we can throw back some grilled lamb chops, and how much more is two dips vs. one dip? Then we end up with way too much food.
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*grin* Well that's going to be great, then. We'll have to take leftovers with us. We've had surgery and our tummies are the size and shape of a large black marker (but we're no longer diabetic!), so we eat anything we want, just small portions. We're used to taking leftovers with us and nibbling at them for a few hours. :)
I'm so excited about this trip, I can't tell you. I keep going to google earth and saying "oooo look at what's near the hotel". :)
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Marvens pretty much sucks now. There's really no getting around it. The calamari (which was the big reason I used to go there) is now heavily battered and basically mediocre.
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Stay away from Panama I've been there twice and I found that altough the have huge plates their food is bland. Le jardin de PAnos only in the summer because they have a terrasse but their food is nothing to write home about.
My favorite one is on Van Horne street and Cote des neiges and it's called Parthenon. Their souvlkaki stick are very good and their tsatziki very good. The use lebanese style pita for bread that I prefer compared to the thick that some greek use.
I just realized I'm answering someone post from last January.
note to me: always check date of a post before answering.....
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maj, Panama is one of the top Greek restos in the city. It's straight forward (but done very well) Greek taverna type food, using fresh ingredients and not cutting corners. i.e they use Skotidakis tzatziki not sour cream which is a blasphemy, and the proper imported cheese for their saganaki.
It's possible you are ordering the wrong plates. I'm guessing you have tried their souvlaki plates or brochette plates, this may be the reason you are not satisfied. The idea at Panama is to order a bunch of appetizers (i.e. grilled octupus, calamari, saganaki, etc...) and then some chicken/chops and/or lamb from the spit (weekends only).
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I'm no aficionado of greek restos, but I went to Panama recently (without knowing anything about the place), and was less than impressed. The atmosphere (noisy, family style) is fun enough, but the food was not inspiring. The pikilia plate was certainly abundant, but most of the dishes were much too heavy and somewhat bland. For mains I had fish which was way overcooked. My friend had lamb chops which were OK, but at 22$ a plate you expect something a bit more special. I think Montreal has much better greek options than this.
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Has anyone been to Varka on av du Parc? Going by there I noticed that they have recently become a BYOW. Mostly interested in knowing if it is a good spot for fish.
5258, ave. du parc coin Fairmount
Montréal, Québec, H2V 4G7
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