Beyond the typical dips and Greek salad: ISO somewhat less common vegetarian Greek dishes

[prima]

Interested in moderately priced Greek restos, with mains that are less than $30, so no recs for Milos, please ;-)

Kouzina has quite a few veggie dishes on their menu (incl kolokithokeftedes), but the prices aren't listed on the website, apart from the $25 prix fixe offered Sun-Thu. How expensive are most dishes?

Right now, Snack Taverna, Dafni & Pylos are at the top of my list.

The horta boureki at Snack Taverna (on the lunch menu), the hortopita and kolokithokeftedes at Dafni, and the artichoke moussaka at Pylos look interesting to me. Has anyone tried these dishes and liked them? http://www.dafnitaverna.com/lunch.html

Which veggie dishes is Kefi doing well these days?

I realize Ethos is a safe bet for fish, and a popular pick for Greek. Which vegetarian dishes do you recommend the most? How is their imam?

Looked at the menus at Kellari's Taverna, Avra, Kellari's Parea and Peryali, but they seemed more focused on the meat/seafood, and fairly typical. Which veggie dishes would you recommend?

I'm especially interested in recs for different veggie pitas (prasopita, etc), fava (the spread, not the bean), boureki, ntomatokeftedes, tyrokeftedes, kolokithokeftedes (zucchini fritters), imam & dolmades, but would love to hear about other Greek veggie dishes you'd recommend.

Also, which restaurant serves your favourite tyropita and spanakopita in Manhattan?

And which Greek resto serves the best meatless dolmades/yiaprakia/grape leaves?

Thanks for any of your suggestions and comments.

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Periyali
35 W 20th St, New York, NY 10011

Kouzina
1331 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10021

Pylos
128 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009

Snack
105 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012

Snack Taverna
63 Bedford St, New York, NY 10014

Avra
141 East 48th Street, New York, NY 10017

Ethos
495 3rd Avenue, New York, NY 10016

Kefi
505 Columbus Avenue, New York, NY 10024

Kellari Taverna
19 W. 44th Street, New York, NY 10036

Parea Bistro
36 East 20th Street, New York, NY 10003

Dafni
325 W 42nd St, New York, NY 10036

[prima]

Thanks for your comments, Riverman500, Blumie, gargupie & Pan.

Thanks for the rec for mac & cheese at Kefi. I'm also curious about some dishes at Fishtag (realize it's a fishcentric menu).

I have been meaning to try Ilili for a while, so thanks for mentioning that. Are there any vegetarian mezza you'd recommend the most, Blumie?

I tried a few dishes at Balkanika last year- some were pretty good, others not so much, but haven't tried the other places you've mentioned (I like Middle Eastern, Balkan and other Mediterranean cuisines, in addition to Greek, although Greek would be my preference for this dinner), so thanks for mentioning them, gargupie.

And Pan, thanks for mentioning the huge portions at Dafni! I tend to over-order anyhow, so your comment is much appreciated ;-)

Noticed Molyvos (which is on the upscale side, with most mains closer to $30+) has some vegetarian dishes, including a Briam. http://www.molyvos.com/menus/pdf/Moly...

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Molyvos
871 7th Avenue, New York, NY 10019

Kefi
505 Columbus Avenue, New York, NY 10024

Ilili
236 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10001

Dafni
325 W 42nd St, New York, NY 10036

Balkanika
691 9th Ave, New York, NY 10036

Fish Tag
222 W 79th St, New York, NY 10024

[gargupie]

What did you order from Balkanika?

Ilili is having Restaurant Week right now and they offer lots of selections, so do take advantage of this deal. The Eggplant spread is great. Hummus is so-so IMO.

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Ilili
236 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10001

Balkanika
691 9th Ave, New York, NY 10036

[prima]

I ordered 3 different burek- a mushroom version, a meat version, and a spinach version, as well as an elephant bean salad. The pastry was ho-hum, and so were most of the fillings. I probably wouldn't order their burek again. Much prefer the burek at Djerdan. I liked the elephant bean salad- which was very simple, with evoo, lemon & parsley, and would like to try more take-out salads at some point. Also was curious to try their version of Giouvetz (sp?)- the Balkan equivalent of giouvetsi, but Balkanika's version is made with beef instead of lamb or giblets.

Thanks for recommending the Eggplant spread at Ilili ;-) Can't make restaurant week this year, but I hope to try that spread soon.

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Ilili
236 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10001

Djerdan
221 W 38th St, New York, NY 10018

[gargupie]

If you like dips, you should try Kashaval. The walnut and beet dips are great and the lage pita basket makes the deal even sweeter.

You can always come back to Ilili for the eggplant spread. It will always be there for you. :)

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Ilili
236 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10001

[prima]

Thanks for recommending the walnut & beet dips at Kashkaval (and the eggplant spead at Ilili), gargupie. I love beets ;-)

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Kashkaval
856 9th Ave, New York, NY 10019

[gargupie]

Kashaval, Pylos, Moustache, Balkanika,Casellula, and Dafni in Times Square.

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Pylos
128 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009

Dafni
325 W 42nd St, New York, NY 10036

[Pan]

I've found Kashkaval and Balkanika - which, not coincidentally, are under the same ownership - quite underwhelming. Moustache is Middle Eastern, by the way.

One comment about Dafni: Their food is good but their portions are absolutely crazily big. Order 1/2 of what you think you want.

[Blumie]

So Ilili is Lebanese, not Greek, but many of the flavors are similar, and you can have a wonderful, moderately priced, vegetarian meal there by selecting from among the dishes on the mezza menu.

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Ilili
236 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10001

[Riverman500]

Not sure if it's authentic, but Kefi has a great vegetarian mac and cheese.

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Kefi
505 Columbus Avenue, New York, NY 10024