Kept passing by this restaurant and finally decided to go as I was craving Mediterranean. The…read moreinterior is small so you'll have a more intimate experience with whoever youre sittinf around, so just be mindful! The interior is rustic with an open concept for a portion of the kitchen where they do wood fire pizza. The Summer Squash Arincini were delicious, very flavorful, and you get 4 or 5 so a nice amount to share. I got the Bronzino and it was a nice portion of fish with the couscous salad. It fills you up without making you feel too heavy. The Salsiccia pizza was ordered by my partner so i didn't have much but the slice I had was a classic thin crust. The tiramisu was great, it had crispy bits of chocolate in top that added a nice texture. There was so much of it tho, we had to take the rest home. Loved the presentation in the cup!

During a busy summer of sporting events we were concerned we would need reservations but we walked…read morein and were seated right away. Our server apologized for a delay in taking our drink orders. She was attentive the rest of our meal. I ordered a Charles deGaulle whiskey cocktail. Lemon, aperol and simple syrup added a refreshing twist. For entrees, my wife ordered the pacherri; a simple pork ragu with tender broccoli rabe, Parmesan, stracciatello and basil. The dish was delicious. I enjoyed my plate of sea-inspired tonnarelli nero. Bay scallops in crab ragu with fennel sofrito. Served with squid ink pasta that imparted a slight brininess. The pasta was cooked pangrattato style-- coated in panko bread crumbs and garlic. The dish had many flavors but they all came back to the theme. Cocktail prices and entree prices were very reasonable. They offer happy hour drinks and specials. Certainly a very good choice if you're in the area.

Suraya did NOT disappoint ‍ The food, the flavors, the ambience and service... EVERYTHING was…read moreamazing. We did the tasting menu and every single dish was so flavorful Hummous Baba Ganoudh Muhammara Labneh Taboule Fatteh Rakakat Kawarma Samke Harra And for dessert... Kanafeh + Blueberry & Lemon Verbena Verrine -- the perfect ending. Everything was absolutely delicious, and the ambience made the whole experience even better. Suraya is definitely a spot to add to your Philly dining list

obviously as many others have said, amazing place. run down:…read more LUNCH MENU: Labneh: amazing. love. devour. decently thick spread of labneh, not too shallow plating. topped with za'atar, sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, and mint. here's the thing, three people in my group do not like mint all that much. I appreciate surayas mint in particular, it's less egregious than other mints, and most importantly, they are whole leafs! easy to pick out. the labneh is perfectly amazing on its own. I will say, if I could have it my way, i'd nix the tomatoes, and replace with the tiny skinny peppers they include in the pickles and olives side dish. i'd also include a bit more oil, as the spread is actually quite thick. and more seasoning for the same reason. if you're on a date, especially early into dating, beware of spices in your teeth. check constantly while eating this. Traditional Hummus: Delicious. amazing. much thinner spread, but also more surface area. the oil and seasoning go a longer way in this one. no notes absolutely stunning. Pita: thinner than some other places, delicious, FRESH, hot, comes with one per person. truthfully, one was enough, and I usually order two at other places. Side Dish Pickles and Olives: This dish includes both green and purple olives, tiny thin green spicy peppers, and sliced pickles. The green olives are pitted, and my favorite. they are so good on a hummus pita bite. the purple olives were not pitted, and did not come with an extra empty dish to empty the pits into. I didn't try these as I don't like purple olives. or pits. at least in public. the peppers were AMAZING! not too spicy. but definitely spicy. great with the labneh. I think my dish only came with five. would love more! and then the pickles are sliced vertically in halves, not too acidic. I *think* key word *THINK* they are fermented and not traditionally pickled. so, they won't taste the same as a regular pickle most people are used to. I still love them. this dish overall is $6 and very worth the price in my opinion. easy to share for the table. Green Salad: this salad is quite similar to a traditional fattoush salad if you're familiar. I have a few things with this. Mint was abundant. if you don't like mint, i'm not saying don't get it, but it's noteworthy. I picked around the mint since they were whole leafs thankfully. the bottom of the plate is covered in an herb yogurt, the lettuces and such are coated in a vinaigrette. the vegetables are seasonal, it's October 2nd and we had watermelon radish, cucumbers, tomatoes, some onions. im not really sure if I would get this again, especially for the price. people liked the eggs on top. I liked the radishes and cucumbers. I love a fresh bite. but not necessary. Cauliflower Sandwich: Definitely shareable. comes with sumac fries, an aioli, a separate vinaigrette for the wrap itself. the wrap is cut in halves. inside it's hard to tell exactly what's inside. there is a sumac fry inside. cauliflower obviously. not really sure what else. absolutely delicious though. I love this one and it's a great option for a vegetarian. Orange Blossom Iced Tea: VERY GOOD. I would like some simple syrup with it but VERY GOOD. the orange blossom really comes through. Pistachio Rose Cronut situation: DELICIOUS! The service is attentive and efficient. most sections are thoughtfully stocked with their own water stations and such so that the servers can tend towards the customers better. I appreciate that little detail. the kitchen staff looks like a well oiled machine. everything seems to run very smooth in this establishment. And inside is particularly pretty.

Excellent all around. They fit us in on a busy World Cup Saturday night…read more We had Shakshuka, cabbage entree, and the lamb meatballs. All were tasty and well presented. It reminded me of restaurants in Tel Aviv. Our server Brian added immensely to our experience.

Lovely ambience and quick service. All ingredients tasted fresh…read more We got the: Labneh with Pita 5/5 - perfect texture, creamy and the seasoning was delicious. The pita was fresh and fluffy. Malawach Egg in the Hole 4/5 - was quite good and I liked the schug topping but the egg was a bit overpowering (as I should have expected because of the dish description! :) I wish I had tried the shakshouka instead Fries 5/5 - the best, most potato-ey fries I have had in a while. The dip with it was a little extra tangy - not my personal preference but my friends loved it!

great establishment and nice staff. we did a large group party upstairs and there was so much food…read more! everything was amazing. wonderful flavors.

This place was interesting! It had a lot of positive reviews so I was excited to try it for my…read morefriends birthday. And I called in advance to see if they catered for people with dietary restrictions which they mentioned they did. I think it's a fine place to go if you eat meat but I wouldn't go if you don't! The options for vegetarians were a lentil rice dish and a chickpea rice dish so it was very carb heavy with not too much of a focus on protein. I liked the eggplant that had in the beginning but other than the food was meh. The service was nice and the short bellydancing performance was fun but I wasn't the biggest fan of the food. Especially when they give you served us a fruit plate containing unopened apples and oranges and bananas at the end that was kind of strange. Personally wouldn't return but my friends who had the meat seemed to enjoy it!

Came here for NYE dinner and left so impressed…read more We have been hearing about it from one of our friends daily for the past year but somehow didn't get around to it. But hey, NYE - what's a better way to celebrate what will be a wonderful new year than with a new restaurant that our friend recommended? We got so much food because we were famished. We started with the The only thing I wish was better was the table size. For the amount of food we got , the table was too small!!! But overall such a great restaurant and will come again. It is also intimate and cozy so good for a date night

When we walked in at 6:30, a graduation party was going on in the back and the main dining room was…read moreempty. "Guess we didn't need a reservation," I said to my friend. Aha! Within minutes the place was packed. Isot is a popular BYOB, and for good reason. Their food is delicious. The five of us started with a mixed meze platter which had a sampling of spreads: eggplant, garlic/yogurt, hummus (chickpea), spicy tomato & pepper salad, Slavic potato salad and of course pita bread. My husband, daughter and I shared the mixed plate for two, which was plenty for the three of us. We ate beef kabobs, Chicken Adana (my favorite), chicken thighs, Turkish meatballs and lamb kabobs. Served with the most flavorful salad, sautéed vegetables and rice, the mixed plate is a great option if you haven't zeroed in on something specific. No corkage fee, helpful and pleasant staff, casual unhurried vibe .... I love this place!

So great! Visited in a Saturday night and sat on the patio on a beautiful night…read more The tasting menu started with for the table, laffa bread hummus, beets, baba ghanoush, pickled cabbage, carrots, marinated cauliflower and spicy fennel. We could have stopped here and I would have been thrilled. For mezze we had the wagyu tartare and Haloumi, the puffed buckwheat was a cool texture and much preferred the scheese to the beef. The beef unfortunately had a spice or flavor that overpowered everything. For the entree we had the lamb shoulder, meaty, lucious and the Persian rice in the side was delicious but we were stuffed! Ended with the dessert trio, all a great not too sweet bite but the blueberry konafi was our favorite.

This was my first time at Zahav. Came with work colleagues following a long day at an industry…read moreconference. Note, I gave a 5 star review. There is one aspect I'll save for the end that is needed for management so that they can better train their Directors of First Impressions aka hostesses to be more resourceful and more befitting of the quality of the restaurant experience. Once my situation was solved... the Zahav experience that I was rather expecting took over and delivered on all cylinders as expected of such a fine quality institution. I was with a party of 8, and the host of our gathering I'm assuming aligned on a shared food experience for the full table and boy that was a strategic move. We got to sample so many fabulous dishes that we passed around the table. This was perfect considering different food experiences, diets and food considerations as we had some gluten watchers and a vegitarian at our table and in the end everyone was statisfied. Upon further research I learned tha Zahav does have a 4-course prix fix tasting menu for $90/person. Typically starts with freshly bake laffa bread, signature hummus and tehina, an assortment of seasonal vegetable salads adn spreads, followed by a mezze, a selection of charcoal-grilled skewers, adn a large-format marquee dishes like their famous slow-braised pomegranate labm shoulder and a dessert course. This sounds exactly like what we had sampled and to my NYC trained taste buds, was DELICIOUS. The preparations and plattings were works of art. To top off an excellent dining experinece, somehow we ended up being given a tour of the kitchen in action. I'm a magazine photographer that has been in many kitchens, none like Zahavs'. Quiet, immaculate, their charcoal cooking leaves a light glow and scent and is warming. Small kitchen considering the volume of dishes they turn out each night. Back to my inital introduction to the brand via the incompentence of the hostes team on Tuesday 9/15. I said I was joinging a client group dinner and they sent me to the wrong room, then I was told there was no such party. I lost 30 minutes dealing with these two incompetent individuals. I politely stepped outside to make some calls and send off text messages but unfortunately the group was busy enjoying their opening round of food and drinks while I was outside thinking I had the date or time wrong. After trying again to speak with the hostess staff I opt for one strategy before heading back to my car, to re-enter and walk the entire restaurant hoping to spot my group. Funny thing, one of the guests in my group went through a similar experience... hence it wasn't just me. Imagine had I thrown my hands up in defeat and leave. Unlike me to not have food photos to share, was just not the right setting. Take my word for it, each plate was a work of art.

Probably some of the best service I've received at a restaurant! The owner checked in a few times…read moreand showed us his joint business of a hookah lounge upstairs. We also learned about Ramiz's history and how it's a chain. This location is the first one established in the US. We received complimentary mix appetizer plate of dips and tea! Karişik Soğuk Meze / Mix Appetizer Plate- Hummus, baba ghanoush, labneh, and spicy vegetable dip THE SPICY VEGETABLE DIP IS INCREDIBLE! MUST TRY! Turkish meatballs - insanely moist and delicious! Would highly recommend! Chicken Adana wrap - could have used more meat in it and the fries were lacking salt but that's easily fixable! Sütlaç -the oven baked pudding was good The table cloth on the tables kept moving which was a bit frustrating, not sure what other restaurants do to hold it down. Menu has so many options, something for everyone. Bringing your family or a big friend group is a good idea!

We didn't have proper dinner but came just for desserts. The server was so attentive and friendly…read more Both desserts - Kunefe and Kazandibi - were delicious and not too sweet. There were a few patrons sitting across us that had just finished their dinner and couldn't stop raving about the food so we are looking forward to coming back again.

A wonderful dinner to celebrate my son's birthday…read more Service was outstanding. Made the experience all the better. Started out with cocktails and some happy hour à la cart items. All great. Really enjoyed the signature cocktails. The fries and the chicken wings are a must. We got an array of dishes including the swordfish, dorado, portobello mushroom, and the ribeye for 2. I think they knock it out of the park with the fish and the sauces. So good. And of course we finished with the soft service. Got some of each. It's a great way to wrap up a fabulous dinner.

If you're coming here for the hype, you might leave a little disappointed. Laser Wolf has a fun,…read morecasual atmosphere with plenty of bar seating, and the staff was friendly throughout our visit. We started with the Salatim, and while the variety of spreads and salads was fresh and enjoyable, the pita was surprisingly underwhelming. It tasted more like premade pita than something fresh, which was disappointing since it's such a big part of the meal. For our mains, we ordered the Chicken Shishlik and the Romanian Beef Kebab. The chicken was the biggest letdown of the night it was tender but lacked flavor. The beef kebab, on the other hand, was juicy, well-seasoned, and easily the better choice. Oddly enough, the French fries ended up being the best thing we ate all night. They were perfectly crispy and honestly some of the best fries I've had in Philly. Dessert was another disappointment. For a restaurant at this price point, having only two soft-serve ice cream desserts felt lazy and like an afterthought. Overall, the food wasn't bad, but nothing besides the fries and beef kebab really stood out or made me want to come back. In a city like Philadelphia, where there are so many amazing restaurants in the same price range, I think there are much better options for both the food and the overall experience.

I traveled to Philly recently for the PDR Half and had two meals (dinner) there. Definitely the…read morebest restaurant I tried during the 3-day trip. This Greek restaurant features fresh catches and an old-fashioned, gorgeous dining area. I went there for a late dinner the first night I arrived at Philly. Then I had a pre-race dinner there with my friend who also raced the PDR Half. I tried the following dishes: 1. Complimentary bread: rustic white bread, a little bit sour but not quite strong as a standard sourdough. Served with hummus (kinda weird lol). 2. Halibut: A large, skin-on fillet. Grilled to perfection. Lean but tender. Topped with ladolemono and a veg skewer (bell peppers, potatoes, onions) was placed above it (cool plating idea), and served with olive puree. 3. Royal Dorado: while the dish was listed on the "Theatre Prix Fixe" menu, you can actually order it a la carte. It was my first time to try this kind of fish. It came with a thin filet. Clearly, it was a lean cut, and the meat was denser than many other fish. Also served with ladolemono. 4. Spanakorizo: Greek style "rice with herbs". They used spinach, onions and leeks; seasoned with lemon juice. Compared to most Middle Eastern rice dishes, this one is more "juicy", and the rice was, surprisingly, was more chewy -- almost like orzo. I really liked the leeks as it added some sweetness and freshy spiciness to the rice. I had it with my Halibut 5. Yogurt orzo: I never though about cooking orzo with yogurt (and onions) but it turned out to be fantastic! Indeed, the orzo, coated with the thick yogurt, was creamy and flavorful. I had it with my Royal Dorado. 6. Horta: Sauteed (green) chard with lemon juice. The portion size was sharable among 2-3. Overall these dishes were not seasoned heavily and the flavor was well-balanced. My friend had the lamb shank served with tomato+feta orzo and it looked tasty and filling -- the lamb shank was nearly as long as his forearm! Service was not bad but expect a longer than usual waiting time. Indeed, the restaurant was nearly fully seated at dinner. Besides, I hope that the servers could ask/inform the customers about possible food allergy. This is essential for a seafood-dense restaurant.

I had walked past Estia more times than I can count, but had never been, until this evening. We had…read morejust finished walking around the craft fair at Rittenhouse Square and were looking to get a bite to eat. It was my birthday and my partner wanted to find a nice restaurant. We had been to Greece two years ago and fell in love with the food. We saw Estia was close by, however, it was Saturday at 4 and we found there were no open reservations. We decided to walk over. The hostess was very gracious and not only said she could accommodate, but took us to a delightful booth. The venue is beautiful - the architecture - decorations - and the overall vibe is wonderful. I walked downstairs and was also very impressed with the private dining rooms. It didn't take us very long to decide what we were going to order - we were sharing all plates. My partner started with an Estia (signature) cocktail - the Meli. It's a delicious drink with vodka, passion fruit, almond liqueur, honey and lemon! I would like to mention the bread and hummus we had as a starter - the bread was excellent-warm, freshly baked with a superb creamy hummus. We decided to order the Crab cake and the Spanakopita for appetizers. The crab cake was made with jumbo lump crabmeat and had minimal fillers - I'm from Maryland and this was as good as any I've recently had. There was a Dijon aioli that was the perfect dip for the crab meat. The Spanakopita was also top notch - the crispy phyllo dough was excellent and the filling of spinach, leeks, scallions, dill and feta was perfect! For our main course, we ordered the Lamb Chops (of course!), and the Lobster Linguini. We were told the chops are Estia's signature dish and a must order. First rule of eating chops - you must pick up the chops to eat them - cutting the meat with a fork and knife will not provide the same effect with both the flavor and texture. My first bite was heavenly - the chops were cooked perfectly - which is a feat in itself as we both like our meat Medium - pink, not red. The chops were tender and juicy with a grill that accentuated the flavor of the meat. What a great dish! The chops came with very large, very delicious Greek style potato fries which had a nice crunch and a little cheese! Unfortunately, the Lobster Linguine did not meet our expectations - specifically, the lobster. My first bite of the lobster resulted in my chewing, and chewing, and chewing..... What a disappointment - while the sauce was very savory and the pasta was cooked perfectly, I couldn't chew the lobster and pushed the pieces to the side. There are many reasons why lobster is chewy and rubbery - overcooking is the most common. It was my birthday and our very gracious and delightful server brought a few little treats out. Overall, while the one dish was disappointing, the rest of the meal was great and we will be returning to Estia!

Since our first visit, we have not been able to stop thinking about Almyra, and specifically the…read moreHorta (Greek wild greens). The Horta cannot be skipped when dining here! This time around we ordered many menu items to share once again. I definitely recommend this method with the way this menu is written! Trying both meat and seafood dishes, we have come to the conclusion that Almyra seems to do better with seafood than meat dishes, though this is not to say the meat dishes are bad. For dessert, my brother got the Budino again and my dad got the Baklava. The Baklava was unfortunately dry and hard, so while this is a classic Greek dessert I would opt for another dessert here. The dessert was made special, however, complete with a "Happy Birthday" design on the plate and a sparkler for my dad. The service was once again excellent. Our waitress was very attentive, upbeat, and helpful. Lastly, having come in the winter last time the restaurant was busy, but slightly more toned down. On this summer Saturday night the restaurant was very loud, which made it hard to hear conversation. This is a small thing, but something to keep in mind if you are looking for a more intimate dinner! We will definitely be back to Almyra again! I recommend giving Almyra a try and don't forget to order the Horta!

stunning restaurant with an amazing happy hour, i was pleasantly surprised that almyra lives up to…read moreits hype! my friend and i dropped by on a whim for happy hour on wednesday, and we were blown away. i've always heard a lot about almyra, but have never came by despite living in the area. definitely regret not checking it out sooner because the happy hour was fantastic! for drinks, my friend and i both got mocktails which were off the menu. for food, we got the choices of five spreads, the crispy rice, and the filet and chicken kofta skewers. skip the skewers, they were overly salty and not worth the $8. the spreads, however, were incredible and i love that it came with both pita and also vegetables! yum! we also absolutely loved the crispy rice. so worth for $8, we got two orders and debated getting a third. i think it's such a good deal to get 4 pieces of tuna crispy rice for $8, some restaurants charge that price for a single piece. the crispy rice was crispy (yay) and generously loaded with tuna. i also liked the unique flavor profile that the olives added. service was great, food came out fast and our sever was very attentive! this is a beautiful restaurant with plenty of seating and fancy decor, definitely appropriate for a nice dinner. can't wait to come back!