Went to Manoli with a girlfriend for dinner and overall had a really nice experience! The restaurant serves Greek cuisine, and the space itself is beautifully decorated. The atmosphere was definitely one of the highlights. They had Greek music playing, were breaking plates at one point, and everyone even got their napkins going in the air, which made the night feel fun and lively.
We started with cocktails, and unfortunately, those were probably the most disappointing part. The photos were a little deceiving because the glasses were much smaller than expected, and my cocktail wasn't even filled close to the top. I initially thought it might have just been mine, but looking around at other tables, the pours seemed pretty consistent. Even the wine glasses looked less than half full, so I guess that's just how they do their pours. Definitely something to keep in mind.
Food wise, we had a lot of good dishes. We started with the Mediterranean spread, which came with several different dips and accompaniments including tzatziki, hummus, eggplant salad served with. grilled pita, and raw vegetables. That was delicious and probably one of my favorites.
We also tried the saganaki, the fried cheese. It wasn't bad by any means, but I've definitely had better versions elsewhere.
We shared the pastitsio as well. It wasn't what I would consider the most traditional preparation since it was made with penne-style pasta, which I hadn't seen before, so it felt a little more Americanized to me. That being said, the flavor was still very good and we really enjoyed it.
We also shared the rack of lamb, which came with three pieces and potatoes. The lamb was very good and cooked nicely.
Of course, we had to end with dessert and ordered the loukoumades, the Greek style donuts with honey, which were also really good served with icecream !
Overall, the food was enjoyable, the restaurant was beautiful, and the atmosphere was lively and fun. My biggest disappointment was definitely the size and pours of the drinks. I'd come back more for the food and experience than the cocktails.
Fun little bonus: two of the Real Housewives of Miami were actually dining at the table right in front of us, which made the night even more entertaining. Definitely not something we were expecting when we went out for dinner read more