Tucked away in a tiny little retail building on Royal Oak near Rumble Street in Burnaby, a modest Eastern European restaurant has taken over the location formerly occupied by Long J L Chinese Cuisine. It's quite easy to miss this place as it's somewhat hidden by the Chevron gas station next door. Given the relatively dark interior, I took advantage of the warm April weather that we had and sat on their patio in front of the restaurant. It was actually more pleasant than you'd expect given the proximity to the gas station (didn't smell any gasoline fumes and it was relatively quiet during my visit) and I got to enjoy the view of the cherry blossoms in bloom. For my lunch, I picked the Chevapi ($11.95) which comes with 5 pieces of traditional minced meat kebabs served with fries, coleslaw, and homemade bread. While the chevapi kind of resemble breakfast sausages, they don't really taste like it. They reminded me of the similar cevapcici that I had years ago at Balkan House on Edmonds. The sausages were good and the coleslaw had a nice crunch to it. But surprising, the thing that really stood out for me was the homemade bread that came along with the meal. It was puffed up in the shape of a dome and had a soft interior that provided the perfect amount of chewiness while the exterior was a bit crusty. I'm assuming it was a type of lepinja bread which is common in Eastern Europe. I returned for a revisit in mid-July with my sweetie to try some of their other dishes. The Cabbage Rolls ($16.95) are filled with seasoned ground pork, beef, and rice inside the sauerkraut leaves and accompanied by a helping of mashed potatoes and veggies. This, as most of the items we've had here, is a very hearty meal. Again, we had more of that great homemade bread that they serve here. We also ordered the Karadjordjeva Schnitzel ($18.95) which is a Serbian breaded cutlet dish named after the Serbian Prince Karađorđe. The rolled pork loin schnitzel is stuffed with kaymak cheese and is then breaded and fried and served with hash browns and coleslaw. The schnitzel is sometimes colloquially referred to as the maidens' dream ( /devojački san) owing to the phallic shape of the schnitzel. Cutting into this beautifully golden-hued log, the melted kaymak cheese quickly flowed out and provided a pleasant sauce to go along with the hash browns and the pork loin. The food here is definitely hearty and will stick to your gut and while the food takes a while to come out, the service was friendly. read more

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We went there for lunch. Parking is limited as Parking is not big. Food was delicious and the service was great to make suggestions. Tried the Tenen Meat Platter for 2 - Signature BBQ platter with chevapi, chicken shish kebab, pork cutlet, chicken thigh, bacon and sausage, served with fries & coleslaw. Would definitely go back for more read more

Tenen - Tenen Meat Platter - BBQ platter w/ chevapi, chicken kebab, pork cutlet, chicken thigh, bacon & sausage, served w/ fries & coleslaw - Barbeque Near Me - Burnaby, British Columbia

What a hidden gem in the Burnaby Royal Oak neighborhood! I came here on Saturday night and made a reservation about an hour before arriving and was lucky enough to be seated right away upon arriving. The place was full at 7pm and gradually emptied out around 8pm. My husband and I ordered the Meze For Two & Tenen Meat Platter for one person to share as we saw some reviews saying the portion is very generous and boy were they right! The food came very quickly for us after ordering. The Ustipci from the Meze is a must try! It perfectly pairs with the pepper butter and spread melting on top of that soft, chewy, crispy, doughy goodness that comes hot and ready! We had plenty to take home even with a 1 person meat platter. And what a value: Meze was $11.95 and the Meat platter for one was $19.99. Bonus: they are are on the entertainment book online app too for 25% off. Great place to try out some Eastern European eats! read more

Do all these Balkan places think they're Apple or the cellular companies where they can exploit consumers with their pricing schemes? It seems that's the case. If you're going to gouge us, at least make us feel we're getting value. Tenen is not in any way like this. I really wish I knew what motivates these people running these eaterers. Whether it's the very few Balkan delis, bakery or the restaurants. Their profit margins must be huge while their food is just ok. The food is not terribly authentic but it's relatively fresh. It's unfortunate since I really enjoy eastern european cuisine. Just looking at the many dishes on IG leaves my mouth watering. But it's a no-go in town. As such, treat each positive review with scepticism especially from "Elite" reviewers. We won't be back. read more

Wanted so badly to like this place, smaller out-of-the-way ethnic restaurants are normally my thing. It ended up being okay, but not more. Decor was promising but food was disappointing. Service on a quiet weeknight was very average. Roast lamb in yogurt was authentically garlicky, but too many corners were cut on the chicken "dumpling" soup (tasted like boiled freezer stuff) and the beet salad (slapdash iceberg and cukes with something the taste/texture of canned beets). Unlikely to be back. read more

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I have never had Serbian food before today. It was surprising good. The restaurant is very traditional and cute. We started off with the breaded katchkavel. It's deep fried cheese served with tartar and salad. It was delicious and enjoyed this dish the most. We also ordered the traditional Caesar salad . It was ok but wasn't really anything like your regular Caesar salad. It was a bit too wet for a Caesar. We ordered the meat platter for two and it was pretty large. The coleslaw isn't the greatest but the rest of the dish was good. The home made bread was delicious along with the two types of homemade butter. The karadjordjeva schnitzel was really good. The crust is really nice and tasty while the dish is hot. Portions are generous on all their dishes. We also got a groupon and got $25 off the meal. I would come back for the breaded cheese. So delicious. Service was outstanding and our server was very friendly. read more

Atmosphere: Medium in size, clean modern and casual. Customer Service: Upon coming in we were greated with a genuine smile which was appreciated. We hit it off right away with the small chat which is always appreciated. We were served in a timely manner. Price: Market value. Food: Goulash was amazing. I was specifically craving this as this is one of my comfort foods. I had the assorted meat platter. For the price under $20 you were given a respectable amount which was appreciated. read more

Thing(s) I liked: Interesting decor. Delicious foods. Reasonable price for its portion. The place turns into a mini dance club on Friday nights. Super friendly service. Thing(s) I didn't like: N/A read more

I have bookmarked this restaurant long time and finally I had a chance to try. Well food was flavorless. Service was ok but super slow. Inside restaurant was pretty dark. I wont go back. read more

Food was made to order and came out fresh and hot. Honestly it's not the type of food that I crave and think about when I lay awake at night. The only reason I went is because I bought a Groupon, I do not see myself coming back in the near future as there's too many options out there. read more

Cute little place found by accident whilst deciding where to eat before going to the theatre. We decided to share a portion but for 1 person as they are big and filling. Food was very delicious. It is a tiny place but the atmosphere is really cosy. It was busy so it is quite known locally. Staff was freindly and very helpful. It is a definate must come back read more

It was pretty good. Great service despite only one waitress. A small place very intimate. Great food!! Love the decor. Pretty authentic but for quote me on that. Will definitely go back again. Soon read more

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Excellent Serbian food!! Čevapčiči were to die for! GET the meat Plate and call it a day!!! Can't wait to come back!! Bravo

Food: 4.5 Service: 4.0 Value: 3.5 This place has adjusted comfortably to the Covid situation, and they still do a lot of take out. We went for dine in on a quieter day. The flavor of my partner's Ghoulash was incredible. There was a lot of meat as well, although some a bit on the fatty side. I had the Pasta Primavera, which was very flavorful. Service was attentive without being overly intrusive. A minor quibble: they agreed to substitute coleslaw for rice pilaf as a side dish but didn't explain that they were substituting for both the mashed potatoes and the rice pilaf. I understand that the Coleslaw that they use- which was also delicious, by the way - is relatively expensive, but still this should have been communicated. I wouldn't say the portions were huge, but they were ample. Definitely recommended. read more

Great food and services. Coleslaw is super crunchy and tangy. Great experience. Will visit again.

If you wanna eat good food, fair size portions and yet save money, this is the place to be. Owners and staff are fun and when you come here you order yourself Mr. Karadjordjevic (pronounce that now lol). read more

What an authentic cozy Serbian restaurant!!! It's like home cooked meals in a house. Food was delicious and atmosphere outstanding. A few minutes walk from royal oak sky train. Well worth the trip! Music, decor and tv from their lovely country you'll feel like you're in Serbia! Staff very present and prices very reasonable..I can't wait to try something else. read more

Great food, beautiful atmosphere and super music.

We went there for lunch yesterday. It is a Serbian Restaurant. First of all the food tasted good. Service wasn't bad. Decor is good. Not much parking but you can find it on the streets. So why the 3 stars? Well I felt it was overpriced. I paid $7 for a Stella and thought I was getting a full bottle but what I got was a small 'Coronita' sized bottle. Disappointed. The dish I ordered did taste good but it was $19. Overall with tip I paid $31 for lunch. My coworker frequents this restaurant and it was his suggestion to come here. He said the prices got increased since he was last there. All four of us kind of agreed that we won't be going back. Great food but prices are out of line for the neighbourhood they are in which is South Burnaby. read more

Tenen - Chicken roulade wrapped in bacon. - Barbeque Near Me - Burnaby, British Columbia

A lovely cozy place. We enjoyed 2 entrees, the ****chicken roulade and lamb which were both delicious. My friend substituted for grilled veggies which were yummy and I should have done that for the fries. The bread is homemade yum. We split the chocolate cake which was super tasty. read more

What is Serbian food? Fried meats, potatoes, big portions and great price. Chase it down with some Serbian moonshine and you got an amazing meal. My favourite is Chicken Roulade. It feeds an army. read more

Great owner very nice guy. However, the rest of the staff are unprofessional and rude. They often mess up reservations even for big groups. They keep you waiting for too long and are not polite. The service is much better when the owner is present and he takes care of things. It's bad in his absence. Staff shouldn't slack off in his absence read more

Love this place, really authentic food and every single dish has its unique flavour. I would highly recommend it.

Awesome music and atmosphere. Very nice server and truly an unique experience that is different from typical European cuisine. Pictures and decor of multiple European feel elicit the essence of old Eastern Europe. Right, and the most important thing in rating a restaurant ... THE FOOD! Prepared from scratch, no pre-prep food. Delicious and authentic! Mothers touch. (Actually cooked by the mother.. I think?) read more

Decor is interesting, food was very good, big portions, friendly service. They can be a bit faster but overall we really like this small restaurant. We feel good every time we go there. Parking is limited. read more

Highly Recommend you try Tenen if you're not a regular guest. Dinner was excellent. Salmon was cooked to perfection and atmosphere is great.

Fantastic! Stumbled across this place on a Yelp search, and as it's very close to our house we couldn't wait to try it. Tenen is located in a little shopping strip just north of the Chevron station on the northwest corner of Rumble and Royal Oak in Burnaby. You could drive right by it a dozen times without seeing it, as it's back from the road a little bit, and also tends to look closed because of the dark ambiance and tinted windows. But inside a treat is waiting. Traditional Serbian comfort food done right. We took our Serbian neighbours with us on our second visit to see if it passed muster, and they were thrilled. "THIS is the place all our friends were telling us we had to try! We couldn't figure out where it was!" Highlights: - For a first time visit, the Tenen BBQ Meat Platter for 2 is a great way to sample a lot of things. Several kinds of grilled sausages and kebabs, french fries, really excellent cabbage slaw, some vegetables. You can't go wrong. - For a smaller portion, the cevapi plate just has the cevapi skinless sausages (they're kind of like juicy, garlicky little hamburger steaks) and fries and slaw. - The fried kačkavalj cheese appetizer is to die for. You may think you've had good fried cheese before, but this is the granddaddy of them all: two big triangles of tangy yellow kačkavalj cheese (like a mild cheddar), skillfully breaded and deep fried, and served with Greek salad, fries and sauce. This is giant knife-and-fork fried cheese that will probably require a friend's help. Cutting into that big crispy breaded triangle and watching the melty cheese centre ooze out is a religious experience, and then it sticks to all the fries and makes them awesome and cheesy, too? What's not to love? - And if you want to take the comfort food up to 11, you can't go wrong with the Karadjordje's Steak (karadjordjeva šnicla). It's basically a giant (perfectly-breaded) pork schnitzel magically rolled up into a forearm-sized giant cylinder of meat, and filled with hot, gooey, runny Kaymak (Serbian clotted cream cheese). Similarly to the fried cheese, you cut into this giant thing and it's a runny hot mess of breading and meat and melted cheese and fries and delight. I've heard their goulash and roasted lamb are also terrific, and the anticipation of getting to go back a 3rd and 4th time to try them is one of the happiest thoughts in my life right now. I can't wait. All of this is served in a cute and cosy family-run little cafe with a full bar, and live musicians on some nights, and the walls are chock-full or really interesting Soviet-era Yugoslav memorabilia (family photos, student cards, soccer team promo stuff) -- my first trip to the washroom took me 20 minutes because I got caught up looking at all the stuff in the hallway. And the restaurant is just the right amount of busy where it always feels lively, but you can show up any time and there are always still a couple of empty tables ready for you. The price is right, too. Everything is less than $20, and the serving sizes are gigantic. The Karadjordje's Steak could easily feed two people, and most of the appetizers are meals unto themselves. Wait to start your diet tomorrow, and eat at Tenen tonight. Do it. read more

The food is delicious and this place has a nice patio. The owner is also a very nice person and enjoys sharing info about country

Tenen is a fantastic place , the food is excellent and you never leave hungry , they have some tasty eastern european wines as well . The Chicken Roulade is a must , there is free parking and service is friendly read more

The food was good, big portion. The server was very friendly. The four of us had tried the grilled mushrooms, breaded crepe and meze for two as appetizers, meat platter as entree, baklava and krempita as desserts. And latte too. Everything was tasty. We enjoyed the dinner very much. Will come back again for sure. read more

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This could possibly be my new favorite restaurant. I must admit, however, that I went into this place not expecting much, but boy was I wrong! The portions are huge, the food incredible, the staff friendly and accommodating and they even have a great alcohol selection from Serbian beer to "rajika", Serbian fruit liqueur. The goulash I had was so soft and tender, braised lightly with mushrooms in a flavourful and aromatic sauce. The rest of our party had the soft and tender lamb and cabbage rolls- served with mashed potatoes and rice, grilled veggies and coleslaw. The coleslaw is topped with vinegar and parsley - a good palate cleanser between bites but otherwise of no real use. I'll opt out next time. The highlight of the meal was the fresh, hot Serbian flatbread that just melted in my mouth. I couldn't wait for the next day so I could dig into leftovers. That goulash will live on in my dreams until I can return...hopefully soon. "Hvala vam" to the kind staff and owners. read more

Excellent food and excellent prices! Highly recommend! I got the chicken schnitzel with fries. My mom makes chicken schnitzel all the time but this didn't compare. The rest of my family got cevapi and the lamp soup and loved it all! read more

if grilled meats are your thing, this the place - it's meat, meat and more meat. I was starting to wonder if there are any vegetables in serbia as everything was served with sauerkraut and fries ... and grilled meat with some kind of puffy soggy flat bread. I feel bad for saying this, as the staff that work there are great, and the music was actually very lively (live music), but have to state my honest opinion; it was mediocre food and I actual wishes (if not for the b-day party) that I could go elsewhere. I find out there is a thing called "serbian coke" (Cocka!) and it's not close to the real thing, but apparently it's popular (I didn't like it). The menu is basically meat, bread, fries and that's all. I would not go back as this is not my thing. Others have recommended it and I am actually suprised but meh, each their own. read more

We stumbled across this place while on our way to a chinese food restaurant that we always go to. What a find! Excellent food! This is amust-try comfort food place. The flavors are exceptional and portions are very large. The owners and staff were friendly and welcoming. Service was fast and friendly. We had the roast lamb and the pork goulash. We can't wait to try more and will be back soon. And their warm bread is to die for! read more

Tenen - Mouth watering lamb. To die for. - Barbeque Near Me - Burnaby, British Columbia

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Doesn't feel good. Only one table customer in the restaurant but I stand in the entrance wait for 10minutes and nobody serve me to get any table The service is really awful. read more

Best cevapcici in BC. A bit dark inside and overall the atmosphere is nothing to write home about. However, we always enjoyed the food and will continue to come back just for that. read more

I came in for a late lunch hoping to try out the place. The staff was reluctant to greet/serve me (seems they were too busy chatting to notice). Eventually I sat down and was brought a menu. The waitress didn't seem very friendly and didn't smile. She almost seemed annoyed I was there. Once she came back to take my order (some 10 minutes later) I was informed that they were very busy with a catering order and that I would have to wait 1 hour for my food. They were not apologetic about this, and I find it strange they would have me sit and pick out an order without disclosing this information first. I decided not to stay. This is a real shame as I live close to the restaurant and was hoping on making it a place I visit regularly, but 1st impressions are important, and I did not feel like I was a valued customer to them. read more

Excellent food. We ordered the meat plate for one person, and it was almost enough for two. My wife had the chicken soup.. she loved it, it reminded her of soup in her home country of Colombia. read more

Really nice restaurant. Great service, you don't wait too long for your food. The pricings are great, and the staff are very helpful. This is the right place to go if you want to save money and eat good food. read more

Always good food! I had the chicken schnitzel. It's lightly breaded and super tender. It's served with a garlic sauce that's super tasty. The fresh warm bun is always a favourite too. read more