A no-frills and cash-only establishment. The lady behind the counter was friendly enough, but the language barrier made it tricky to ask questions about the menu. I just went with it and ordered the Ukus Style Burger. I wasn't sure what to expect as the menu kept the details pretty minimal. She made it fresh right in front of me. And overall, I was pleasantly surprised. The patty was thick, and I wasn't even able to finish the burger. I did find it to be a tad greasy, but it was flavorful. I enjoyed the sauce, which I think was called ajvar, and I like the bread which was similar to pita bread. Overall, 3-ish stars. read more

Ukus - Modern European Near Me - Astoria, New York

Ukus is a humble place with a lot of heart and great food. Located on a less busy side of 30th Ave, this mom-n-pop Balkan restaurant operated by a Montenegran family offers a variety of Balkan staples with minimum fuss and maximum taste. The burek is flaky and flavorful and I usually stick to cheese or spinach, but they also have meat, cabbage, and potato slices. I brought two friends along who'd never tried Balkan cuisine and they were instantly in love with the cevapi, which was grilled to perfection and complemented perfectly with raw onions, ajvar, kajmak, and develops warm bread. We also really enjoyed the pausili, which had a really delicious smoky flavor; this was my favorite dish and one I will definitely go out of my way for on cold days. We also tried the sudzukice, which I think I actually preferred over the cevapi because I found the thin beef sausages to be a bit more moist and flavorful. Great service and food make this cash only establishment one worth coming back to! read more

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Very kind and welcoming people. Ćevapi were mouthwatering! The Ambient is reminiscent of a small Balkan village. read more

Best Balkan spot by far. The kidney is a standout, and the Begova soup is equally amazing.

I was looking forward to trying this after going to a Balkan themed party, so I came to try a few dishes. The meat and cheese pies I had the first time I came were a bit dry and just a lot of dough but not a lot of filling. Don't know if it's always like that, but I didn't return. The second time I went with a friend and had the homemade chicken soup with fresh bread and salad, and this meal was comforting and great. Bread was soft and warm, fluffy and fresh. Salad was fresh. They also make homemade yogurt, which I really enjoyed. I think it's the European style yogurt, not like the kind in regular grocery stores, so it was a nice addition. The exterior of the restaurant is not that aesthetic if I were just casually strolling by, but the service was fine and food was ok. read more

$19 Dollars for 1 punjena paprika. (stuffed pepper) ummm what???? It's insane I understand inflation is hitting us hard but am I buying the entire bag of peppers for you? Service was nice lady was pleasant that served and made the food. This place needs a rehab if you gonna charge $19 for a pepper least let it be in style.! Very disappointed. My daughter got a burek and I got the cevape I rate it a 8 out of 10.! Presentation gets a 5 out of 5 she perfectly placed each item beautifully. Only reason I'm giving it a 3 stars is overly priced. And very outdated place. And you can only pay in cash thank god I had cash.!!!!! read more

Ukus - a person eating a sandwich on a plate - Modern European Near Me - Astoria, New York

Stopped by this casual Croatian spot and was honestly impressed. The staff was friendly and helpful, especially if you're not familiar with the menu. They gave great recommendations and didn't rush us at all. I tried the cevapi with ajvar and fresh bread -- simple but packed with flavor. You can tell the ingredients are fresh and made with care. Will definitely be back to try more. read more

Meh. Not worth the hype. I've been to way better Balkan restaurants elsewhere. The food was very mediocre and didn't have the flavor I expected. The interior was also drab. I probably wouldn't have noticed this place if I didn't use Google maps. For lunch, I tried their burek (meat pie) after seeing this was one of the most popular items on their menu. I also had their cevapi. The burek was crispy on the outside, but had a tough texture on the inside and the meat tasted cold. The meat was also falling apart. This left me with the impression that the burek was pre-made and was just put in the oven to reheat it. The amount of meat was also very small and the burek had way too much phyllo dough. Phyllo also needs to be tasty, but the burek really missed the mark. The Cevapi was okay, though a bit too salty and not spiced enough. The ajvar and kajmak sides were tasty though. For dessert, I tried their baklava. The baklava was drowning in syrup and tasted a bit tough as opposed to being crispy. Again, this left the impression that it was pre-made. Overall, the food was a bit overpriced and I think I'll be sticking to Cevabdzinica Sarajevo on 34th Avenue instead. They have much better food and hospitality. The woman working at Ukus wasn't particularly the friendliest. Would I return here ? Nah. Oh well, I gave it a shot ! *Note* Cash only read more

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Minus the fact that the food is truly amazing and true home cooked food, the service is even better. I have come here twice and they are so so kind! I will continue to come back. Truly special! read more

Odlicna hrana Ambijent ne bas ... Excellent food, authentic! But ambient not so much... read more

I learned about Ukus from a mention in the New York Times. We actually live off of 30th Avenue but don't have much occasion to come this far east of Steinway, so I hadn't even known about its existence. We tried the 10-piece cevapi, and slices of the spinach and cheese borek pies. I ordered a slice each of the pies but was given two spinach and two cheese. I don't know if that's normal, or if this was the result of a misunderstanding, but it was way more than we needed because the pies are huge and heavy. The outside phyllo layers of the boreks were outstanding: crispy, flavorful, and slightly burnt. The inside layers, though, were chewy and a bit tough. To me, this suggested that they were not totally fresh. As for the fillings, I'm not a huge spinach fan, but I actually preferred it over the cheese, as I believe the spinach was actually a combination of the two and was therefore more flavorful. The cheese alone was a bit bland. The cevapi here are made of beef. I don't each much beef and only tried one bite. Although I paired the bite with a helping of a sour cream-like type of cooling sauce, I thought that the beef tasted a bit salty. I also tried a bottle of Cockta, a Slovenian soft drink. It had a really interesting flavor: cola-esque, but much more herbal. I'd say the taste was pleasant. We ended up taking a portion of the boreks home. I tried to eat a bit more once I got back to my apartment, maybe 25 minutes after we left the restaurant. The dough was even more tough and chewy by this point. It seems like plenty of people take their orders to go, but I don't know that I would recommend doing so, as the boreks really fade quickly. Overall, our experience was not bad, but I'm not convinced that I got to experience the freshest version of Ukus. Cash only. read more

First time here. Visited with a co-worker who's a regular customer. I played it safe and just got a potato pie with a yogurt dipping sauce. It was very enjoyable and I'll be sure to return and be a bit more adventurous. Staff was very friendly. read more

Beware no masks. The cook is unprotected. Why has this been allowed. I ordered a beef dish headed out as quickly as possible home. Food is very basic. I will not be back. So diszappointed. read more

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Great find. Cute casual spot for a late-night dessert and coffee. The woman behind the counter wasn't the more outward friendliest (maybe part of the Yugo culture?) but she was very helpful in explaining the dessert case (from less sweet to sweetest) and me asking her which was her favorites. We got her top two: the Petit cookie layer cake (with custard in between) and the Hazelnut/Rum wafer cake. Both mild, fresh, and tasty. We watched her make a turkish coffee from a little red pot on the stove and it was strong and delicious as well. Would like to come back for a meal & and a burek! Nice place for a burgeoning sleepy block (new Korean place next door, beautiful church & a Keyfood across the street) Never knew that this side of Astoria had such a large Balkan population as well. read more

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Delicious food, quick takeout definitely would go back and would recommend to friends

Bosnian chicken soup was delicious. Also I have steak kebabs with salad included feta cheese, cucumber, tomato, very tasty and fresh. You dont want to miss the place highly recommend to share with your family and friends. read more

Ukus - Steak kebab with salad. - Modern European Near Me - Astoria, New York

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I always wanted to try this place and wanted a potato pie, they were sold out so I got a cabbage one to take home. It was so good. I like how they have their kitchen and stove by the front window so they can look out. Makes me want to have a homey restaurant. read more

Really enjoyed this little family owned place. The owner was welcoming and helped us through the menu and made a number of great recommendationns. The potato pie, cevapi and grilled steak were all amazing. The flat bread and chopped salad were very fresh. Looking forward to going back and trying other things or more of the same! read more

In my books, Ukus serves the best Bureks in the city! Far superior to any other version I've tried across the different Albanian, Bosnian, Turkish (slightly different genus) varieties I've sampled. In retrospect, I've loved their taste so much, I have been socially inconsiderate while consuming them - if I were to count the number of times my dining partner requested me to "slow down" during the meal. But, I have a simple dining philosophy: a dish must be enjoyed at the temperature it is supposed to. So, while my foodie friends take out their cameras to snap the dish from different angles, I am chafing at the delay in not chomping down the food while it's hot. It's a complete and utter waste when it comes to Bureks, as it is rare to find them served re-heated, let alone fresh and piping hot. But, the wedge of the spinach burek had multiple (thrillingly!) crisp and flaky layers of dough, and even a sharper feta cheese inside to accentuate the flavor. The potato burek was piping hot, baked to order, as was the superlative difficult-to-find, cabbage burek - and both of the pies were shaped like a garden hose (or my own visual association: mosquito coil!) We also had the Cevapi, 5 tubes of minced meat served inside the pita bun, and accompanied by chopped onions, and ajvar spread. Ukus' version was also really good, and charred on the outside and juicy on the inside. Even though the Cevapi were placed inside the bun, we thought it prudent not to eat it as a burger, and instead break off the bread to eat with them. It turned out to be a good idea as one of the few non-Bosnian expats dining within the restaurant was struggling with keeping the Cevapi from shooting off the bun! So, it turns out all the Bosnian restaurants have something or the other that they excel at: Ukus for Bureks, Old Bridge for burgers, Cevabdzinica Sarajevo for Cevapi and Sudzuk, and Djerdan for desserts. For my money, Ukus is still the most competent at handling both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. I'm still waiting to try their famous stew that includes Suho Meso (beef jerky from nearby Black Bull meat market). Just one more reason to love Astoria! (4.5 stars) read more

Ukus - Spinach Pie - Modern European Near Me - Astoria, New York

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It's a true, but sad, fact that restaurants that don't take credit cards "get away with it" because they can, for example: 1. The owners are totally cheating on their taxes. 2. Word of mouth has made the place trendy. 3. The food is SO good that people will flock to the restaurant no matter what. Ukus does not take credit cards because of #3 (I hope they don't cheat on their taxes!) You'll find many 1 and 2 star reviews for Ukus. Why? It's the ol' Yelp switcharoo: an army of retarded cheapskates and thin-skinned cry-babies who give ratings, not based on the food, but because... * Seamless or groupon dispute (the retards) * They feel that the food is too expensive (the cheapskates) * They feel slighted by the service (the cry-babies) That said, let's get down to business. The food here is phenomenal. This is a hidden NYC gem. Yelp's lists the cuisine as "modern European", but a more accurate description would be Yugoslavian or Albanian. (Kokošja supa) Chicken Soup: B- A crying shame because the soup looks fantastic! It's a very interesting and "busy" chicken soup: there's a ton of chicken, parsley, noodles, and carrots. However, the soup lacks any kind of flavor. For all the chicken and parsley in it, you'd think it'd be a "chickeny" soup or that there'd be a strong flavor of parsley. Wrong. Sadly, the soup is actually quite tasteless. Hard to believe, but it really doesn't taste like chicken. Begova čorba (Bosnian Soup): A- Very fresh tasting. It's a little bit of a "busy kitchen sink" kind of soup with rice, chicken, and tons of cut up vegetables. The soup is delicious and "tastes healthy". My 3 year old daughter ate this soup voraciously. Pasulj (Bean & Smoked Beef Stew): A Absolutely wonderful! Simple and bursting with flavor. The amount of smokiness is a bit shocking at first, but this humble dish is the bomb! The smokey bits of beef in the stew are soft and complement the stew perfectly. If you go to this restaurant more than once, be sure to sample this flavorful and savory dish. Trivia: The Serbians have a saying "Simple as pasulj" which translates as English's "Easy as pie". Ćevapi: A This is a grilled dish of minced beef spiced with parsely and other spices. It's a skinless sausage, traditional to Albania and what used to be Yugoslavia. These sausages are seriously savory. Beautifully crafted, beautifully cooked. They are perfection. It comes with a rather interesting side of what tastes like cream cheese, and bread. I loved this dish, and the only reason why I'm giving it an A instead of A+ is because the bread was too doughy and too thick for such small sausages. It overpowers the sausage with starch. They should also serve the bread warm, which would've been a slice of heaven on Earth. Still, if you've already had the burek, this is a dish you should definitely sample! Burek (Meat Slice): A+ It's a meat pie that consists of flaky, crispy, airy phyllo dough outside with crumbled beef on the inside. The phyllo dough was the perfect combination of ultra-crispy on the outside and chewy/savory on the inside. The pie itself is 9" in diameter, and $5 gives you one quarter of that, meaning that the geometry-free cost of said pie is 20/pi dollars per radian. A typical NYC pizza slice (ignoring the $1/slice homeless specials you occasionally see, since they're less appetizing than garbage) is about 10/pi dollars per radian, or roughly half price. However, most people will scarf down 2 pizzas in one sitting. It is amazing, and is ostensibly the "signature dish" of Ukus. It's also huge Sudzukice: B+ Thin sausages. Surprisingly spicy, but very flavorful. A very savory and fresh-tasting sausage. Comes with bread with two spreads: cream cheese and a pepper/paprika spread. Both are yummy. You get a lot of sausages for one person, but it doesn't quite constitute a meal. No vegetables, too homogeneous, too much of the same flavor. For a satisfying meal, you'd need to order something else. These would be good for an appetizer for a group at a table. Stuffed Cabbage: A+ Previously, best stuffed cabbage went to one of my favorite NYC restaurants: The Polonica. But sorry guys... best stuffed cabbage now goes to Ukus. How do they differ? I was never REALLY fond of the sweetness of Polonica's version of the dish. This stuffed cabbage is more savory without a hint of sweetness. It's also light and airy, as opposed to Polonica's which is much more dense. Definitely one of the best dishes at this restaurant. Stuffed Pepper: A The meat is savory, the pepper is well cooked, the sauce is perfect. One of the best stuffed peppers I've ever had in my life. Still, if I went to Ukus (and I hate to say this, sorry!) there's not much reason to order the stuffed pepper when there's stuffed cabbage. They're both perfect dishes, but the stuffed cabbage is ever so slightly more perfect. :) Stuffed Pepper: A read more

I was hesitant to go here as some of the on line sites that list the menu list mainly meat and no vegetables. But they have cabbage. I eat meat but not like a cave man so the menu is a little limited for me. Pros 1. Cabbage pie tastes like a Bosnian egg roll-pretty good 2. large portions 3. the flaky dough excels Cons- 1 "Farmers salad" was white lettuce. I wouldn't pay for a salad if I knew it was white lettuce which are the throw away parts. 2. weak coffee 3. limited menu 4. I was originally interested in their desserts but the service was so rushed they did not give us the option of ordering dessert so I probably won't go back. read more

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Cute tiny place for Balkan food. The majority of the bureks will set you back $4.50 and their meat dishes around $10ish. They also serve soups, salads and desserts. They have meat, potato, spinach and cabbage bureks. I see that other reviewers might of received an "older slice." However, my meat burek was piping hot with a flaking crust (yummy) and really really big. Compared to Djerdan which is close by, I prefer the bureks at Ukus because they are thick and stuffed. The ones are Djerdan are really good too but a bit thinner and flat. read more

The food is ok, I loved their soup a lot. When i went there it was definitely for the chicken soup. The service is horrible.. The guy who works there, in the kitchen, was friendly, but the lady who serves, was way beyond mean and rude every time we had lunch there. She definitely should learn some etiquette about how to serve people and a bit of english would not hurt either.. this place were more successful without her, they would have more business with the right customer service. Her attitude is very unacceptable, can not treat your customers like that, if you want them to return. She is definitely prejudice with people who are not from her country, and she is nasty. Anyway, there are many other places in Astoria which offer tasty Balkan food, but most of all, they DO APPRECIATE my business. Go to Sarajevo on 34th avenue. Great food and friendly service, you will have a good time! I m happy my review is so popular, enjoy! read more

Ukus is a cozy-ish six table joint that feels very authentic, mainly for the grandmother who takes your order with a huff and the Bosnians and Serbs that frequent the place. With comfort food like this, there is no reason to be enemies in the first place. The awning describes the place as specializing in evapi and burek, so I had already decided to get some of each. The plate of evapi ($11) I split with a friend, and we were each served our own half portion, five "sticks" of the grilled meat stuffed into a pita. This is more ceremony than anything, as the pita is meant to be torn into so that each piece can be blanketed individually and eaten by hand. Here at Ukus, the most impressive part of the meal was the bread, soft, warm and thoroughly delicious. The meat was a bit boring and bland, while neither the yogurt or ajvar (accompanying red pepper sauce) was anything special. The burek ($4.50/slice) was good, athough a bit old. They cook it here as a "pie" and serve slices which are a full quarter portion. I chose the spinach version which was extremely dense. While I assume the meat and cheese varieties are similar, I would expect them to be a bit too filling for a pastry. The purchase of a small cup of yogurt ($1) is almost compulsory for dipping. There was an interesting drink from Slovenia that I pulled from the refrigerator named Fructal ($2). I chose the blueberry version, which was slightly too syrupy, but good enough to enjoy. read more

Ukus - Modern European Near Me - Astoria, New York

Have I been Naive for years? Why haven't I tried this before? Very simple well thought out food. I decided today to have the biggest lunch I have had in a very long time. (I once had Brazilian bbq for lunch, skewers of endless meat for an hour). I ordered Cevapi which comes in a small (5 sausages) or large portion (10 sausages), mine was the small. It comes with creamed cheese, chopped onion and roasted red peppers with the sausage served in this soft pita like bread. When you start mixing everything into the pita, it becomes a party, WOW! This was excellent! I also ordered a Burek aka meat pie. It comes in 2 slices big enough to feed a family. Very good, dry but still good. Next I ordered the Bevorka which is chicken soup with a dollop of creamed cheese. Hands down one of the best simple wholesome chicken soups, no store bought chicken stock. If your looking to try something not, Japanese, Mexican, Greek, Italian or American, then try Balkan food. I highly recommend! read more

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Delicious Pita- regardless which one suits your taste- you'll love this delicious and crispy dish. Cevapi are legit too! Different areas of Bosnia have different expectations of what Cevapi should taste like & mine were met. Coming back next time I visit. read more

Ukus - Modern European Near Me - Astoria, New York

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4.5 Stars! We love the burek here! It is perfect! We just couldn't find any flaw on the burek. Everything from the size to the flavor was just perfect! We ordered two cheese burek & one meat. They were huge! We couldn't finish them, we ended up taking one of the burek home. We also order the beef goulash. This is the reason why we couldn't give the perfect 5 stars. We're not saying that the goulash was bad, in fact, they were delicious, but not perfect. The meat was somewhat chewy. The mashed potato that came with the goulash were soooo delicious! Flavorful! The place is small but clean. The staff were polite. $5.50 for each burek. $13 for the beef goulash. CASH ONLY We'll definitely go back!!! Highly recommended! read more

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This place has zero charm and the staff exude an aura of mild suspicion, but the Ukus salad is really great. The burek, I gotta say, is not quite at Djerdan level, but it is authentic and I will try it again. read more

I love their meat pie, soups, all the meat that they have tastes so delicious. I am not sure if it's how they cook it or just the meat itself. You should try and will see what I'm talking about. read more

Was recommended to try this place while in Astoria so I had high hopes, but upon arriving the woman working the counter was not welcoming and very rude. The burek had zero flavor and was very dry. Not impressed and will definitely not come back. read more

Cevapi & Meat Pie hit the spot, SO good! My first time trying both. Perfect serving, great service, and I will definitely be back!

I go here about 7 times a year. I don't live in the area anymore..hell I don't even live in the state! But if Im in Queens, I always pick up an order cevapi. Owner is a hard working man, he's there day and night! The food is seasoned well. Everything tastes great! read more

Ukus - Modern European Near Me - Astoria, New York

I'm usually too lazy to write any reviews but had to write this one... My friend lives on 43rd St just around the corner from Ukus. We were walking back to her place late last night and she told me she needs to try someday as she heard good things. It was clearly closed but I walked up to the window to scope it out and to my disgust see mice roaming around the counter and in/out of the stove which sit right along the front window! We were totally grossed out and now we're taking lightly the 'A' ratings we see around. Maybe it's just a NYC thing to dismiss mice crawling around where food is prepped and cooked. Buy some mouse traps or something jeez. I took pictures by the way but not going to post. read more

I bought uncooked qevapa to take home. They sold 50 pieces for $27. The best qevapa I've had! The place was also cozy and clean. Reminded me of going back home to Montenegro in the summer. read more

Woweewowow!! I came here today after a long terrible day at Coney Island... I never had Balkan cuisine before,so I was pretty unfamiliar about what to order. I ended up having the Burek (filled with meat) and it was AMAZING!! It was juicy, flavorful meat inside a chewy, crunchy philo dough shell... I also tried the cheese burek which was delicious, I'm pretty sure it was filled with feta, but I'm not %100 sure. Definitely going back to Ukus when I'm in the area! read more

I go here every week or so and try something new on the menu. I am pretty much a big fan of everything and I have become enough of a regular here that the owner knows me and chats with me when I come in. As other reviewers have mentioned, the man is swamped! But he is friendly if you make an effort. Of all the food here, my two favorite dishes are the traditional Bosnian soup and the stuffed peppers. The soup is a full meal. I wasn't convinced at first and ordered another dish, but the soup was so filling I took the other to go. Tender, flavorful chicken, rice, veggies and sour cream - oh and that bread everyone else is raving about! I get this one often... The stuffed peppers are actually stuffed cabbage (slight menu mistake) and are absolutely amazing. They are pretty simple, but so flavorful. Thin cabbage is stuffed with ground meat, potatoes and spices and are covered with a meaty tomato sauce that is perfect for dipping bread in as well. I would be lying if I said this wasn't my favorite place to eat in Astoria. It may be in my top 5 in NYC - it is that good! read more

I've had the burek, qebapa (cevapi) , and shopska salata. That's what i love and that's all I order at any balkan restaurant. All of it is definitely delicious. You gotta take into place the fact that the place is small and the waitress even has to help make the food sometimes especially when you get the big groups of bosnians or serbs coming in, it takes them a while to serve you. I had read a post below me about how the girl was Dominican and her bf was Yugo. Definitely true. I mean I'm mixed albanian and spanish and I get stared down by customers when they see my albanian eagle necklace on ...they're just confused because I look mexican but I've dealt with that all my life. read more

Came here with my boyfriend who is Albanian so he knows good Albanian food. The place is very small and it's meant to eat and leave. We had a salad with feta. It was the best feta cheese I ever had. The bf had these small beef sausages that were tasty. I had chicken skewer that was the juiciest and tastiest chicken skewer I had. For dessert we had a baklava type of dessert. That's the only thing I wasn't crazy about. Good service,good food, i will be back. read more

Ukus - Modern European Near Me - Astoria, New York

Excellent cevapi sandwich. Looking forward to trying their burek and zeljanica. Tried the burek. Real deal Zagreb style read more

The quality Balkan cuisine at Ukus offers unique flavors that are a great change from my usual dining choices. I love their beef or spinach Burek. Both times that I went I was given fresh slices. One slice can easily feed two. I also recommend the hearty stuffed cabbage and of course the cevapi (make sure you order the large portion). I have only ordered take out from Ukus, next time I hope to dine in and experience other dishes and exciting flavors from this great Astoria restaurant. read more