yelp says they are open till 8pm today. We went there to pick up food at about 7pm. They were closed without any notice whatsoever! Their name is "the avenue", it is hard to find because they write "Smyrna" nowhere in front!
Mattew C.
Really hoping they make it because I see myself returning many more times in the future. You get a good amount of food for the money and since sadly it hasn't gotten a lot of business, it was always very quite on each visit.
marina f.
Whenever we had dinner in this restaurant, it was always amazing !!! We are fm Greece and we are always trying to find really genuine Mediterranean tastes. That's the place !! Their Veggie Moussaka is....to die for! Their octopus, their fish, their dips. We can't wait to re-open !!!!
Oliver Vogel
Had lunch there. My friend really enjoyed the lamb-filled tortellini. My seafood fettuccine was delicious, nicely seasoned, pasta al dente. Desserts were tasty, too. Friendly service, nice ambience. Not cheap, but for what you get not overpriced.
Jim Ryan
Good food and service. Loved the lamb ravioli and my colleagues were happy with their salads.
Gal Mangal
It was recommended to me by a friend. Loved the atmosphere- very stylish! Food was delicious and service was excellent! Try the Tiramisu!
Susan O
The food here is truly terrible: I had the "greek chicken" - which consisted of a flattened, rock-hard, overcooked, and unseasoned piece of (probably microwaved) chicken with a couple of pieces of tasteless tomatoes and 3 or 4 lumps of old feta on top. My husband had the lamb burger, also way overcooked, with poor quality meat, accompanied by french fries that were barely defrosted from their frozen carton. The kitchen appears to have no cooking going on whatsoever, which begs the question of where the dried out bad food actually comes from. The wine was nearly impossible to choke down. This is perhaps the worse dining experience I have had in over 20 years in any city in any country. The food is not Greek, not Mediterranean, and not good.
Darren Singh
An intimate, softly-lit dinner experience with charming, very attentive staff and some uniquely delicious food. Perfect for a more upscale family dinner, or date night. Decent wine list, though the dining area is relatively cozy so make reservations on a busier night. Try their delicious lamb ravioli in truffle sauce!
Monica S.
We came here for Christmas Dinner, as this is one of better looking spots that was taking reservations for the holiday. I was a little disappointed to find that the Christmas Dinner menu was abbreviated from the regular menu, and that the items I was most looking forward to based on previous Yelp reviews (octopus, greek salad, branzino) didn't make it onto the shorter menu. However, I am grateful that they were open for reservations this evening and realize it would be hard to stock the full menu, so I'll just have to come back another time to try these items. We shared several starters and entrees family style: -lamb meatballs -eggplant puree -calamari -vegetarian moussaka -stuffed eggplant -arugula salad with fried haloumi Overall: Food 3/5 - the lamb meatballs were tender and flavorful; everything else was fine but not particularly memorable. I didn't dislike anything we ate, but I also didn't feel excited by any of the flavors. Given the fantastic Mediterranean options nearby (Kali kitchen, Mediterranean Wraps, Anatolian Kitchen), the food felt a touch underwhelming. Service 4/5 - Service was very friendly, although a bit slow and inattentive (long wait for food, water glasses sat empty for most of the 2+ hour meal), but I chalk that up to being a bit understaffed on a holiday, so I won't assume that is typical until we have a chance to return. Ambiance 4/5 - cozy, moderately loud but not so much to impede conversation, nice lighting and decor. Overall, this seems like a promising spot, although we will need to visit on a non-holiday to get a full sense of the menu. There are several restaurants of this genre along Cal Ave, so time will tell if and how Smyrna distinguishes itself.
Manish Bhatia
The food was good. However, it isn't vegetarian friendly - there was only two vegetarian options both of which were eggplant based.
Mediocre food and too expensive for what it was. Disappointing.
Jane B.
We and another couple tried this Mediterranean restaurant and thought it was terrific. The arugula salad with almonds was a great appetizer followed by the various entrees in the group: Lamb chops, moussaka, chicken kabob and eggplant Parmesan. All dishes were excellent. Veggies were very fresh. Great service and ambiance and a good find on CA street in Palo Alto. Didn't have room for dessert but heard the poached pear was excellent. (This place is in the location where Spalti's used to be.)
Vi Y.
Ambiance - Nice, modern. Tables and booths have enough space so you're not all cramped in there. On a Thursday night the restaurant was empty, which is sad to see considering rent must be so high on this strip. Service - Really nice and friendly. Language barrier though, but still you can feel the warm energy. We did family style and they split all of our plates for us so we each had a plate! Food- Spread sampler : Pita was so soft! Eggplant/hummus/tzaziki were all tasty. It needs to go with something more than pita though. Arugula Haloumi Salad : Best arugula salad we've ever had. It wasn't bitter at all. Whatever they did to it was delish. Haloumi was fried to a crisp, but still soft in the middle. Great texture. House Bread - The olives/olive oil/vinegar dip was so addictive, and bread was soft/warm/chewy. We almost filled up on this! Octopus - Creative and on top of grilled melons. I'm trying to eat vegetarian, but tried a bite of it and it was tasty. Branzino - It came out boneless and perfect! The orzo was big, chewy and perfectly al dente. Poached pear dessert is not to be missed! Save room for dessert. Baklava - if I had to choose between 2 desserts, the poached pear wins. dinner for 2 with 1 glass of wine was $100. I want to come back to try the ravioli!
Marybelleanne F.
Delicious gourmet food. I ordered the vegetarian moussaka and my husband ordered Greek chicken, and we split a baklava for dessert. It was all presented and cooked to perfection. Their bread and olive oil dip served before dinner was also excellent. The staff was friendly and efficient. This was our first time at Smyrna, and we will definitely be back.
Hiroko Nodera
Friendly staff and hassle free Friday night dinner. Not too crowded. Can eat indoor / outdoor. Plenty of parkings nearby.
yelp says they are open till 8pm today. We went there to pick up food at about 7pm. They were closed without any notice whatsoever! Their name is "the avenue", it is hard to find because they write "Smyrna" nowhere in front!
Really hoping they make it because I see myself returning many more times in the future. You get a good amount of food for the money and since sadly it hasn't gotten a lot of business, it was always very quite on each visit.
Whenever we had dinner in this restaurant, it was always amazing !!! We are fm Greece and we are always trying to find really genuine Mediterranean tastes. That's the place !! Their Veggie Moussaka is....to die for! Their octopus, their fish, their dips. We can't wait to re-open !!!!
Had lunch there. My friend really enjoyed the lamb-filled tortellini. My seafood fettuccine was delicious, nicely seasoned, pasta al dente. Desserts were tasty, too. Friendly service, nice ambience. Not cheap, but for what you get not overpriced.
Good food and service. Loved the lamb ravioli and my colleagues were happy with their salads.
It was recommended to me by a friend. Loved the atmosphere- very stylish! Food was delicious and service was excellent! Try the Tiramisu!
The food here is truly terrible: I had the "greek chicken" - which consisted of a flattened, rock-hard, overcooked, and unseasoned piece of (probably microwaved) chicken with a couple of pieces of tasteless tomatoes and 3 or 4 lumps of old feta on top. My husband had the lamb burger, also way overcooked, with poor quality meat, accompanied by french fries that were barely defrosted from their frozen carton. The kitchen appears to have no cooking going on whatsoever, which begs the question of where the dried out bad food actually comes from. The wine was nearly impossible to choke down. This is perhaps the worse dining experience I have had in over 20 years in any city in any country. The food is not Greek, not Mediterranean, and not good.
An intimate, softly-lit dinner experience with charming, very attentive staff and some uniquely delicious food. Perfect for a more upscale family dinner, or date night. Decent wine list, though the dining area is relatively cozy so make reservations on a busier night. Try their delicious lamb ravioli in truffle sauce!
We came here for Christmas Dinner, as this is one of better looking spots that was taking reservations for the holiday. I was a little disappointed to find that the Christmas Dinner menu was abbreviated from the regular menu, and that the items I was most looking forward to based on previous Yelp reviews (octopus, greek salad, branzino) didn't make it onto the shorter menu. However, I am grateful that they were open for reservations this evening and realize it would be hard to stock the full menu, so I'll just have to come back another time to try these items. We shared several starters and entrees family style: -lamb meatballs -eggplant puree -calamari -vegetarian moussaka -stuffed eggplant -arugula salad with fried haloumi Overall: Food 3/5 - the lamb meatballs were tender and flavorful; everything else was fine but not particularly memorable. I didn't dislike anything we ate, but I also didn't feel excited by any of the flavors. Given the fantastic Mediterranean options nearby (Kali kitchen, Mediterranean Wraps, Anatolian Kitchen), the food felt a touch underwhelming. Service 4/5 - Service was very friendly, although a bit slow and inattentive (long wait for food, water glasses sat empty for most of the 2+ hour meal), but I chalk that up to being a bit understaffed on a holiday, so I won't assume that is typical until we have a chance to return. Ambiance 4/5 - cozy, moderately loud but not so much to impede conversation, nice lighting and decor. Overall, this seems like a promising spot, although we will need to visit on a non-holiday to get a full sense of the menu. There are several restaurants of this genre along Cal Ave, so time will tell if and how Smyrna distinguishes itself.
The food was good. However, it isn't vegetarian friendly - there was only two vegetarian options both of which were eggplant based.
Restaurantji Recommends
Mediocre food and too expensive for what it was. Disappointing.
We and another couple tried this Mediterranean restaurant and thought it was terrific. The arugula salad with almonds was a great appetizer followed by the various entrees in the group: Lamb chops, moussaka, chicken kabob and eggplant Parmesan. All dishes were excellent. Veggies were very fresh. Great service and ambiance and a good find on CA street in Palo Alto. Didn't have room for dessert but heard the poached pear was excellent. (This place is in the location where Spalti's used to be.)
Ambiance - Nice, modern. Tables and booths have enough space so you're not all cramped in there. On a Thursday night the restaurant was empty, which is sad to see considering rent must be so high on this strip. Service - Really nice and friendly. Language barrier though, but still you can feel the warm energy. We did family style and they split all of our plates for us so we each had a plate! Food- Spread sampler : Pita was so soft! Eggplant/hummus/tzaziki were all tasty. It needs to go with something more than pita though. Arugula Haloumi Salad : Best arugula salad we've ever had. It wasn't bitter at all. Whatever they did to it was delish. Haloumi was fried to a crisp, but still soft in the middle. Great texture. House Bread - The olives/olive oil/vinegar dip was so addictive, and bread was soft/warm/chewy. We almost filled up on this! Octopus - Creative and on top of grilled melons. I'm trying to eat vegetarian, but tried a bite of it and it was tasty. Branzino - It came out boneless and perfect! The orzo was big, chewy and perfectly al dente. Poached pear dessert is not to be missed! Save room for dessert. Baklava - if I had to choose between 2 desserts, the poached pear wins. dinner for 2 with 1 glass of wine was $100. I want to come back to try the ravioli!
Delicious gourmet food. I ordered the vegetarian moussaka and my husband ordered Greek chicken, and we split a baklava for dessert. It was all presented and cooked to perfection. Their bread and olive oil dip served before dinner was also excellent. The staff was friendly and efficient. This was our first time at Smyrna, and we will definitely be back.
Friendly staff and hassle free Friday night dinner. Not too crowded. Can eat indoor / outdoor. Plenty of parkings nearby.