Excellent portions. Delicious food. Indoor and outdoor seating. Located kitty corner from Elliot Park.

Average at best. Average food. Slow/below average service. Nothing to rave about. We ordered the lunch gyro special and lamb kabob. $25 for this was a bit too expensive in my opinion. Especially since service was minimal. For a "sit down" establishment, this place is pretty bare bones. How people rated it much higher on Yelp is puzzling because it wouldn't get more than 2 stars from me. read more

I've only had the best experience here. No one has been rude/quite/unsmiling to me the few times I've gone there. I'm a little hesitant to write too glowing of a review as I don't want this place to change! I love the lentil soup that is preceded at each meal. I also love the off brand fanta that was quite good. The food is quite good and I enjoy taking a walk at lunch time and hitting up this place! I hope they never change! read more

East Village Grill - Lentil Soup - Middle Eastern Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

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I enjoyed the mixed meat and vegetables! Pasta is a bit too much yet tasted okay...$16 for this entree at dinner time! You decide if it's worth it! I will come back to try some fries and gyros next time! read more

East Village Grill - two take out containers of food - Middle Eastern Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

Stopped for lunch after an appointment at HCMC. I had the goat dish with rice and salad and husband had the gyro with fries. The rice is the African style saffron pilaf you find at many Somali restaurant in town but was pretty exceptional: don't know what they do to it, but it is perfectly coifed and really fragrant. The fries are of my favorite kind: thick, crispy on the outside and very tender on the inside. The goat dish was very tender and flavorful. The gyro comes in a almost paratha style roll and looked delicious, but husband made short order of that, so couldn't try it. For sure a place to consider when in this area. Word of caution: not all servers speak good English, it wasn't a problem for us, but can see it been off putting to some. read more

I'd never recommend this place. SERVICE: First of all, I was overcharged. The menu says my item was $13 and the guy charges me $16. Nice. Seen the other reviewers here just now talking about being overcharged, it's no lie. The guy was RUDE. Extremely dismissive and had an angry tone. Didn't say anything outright rude but it was all in his mannerisms and tone. When it was time for me to sign the receipt, he sits it on the counter all the way on the other side of the counter - it's sorta like a cashier grabbing the cash and coins from the register, and sitting it on the counter for you to pick up yourself. After which he walks off (To do nothing important, may I add) and doesn't say "good day" or even thank me for my business. Literally sat the receipt down and walked off. FOOD: The meat was okay and nothing special, a bit too salty. Rice was just bland. Nothing compared to Quruxlow over on Lake St. The meat portion was very small too. A ton of rice basically for $16. If you want good Somali food go over to Quruxlow on Lake St. The difference is night and day. read more

East Village Grill is a great anthropology lesson. The place serves Middle Eastern food, such as hummus and falafel, but is run and patronized by Somali immigrants. It seems like a bustling community gathering spot in a nice area of town. I've been there a few times and the main room is full of young and old Somali men, usually in pairs, chatting, eating and watching whatever sports game is on the tv. There's a separate, curtained-off area for women to dine alone, which is something I've never seen anywhere else in the US, but is fairly common in Islamic countries. I like their falafel sandwich ($5.50 with tax) which is fresh, light and delicately prepared. You can tell their cook takes pride in his workmanship. The pita is soft and wrapped perfectly around the well-seasoned, crunchy-on-the-outside, but soft-on-the-inside falafel, lettuce, tomatoes and tahini. I was not expecting that quality of falafel and I must say it's one of my favorites in the Twin Cities. Go to East Village Grill for a snack and experience a quaint little entry into a vibrant immigrant community. read more

I've only gotten take out here, but it was awful. I ordered one platter and one dessert and the cashier tried to charge me $30 (it was actually about $16). I told him that it didn't make sense and he reluctantly and doubtfully rang in the order again. It kind of felt like a misogynist disdain for my correction, to be honest. He was also being kind of creepy at the same time... But I'm not going to get into that. And it gets worse! I ordered a veggie platter to go. When I got home, I opened the box to find, literally, a pound, maybe 2, of rice, with some veggies, falafal, and a tiny spoonful of this curry. No hummus, no grape leaves, no other dip (all listed in the description). The food was pretty dry, the only good thing was the eggplant curry. I won't be back here. Disappointing because I live like a block away :'( read more

This is my 2nd favorite place to eat in the Elliot Park neighborhood, just behind the Band Box. The location is excellent, directly across from the park, and in the plaza connecting it to the coffee shop; Net Cafe is a nice outdoor seating area. The inside dining atmosphere looks good, great compared to some of you're other options in the immediate area (see my Downtown East/ Elliot Park list), although I've heard from others that the bathrooms are a little dirty. I'm a little afraid to see for myself because I like eating here and would hate to be too grossed out to do so. If you like Gyros this is a good place to get them as they taste great here. Prices are typical for this kind of food and you get a generous helping. A Gyro with fries here will cost you $7.00. Good service, though when I've got my food to go from here I've had to request both ketchup for my fries as well as napkins, which are things you're gonna need. Kinda cheap on thier part, but other than that the service has been fine. read more

I don't live in this area anymore but this place is one that I will not miss. The food quality seemed good as long as you don't look to close at anything or expect any sort of consistency. Our first visit was good but things went steadily downhill from there. This place was hard for me to avoid as it was right below my apartment and very convenient... at first. We used to get the Gyro sandwiches and they would come with different toppings depending on who was working the grill. Some people would put grilled veggies, some would put raw veggies, and others would put a salad mix. We asked the waiter one day why this was and he said it was up to the cook to determine how it was made. I am not sure about anyone else but I like things to be consistent for every visit and not ever changing depending on the mood of the cook. This is also another place that does not know how to clean appropriately. They visible surfaces are clean but the areas underneath counters and in the corners are very dirty. I would not recommend this place at this point.... read more

Great for fast takeout! Absolutely delicious. I get the gyro platter. It is lots of food.

East Village Grill has a solid gyro-fries lunch special. That's all I've tried in my one visit but it was something I would surely consider having again. They gave me a small bowl of soup 'on the house' while I waited, which was generous. It had some interesting spices in it, with carrots and maybe onion as the only discernable ingredients. The gyro is solidly sized and at first it really made me think favorably when comparing it to some of the best gyros I've had. It's packed with a good amount of meat and veggies, but I did find it a bit dry. There was some cucumber sauce on the bottom but it just didn't moisten it up quite enough. They didn't provide any additional sauce, but I suppose I could have asked. Either way though, it was still good and they give you a heaping amount of fries and a soda for $7. Good deal. The place is a bit dingy but as other reviewers have said, it's got character and an independent vibe. It certainly measures up to the other gyro options around the downtown area. read more

East Village Grill - the entrance to the restaurant - Middle Eastern Near Me - Minneapolis, Minnesota

Locally owned, great service, and delicious food! I honestly have no complaints but it could be because I'm use to eating here. They have lamb to die for and spicy samoosas that are finger licking good!!! read more

By far the friendliest service I've ever had in my life, and the food was delicious. I used to go to the Net Café next door, which was also run by Somali immigrants, and was incredibly sad when it shut down. Being in town for a little while, I decided to check out the East Village Grill, almost out of nostalgia, but I will definitely be coming back for this place. You can tell that the restaurant is owned by immigrants, which may be a drawback to some, but for me it is extremely refreshing. The staff seemed as thought they were excited to see me, and I was immediately given a table and menu. I ordered the kofta sandwich, which was served wrapped in pita bread. I got my order in a timely manner and it was delicious. I paid $8 for the sandwich and a drink, which was a great deal. I highly recommend it and will definitely be coming back. read more

Great lamb wasla meat. I recommed the rice with lamb. Its soft tender and well seasoned meat. The portions are good and service is excellent. I highly recommend this restaurant. read more

I didn't feel welcome. The food (Gyro) was good, but a bit expensive and as long as you don't dine in I think you'd be fine with the experience. read more

Wrong order and REALLY cold food from yesterday. The rice was BRRRRRRR. Very argumentative staff. Overcook chicken BBQ.

We live in the apartments above this restaurant and stop down for a quick meal quite often. The service is the friendliest you will ever have. This place is run by the nicest people, as illustrated by the fact that there are always people sitting around and chatting that greet you with a smile and a hello. The food is really good, and I LOVE the Somali rice. Anything with lamb here will be good as well (they do great lamb). They have great lunch specials. Stop by, give the food a try, and support a small, local business! read more

My wife and I have dined her several time. We love the food, not so thrilled about the atmosphere. but the food is great.

Please check the menu price and what the cashier rings up is very different . The menu price will say 10 but they ring up 15.00 How they treat you is very different. I noticed that if your middle eastern or somalian you are offered Pop with your meal. Whereas if your not it's not really offered to you. It's not a big deal but the fact that you get treated differently is what pissed me off. When I did ask for the pop, the asshole cashier tells me "you need to be healthily"... SO DO NOT GO IF YOUR NOT MIDDLE EASTERN,MUSLIM OR SOMAILIA.. read more

great place nice food rice is fresh and goat meat is awsome nice place to have nice meal

With so many great options in Minneapolis, please look elsewhere! The food is overpriced, cleanliness of the restaurant is not up to par. I live in the building next door and have only visited once in a few years - my soda was given to me in a can at this "sit down" grill! read more

While I love middle eastern food, I must say I am not a fan of this place and I strongly advise turning your back on this one. A friend of mine warned me that she had gotten sick when eating at this place. I thought she was crazy. I ate there, and within a day I was violently ill. I went to my doctor and he said it was more than likely food poisoning. So, the food is tasty going down, but not necessarily coming back up. read more

OMG...I am from toronto, the best food i had since i came to MN was at east village grill!!! I love the food and highly recommend it..The service is fantastic and the food was fresh with nice spices to it! Highly recommend it..did i mention the price??? so cheap and good!! read more