I came here for dinner. I think 4.5 stars is probably the best rating here. The good: Almost all of the food we got was very tasty, and the portion sizes were fair. It is pricy, but it should be expected of a restaurant that bills itself as $$$, and the food quality generally reflected this. I also appreciate that they are a Greek restaurant with a vegetarian menu section; that's pretty rare! The bad: The service. Our waiter disappeared for long stretches of time, especially when we were trying to get the check. He also tried to pressure my friend into getting a special she didn't want. Additionally, they seemed confused about our reservation when we first got there and had to spend a while "looking for it." read more

Now I understand why all the reviews comment about the nasty service. I couldn't believe how bad it was. The waiter was rude and kind of obnoxious. It was not a welcoming feeling and if quite frankly it was disgraceful. That being said the food was decent. We went with the prixe fix menu which I thought was a pretty good deal. You get an appetizer, entree and dessert for $42. You could stick with the 2 courses for $36. For my appetizer I ordered the gemista. Gemista literally means "stuffed" in greek and all it is a stuffed vegetable in this case it was zucchini. It is a small portion but flavor was good. It came with a egg lemon sauce which had solid flavor. For my entree I got the mahi mahi special. It was served with some funky cabbage but the dish as a whole was flavorful. We also tried the different dips which were standard. The tzatziki was not the best I have had. They forgot the kellari chips but gave them to us anyway. I guess that is a plus for the service. Overall, the food was pretty decent but the service was atrocious. Whoever our waiter was should not be a waiter. If they fix the service I might be back if not there is no chance. read more

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5 stars are not enough! We decided to visit this restaurant to celebrate my husband's birthday -- pretty chancy for a first time but what an amazing find! The decor was elegant and the staff was top-notch. A very special shout-out to our waiter John. The food was EXCELLENT! We started with the grilled octopus and vegan vegetable soup followed by the sea bass and lamb shank, which were all incredible! I make it a point to have lamb shank whenever it's on the menu, and this was by far the best I've ever had! We learned it was prepared the same way it's done in Greece from Executive Chef Pavlos Devarkis, who made it a point to stop by our table to find out how we were enjoying our meals. His passion and love for creating an epic dining experience was evident in our meal's preparation, taste and presentation. The icing on the cake was a special dessert prepared by Chef Pavlos himself! I love great food and have had the pleasure of dining in many fine restaurants around the world, and I can sincerely say this place ranks high up there on my list of favorites. Finally, this review wouldn't be complete without mentioning their delicious olive oil. It's so good that I recommended they bottle this gem and sell it! If you come across this review don't take my word for it, visit Kellari Taverna and experience it for yourself. read more

I had the most amazing time here at Kellari. Food was delicious and the service was outstanding!! The unlimited brunch cocktails were just what we needed for our summer Sunday brunch!! Will be coming back soon. read more

Kellari Taverna - Greek Near Me - New York, New York

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Very good food! The pita spread was good. Also enjoyed the Lavraki. They gave us orange juice because we don't drink wine, appreciated it. read more

Food is always great. Sometimes the wait time is too long. Don't book so many reservation at a time.

I was ready to hate this place, but it just didn't happen. Even though it was a Sunday, you could tell this is a restaurant that attracts the suits and the smug personalities that come with them. After all, it's on a prime block of West 44th Street between 5th and 6th equidistant between Grand Central Station and Times Square. I ended up there because I was sitting in Bryant Park at 5PM wondering what I could eat before the 7PM curtain for "Pippin". I was looking for something that was a cut above the nearest Gray's Papaya but nothing that would bankrupt me either. My Yelp app led me to Kellari, and I'm glad because I would have pooh-poohed it otherwise. They offer a prix fixe menu - during both pre-show (4-7PM) and post-show hours (10PM-12M) - a smart business move if you ask me, and for a change, it appears to cover the gamut of their menu instead of focusing on whatever they ordered too much of back in the kitchen. Two courses cost $31.95, while three were $34.95 - which means dessert would cost you only three dollars extra as well as a lifetime on the hips. Three for me, of course...what are you, kidding? For my appetizer, I decided on the Scallop, which indeed was one singular one lightly seared nestled on a small mound of a creamy truffle risotto (see photo). Delicious. Small but delicious. Me want more. And so I did with my entree selection, the exotically dubbed Yiouvetsi (see photo). This was basically a seafood orzo dish, but they actually roast the orzo first and then mix in various shellfish - shrimp, scallop (yep, just one again), mussels and clam (actually more than one and shelled already). Delicious again and this time brothy almost like a Greek cioppino but not quite. I was liking the maritime theme of my meal but definitely did not order a scallop for dessert. This time I went for the Galatoboureko described as a "vanilla and citrus-flavored custard pie". Really? It tasted more like Baklava to me. I think it was since what I had was layered with filo dough and drenched in honey syrup (see photo). Sweet. Too sweet for my taste. I didn't point the error out to the waiter since I had "magic to do...just for you" at the Music Box in a half-hour. All in all, it was a fine pre-show meal and one I wouldn't mind repeating. FOOD - 4 stars...surprisingly savory scallop dishes tickled my palate more than my wallet AMBIANCE - 4 stars...a huge, cavernous space with the appropriate Mediterranean touches and not crowded together either SERVICE - 3 stars...OK but not very personable or giving of recommendations TOTAL - 4 stars...mid-priced Greek food done the right way where you don't quite expect it read more

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What a great discovery! My lunch salad was fresh and delicious, and it was topped with a generous portion of salmon, cooked to order. The server was attentive and helpful, and the ambience is energetic. I love this restaurant and will be back. read more

Not enough food is given for catering orders. We ordered food for 40 people and there was barely enough food for 20. I order catering all the time and I know portion sizes. A large tray feeds 20-25 people; everything we received was in small trays. read more

Service is fabulous! Ask for Phillip. Ambiance is so charming! Excellent choices of wine.

4 stars overall dining experience. I deducted a star for inconsistent desserts and service throughout the evening. I came with three friends of which two were visiting but from outside the US. My intention was to show them what a fantastic foodie experience I had at Kelleri a few times before. So figured this would be an excellent spot for fresh seafood and for the full classic Greek dining. Throughout the evening, there were a few hits and misses. As I originally suggested, I would have preferred that one or only half of us try the restaurant menu or skip it altogether. The summer restaurant menu was a nice sampling of their cuisine but the choices offered were only mediocre compared to their full menu. Don't get me wrong, every dish sounded interesting and appealing to the palate. But the execution, we discovered, was just not there. Must try: - the eggplant and zucchini chips. They were really moist without being oily. And the width of the slices made it a heartier dish than expected. If I could eat my veggies like this daily with the tzatziki sauce, I would. LOL - the pan seared Diver Sea Scallops! Everyone's favorite of the evening. Seared perfectly with nice brown color and the scallops were subtly sweet. The plating was gorgeous and my three guests commented that they've not seen cauliflower puree in such a pretty golden yellow hue. It was the foundation of the dish. Then accompanied by the sweet mission figs and tart or pickled figs, so delicious this combination. - I think I lucked out and got the only two slices of olive bread from the complimentary bread basket. It had such great color and the olives were so good. I offered to share but no takers. - the grilled octopus! Great balance of flavors and textures on this plate. Red onions, spices, dill and capers with olive oil all mixed in with the octopus. Texture was perfect. - the classic Greek dessert, my personal favorite, galaktoburiko. Topped with honey in a flaky phyllo dough with a custard filling. Yum. It was so good, my friends kept wanting more. - dinner not complete without a tasting of their fish entrees. I've had the branzino before so this visit I opted for the Royale Dorade. It was rich and succulent as described. (I wanted the turbot but they were out of it). My portion was slightly over a pound and it was paired with a lemon-y stock on the side should you want more citrus flavors in your fish. I did add lemon potatoes as a side order to my entree. So good. (BTW, I ordered a lovely dry but fruity rose to pair with my fish. Must say it was a great choice). My friends were not so lucky with their fish entrees. The cod and the seared stripe bass sounded great on paper but was underwhelming in execution. Bland and flavorless was used to describe the entrees. Oh well...it looked nice at least! (The baked paper presentation was a fancy touch). Per my guests, skip the crab cakes. Described as mildly spicy, it was way spicy. Over powered the crab entirely. Disappointing. One final comment, as there were other dishes, the desserts were underwhelming as well. The chocolate souffle was good but the goat milk vanilla ice cream was a bit odd in taste. And the orange phyllo dessert looked unlike any phyllo I've seen. It was more like a dense orange cake. Pass. The saffron sorbet was interesting. Would've been fine on its own. I am still a fan of Kelleri. Was just sad my friends didn't love it. But they did try everything I ordered and agreed my choices were great! read more

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Nice place. Food good. $$$$$. I would go back and try other options. Decent, fancy and just plain good. Try it.

If only the quality of the food was a bit better, their brunch prix fixe would have been a pretty good deal. It's $34.95 for an appetizer, main course, dessert, and unlimited champagne, bellinis, mimosas, or bloody marys. For my starter, I chose the kalamari. The actual squid was good, but the way they fried it was not. It was almost as if they fried a huge batch early in the morning and left it under a heat lamp. The breading was oily, soggy, and falling apart. My entree wasn't that much better. I went with the grilled lamb with sunny side eggs and home fries. The flavor of the lamb was not bad. They used the right spices and it didn't have that gamey taste that lamb can sometimes have. But the meat was extremely chewy. It was as if I was eating lamb jerky. "Dessert" was four tiny cookies to share between the both of us. The only good part was the drinks. The bellinis were not overly sweet, and they definitely kept the drinks flowing. Unfortunately, I don't think that alone is enough to get me to come back. Tip - their online menu is not the same as the one at the restaurant. The one at the restaurant has about half the options. read more

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I've come here about 10 times in the past 4 months. Discovered this gem while trying to find a place for a last minute birthday dinner. You cannot go wrong with any fish dishes here, but if I had to choose, Lavarki, Sea Bass, and Halibut are my favorites. As far as appetizers go, please skip the veg options--not terrible but not great either. Give the calamari and brussels sprouts a try; I love them here. Service is better when it's not packed, so do yourself a favor and come on a weekday or for weekend lunch. From ambiance to food to service to price point, Kellari has earned a star--rare for NYC restaurants--in my book. read more

We had a 6:30 reservation on a Wednesday night. The plan dinner and a show at 8pm. When seated our waiter asked if we were seeing a play, we said yes, that was the last time we saw our waiter for close to an hour. Drink order was taken by the manager, food order taken around 7:10 We were told 7 minutes for food. Once again waiter missing in action. At 7:30 I found the manager and asked for our bill. I was not willing to pay over $150 for dinner for two and have to shovel it down in 10 minutes so we could make our play. We have been here before, but will never return, not only did they ruin the meal they ruined the night! Shame on you Kellari Taverna read more

So happy Kellari is now open. Loved the renovations. Feels fresh, light and Mediterranean. This Greek restaurant was and will always be a midtown neighborhood staple. Food was classic and good. The service was warm and welcoming. We will be back soon! read more

Kellari Taverna - Country Pie - Greek Near Me - New York, New York

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Yesterday I went to Kellari Taverna with my friends. That wasn't our first visit. We went there few times and always had a positive experience. We were totally disappointed with our dining experience yesterday. The service was very slow, the waiter was running around but didn't have time to come to our table. it took us a while to make an order, to ask for a drink and finally to get a coffee (we left finally without it as we would be late for a show). The food quality was really upsetting. Most of us ordered Prix Fixe menu. Tina tartar was tasteless and Lavraki that we ordered for main course was plain, no flavor at all and small portion. Some of my friends ordered main course from the main menu. Halibut was overcooked and tasteless . We paid as much as we would pay at 5 star restaurant and left very disappointed. It looks like the Management of the restaurant doesn't really care much about the quality of service and food. We would never be back!!! read more

We were recently in New York and wanted Greek for dinner. Kellari allowed for reservations for 2 (other places did not) and I liked most of the reviews so we chose to check it out. The service was excellent. Fried calamari for appetizer was delicious. My companion's Greek salad was top notch. I ordered the NY strip medium rare and it was prepared perfectly. One of the best steaks I have had. My negroni was just right. The house Cabernet from Washington state was delightful as well. Desserts were a great way to end the night and my Irish coffee was a fine accompaniment to the baklava. Our final bill for two meals with appetizer, drinks and desserts was reasonable for NYC. If you have concerns based on the proximity of the restaurant to Times Square and the possibility that this is the kind of place that serves mediocre food at elevated prices to tourists, don't be worried about it. I would highly recommend Kellari. read more

Trimble service from the first moment: Rude hostess, extremely inattentive waiter ( almost missing in action the whole time.) Entrees were brought before appetizers were close to being finished. All were barely warm served on hot plates. When asked for a glass of wine waiter brought the by far most expensive option without mentioning it. I'd say give this place a pass. There are so many better, lovely options for Greek food . read more

It was my birthday and went to eat at this restaurant with my family.The food was absolutely horrible. First of all we arrived at 3:30. Dinner begins at 4 PM and was told that it was dinner time now when clearly it was still lunch meal service. Given that we are greek we are accustomed to delicious Greek cuisine. We ordered sardines, meat, dishes, appetizers. The appetizers were fine, but the sardine smelled absolutely horrible, and the meat had a funny taste according to my children. I brought this to the attention of the waiter who did nothing to remedy the situation, not even call the manager to discuss this.my birthday was completely ruined. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone, especially given the fact that I chose this place on my special day. Very disappointed. read more

Delicious food and knowledgeable servers. very pretty restaurant. Menu has a lot of options for all tastes

We had a great time. Food was excellent, recommendations from the server were solid. A dinner to remember.

Wonderful service tonight at Kellari. Lovely manager - I felt the Greek experience fully. The food was delicious especially the octopus . Thank you for a memorable (birthday) dinner! read more

Generally speaking, I don't like to eat in midtown because I can get the same type of food but cheaper and better quality (BROOKLYN!)... BUT this place surprised me pleasantly. Came here for restaurant week and left 110% satisfied: Proper portion sizes, Perfect execution/cooking techniques We had the restaurant week special for lunch: fried octopus, croquettes, lamb with orzo/bronzino and everything was cooked perfectly. I would definitely come back here (if I had the $$) for lunch. Out of all the sit-down places in midtown, I'd have to say that this is one of the better (if not best) options. read more

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GREETINGS, I try not to write too many reviews , however after spending 350$ for a meal of 4, eating a ny slice now , pushes me to share my insights. Had fam visiting , location is close to mid town , usually go to a different Greek rest on 14 th and 1st . anyway fam's hotel was down the street , so location wise well placed. we order their seafood tower and the grilled calamari . the calamari came 5 mins earlier and had that smell . the lobster was over cooked and the oysters were BIG , A bit to grimy and smelly for me . for the main , we wanted a whole fish for the table , only to b told that they had very small lavark , they had red snapper , is that Greek ? . we got one portion of the Mediterranean Sea bass , with two sides, Horta and potato with lemon pepper . We also,got grilled jumbo shrimp , which seemed more Italian in tomato sauce that Greek. it is one of those nights , where service was great , the food not sure what it was, having a slice now and writing this review. The bill , was 350 $ , when we questioned that the wine on the bill was different from what was on their menu , the hostess showed up , who gave us a long story how they don't edit the menus' s . Fam who were visiting were just to polite to ask her too take the difference off . Would have been great if she made the same effort to come and check on us when the in edible food was being served . read more

Simply amazing Greek food with a Mediterranean atmosphere I would recommend everything but I will go for the Bronzino the star of the show The best in town read more

Went to Kellari NYC for their happy hour and we made a reservation for a group of us and we had the best time. food and drinks were delicious. we appreciate our host Sia for making it a smooth experience- when we arrived , everything was ready for us. I also appreciate our waiters Jonathan and Jay- enjoyed delicious drinks. we look forward to going back again. thank you for the amazing service! read more

My sister hosted a brunch after my niece's baptism in August at Kellari Taverna. It was a table of of maybe 20ish people and my sister had set appetizers and we picked our main dishes. The appetizers were family style so each section of the table got to try everything that came out. There was so much food just with the appetizers that by the time we got our main dish I was feeling pretty full. All of the apps were really delicious - some of which included babaganoush, hummus, and spanikopita. I had the lavraki for my main dish which was light and flavorful. The desserts were also on point and included a family style serving of baklava, galactoboureko, yiaourtopita, kormos. I have seen Kellari in DC and i tend to avoid most restaurants on K Street since they typically are meant to serve businesses during lunch time on weekdays. However, after experiencing Kellari in NYC I'm more inclined to go to the one in DC. read more

Kellari Taverna - Greek Near Me - New York, New York

I always try Baklava when visiting a new (to me) Mediterranean restaurant. This place offered the best baklava I've ever had so far. The rest of our lunch food was also very tasty and nicely prepared. It's expensive but good. I loved the quiet ambiance (and it was easy to have a conversation). Service was not outstanding, but didn't get in the way of having a good experience. I will return. read more

Immediately upon entry I was impressed with the space-high ceilings, arches and beautiful details. We were able to get a last minute reservation and were promptly seated upon arrival. Our server was beyond helpful and very friendly. I was slightly put off when I was handed an iPad wine list. While nice to be able to scroll through many options and read about each varietal, you definitely loose some of the ambiance in a dark restaurant with a bright iPad staring back at you. To start the meal we were served slight bread and a pretty simple olive oil. If I hadn't been so hungry I probably wouldn't have eaten it. Then we orders a classic Greek salad which was fresh but the pieces were large so you need to cut everything from the tomatoes to the feta (not the end of the world, but not convenient either). We also ordered the Kellari chips which I really enjoyed! The fried eggplant and succinct chips weren't greasy at all (we could have used about quadruple the tzatziki though). We all opted for seafood entrees as that seemed to be the dominant cuisine on the menu. They had a display of fresh fish over ice when you walked in. So fresh, in fact, we saw a lobster jump out of it at one point. Not sure if that's a sign of how fresh it is or something to be put off by, but here we are... The most notable dishes we had were the sea bass and the king prawns. The sea bass was served with the skin on and head of the fish on the plate. Just something to note of that's an issue for you. I thought the flavor was good, but there weren't thick meaty sections so it was a lot of little bites and involved picking the skin off. The king prawns were enormous, as advertised, but I felt they tasted a bit fishy. We ordered truffle fries and crispy Brussel sprouts as sides and they were both excellent. Overall, good sides, good apps and average entrees. If I'm in the neighborhood and needed somewhere to eat I wouldn't have an issue coming back, but wouldn't seek it out either. read more

Fantastic!! My husband and I came here pre-theater. We had reservations for a table but decided to sit at the bar instead. Solid decision because they have a bar menu (including happy hour glasses of wine for $8) plus the regular menu, giving us more options. I had the Greek salad and Shrimp Santorini which were both fantastic. The shrimp were fresh and perfectly cooked. The sauce was delicious and there was delicious bread for dipping. My husband had Greek chicken soup and oysters and raves about both. I always struggle to find decent midtown restaurants and this one ticks all the boxes. Great food, great service and a beautiful room. Highly recommend. read more

This is an absolutely beautiful restaurant. The lighting and ambiance are perfect for a special occasion with loved ones and friends and the service is impeccable. The food however sucked nutz...my shrimp with orzo was served lukewarm and the shrimp looked nice but were chewy overcooked rubber chunks. No one liked their food at our table, fish was ok but not worth the price. The salad that I had as a 1st course of my 2 course pre-theater fixed menu was blah...wilted lettuce. This is a reasonable choice before going to see a nearby Bway show and the price for the 2 course meal (~$35) is not crazy, but the food here doesn't measure up read more

Kellari Taverna - Shrimp youvitsi? - Greek Near Me - New York, New York

I came here for a business lunch and had high hopes considering many of my colleagues enjoyed this place. You walk in and it's has a nice decor that takes you away from the typical midtown feeling. We sat down and literally, it took 25 minutes for someone to take our order. This is after we asked several times. We ordered the following appetizers: seared octopus - was pretty good tzatziki with pita - on point We ordered off the business lunch menu, I got: farm salad - pretty plain and uninspiring salmon - over cooked and lacked flavor and seasoning. Baklava - was okay, a bit too to heavy and rich for me. Overall experience was poor given the terrible service and underwhelming food. Maybe I'll come back, but this time around, I was pretty disappointed. read more

Food has gone way downhill. Used to be solid, unfortunately no longer. Mushy, overdressed salad, fishy tasting octopus, "grilled chicken kebabs" is actually weird shredded chicken served on hard, dry pita. Service is attentive and space is nice....have been twice in last couple weeks and both times food was really bad. read more

This place gets 5/5 on every possible aspect. Great food with attention to the detail. Refreshing cocktails for everyone's taste. Very attentive staff, something that is very hard to find post Covid. The night ended with some dancing. What else can one ask from a Saturday night! read more

Wonderful cuisine, by far the best place I've been at in New York. The service was decent, well-paced and really friendly. The ambience in here is amazing, nice music, relaxed atmosphere. Strongly recommend visiting. read more

Fantastic place ! The food was just amazing ! My boyfriend and I went there for dinner and the place was just fantastic he had just got soaking wet from a very turbulent Raina en they were so accommodating with us . We had the lamb shack that was one of the best I think I had in my whole entire life it was slow cooked and with wine and it just fell of the bone also the chicken kopolaki and was cook to perfection, the vegetables that came with it were so fresh I nearly water my mouth just by looking at them . Top it off the owner John brought us some desert that was fantastic. It was a yogurt version of cheesecake and was just a fabulous. Overall the service and food of this place was 100 start . read more

Mykonos meets nyc!!!! The hostesses seated us quickly us quickly even though we didn't have a reservation. Very welcoming ......Greek hospitality at its best! Love the fried calamari ....& the weather was warm enough to sit & dine in the beautiful outdoor patio. The perfect pre-theatre place! read more

Kellari Taverna - Greek Near Me - New York, New York

Food was delicious, our hostess sia was amazing. Wait staff was very attentive Can't wait to Come back. FYI try the Samos wine it's very good read more

Wow! wow, wowo, wow. AEverything so so well prepared . The service was very attentive and the price was just right.