Ikaros

The waitress was pleasant but the food was cold, terrible. Will never go again. I was looking forward to good Greek food. .I’ll wait for Greekfest… the food there was Much better!

I am just going to get right to the point with this one. I am Greek and this is by far the best Greek restaurant in Baltimore. I am so glad that while competitors are Americanizing their dishes to pull in larger crowds (I won’t name names), Ikaros has stayed true to Greek recipes and the reason people come to a Greek restaurant: to eat GREEK food! Their melitzanosalata is something from another world. Their saganaki, the best. Their avgolemono is loaded with lemons, as it should be. I could keep going. Hands down my favorite restaurant in Baltimore. I’ve been coming here since the 70s and my family since they opened. It’s a taste of home for me. Thank you for remaining authentic and keeping true to classic Greek recipes.

My friend and I came here on a Groupon — I’ve never had bad experiences with Groupons or Greek food in general so I had hopes that were unfortunately quickly dashed. A star for the location (convenient and parking wasn’t too hard to find) and for the service (prompt, attentive, and she even gave us free dessert!).
We ordered:
the spinach and feta pie — flaky enough but very greasy and the feta didn’t really taste like feta at all
the chicken kebab — the chicken was flavorful but very dry and tough, the rice was a little mushy, and the peas were bland
dessert — these were good! We ordered the cream pastry and the waitress gave us rice pudding on the house. Both good and probably the best part of the meal.

We dined at this restaurant only because we had tickets for a Murder Mystery Show and we were not impressed! We were sitting at a table of 8 and they forgot to serve us dinner. Once they realized we hadn’t received our food they brought it only to be cold. We asked that they bring it back to the kitchen and requested fresh meals. Based on the amount of time it took for the food to come back out we thought we’d have freshly cooked meals… sadly mistaken. The food was only heated up, probably in a microwave, because the chicken and lamb was inedible. Regarding the bar… we ordered beer (which came in a bottle) so not much to go wrong there, but the people who did order drinks at our table ended up bringing them back because they were poorly made. Will not be returning!

So, me and a friend went here for a murder mystery dinner.
The kabobs, excellent
The bar, disappointing.
They did not have any bourbon? Like, are you kidding me? I have had better bar services at a frat party. Such a shame. And also, it was $ 12 for a Screwdriver using the well vodka? Im appalled.
The plot line was lazy.

Visited this restaurant for a conference. Oddly enough one of the presenters spoke about health. I’m pretty sure all of the attendees overate. The appetizers were amazing, lunch even more amazing. We are still here and I am certain I will a have to roll down the stairs once we are done. I am looking forward to the 15 minute break so I can walk around the block to work some of this off before they serve dessert. Do not enough for two days before visiting this restaurant.
The staff are extremely friendly, seems like a family oriented restaurant. You don’t find friendly staff with smiles on their faces everywhere you go. This is a must visit

From the start of our experience as a first timer to the restaurant, it was so-​so. We stood there for a moment and nobody was there to greet us. I saw the bartender come around from the bar and graciously greeted and sat us. From there, the greatness just about ended. If you don’t know Greek foid, the menu will be a little intimidating. Good description of what some of the items is lacking. We ordered a Greek salad to start. It seemed okay until I started finding wilted leaves. I started rummaging through the bowl and found a half inch of water on the bottom. Not a fresh salad at all. We asked to have a «fresh salad» and the server gladly took the old salad back to the kitchen. After waiting another 5 or so minutes, the server returned woth another salad. Again, the top part of the salad looked great but as we were earing the salad, we found more wilted leaves of lettuce and water on the bottom of the bowl.
When our main entrees came out, we were disappointed. My husband ordered roasted leg of lamb. His expectations was lamb on the bone. Instead, it was 3 slices of meat which was okay. I ordered the chicken kabob plate. The rice was mushy and terrible tasting. On both plates, the vegetables were canned. Why would a restaurant serve canned veggies? Horrible!
So the experience was not all that great and neither were the prices. Way to expensive for the crap that is served. No wonder this restaurant is always trying to sell Groupon deals. They are desperate for business. There was only 2 other tables present at 6pm. Being in Greektown, I’m sure there are far better places to eat than this place. It’s dad because the place «looks» great.

I will have to say that after reading the reviews, I didn’t have my hopes up too high for this place. We went for the murder mystery and it was fantastic. I will start with the negative, the food was not that good. They had the salads on the table which was just ok and they brought out the other food a little later. They also stuff a few more people than should be at a table. But that was about it for the negative.
Now the positive, when we walked in the employees were already in character and they were funny. They kept the audience engaged and laughing. I know other people have said that they couldn’t hear, but they now use a microphone so you can hear them clearly. Lots of improv and lots of audience participation. I think the audience will make or break this, so you want to make sure you are with a lively crew. I would definitely recommend this place to someone that wanted to try a murder mystery.
The reason I took a star away was because of the food. Otherwise thumbs up!

Poor service, bland food. Samos is much better option. Sunday, restaurant mostly empty, more wait staff than diners and still no attention! The lamb kabob was as tender as beef jerky. The grilled octopus had the consistency of a boiled potato. Time has not been kind to this place. Obvious now why it was empty for lunch.

We had a local Amazon deal and decided to check this place out on a Friday evening. The space is large and bright with Greek accents reminding me of a home in Greece. The crowd was sparse with middle age and older folks so we were on the younger end of the clientele. The hostess seemed like she was 9 years old but graciously lead us to the table and opened the menus for us.
We ordered the grape leaves and shared a small salad. Both were good not great. I would order both again. My main course was the Mid East kabobs and my partner order the lamb something and both were very very good. The meat was tender and flavorful. The tzaziki sauce was amazing. Thick and full of garlic, it will linger in your mouth for a long time.
One gripe was the service was a bit slow and here’s the biggest kicker: my sides were green beans and carrots. Both of which were from a can. Place with such delicious meats served veggies from a can. Sad. Other than that the food and experience was good. I would return but not get the beans and carrots. Or the rice which was almost soggy.

Came here on a Saturday night with some friends. We were not greeted by anyone when we walked in. Waited 10 mins to be seated even though there were servers that were just standing and staring at our faces. We did not get our waters till after 30 – 45 mins. Our server was not attentive at all. Tried to get the attention of other servers but they just ignored us. Very rude servers. After ordering food, food came out very bland. No taste at all. Some salt would’ve helped all the dishes we ordered. I’ve had Greek food before and I love it but this is far worst food we all had. I Am giving this place 2 starts just because the owner was very gracious and understanding when we brought it to his attention. He was apologetic and offered us free dessert.

The beans with tomatoes side dish was the best green beans I’ve ever had. Tender and just the right amount of seasoning. The rockfish was served whole but had a slightly fishy aftertaste.

Brought some out of town family last night, there were 5 of us total. Everything we had was delicious, and we had quite a variety, from fried mussels to moussaka to grape leaves, seafood dishes, lamb, etc. I wish I could remember the names of everything we had but I can’t.
The server was friendly, and we were given a complimentary desert, I have no idea why, but it was awesome.
There was live music as well, a guy playing guitar and singing greek tunes. It was pleasant and he was quite good, but the volume was a little high for the room, making conversation difficult.
I’ll certainly be going back, and I know my out of town guests had a great time!

I was surprised by the place
really big, but not many people and old style charm and décor with photos of
Greece hanging.
got this off a reccomendation from a guy off the street, crazy how people can just strike up a conversation, when you are from the same town.
it didnt dissapoint, the service was very friendly and the breast of lamb was succulent and very tender, it reminded me of a home cooked meal, not fancy, but heart warming and savory
it wasnt cheap, entrees at 18 $ or higher, but it is worth it, I was impressed with the server, very polite and helpful and he was Greek
they also gave me a complimentary dessert, phylo with custard or something
I love to find undiscovered places and it was a bit of a drive from inner harbour

We used the groupon for 2 people and it’s the murder mystery dinner. Friday @7, come 30mins early, and print out voucher. Bring cash for drinks etc.
Okay so we walked in @6:30, took our mug shots ($ 20), and the guy will ask your lady name to check in (give him your voucher & food reservations via color piece of paper), and you’ll be seated in a table w/​others of about 8. So they go over the rules, it’s all about 1950’s, you eat your salad, kabobs, and dessert. All while getting up for your 2 or 3 investigation sessions to ask the «suspects» questions to solve the murder mystery. This was our first time, we got our drinks, we will definitely come back, it’s something to get used to when your not a type of person to just walk up and question, but once you break the ice it’s hell a fun!
It’s on Eastern ave baltimore which is Greek town but nose you get in you’ll sit at the bar until they take you upstairs to the main event. It’s lovely for a groupon date night or group but I wouldn’t pay full price. Only because the food needed flavoring, I like Greek food so if order the grape leaves, fish, something else besides the limited menu, but it’s a nice event. We one the murder choice! Mr. Coolstein the math teacher & got our pics
Inside it reminds me of «double tee diner» if you’ve ever been but upstairs where we all sat was a big room w/​a small bar & lots of seating. Like a mini banquet hall
**The Show: Acting skills is not like your «High End Celebrity» acting skills, more so like a bunch of waiters/​waitresses or outside routine stage help turned actor/​actresses by memorizing a giant script. So it’s low budget acting“
Hope this helps your choice which I say get a groupon for this instead of full price :))

This place earned 1 star and not 0 stars for the following reasons: the place was open, the electricity was on, there were chairs and tables… WELP, that’s it. If you are looking for more than that in a restaurant, then try another.
We were there for the murder mystery (which was cute btw). We walked in, no one greeted us. We stood and waited — no one came. We walked to the bar, where we were ignored, so we decided to walk upstairs… and found our party.
Some thoughts — The green beans are from a can, there’s no denying it. Every person around me received their food 20 min before I received mine (vegetable kabob). The whole plate was drenched in oil. The service was horrible, inattentive and somewhat rude. Completely not worth it. We will not be going back.

We had a great time at Ikaros, but the experience was really mixed. Here are some highlights:
+ Tzatziki: Okay, it’s hard to get this wrong, but it really was fabulous here. Thick, creamy yogurt spiked with garlic and cucumber: I could have eaten just that for dinner!
+ Saganaki: Again, if you have high-​quality kassieri cheese, this one is a no-​brainer, but I appreciated the flaming cognac, squeeze of lemon and story about that time our server accidentally set a tablecloth on fire. Pretty funny, and the cheese was delicious.
+ Mousaka: This is where Ikaros really earned its stars. The dish was a masterpiece. Tender, spiced ground beef and eggplant, creamy mashed potatoes, full-​flavored marinara — oh, my, it was amazing. And, for $ 16, it fed all three of us – in fact, after our appetizers, we were uncomfortably full by the time we left. But that was really our fault. :)
+ Coffee: It was absolutely perfect. And although any good Greek knows how to make perfect Greek coffee, many places don’t get it right. So, cheers to our server, who boiled it himself! The galaktoboureko (say that five times fast!) was good, too, though most Greek desserts are just too sweet for me.
So why doesn’t this place get four or five stars? Well, not everything was that great:
— Wine: They have an extensive list, but were out of stock on our first two choices, so we wondered how much of the list was accurate. They kept trying to sell us on a California Zin. At a Greek restaurant! They claimed all the Greek wines were twice the price of what we had ordered. After a visit from the manager, we did eventually find one that worked, and it was delicious.
— Bread: They brought us slightly-​stale baguette. No thanks. We asked for pita, and they brought us steaming, toasted triangles that were perfect for dipping. Why is pita not the standard in a Greek restaurant?!
— Salad: What sets Greek food apart is its impeccable freshness. Without that, you just have a plate of lackluster vegetables. The tomatoes here were awful, pink, mealy things. The cucumbers and peppers were okay. The feta and olives were quite good. The dressing was very understated — so understated it almost didn’t exist.
— Crowd: A lot of older people talking rather loudly about personal matters. Thankfully, I was with family so we took it in stride and found it amusing. I would never want to bring a date or a business associate here, though!
As I said, we enjoyed the experience overall, but there were too many missteps to put this place in my regular repertoire.

Greektown has great food in general, and Ikaros isn’t any different. We went in on a quiet Saturday afternoon for lunch, and first of all, may I comment about how great the interiors are done up? It makes you just want to experience Greek cuisine for all it’s worth! The servers were also super friendly and nice, in addition!
I tried the Beef Guvetsaki and it was good! The feta was top class and the beef was of good quality. My dad tried the crab cakes from the lunch menu — one of the best I’ve ever had and I wished I had ordered it too. My mother tried the beef moussaka and it was good, as well! The mavrodafni was delicious as well.
So why only 4 stars? Because honestly speaking, I’ve tried better — less than a block down at Acropolis. Local gossip tells us that the owners/​cooks of Acropolis used to be the cooks of Ikaros, from whom they gained their original reputation.
Bottom line — Ikaros is great, but not phenomenal. Seafood dishes are better than meat dishes, as said by other Unilocalers but the décor is really nice!

This is a terribly disappointing review for me to be writing but alas, it must be done.
I have been going to Ikaros with my family for over 10 years for birthdays and just for a great meal but never again. I used to love their fresh calamari and other delicacies but never again.
We were treated with the utmost of disrespect on our last visit. We were hassled from the minute we stepped inside. We had a reservation yet had to wait, then had to wait 20 minutes before we were even greeted by a server at our table, had to wait hours for our food to come after ordering (when is that EVER acceptable?) and then were not compensated for our inconveniences AT ALL. We spent 3 hours at the restaurant and were only hoping to spend 1.5 hours TOPS. Then on top of all the poor service, the management argued with us and blamed US for our food taking so long and their restaurant being unorganized.
TOTALLY UNPROFESSIONAL and COMPLETELY RUDE
will never, ever be going back.

THE ONE STAR IS JUST FOR SERVICE.
We are currently two bread baskets in and we had to steal one from the table next to us who were eating dessert.
The food looks and smells absolutely amazing… We just haven’t had any.
Arrived at 815, currently 942. Help. Starving. Someone send takeout.

Bought a Groupon for a murder mystery dinner knowing that my life like mystery so I bought this for our date night out. I ordered the lamb and potatoes with a salad. My wife had the chicken string beans and potatoes with a salad.
I think we were both disappointed in the portion of the meal. The portion of the meal was like somebody on a three hundred calorie diet.
I enjoyed the murder mystery but I was thoroughly disappointed in the selection of the menu in which they only gave you two choice which was lamb or chicken. Another thing I did not care for is that this establishment wanted you to make your selection of what you wanted to eat when you made your reservation. I don’t think I’ll be visiting this establishment again.