Bistro Mediterranean & Tapas Bar

My one star given grudgingly. Do not waste your hard earned dollars here.
Upon entering the restaurant, noone was there to greet us. Finally someone
emerged from behind a huge wall and seated us. The room is small and
narrow, claustrophobic for me. There were no customers except for the two
of us. Atmosphere: gloomy and deserted. No-​one was there when we left.
Service was chilly if not totally aloof. No suggestions were made and no
other warmth shown by the waiter. We ordered an avocado salad which was
undressed and badly needed some. Then a tapa sized portion of shrimp.
Mine was dominated by garlic which was fine but even tho a tapa, a very
small portion.
The tab was outrageously high for what we got. By the way, there was a small
piece of bread for the 2 of us. It was stale and dry.
There are so many fine dining places in the area. This one does not deserve
another visit.

Was excited to try this place. My friend had been there numerous times. Appetizers were excellent… Empanadas! Great wine! My friend ordered short ribs, excellent. I ordered the raviolis. Not good, looked more like soup. I ate half of a ravioli. I ordered the short ribs. Waiter, Julio was rude… Did not take ravioli off check. will not be returning, nor will my family and friends.

4 — June 3^rd, went to the Bistro tonight for the 7^th time. Each time I have introduced someone different. Tonight I came with a new friend. I ordered short ribs and she ordered ravioli, she ate one ravioli and said it didn’t taste good. and that the sauce was too watery. I told her to order something else so she got the short ribs also. They were really good. When we got the bill we were charged for the ravioli, Julio the waiter said it wasn’t their fault that we didn’t like it. He tried to get my friend to take it home. He would not take it off and he said call everybody, he said that I complain about the food all the time. If that was true Julio, why would I keep coming back and bringing more people and spending money on your food? Also, my friend ordered a more expensive meal to replace the ravioli, I complained once, see the below reviews, now because of Julio, I have to write a negative review. Well, I paid for the food and I told him I knew what to do, he said you are gonna write on that thing. He was right about that! Well Claudio, Julio has ended my relationship with your restaurant, I will not be back. And I will let my friends, family and colleagues know. Thanks
3 — Today is Tuesday April 19^th and I returned to have lunch. I spoke to one of the owners and relayed my experience from April 8^th in Westbrook and dinner at the Norwalk location on April 14^th. They all were very receptive and appreciated that I gave them another try. It was well worth it, I went with one of my friends who is very particular about food being good and fresh. We enjoyed everything. It was all awesome. I recommend this place not just because the food was good but the Customer Service was exceptional.
2 — Update– When I told the Waiter I didn’t enjoy my food and I didn’t finish it, he took the dinner off and gave me a free dessert. That’s beyond what I expected and I didn’t even ask. That’s good customer service!
1– Friday April 8^th my Aunt n I had lunch at the Westbrook location. The food was exceptional, my hard to please Aunt took a doggie bag and polished off her’s the next day and kept raving how good it was. I rarely finish all my food but I ate it all. When our waiter told us there was one in Norwalk I was so excited to try it since it was closer to my house. Well, I was disappointed, everything was so salty, mash potatoes taste like they came from a box. Even the presentation was no were near as nice as Westbrook. Like this restaurant but in Westbrook, yuck for Norwalk

So delicious! Bruschetta, cheese and meat planner and the shrimp are not to be missed. Would definitely recommend!

Hidden GEM on the side of route one. It was a quiet Monday night but the service was still exceptional. I had the paella Mediterranean, an amazing dish topped with half a lobster tail. The paella was so authentic, I had to ask if the chef was from España. He is!

We read all the reviews and decided to come here for Mother’s day. The regular menu was not available and they had a prix fixe 3 course menu. Interestingly, an 8 year old does not qualify for the kids menu. We were told that he would have to order from the prix fixe menu. Never heard of that anywhere. We were hungry and did not want to leave so decided to order. The bread that was served was probably from the previous night. It certainly was not fresh. We ordered the shrimp, Lamb crêpe and Brussels sprouts appetizers. They were excellent!!! Rich, tender, and flavorful! Our hopes were raised for the main course– Rigatoni, Surf n Turf, and the Red Snapper Lobster Risotto. Unfortunately, we were disappointed. The steak was chewy, the Rigatoni bland, and the Risotto lacked flavor. The portions were huge but that really did not make up for the quality. We went here based on all the positive reviews we read here. Maybe the regular menu is better, but we are not coming back to try it.

My boyfriend and I had been meaning to try this place for a few months now. We came here Sunday night with a friend of ours and had a wonderful meal. We ended up ordering a bunch of tapas to share and enjoyed every single one — pork medallions, steak tartare (!!!), avocado salad, shrimp in garlic sauce, fried eggplant w/​mozz, cheese croquettes, & cheese and ham platter. The food was seriously amazing, and the service attentive and polite. We will be back, definitely!

Good food and good service. The food has a wide selection of tapas and the staff is very attentive. The space is large yet they do a good job to make it comfortable and intimate to your party. The wines are great and reasonably priced.

We drive by this place all the time (close to Stew Leonard’s) and finally checked it out with a group of friends on Saturday night. They have a vast wine selection. The waiter recommended Ontonal Rioja which didn’t disappoint. For tapas, the crab cakes and baby squid were very good. For entrees, the traditional paella and short ribs special really stood out. The paella had a fair amount of seafood and wasn’t overly salty like some places. The meat from the short ribs was tender and delicately fell off the bone. For dessert, the lava cake, tres leches and bread pudding special were all delicious. It’s conveniently located with parking in the back. We were one out of two big tables and it wasn’t very busy for a weekend. Do give this place a try! We’re glad we did!

We have been here a number of times and have never been disappointed by the food or the service or value. All have been excellent, and the restaurant is one of our favorites;
Cary P

Randomly found this place and so glad we did. Top notch service. Wonderful atmosphere. And the good to die for!!! We spent 3 weeks in Spain last summer, and this was up there with local cuisine. Compliments to the chef!

My family and I were looking for tapas and we came across Bistro on Unilocal.So glad we did! The dining room is huge and beautifully laid out with the bar are up front. We were seated by the windows in a cozy area surrounded by wine bottles from floor to cieling.
Our waiter was so helpful with the menu in recommended the quantity of dishes to order and the components of the dishes. We we’re completely familiar with the ingredients list in full, but he was able to help us pick our assortment. Three of us ordered 5 dishes which was perfect for our hunger level. Two of our favorites included the Croquetas de Bacalao and Calamares a la Plancha. I loved the white bean and tomato side dish with the Calamares the most! In fact, almost all our tapas came with generous portions of side dishes of beans, or vegetables that were seasoned to perfection. We finishe off our meal with fantastic dessert which changes on the menu and some after dinner drinks selected by the staff. It was such a perfect pair to our desserts.
I cannot say enough nice things about the staff at Bistro. They were so kind and helpful to my family over the course of the night. I’d return with a group anytime we’re looking for some place special. Thank you, Bistro!

A gem in Norwalk! Fabulous food, fabulous service. We were went because we just needed a bite and were so pleasantly surprised that we had such a fantastic meal.

We have eaten here 4 or 5 times and are always amazed at the freshness, quality & presentation of the food. We love tapas and they go over and above– ensaladas included. Please go and try! Right near Stew Leonard’s– plenty of parking.
Our favorites are the seafood bisque (almost a meal in itself!). Piquillos Rellenos… stuffed peppers, too many tapas to review. We’ve never been disappointed!

I am so impressed with the service in this restaurant! I went in late one weeknight, craving lobster. They didn’t have any on the menu, and I told that them that was all I really had wanted. A short while later, a waiter came running out of the kitchen with a beautiful, fresh lobster on a tray. He said the owner heard what I wanted and ran out and bought one just for me!
Bravo! A+++ for service and making their customers feel special!

I love this restaurant! I had very good experience with my husband. The environment is quiet and decent. Food is extremely good! Paella is very tasty, the lamb chop is very juicy, side dish of lamb chop I also tasty! We also had beef tapas, soooo fresh, very impressive. I am a big fun!

No, no, no! I have to wonder how many of these reviews are friends of the restaurant or I just went on an awful night (tonight, Friday)
We had high expectations and hopes. It wasn’t packed nor empty so no excuse for bad service… And the service was ok! I didn’t mind that the guy never brought or asked us for bread… until we had finished both glasses of wine and dinner was literally a minute away…
It was the worst scallop dinner either of us ever had. We love scallops … They were not hot and extremely chewy. Like one step better than gum… And over salted to the point of spitting one of them out !!!
Fried rice cakes were good as was the lobster pie see that cane with but the cakes were all also sitting on lumps of butter.
No, no, no. Sorry. Second chances highly unlikely. I want my 90 $ back.

Wow! Awesome!
We were in Norwalk for a one day business meeting and found this restaurant.
It was incredible: excellent food, good servers (Chris at dinner time,) good wine and nice atmosphere.
We had a chance to go again before we left and had a delicious lunch! Excellent.
Give yourself a treat: Go to Norwalk and eat here. You will be so glad you did.
I can’t wait to go back.

Great food, great service, great prices! We came here for tapas and each one was delicious. They were full of flavor and added a unique flavor. My favorite was the lamb stuffed peppers. Great place to try if you’re in the area.

Living near this location, we’ve seen a number of fairly mediocre restaurants come and go in this space. When I drove by recently and saw the latest incarnation was Mediterranean tapas, I was reservedly optimistic. I went by myself and had the steak tartare and pear salad. Each was outstanding! The tartare had a wonderful blend of flavors including fresh Parmesan and black truffle oil. The salad was excellent with thinly sliced pear, nuts and generous slices of blue cheese. Wow.
The next trip I went with my husband, who is very finicky about tapas. He had the steak tartare, calamari with white beans, and the chorizo with white beans. He raved about them all. He also had a well-​made gin martini, which was made exactly to his taste. The only reason we stopped ordering was because we couldn’t stuff any more delicious food into our stomach. Believe me, we wanted to try!
The service is excellent, the menu has a great selection, and the dishes are just as good if not better than what you get at Barcelona and other local tapas restaurants, for a fraction of the cost. While we love similar restaurants in Sono and Stamford, you get to avoid the noisy crowds, parking challenges and high prices here. The only negative I can see (and this is selfish on our part) is that the restaurant could get very crowded once «discovered». On one level, I hope it remains a somewhat hidden jewel… But the restaurant deserves all the appreciation it’s receiving for its first rate product. Our waiter told us that the NYTimes would be reviewing it this month; I sincerely hope the reviewer likes it as much as we do.