Niko’s Mediterranean Grill & Bistro

AH, food adventuring… got to love it! We found Niko’s on a classic «we have no idea where to go eat food around the Beacon Theatre, let’s see what’s around» and BOOM we happened into Niko’s.
A plentiful menu greets you at the door of the the large, yet still cozy restaurant. We were lucky to sit in the «window room.» I definitely wouldn’t want to be on the floor or even worse back in the back by the kitchen… so make sure you ask to be seated where you would like.
My wife and I decided on the calamari, spinach pies, and Avgolemeno Soup. The calamari was very nice, light and crispy. The spinach pies were not great, but passable, we ate all three. Lastly, the soup was beautifully done. Although it was a bit heavy (traditionally, thickened with egg), it hit the spot on a cold winter night.
All in all, Niko’s was the perfect (for the food and the budget) spot to eat before heading to a great show at the Beacon. Check it out for yourself, I’m sure you’ll appreciate «the flair» and the slideshows of Athens…

I tried this place 2 – 3 times, and sometimes it’s good, and sometimes it’s just so so. I tried the deluxe seafood soup once, and it was really good. So I went back and tried it the second time, and it was so salty. When I stick to ordering traditional greek food, then it’s fine. It’s dependable.
Also, they give you a free piece of cake and greek wine to try at the end of the meal. This place has a nice neiborhood place feel.

A friend and I came here right before going to see a performance at Beacon Theater. We sort of wandered into the place, because we had no idea what we wanted to eat.
Our waiter was pretty polite, and knowledgeable — and I needed that because I hate olives, and was sitting in a Greek restaurant lol I needed to know what meals didn’t have any of that stuff in it.
I had Fettuccini Angelina, and my friend had a grilled chicken meal. I really wanted to switch plates! Even though I enjoyed my meal, after one bite of his food, I was tempted to stick my fork onto his plate (yikes, that would have been awkward).
If I’m ever in the area again, I’ll definitely visit.

Adorable corner spot on Broadway, and as a suburbanite, I love knowing of a safe venue to go to on the Upper West Side. And it’s more than safe — it’s pleasant, welcoming, and homey with a menu & staff that should please even the pickiest people in your party.
I had been in the mood for an evening coffee as soon as 4 o’clock rolled around. The cappuccino served up here was PERFECT for my craving — foamy & yummy!
I suggest dining by the large glass windows to really soak up the hustle & bustle of the city. Try to hang onto the cash in your wallet, the prices here are a little high for what you get (but that’s to be expected on the other side of the Hudson — right?)

Having just gotten back from Greece in August, when my mom suggested having dinner at Niko’s my response was somewhere between, «Do I really feel like more souvlaki?» and «I’d be interested to see how a Greek restaurant in America compares with a Greek restaurant in Greece.» Since this is one of her go-​to spots and I’m really not one to turn down a free meal … we went. So let me tell you how a Greek restaurant in the US (specifically, Niko’s) compares to a Greek restaurant in Greece:
1) Niko’s: everyone gets a menu. Greece: there is one menu given out to split between the whole table … whether you have 2 people or 10.
2) Niko’s: someone comes to take your order. Greece: you flag someone down when you’re ready to order.
3) Niko’s: if it appears that you have finished your beverage, someone comes over to ask if you would like more of that beverage. Greece: your glass stays empty for the duration of your meal, unless you can hunt down your waiter and ask for a refill.
4) Niko’s: after your food comes, the waiter comes over to ask how your meal is going and to see if you need anything else. Greece: once your food comes your waiter all but disappears without a trace (literally). They’re just gone.
5) Niko’s: the bill comes at the end of the meal with the sum of your order totaled up at the bottom. Greece: a separate bill comes for each separate thing you order and you have to total it up at the end of the meal. This is where having good math skills or a cell phone calculator comes in handy.
6) Niko’s: the waiter is friendly and has a positive demeanor. Greece: you are obviously annoying and interfering with more important things that go above and beyond owning a restaurant and serving patrons. Just eat your food and shut up.
7) Niko’s: the food is good and there is a lot of variety. Greece: the food is good and there is a lot of variety.
So obviously, from my very astute compare and contrast, one can deduce that Niko’s isn’t really an authentic Greek restaurant. But seeing as Niko’s is trying to survive in the dog-​eat-​dog world of the New York restaurant industry, that probably works in their favor.

If I knew more about Greek food, I might have given this a five, but been a Greek /​Mediterranean cuisine novice, it’s hard for me to tell. That said, I had an excellent dinner at Niko’s and highly recommend it.
First, the staff was very friendly. My waiter was phenomenal, in many cases far superior to the service I received in other, «fancier» places. He was attentive and when I fessed up to being completely at a loss as to what I should have, he quite readily explained to me many of the different options.
Although I would wager this is probably not a «authentic Greek» dish, I started with the half loaf of Gorgonzola Garlic Bread. YUM! Although it says «for dipping,» the break was actually IN the sauce, so without making a huge mess, it would be hard to break apart and dip. A knife and fork solved this problem.
Ultimately I settled on the Biftekakia Smyrneika Special for my main course, which was excellent. The beef was tender, flavorful and cooked perfectly. The tsatsiki sauce was very yummy. My only complaint was that the potatoes served with the dish were overly salty, although it’s possible that’s just my palate as I avoid too much salt generally speaking.
Excellent dinner and good sized portions. You won’t leave hungry. Prices were a tad high for what I expected when walking in the restaurant, however, I wasn’t dissatisfied with the bill after I ate. I will return the next time I am able! Thanks Niko’s for a great intro to Greek /​Mediterranean cuisine!

Friendly staff, pleasent atmosphere, but seriously lacking in the food department, especially for the prices.
Don’t get me wrong, other dishes look great. But our breakfast has been lacking (SERIOUSLY lacking) both times we have taken the plunge to go here. I am going with two because the food is edible, just not stellar. And, as I said, the waiters and atmosphere are worthwhile.

Dined here on Sunday night, outdoors, which was great until they started to load garbage out to the curb and it was stifilingly smelly. Please wait until your customers have left the sidewalk!
Up until that point, my friend and I had a great meal. We shared an assortment of appetizers via the 6 Mezes platter and an order of calimari. All of the salads/​hummus in our platter were fresh and flavorful, and the calimari was lightly breaded and crisp. It stood on its own and they did not need to hide it in a mass of salt and pepper. The marinara sauce served with it was also great.
Our server was so friendly and gave us great advice as we went through the menu. He also talked up the dishes in a way that made us anticipate something great and we were not disappointed.
I think this is a great spot to grab some snacks and enjoy some wine. just do it before 9pm if you want to sit outside!

Unfortunately another one of those — Want to try it, now I did, won’t be back anytime soon.
It seemed pretty obvious that the waiter was trying very hard to be fresh and energetic because the food certainly was not.
The meal and experience were best explained as «Tired»… the food was tired, the mood was tired and the plates were tired.
For $ 165 (after tip) for my wife and i, I expect to remember my meal.

I really wanted to like it here, but Niko’s fell a bit short. I loved the tacky décor with the fake grape vines, and my mouth started watering when I saw the whole fish served on thick wooden platters. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there.
There were four of us, and our food took a really, really long time. After maybe thirty five to forty minutes, my aunt started getting snippy because other people who had ordered after us were already eating. After speaking in rather sharp tones to the waitstaff my aunt was given her food, which was supposedly the dish that took longest to prepare. They sloshed her bowl of bouillabaisse around so that it covered half of the rim of the bowl. Sloppy sloppy. Ten minutes later, my aunt was watching her soup get cold, and the rest of us still didn’t have any food.
So then there was a bit of a scene, (there were raised voices involved, and demands for items to be removed from the bill, and I just tried to appear as small and inconspicuous as possible), and then we all finally had our food, which, to add insult to injury, actually didn’t turn out to be that great. I had grilled calamari and half of it was completely dried out and overcooked. I know it was already dead, but those cooks really murdered the poor squid. I was about halfway finished when our waitress asked how everything was. When I told her that my calamari was not good, she was all «you should have said something, we could have got you new ones.» Right. No, at this point, we all want to get out of here as soon as possible.
After we ate our mediocre meals, a waiter brought over some complimentary cake and shot glasses, (which they apparently do with some regularity). I could definitely have used a drink at that point, but my aunt gave him some attitude and sent it back. That was probably the worst moment of the meal, haha. And then my aunt decided we wouldn’t tip the waitress, (to be fair, she was totally MIA after taking our orders and did not reappear until we were almost finished eating), and actually told her so as we got up to leave. I was pretty embarrassed about that and ran out and missed the end of the encounter. The service was really awful and totally inattentive, but they at the very least kept their cool while my aunt was causing a scene. I can’t say much to defend them, but we really shouldn’t have given them reason to spit in our food.
Maybe the kitchen was just really busy, but we did have to wait an unreasonable time to eat, and then the food wasn’t well cooked. It could have been an off night, but with so many great restaurants in the city, I probably wouldn’t give them a second chance.

Exceptional food and very good service.
This is an Upper West Side staple. The menu is vast and they seem to be experts at most anything Greek and so who am I to question.
I’ve had the chicken, lamb and fish shish kabobs and all are excellent. I recommend the early bird special especially if you have blue hair like me. This comes with soup, entre, coffee and dessert. The lemon chicken soup is so delicious and for entrée, I recommend the fish. The desserts are very good and come with plenty of whipped cream. You simply can’t beat it for under $ 20! Go and enjoy!

Tired and hungry, my girlfriend and I decided to check out Niko’s for a meal yesterday. We had passed it before and found its older looking storefront a fun stand out from the more ultra modern looking ones in the area so it drew us in.
What the interior lacks in elegance, it makes up for in character. Feeling like a restaurant out of a neighborhood in Brooklyn or Queens, there’s stuff all over the ceiling including fake grapes hanging down from fake vines. The set up is a bit weird, with the front being a seating area, then a smaller one off to the side that you have to step up into. To get to the bathroom, you have to cut through the waiter prep area and go downstairs. It felt a bit haphazard, but the staff warns everyone that a customer is coming through each time, so it seems they have the routine down.
We sat in the small area to the right. It was cramped, but just comfortable enough. The staff was super friendly and attentive, more so than I’m used to so big points for that. Once we ordered, we were given some dinner bread with a finely chopped olive spread. The spread was okay, not particularly flavorful or easy to spread on the bread (there was almost no oil or liquid to bind it, so it came apart easily). The bread was okay, but the crust was rather hard.
I ordered the Chicken Portabello, a dish with chicken breasts, portabello mushrooms in a gravy on top with a chopped salad on top. I have to say the chicken was very delicious. It was almost *too* salty, but the salad mitigated that a lot. The mushrooms were wonderfully meaty and juicy, so I appreciated that.
I tried my girlfriend’s fish dish (with a tomato sauce on top) and it was «okay», not particularly flavorful at all. The spinach rice was alright as well, but again, not particularly flavorful.
At the end of dinner, you’re given a small piece of cake (which was amazing) and a honey wine (absolutely delicious!). I hate to say it, but this was actually the highlight of the meal.
I wouldn’t run away screaming from Nikos if offered a meal there, but nor will I be going out of my way to visit again. The prices are a bit high for what we got in my opinion and the food didn’t taste so good that I was left wanting more. An okay place, but nothing to go crazy over.

Upon entering, we were greeted with a friendly staff waiter who invited us to sit anywhere we pleased. The menu is huge and sort of confusing (since there are multiple loose appendices for Mezedes [appetizers], specials, and wine).
We started with the Gorgonzola Garlic Bread and never turned around.
What do you expect when you order «garlic bread with melted gorgonzola?» Well, we expected a few slices of toasted bread with some olive oil, garlic, and melted crumbled gorgonzola. WRONG! What you get is an entire loaf cut in half and sliced horizontally, infused with butter and garlic… ON TOP OF A POOL of melted gorgonzola. Not a puddle, not splash tub, a pool.
The bread was so good, we drenched it in gorgonzola and gobbled it up immediately. We saved the remains of the pool (now reduced to a splash tub) and proceeded to drench everything else we ordered in said gorgonzola.
We ordered a bunch of Mezedes, but what stood out for us, if only because they went well with the gorgonzola, were the Bacalao Croquettes (codfish) and the Souvli (pit-​roasted pork). Okay, they’re good on their own too… but they’re particularly good with the cheese. The croquettes were crunchy and full of flavor, the Souvli was juicy and savory, cooked just right over the flame.
Meh-​worthy were the Fennel Sausages. They tasted like thinly sliced Italian sausages from Pathmark. Nothing spectacular.
In summation, great Greek Food, amazing service!
One big recommendation.

Best french toast ever!
Four stars for what we got, and for what it is, and for how cheap it is; not to be confused with the 4 stars I gave Dumont. If you want hipstery «New American», this is not the place to come, the same way you would not go to a diner and try to order sushi. You’ve got to judge a place based on how well they do what they do, and how many dollars you have to lay out to enjoy them doing what they do.
This place operates in the oldschool (a.k.a. Julia Childs’ «MORE BUTTER» philosophy) style of tasty foods. Example: my dining companion ordered a grilled salmon sandwich, which I’d typically count on to be a relatively healthy meal option. The sandwich consisted of a halved fresh baguette that had been slathered in butter, garlic, and herbs, with a peice of salmon in between. Essentially garlic bread with salmon; the plate also came with a few bites of slaw, some lettuce, and a pile of shoestring fries. Delicious! When its that tasty, no one remembers to be concerned that it isn’t healthy.
I ordered what may have been the best french toast I’ve ever had, if you’re down with deep-​fried breakfast. It was two thick slices of bread, coated in corn flakes and nuts, then deep fried. Served with a tiny slice of orange and a gravy boat of syrup. Tasted like being at the fair! We discussed that in the future we could get something healthier for the meal and split the french toast as dessert amongst 4 people, and I pretended to agree. (Like I’d share all that deliciousness!)
On top of all that, coffee was only $ 1.50 for a bottomless cup and my french toast was only $ 5.50.

A– food
A+ service
B cleanliness (dirty silverware)
Definitely recommend it. If you’re a couple, get a salad each (delicious, all of them) and split an entrée.
Fish stew was fantastic.

We were heartbroken when we stopped by Blondie’s for some wings, only to find they’ve temporarily closed.* We thought about going to Big Nick’s, when I remembered Nick also owns Niko’s. We headed over expecting great Greek food, and Niko delivered! I had the grilled calamari and The Man had the Greek salad with tuna. My calamari was very flavorful and tender, not gummy or chewy. It came with a delicious little pile of spinach rice. The Man’s salad looked very colorful, fresh and delicious. I didn’t taste it, so I can’t speak to the flavors, but I think I might try it next time. Because there will definitely be a next time.
*Apparently, they had tax issues — nothing health department-​related, thank goodness!

Came here for lunch with a friend and ordered lamb kabobs. They were delicious, as was the hummus, and our waiter was very prompt with refilling our water glasses. The décor inside is kitschy, but homey, and the staff is very friendly.
I want to come back and try their wine pairing dinner special– $ 35 for 7 courses and wine with each course? Sounds great!

I am vegan and finding something to eat can be hard, so I went here based on recommendations of my SFBayAreaVeg Yahoo Group and was somewhat pleased. It was also two blocks from my hotel. However, I did not find the menu that vegan friendly. The bruschetta has butter, there are lots of cheese dishes that cannot be made vegan and what disappointed me most was that there were no falafals. :o (However, the dolmas were DELICIOUS and the pasta marinara with veggies was good. They were very accommodating to the best of their ability however, which is a HUGE plus!
Alos, the little room off to the side with a window wall was very charming.

My man took me here one quiet Sunday night and already by its not too shabby interior I already knew I was gonna like it. This is a great hole in the wall where u can just enjoy authentic Greek dishes without all the bells and whistles. I am not too versed on Greek dishes so my boyfriend did the ordering. We had the grilled octopus, sakanagi?, and we shared the whole red snapper fish. I don’t normally eat fish but this was very delicious.
I will be back to try out the other dishes…

Start your weekend meal off with champagne. Then order the Pikilia
Pikilia means «selection» or «variety» and refers to a combination like this: Tsatsiki, Greek eggplant salad, octopus pieces, and whipped caviar. Oven toasted pita. Oven roasted beet, and skordalia — a potato garlic dip. Oooooohhhhh, boy!!!