Urban Greek Restaurant — Restaurant in Hobart

Greek Gem So I thought we were spending last week in Tassie for Wineglass Bay and MONA. Turns out the real reason was to discover Urban Greek at 103 Murray Street in Hobart. This is a fabulous restaurant with good food and a great vibe to it.

When dining with the Greeks it should be fun, relaxed and a genuinely happy atmosphere. That is exactly what Urban Greek provided. We felt welcome, were well looked after, fed and watered. What more could you want.

Dinner was five smaller dishes shared and started with the house Taramas (White Cod's Roe) dip and pita bread. Now the pita bread was something special, which is strange to say, because it's only pita bread. However, this was really really good.

The came the special with seared prawns, taramas, diced tomato and pickled cucumber. So succulent, the prawns were fantastic.

Of course there was saganaki with a homemade fig jam just perfectly cooked. The Tirokroketes (cheese croquettes) were extra good as you could genuinely taste the three different types of cheese that make them so yummy. Finishing off was the Hortopita, silverbeet, leeks, fennel, baby spinach & onion sautéed in olive oil & herbs then baked in filo pastry. served with house made cheese blend & mixed leaves.

Dinner was so good we made room for desserts with a house made Strawberry Sorbet my partner's choice and I opted for the Galactoboureko, a creamy custard in Filo pastry, coated with a clear, raw sugar syrup and served with a citrus crumble, patisserie cream and mixed berry sauce. Of course that came with the obligatory Greek coffee.

The evening finished with great conversation with the team and a shot of Mastika to celebrate a wonderful night.

Definitely going back next time I am down that way because I want to try some of the vintage plates or a banquet. Locals should make a...

Intensely flavoursome food that is both filling and immensely satisfying. My table shared an entree of a trio of dips (fava, cretan hommus and tirokafteri) with delicious flatbread, and as a main I ordered the Cretan Style mixed meat (lamb and chicken). Portion sizes were generous and some of our table members were permitted to take leftovers home. The only difficulty we encountered was selecting which dinner items to order, as the menu avoids bloat by only including stellar food choice.

Whilst this food could easily have been a highlight, what stood out most to us was the exceptional service. When booking the tables, we notified them of allergies that our group had. The staff serving us had memorised these allergies and always made sure to communicate to us which menu items would be safely edible. My main is usually served with tzatziki and I'm lactose intolerant, so I asked the staff whether I could have another dip with my main. Not only was this request graciously met, but staff gave suggestions in a personable and friendly manner.

The environment had an air of ambience to it, with the lighting being enough to provide suitable visibility but dim enough to sustain the cosy atmosphere. Music was played at a comfortable volume so as to not interfere on conversations, and the music selection helped compliment the Greek aesthetic. This aesthetic was achieved through numerous decorative nods to ancient Greek thinkers and warriors. It's cosy and like being spirited away to a warmer part of the world as we feasted like Kings of ancient Greece.

Lastly, they followed Covid protocols in a non obtrusive manner, with bookings being given two hour time slots and the tables being spaced a comfortable distance apart.

I look forward to visiting Urban...

SUMMATION: if you want to get sloshed at a reasonable price and leave with a full belly, this is your joint. If you’re serious about your food, avoid this absurdly overrated restaurant.

More: Friendly staff and low priced wines. However, the food, other than the tzatziki and the tarama, is ridiculous. My partner had a tuna tartare served on a bed of steamed silver beet - think about that for a moment. The chef must have realised that the dish lacked texture so finished it with a sprinkling of whole pistachios - what it lacked in flavour and texture it also lacked in subtlety.

I had my suspicions as soon as we entered as the restaurant has the appeal of a brightly lit canteen. Looking around, I noticed the tables were littered with cocktails accompanying main courses. Think Club Med but without the thrill of the wide open seas and hordes of inebriated singles. So, I thought it best to stick to the basics and ordered moussaka for my main. Even this was a fail. On the plate it was a giant white mound of bechamel (which the menu declared as “house made” - not from a can, people!) which covered an under-seasoned, undercooked concoction of a beef mince sauce and zucchini - no eggplant, no potato. This was garnished with limp parsley and a purple flower that may have been fresh and pretty a day earlier.

On leaving the head waiter, in a jovial display of (Cretan?) hospitality put his hands to his belly, play-acting a long lost relative who’d been force-fed by a doting yaya and, leaning back with a smile, his belly distended, said “full?”, correctly identifying that portion size is the menu’s primary offering. But since we weren’t tempted to finish the mains, we left...