Loulaki — Restaurant in Queensland

On an extremely cold winter midweek night, we decided to give this relatively new restaurant a try at the suggestion of some local friends. We were a party of four, three carnivores and a vegetarian. Pushing open the extremely large and heavy timber entry door revealed an inviting industrial-chic décor. The wait-staff were friendly and very attentive and promptly showed us to our seats – we were early diners and there were only two other patrons when we arrived, although the restaurant soon filled up. The menu is designed to be share-plates with plenty of interesting selections. Gluten free pita bread is ubiquitous and there are lots of vegetarian options. We began with a couple of selections from the starters: a small bowl of Smoked Olives and Cherry Tomato Pickle, and the Melitzanosalata (Charcoal Smoked Eggplant & Capsicum Dip). At the suggestion of the staff, we also ordered extra pita. The olives were nice and smoky and the eggplant dip was excellent. The pita bread was fresh and soft. A serve of Cheese Saganaki (Pan Fried Greek Kefolagraviera Cheese, Lemon Thyme Honey) materialised and, while none of us could remember ordering it, was superb. It was served as a single piece in a sizzling hot pan, which made it awkward to divide amongst us, but it was quickly devoured and was the stand-out dish for the vegetarian. For the mains, we had ordered Tiger Prawns (Local Prawns with Ladolemono Sauce), Lamb Ribs (Twice cooked lamb ribs finished off on charcoal, Zucchini Smash, Green Greek Salsa) and Charcoal Grilled Vegetable Skewers (with Tzatziki, Sumac Onions, Charred Banana Pepper, Soft Herbs, Pita). The three large prawns were perfectly cooked and the lamb ribs moist and tender. The accompanying sauces and salsa were also great. The carnivores declared the lamb to be their favourite of the night. A serve of Lemon Patatas (Thrice cooked Greek Lemon Potatoes) that we had ordered arrived finally arrived – heavily salted thick wedges with a tart lemon finish. The prawns and lamb had almost been finished off, but the vegetable skewers had not yet arrived and a query with the waitstaff saw a request sent to the kitchen for a status. When they eventually were served, it wasn’t worth the wait. No skewers, just a small handful of limp vegetables served up on a pita bread – the onions were basically raw. No taste of charcoal at all. There was one lone tiny mushroom, but it wasn’t clear if its presence was by accident or design. All in all, a culinary embarrassment that should never have left the kitchen. There is an interesting wine, beer and cocktail list, including non-alcoholic cocktails. One of the beers we tried to order was unavailable (a pet peeve of mine to be told something is unavailable only after it has been ordered). The food prices are fairly steep for the size of the serves, so it’s debatable whether the restaurant offers value for money. A high surcharge for using a standard credit card also stings. It’s great to see a venue of this type in Toowoomba and hopefully it will settle...

This restaurant has filled a gap in the Toowoomba dining scene - upmarket without being pretentious. The brigade in the kitchen was absolutely exceptional tonight.

Simple to book online, it appears there are two seatings per evening. Walking through the (impressively oversized) door, we were effortlessly seated. Large drinks menu with great variety. My wife opted for a pineapple martini whilst I chose a dry Greek red.

Our waiter was highly attentive with a service level rare for hospitality in Toowoomba. He suggested we start with a pita, then a few meze and a couple of charcoal dishes. As the menu online is a sample only - some options were different to what was actually on offer. This has the benefit of keeping the menu seasonal and interesting.

In order of appearance - starting with the Melitzanosalata. Very refreshing but also a very generous serve requiring more pita (available as an option). Cheese saganaki was next to arrive - sweet and salty with a beautiful textural contrast from the crust.

Next was a mushroom meze (not on the sample menu) served with bread and the combination of herbs worked incredibly well (mint, dill and continental parsley from the appearance). A meatball meze arrived next - I loved the presentation with the peppers on top.

For the charcoal dishes we had lamb ribs and chicken souvlaki. There would have been two full racks of ribs there - they appeared to have been braised then finished on charcoal - with crispy skin! My wife was smitten with the souvlaki - tender, moist with a beautiful smoky flavour and neatly presented.

By this point we were rather full - and the fries arrived. The Graviera cheese provided a salty accent and was layered throughout the fries without melting entirely - big tick there for technique. We did end up taking most of these home along with some souvlaki.

Dessert was a promotional soft serve (for the Carnival of Flowers) topped with pistachio and a filo wafer - the components all worked with each other harmoniously - I didn't think soft serve could be this complex.

The atmosphere is a combination of soft (lighting) and industrial (ceiling) - it just works. As mentioned earlier the kitchen was absolutely amazing in their service speed and careful presentation - delightful to experience.

This isn't a cheap eat by any means - but absolutely worth your time and money. We will...

I cannot give any stars to this place. We plan for dinner with friends/family, we look forward to relaxing, enjoying the meal, the ambience, and great customer service.

Unfortunately, this restaurant was overpriced for what it offered. Despite claims of large portion sizes, this was not the case. The customer service was disappointing; the waitstaff seemed unaware of what was going on, and they were serving and simply left the dishes on the table for us to figure out whose meal was whose. To top it off, I had to tally up my bill at the counter to make a payment. Have you ever heard of having to calculate your own meal cost and inform the restaurant of the amount to charge?

We (5 people out of 10) had to check on our order four times, only to receive cold and raw meals after an hour's delay, while others at our table were served. The waitstaff made casual chat and blamed the kitchen and printer for the delays, but it was clear they were not making an effort to get the order right. The printer issue seemed to occur only at our table. Neither did the wait staff checked on us to see if the meals arrived after consecutive delays and misplacement of orders. It was after the 4th check that we said let's cancel the order, and she got the note/pen to only rewrite our order. There was no apology for the delayed, cold and dry food, and we waited 45 minutes for a bottled apple juice. We arrived at the restaurant at 6 PM, ordered by 6:25pm and our meals were only served after four follow-ups at 7:45 PM.

This mess needed more than an apology, although no consideration was made.

I suggest others not to waste their time and hard-earned money at this place. They do not seem to care about their customers. The ambience and menu might entice you to give it a try, as we did, but we were left thoroughly disappointed with no remorse shown by the staff.

We understand that things can go wrong in any workplace, including restaurants, and sometimes patience is required, and we were. However, this experience was beyond acceptable. The restaurant is overpriced, the portion sizes are not as advertised, and the customer service is appalling. Having to calculate our own meal cost and inform the restaurant of the amount to charge is unheard of.

I hope this feedback helps others make the right decision, as you want a great memory of your experience and not...