Yiamas Greek Taverna — Restaurant in Courtenay

I seen so many great reviews I was hopeful...we ordered the appie sampler platter it was delicious . I don't eat calamari and there was a lot of it my partner said it was great . There was 2 of all other items . The dolmades were very meaty the lemon sauce perfection . The spanokipita very thick. I loved the taziki dip very fresh and smooth. We added a humus dip also tasted fresh . Everything was bigger than most ive had at greek restaurants. Wish now we stopped there . The service was great all night except they didn't deal with our issue other than to mention it to the cook who disagreed . The portions were large on everything . The prices are fair when you see amounts . The main dishes are on large plates . There was the most beautiful carrots beautiful color so big they were cooked to perfect texture took a bite of whole one ...should spit it out my partner did . It was moldy tasting . I love herbs on my food . I'm not sure if some how there was a moldy carrot or the spices were off .cook did confirm they used a dry spice and I could see how it could happen . But no alternate veggie offered or fresh batch of carrots that taste good offered . Than I got hits of it in my stuffed chicken which otherwise was very lovely flavor, so I do think it was the thyme. At first I was doubting my taste buds with chicken but about halfway thru it happened with a whole bite . I didn't bother to complain again as it hadn't been dealt with in carrots . Just a lesson learned everything else tasted great . My partners soulvalki meal was otherwise delicious Again the servers were very diligent. No one else seemed to be spitting out their carrots I'm not sure how it could have been just our order . I will dream of the appy platter but we probably won't go back . Also it might be helpful to just hang bathroom key on the wall inside restaurant nwar the lobby door so you don't have to track...

I came here for a company holiday party and this place was wonderful.

The food was amazing. We were served hummus, olive pate, and spinach dip with two kinds of pita, which were all great. Most spinach dips are kind of runny, but this one was good and thick. Next we were on to calamari. Perfectly cooked. I should not have filled up so much at this part of the meal. We got Greek salad and Caesar salad, and the biggest thing I can mention about them is how nice it was that the onion was cut to a good size, not the huge cubes that a lot of places do. Then the entree: roasted potatoes, carrots, and beets that were maybe the best I've ever had of any of those things, with prawns (perfect), chicken (I don't eat chicken so no review about that), and spanakopita, which was also amazing. There were two desserts that I never caught the names of. They were awesome, but I want in much of an eating mood by the time they came out after hummus, pate, spinach dip, pita, calamari, salad, roasted vegetables, prawns, and spanakopita.

The staff was wonderful too. I believe we met almost the whole team at some point, even the cook poked his head out of the kitchen to receive a round of applause. They were all polite and smiling and really nice, but didn't hang out too long at the tables. Great service too.

I don't think I have a negative thing to say. There were a couple in our group with some dietary restrictions, myself included, but every dish came with a summary of what could and couldn't be eaten ("this is dairy", "this is vegetarian"). I think I even remember seeing a special option come out of the kitchen for a person with some more restrictive requirements.

Overall, a really great time and a really great restaurant. I'll be looking for an...

Glad that we found this place in Courtney. We were greeted and welcomed. Staff were very good and attentive. The restaurant was clean, had lovely music playing and lots of space. We ordered our food from a very well balanced menu. It was not too extensive, which is wonderful. We started with the saganaki, the cheese was very good quality. It was served with pita, which tasted nice. The cheese, unfortunately, was absolutely soaked in lemon juice. I couldn't eat it it was so absorbed. I had ordered the lamb chops and my husband ordered the back ribs they were both delicious meats, tender and seasoned properly. The side dishes however left a lot to be desired. The vegetables were dry and over cooked, the rice was basmati, very little veg and not cooked as a pilaf. The potatoes tasted awful and were inedible, they too had too much lemon juice! We do like lemon and love Greek potatoes, but this was over the top! The kitchen needs to tone back on the lemon juice. Prices were on the higher side, but not bad in comparison to other places. Because of the good service, atmosphere of the restaurant, and the delicious protein, we will give it another try. I do recommend trying it. Hopefully the lemon overdose was a fluke and a...