Restaurant Nikas — Restaurant in Montreal

This place far surpassed my expectations. (Skip to the end if you just want to know why, keep reading if you want a summary of my experience)

I came here alone in the evening, with a book. There was only one couple there who had yet to eat, but several tables were just heading out. The single waitress was rather busily running around, clearing tables and working the cash for pickup orders. Despite seeming overworked, she still managed to be quick, kind, and respectful not to interrupt my reading. She did forget to bring utensils with the main course but the chef had called her over so I just grabbed a set from the next table (no problem there).

I got the meal of the day, which was a sole fillet with 3 shrimps on rice, accompanied by a choices of both potatoes and salad. It also came with bread and soup to start, and a choice of coffee or desert to finish. I took the Greek potatoes and the Greek salad, and opted for coffee afterwards, considering I was completely full by the end of my meal. The whole thing was priced and just under 20$ and I must say it was well worth it.

The food came out very quickly, and though the soup and bread were simply okay, they served their purpose of whetting my appetite. The main course was a very full plate, and the presentation (which is usually of little importance to me) was simple and pleasant. The fish was very thinlly battered, not too oily, and was evenly cooked throughout. It was done perfectly to my taste: it was wonderfully soft, and would loosely fall apart if you were to poke it with a fork. It just melted in your mouth, without being too gooey or soggy. It was light and fluffy all over and the batter, herbs, and spices were very subtle, and allowed for the light flavor of the fish to stay present. Overall it was overwhelmingly pleasant, and the best that one could want of a fillet of sole from anywhere other than perhaps Dover. The potatoes underneath the fish went with it incredibly well, being perfectly tender, and having just the right about of oil and herbs. This part of the meal alone was a perfect combination of textures and flavors that I would have happily payed the 20$ for all on its own.

The butterflied shrimps were also cooked to my taste, remaining flavorful and soft and with most of the shell still attached. They were stuffed with a delicious, yet subtle spice blend, which went very well with everything else on the plate. The salad and rice (though a tad oily for my taste) fit the seafood just right, and were quite enjoyable alongside everything else. The feta was good, the veggies were fresh, and the rice was (like the rest of the meal) cooked to just the right texture. I must also comment that the olives in the Greek salad (though there were only two) were particularly delicious, and perfect to finish the meal with.

When I was done, I was too full for desert, so I just went for the coffee that was included in my meal. It was not very strong, yet not offensively bland either. As I sipped from the generic white mug I began taking in the decor. Though it is dated, (as could be guessed from the exterior) and a bit kitschy, it was perfectly comfortable, well laid out, and confusingly quaint. It wasn't too noisy from the busy street just outside, and the giant windows looking out onto Sherbrooke provided a nice open feeling and a good view of the world passing by.

Although everything around the main course was exactly what I had expected, (and wanted) from my experience at this restaurant, the fish and shrimps were cooked so perfectly, and the potatoes, salad, and rice that accompanied them meshed so well with them, that I will certainly be going back to try their salmon fillet.

If you are looking for a place that will fill you up with large portions and that has a chef who really knows how to cook a piece of fish, then look no further. For around 20$ before tip, I had an incredibly good meal. However, I do hope they have more than a single waitress when the place is busier, because they was being kept very busy running the whole front of...

Nikas dishes out great food when it wants to. It is our order out place usually for Greek fare or other. Lately their consistency in providing this has not been met with positive results. It is one of the few local Greek restaurants that offers Moussaka on its menu (it is usually a hit). However lately its like receiving prison food. It is just slapped on and next(keep the line moving). Our last order only included potatoes and no rice. Usually includes both. Additional , I would not suggest their Pizza. Leave that to a seasoned Pizzeria Place. Although the ingredients are fresh there oven needs to be more regulated. On several occasions their dough was always left raw. Its a bummer when I must re-oven it so that the Crust gets thoroughly cooked through. On one occasion I even indicated that I would like the crust cooked through on the online order,(request not respected). Other elements of the menu (chicken souvlaki pita, salads, etc.) are always well prepared. I gave them 3 stars because I realize that the Pandemic as had on impact on Restaurants with staffing and supply, and therefore not totally Restaurant owners fault for this. Its not all negative;:However, with all the restaurants out there we may skip NIKAS and try our luck on a newbie in the neighborhood who provides same type of menu at fair...

Great food for take out or delivery. Normally the waitstaff has been great however in our most recent visit the waitress did not handle dirty dishes very well. She had this tendency to dump them with the other dishes and it made a lot of noise and seemed to disturb everybody in the restaurant. A more important thing however was the behavior of a customer at the time we were there. It seemed that when the customer returned from having a smoke at the doorstep of the restaurant and was asked by a customer to wear her mask when walking to the restaurant. Her response was vulgar so much so that the new customers were very upset. The waitress did nothing to about this and continued to sit with her and chat. I think the other thing that was disturbing is that this customer made it clear that she did not believe in vaccination and here she was walking around and chatting with the waitress and touching various things including the table. Final note concerning covid-19 although the tables may be wiped between customers it was the same rag that was used so that defeats the purpose of having clean tables doesn't it. For the time being we'll stay away and I think some of my friends will as well as I tell them about...