Pallas Athena Greek Kousina — Restaurant in Port Coquitlam

First the good. It was a Sunday evening and my wife and I were really looking forward to Greek. Our go-to spot wasn't open, so we called around. Pallas Athena, which we hadn't ever tried, was open but fully booked with large groups. But because we were just two they said they'd find a way to fit us in. Great! When we arrived the staff were welcoming and gracious. Another good sign. While I considered going with my usual Greek favourite, roast lamb, we both decided to order my wife's favourite, moussaka, which the menu unabashedly touted as a specialty of the place that we'd be sure to want more of. First came the Greek salad, included with the entree but served separately as a starter. It looked good and didn't fail to please, sprinkled as it was with lots of tasty feta and decent portions of green peppers, cucumber, onion and just the right amount of vinaigrette. The pita bread was lame, however (some kind of puffed bread with no substance to it), and I've never quite figured out why Greek restaurants, at least in our part of the world, almost always serve their salad with but one solitary specimen of their cuisine's crown jewel, the kalamata olive. At least this one wasn't from a can. As for the entree, while the ample portion of perfectly cooked green beens was a nice touch (some Greek restaurants don't serve any cooked side vegetable with moussaka) and the rice pilaf passed muster, the Greek potato wasn't among the best we'd ever had. And the moussaka? I managed to pick my way through about half of it before deciding I'd suffered enough. It was like no moussaka we'd experienced. A puffy, flavourless oddity that, while it did contain a thin layer of meat and some egg plant sandwiched between appropriately nondescript potato, it looked, felt and tasted like it was something out of a grocery's frozen food section. It might appeal to some, but in our opinion the roast lamb, or for that matter probably almost anything else on the menu, is...

Love the food at this place but my husband won't go back after a horrible take out experience. He arrived when they said he should and he still had to wait an hour. After 20 mins they said it would be right out and he waited another 20 mins before asking again. After 40 mins they said oh yours was there the whole time but now it's cold so we will make another. One hour later it's ready, no apology, no discount, he's sworn it off forever .

Update may 10, 2021 Dropped the star rating. Had Pallas Athena for takeout for mother's day and I feel like our journey here is done. Please recommend your favorite Greek places.

We have supported them for years but every meal just keeps getting worse and my husband is just down with them. Tonight,my friend stated their souvlaki didn't even taste marinated, it tasted like dry grilled chicken with oregano. I can confirm The rice was undercooked and bland, the potato wasn't as delectable as it was in days past. The Greek salad was just olive oil, no acid at all. I had to add salt and lemon juice to the meal which I've never had to do. Also, their menu prices online aren't accurate. It states 17.50 for their souvlaki on one area, 18.50 on another and they charged $20.50 per meal today 😒. This picture is the one my friend has which was a full meal minus 1...

I love Greek food, but this has truly been a terrible and disappointing experience. My girlfriend and I arrived for a date night to this restaurant. Since we walked in the door we felt like we were being ignored by the staff. The hostess, after acknowledging us, proceeded to spend multiple minutes in the phone answering calls. After completing multiple calls, she proceeded to lead us to our seats. After sitting down, it look over 10 minutes for any of the servers to notice us and actually ask for our drinks. After taking our drink request, it took another 10 minutes for the drinks to arrive and for the server to actually ask for what we would like to eat. After taking our order, we couldn’t have a proper conversation since it was too loud to hear one another. During our 40 minute wait for the food, we were given pita bread exactly once, with no offers for refills (while other parties had their bread refilled multiple times). I got fed up and waved down one of the servers and asked for a refill, which unfortunately never arrived. The food was edible but definitely not worth the price. Also, THEY CHARGED US FOR DRINK (ICE TEA) REFILL. Overall, I will never go back there ever again. I have never been closer to just standing up and walking away as I have felt like doing during this experience....