3 Kai O Koukos — Restaurant in Nicosia

3 Kai O Koukos is a cautionary tale. Like Icarus, the owner flew too close to the sun. As a result, his reputation crashed and burned this past year.

The food at this restaurant is exceptional. I have zero negative things to say about it. In fact, I can’t praise it enough.

The service and attitude of the owner is what ultimately leaves a sour taste.

It all starts when you call to make a reservation. One of two things are going to happen: 1) either the owner answers on top of mount Everest during a blizzard on speaker or 2) the owner answers in a way which makes you feel you just woke him up. Both make it difficult to communicate.

The second problem usually occurs on a busy night when you are ready to give your order. For some reason only the owner can take your order if it includes a specialty (like a steak). You might know exactly what you need: zucchini balls, tahini, 700g Argentinian picanha and some extra pitas. Irrelevant. No one but the owner can take your order. As a result, you might wait up to 15 minutes until your table’s turn comes. On busy nights, this is annoying and just plain bad service.

Third, the owner argues over portion sizes. One night, we were a table of 12. We ordered meze for 10 and around 1500g of combined picanha— “normal” and wagyu. The bulk of the steak would go to me and my girlfriend—because we specifically go there for that—and the rest would serve as another meze dish for the rest. We were arguing for 5 minutes to convince him to go through with the order. He insisted it was too much which is a valid concern but he was very condescending about it. The meat ended up being just enough by the way. On another occasion I wanted extra pitas for my tahini. The pitas in this place are otherworldy and I know for a fact that the first portion they always bring gets devoured immediately. As a recurring customer, I know this and I prepare for it by ordering extra pitas in the initial order so that I don’t have to wait for extra time to order again. He refused. He only brought the initial portion. As expected, I had to tell someone again and I had to wait again. Like, dude, just bring me what I want and charge me for it. Why do you have to micromanage every single thing in such an arrogant manner?

Sometimes you want to go somewhere and feel welcome. When we visit 3 Kai O Koukos we feel like the owner is doing us a favour instead of...

3 Je o Koukos offers a solid dining experience with a few standout dishes and some minor drawbacks. The atmosphere is okay—nothing particularly special—but it’s a comfortable place to enjoy a meal. The service was also fine, though the waiter who took our order came off as a bit rude, which wasn’t the best start.

One thing I really liked about the menu is the great variety of choices and the ability to create your own meze, which adds a nice personal touch to the dining experience. The food arrived relatively quickly, which was appreciated.

Starting with the salad, it was fresh and refreshing. From the starters, the pitta bread was warm and soft, pairing perfectly with the tzatziki and tyrokafteri, both of which were absolutely delicious. The zucchini balls were decent, though I’ve had better, and the pitta with halloumi was a bit of a letdown. However, the sausage and pastourmas were fantastic—full of flavor and cooked perfectly. One of the highlights was the feta wrapped in crispy filo pastry with honey; it was simply delicious. The French fries were another plus—served in a huge portion and pairing perfectly with the warm bougiourdi, which was a comforting mix of feta, peppers, and olive oil.

Moving on to the meats, the grilled chicken thigh stood out—it was perfectly cooked, tender, and full of flavor. The souvlaki and sheftalia were also excellent—super juicy and well-seasoned. The small beef patties turned out to be one of the table’s favorites, while the wagyu kebab was another highlight, packed with spices and flavor. Overall, the quality of the meats was top-notch, which was a pleasant surprise.

To end the meal, we were served traditional Cypriot desserts like ravani and mahhallepi with ice cream, which was the perfect sweet touch to wrap up the evening.

Overall, we were quite satisfied with the food. There were a few misses, but the biggest downside, in my opinion, was the high prices. While the portions were generous, I felt the meats could have been a bit more affordable. That said, if you’re a meat lover and enjoy traditional Cypriot meze with a modern twist, 3 Je o Koukos is a...

Found out about this place by accident and thought of trying it out. The setting makes you feel like you’re at the backyard of a house. Decor a weird mix and match and chairs uncomfortable for long sitting. Part of the outdoor sitting is on a busy road so be prepared for the noise and the smell of car exhaust. On to the menu, nothing set on paper and so no price tags known to the client beforehand. The service polite, will let you know of what’s cooking and what’s on the grill; special cuts from Argentina, Spain and New Zealand and then the “local” mezze. We went for the latter and I left unimpressed. Among the little plates that came in an almost constant flow, I distinguished the fava, the tahini, the zucchini fried balls, the hand-cut chips, the sausage and the chicken pieces. I was disappointed by the pork spare ribs that were 5 pieces with barely any meat on the bone, the pork souvlaki that was more charred for my taste, the “flogeres” (deep fried rolled filo with feta) that had way too much honey drizzled on, the “tyrokafteri” that was watered down and the tasteless tomatoes in the salad. We accompanied our dinner with 3 beers (of 330ml). A complimentary little dessert concluded the outing on a sweet note. We were charged €17 p.p and paid a total of €46 for 2, way too overpriced for what we ‘ve had. Overall, the equation of quality, quantity and price shifts the balance towards “been there once and...