Kalua - Cocktails & Meze/Tapas Bar — Restaurant in Paphos Municipality

We had dinner at Kalua this evening. The atmosphere is very pleasant – everything is clean, modern, and there’s a subtle, refreshing scent in the air. The staff is attentive and efficient, although we would have appreciated a bit more warmth in their service.

The tapas concept is a charming idea, but unfortunately, the execution didn’t quite live up to expectations. All of our dishes were served at once and arrived only lukewarm. The food itself was generally good, though some dishes could have used a bit more seasoning, and the pork belly in particular was too dry.

When we tried to order additional items, we were politely informed that the kitchen was currently very busy and that it would take some time to prepare the next round. While we appreciated the honest communication, this approach doesn’t quite align with the idea of a flowing tapas experience.

We left only moderately full and had to find something else for our children afterward to ensure they didn’t go to bed hungry. The children’s pizza, priced at €8, seemed too small for what it offered.

The music was louder than we’d prefer for a relaxed dinner conversation, and one unfortunate moment came when our table began to be cleared while I was still eating – which gave the impression that our table was needed.

We also found it inappropriate, especially in today’s climate-conscious times, to see plastic straws still being used in drinks. We believe more sustainable alternatives should be standard.

On a positive note, our server did take the time to ask if we were satisfied, showing genuine interest, even though there wasn’t much he could change at that point.

Overall, Kalua is a nice restaurant with potential, and with a few adjustments, it could become a truly great experience. For now, we’re giving it 3...

I visited Kalua this evening with my family of 5 for dinner, with two coeliacs (gluten allergy) in our party. From arrival the experience wasn’t great - the server acted as though it was an inconvenience to pull up an extra chair as all the tables were set for 4 people. Following this, we queried whether the fries were gluten free as they were marked as so on the menu, and she replied ‘No idea’. She then said ‘I can check if you want’. The blasé attitude to allergies really took us aback. It turned out they were not coeliac safe as they are cooked in the same fryer as gluten-containing items. Between us we ordered the greek salad, meatballs, fried halloumi, lamb koftas, calamari and chicken skewers. Again, the halloumi was marked as gluten free on the menu, however on arrival we were concerned and it transpired that this was not gluten free either. The portions were small and the calamari in particular was very poor. Our server had mysteriously disappeared, and no-one offered us any further drinks despite our glasses all being empty or asked if our food was ok. At the end of the meal, we discussed with the server who brought our bill (not the original server) about the menu and the seriousness of marking allergens correctly. She proceeded to laugh and wave it off saying she’d pass the message on. We will not be returning and would recommend anyone with allergies does not either - in general the experience wasn’t great for the price even without this issue. The place next door (Fiesta) is under the same management so would assume the same...

Our decision to come here tonight was a bit of a whim, we were caught between a few places locally but eventually settled on Kalua and we are so glad we did!!! The food, atmosphere, and service here are AMAZING. We arrived at about 7.30pm and it was not too busy. We had the filo wrapped feta, grilled octopus, pork belly, corn ribs, breaded mushroom, garlic bread, and abondigas. We recommend all of it, it was all clearly fresh and hand made and full of flavour/texture. However, our favourite was definitely the corn ribs, we had to get a second dish of them because they were so good. Staff were very attentive coming round and filling up our water and clearing plates away quickly. The atmosphere is beautiful too, its a very aesthetic restaurant with a bit of a tiki vibe. The restaurant describes itself as laid back luxury and I would say the feel of the restaurant matches that exactly. The tapas style of eating is very sociable. This is easily one of my favourite meals we have had in Paphos this week. I also recommend the nonalcoholic cocktails, I got one which had berry and yoghurt and it was so tasty. Hoping to come back with more of the family another night! We paid the bill by card and felt really guilty when we realised we had no cash for a tip, as would have easily left a tip. We will just have to leave a bigger one next time. Thank you again to all the team, it really was an...