Taverna Zoe | Traditional Symiot Cuisine — Restaurant in Municipality of Symi

You can be sure you won’t leave this please hungry. We chose this place because it’s quite far away from the main streets and tourist restaurants in Symi and almost always it means that in such place the food has to be really good. And it was in Taverna Zoe! At only we came in everyone was so nice and welcomed us and we met Zoe in person. Zoe recommended us the best dishes from her menu and told us everything about the ingredients. She also served us the food in the apron, so it brings family atmosphere to this place. We are grateful for the hints because without her recommendations we would never order those dishes and it would be a pity because they were so so so good and delicious!! At first we wanted to order „regular” greek food such as souvlaki or greek salad but Zoe suggest us to order dishes from Symiot cuisine and we don’t regret at all. Moreover, she is so warm person that I would like to come back there sometimes and just sit and talk. I felt really good and...

Worth the hike-for a special lunch skip the predictable formulaic restaurants at the port and head into town to a special taverna-Zoe runs this place. She and her husband are up at 6am preparing all dishes from local ingredients and from scratch. You can taste the depth of homemade flavor. As the bbq wasn’t ready yet (I usually tend to grilled meat), we ordered the Symi salad (light lentils and dill salad), grannie’s dolmades (light and yummy with a creamy not-too-garlicky tzatziki). Octopus salad, Symi shrimp and fish cakes (made from local fish and very light). I’m reusing “light” many times here as all the food was so flavourful and not heavy. Perfect for a hot day. The setting is so sweet and Greek. A cool breeze on the covered rooftop dining room. Zoe makes you feel so welcome, it’s like going to your favourite aunt’s house. And a hug goodbye :) Sorry no pictures of the amazing food, we ate...

We visited Taverna Zoe after seeing all the glowing reviews and local recommendations, and while there were some highlights, overall the experience didn’t quite live up to the hype.

The keftethes were very tasty, and the Greek salad was fresh and well-prepared — definitely the standout dishes of our meal. Zoe herself came out to greet us, which was a warm and personal touch that we appreciated.

However, the rest of the food was fairly ordinary. The dolmades were especially disappointing — tiny, with barely any filling, and lacking in flavor. Service was another letdown: our waiter was curt and unfriendly, which took away from the relaxed island dining atmosphere we were hoping for.

While it’s clear that Zoe’s has a loyal following and some dishes that shine, our experience didn’t quite match the glowing praise. It was okay overall, but not somewhere we’d...