Cylla — Restaurant in Birmingham

The anticipation for an afternoon treat for myself and my friends of Greek fine dining was palpable, and the initial moments did not disappoint especially as the restaurant had been open for 8 weeks. The restaurant's ambience was sophisticated yet welcoming, and the service from the moment we were seated was nothing short of exceptional. The staff were attentive, knowledgeable, and seemed to genuinely enjoy their work, setting a high standard for the afternoon and the meal ahead.

​Our meal began with a promising selection of starters that were truly the highlight of the experience. Each dish was a delicate and inventive take on classic Greek flavors, executed with clean lines in its presentation and flair. The textures were a mixed in their balance as the grilled octopus couldnt be faulted though the take on the tacos (Rhodian Pita) was hit and miss as too doughy, and the flavours were vibrant, leaving us a little apprehensive for what was to come.

Unfortunately, the main courses failed to live up to the start of our dining experience. The beef stifado which my two friends had, which was a dish they had been looking forward to, was overwhelmingly salty, masking the rich, complex flavours expected. While the beef itself was tender, the dish was simply not enjoyable due to the heavy hand with the salt and olive oil infusion - left one friend being reminded of a piece of gammon, much to the distaste of my other friend but it was fillet. It was sat on a bed of potato cream, which was more like semolina and the roasted heritage carrots were cremated and the tenderleaf sprouts were more charred than expected.

The lamb dish that I was fortunate to have in comparison was balanced and plentiful though more of it and less of its bed of accompanying buffalo trahana.

The "beef fat potato," which we had anticipated as a hearty, accompaniment due to the feedback from our enthusiastic waitress, presented itself more as an olive-based rosti, which was not what we were expecting or hoping for. It lacked the promised richness and felt disjointed from its description and imagery shared with us.

The cocktails that we tried were good - Freddo espresso was refreshing and great twist on a classic though the Hermes Highball - drink itself was good though a rectangle ice cube was unnecessary #LessIsMore and detracted from the overall enjoyment.

When we provided our feedback on the stifado, the service, which had been so flawless, faltered. The comments were received politely but without any real recognition of our disappointment. The response felt perfunctory, culminating in a similarly perfunctory offer of one free dessert to be shared among the three of us. For a restaurant of this calibre seeking to deliver fine dining with a Greek twist in a city where other culinary experiences are award winning (we enjoy great food in Birmingham), one would expect a more empathetic and proactive approach to rectify a genuine issue.

​In summary, this establishment has the potential to be truly great. The atmosphere, starters and the general service level are superb. However, the execution of the main dishes and the lack of genuine care when faced with negative feedback ultimately let the...

I wanted to try this place out of sheer curiosity and the positive reviews online however I was extremely underwhelmed and disappointed; to the point where I have now cancelled a future visit to this restaurant.

I would like to highlight that the front of house staff made the effort of kindly seating us without a reservation however compared to other restaurants on a weekend, I now see why it wasn’t an issue as there was hardly anyone dining here.

It felt like the service from there went downhill, with us waiting considerably longer to place the order than our food actually arriving which is not a great look.

After tasting the food, I now believe we were served scraps from the Sunday roast as the quality and taste of the food was diabolical. I have dined at Michelin* and fine-dining restaurants and never been served overcooked/burnt meat. The chef should be embarrassed serving that! There was no flavour, the lamb is described as thyme infused… well, where was it? Also, there’s no point me even talking about the sides as I can’t even put into words how plain and soulless they were.

I addressed this with one of your staff after they asked how the meal was, and to cut a long story short I was told Greek food is plain and we’ve only recently opened. That is not good enough! How many restaurants have recently opened? Also Greek food is not ‘plain’, please do not do a disservice to the Greek restaurants that know how to cook/infuse flavours into their carefully crafted dishes.

I’m sure this was discussed with the chef/main manager as when we received our bill - no service charge was present and rightfully so as I wouldn’t have agreed to paying for this.

I sincerely hope you take on this feedback and look to improve as it’s a beautiful setting and could have the potential but with other restaurants in the city that exceed expectations - I’m not sure whether Cylla will last long if they...

3.2 ⭐️ it has a lot of potential and is good but it has a few things holding them back being great (according to me). The food was really tasty for some items like the aubergine, tzatziki, bread but for some others like the pepper or mini moussaka, it was just good. The portions are quite small for the price (£10 for 2 peppers, £6.50 for tzatziki without the bread which is an additional £6.50). I appreciate that it’s imported from Greece and freshly made. The food also came quickly which is great. The place is gorgeous, it’s been thought very carefully up to the details like cutlery or music. The service, well, they were all friendly and welcoming but they lack cohesion. Someone came to check on us during the meal, then 2 minutes after someone else came with the same question.. they came so often, which was meant well but it was constant. Our waitress was cheerful but it felt like it was her first day. She didn’t know the menu items, we asked for the main menu and dessert menu and she only brought one of the two, they ran out of one the drinks and yet she put it on the bill… We only had mezzes and desserts and this already came up to over £40 per person, so you would need to count over £60 min to feel full with a main which I don’t think they can justify at the moment for the experience provided. I wouldn’t recommend the place to vegetarians or vegans as they didn’t have many options. Overall, it’s still a good place to go to but it’s a bit steep...