The Hellenic Eatery — Restaurant in Great Britain

I’ve been a long-time customer of The Hellenic Eatery, and while I still enjoy visiting, I’ve noticed some changes on my recent visits that weren’t necessarily for the better.

On one occasion, the restaurant was playing non-Greek music, which took away from the authentic atmosphere. Part of the charm used to be the cultural touches — like the TV showcasing Greek places and traditions — which really reinforced the experience of “being in Greece” while dining. Unfortunately, those elements seem to be missing now.

Service-wise, the staff appeared to be short-handed. Both times I visited recently, the restaurant was busy, and we experienced long waits for starters and mains. Even after asking for the bill, it took around 10 minutes for someone to bring over the card machine.

In terms of food, I did notice some differences in preparation. For example, the htapodi with hummus and the tirokafteri had a lot of oil added on top. The oil sat heavily on the dishes and overpowered their flavors, which was a shame as the ingredients themselves are good quality. Also, the tables near the entrance can get uncomfortably cold at night when the door opens frequently.

That being said, there are still positives. The staff remain very knowledgeable about the food, happily explaining how dishes are made and what ingredients they use. The overall atmosphere is still pleasant and welcoming — though it could be improved by bringing back some of the authentic Greek touches that made it so...

I am visiting from Liverpool and found this place by chance for a pre-theatre dinner. I'm now very sad it is 200 miles away from where I live because the cooking is just lovely! I had their rabbit stifado special (£19.50) and it was one of those dishes which, even as a keen cook, makes you want to hang up your pots and pans because you know you'll never be able make something that delicious. It even had kidneys and livers, and whole juniper berries. My mother-in-law had moussaka; the white sauce was velvety and creamy flavoured with lovely levels of spice. My partner had chicken spits; the chicken was tasty, with a beautiful char, and the pitta was soft, moist, and clearly homemade. The aubergine salad starter was also beautiful. Simple, fresh, tasty, and so much more than the sum of it's parts. Tiny wine list (one of each colour) but we had a bottle of white (£23) and it was delicious and all you would ever need. Service was warm and friendly, and as we didn't have time for desert, they gave us a quick free dish of dough balls, honey, and cinnamons to share quickly, which was delightful. I hope to get back there before I leave on Monday to try their beef stifado with greek pasta. If you are in the area and what something genuinely proper to eat, you would mad to...

Been wanting to come here for age and finally got a chance. Was a last minute booking and luckily they were able to accommodate us, but be warned we were lucky. Do book in advance! Very cosy, homely feel to the place. Great for date nights. Had the hellenic feta and dolmades for starters. Came out pretty quick, bursting with flavour! I'm not usually a feta lover but the hellenic feta starter made me doubt myself. Dolmades were lovely with the Greek yogurt. For mains we shared a vegetarian platter for 2. Comes with a whole host items. Olives, butter bean stew type of thing, hummus, salad, veggie skewers, halloumi, veggie patties, dolmades, chips and pitta bread. We ordered a side of 2 dips too. Bar the aubergine (neither of us like aubergine in general) on the skewer, everything else was finished. Each mouthful full of flavour and texture. So much so we didn't have any room for deserts (another reason to go back to try some). Would highly recommend this place and book...