Elia — Restaurant in Pleasanton

I ordered the Keftedes (meatballs) first. They were rubbery and not very juicy and definitely under seasoned. I was expecting them to be really soft but they tasted more like frozen store bought meatballs.

I then asked the waiter to describe what Pikilia is. He said they were “kinda like flatbreads with pink sauce… awhhhh I don’t really know what it is..”. He then asked the other waiter passing by “Hey, you know the menu right? Can you describe what this dish is?” When you are working in a Mediterranean place, it’s impossible for someone to not know what a pita is. I really liked their warm and soft pitas so I asked the waiter if I could have a side of pitas for the dip. She said “Ohhh that’s going to take some time, do you want like a bread bowl instead?” I asked how much bread was there in the bread bowl, she didn’t bother to explain and said she will be back. 5 mins later, another waiter comes with a bowl of cold hard sourdough bread. She could have said that they don’t sell side of pitas, not like I was freeloading. After the cold bread, I didn’t feel the desire to order the entrees. So we left and went to another place few meters away to grab food for my husband. It was one of my worst recent experiences! I wouldn’t ever go back to this place..

Also, I haven’t had too much of authentic Greek food ever but as much as I love spices, I didn’t like getting huge chunks of anise in my mouth while having their dips. Nevertheless, the tzatziki was good but couldn’t make that cold bread taste better. Can’t really get over the fact that I got served cold bread in a fine dine Greek restaurant that could have served us warm pitas instead.

Do yourself a favor, skip this place and go to other Mediterranean places in downtown Pleasanton instead! Also, it’s definitely a $$$ place but not worth the experience.

Advice to management: please train your staff before asking them to attend to tables. They don’t even...

One of the worst experiences I have ever had at a restaurant. I had high hopes because this was recommended to me AND we were celebrating a birthday. However, I had to wait at least ten minutes for even a host to show up and show us to our table that we RESERVED. Then, it took another ten minutes for a server to show up, give us water and our menus. The worst part about this experience was that it took a WHOLE HOUR for us to get our food after multiple queries about it. ONE WHOLE HOUR. This is insanity for a place that has 4.4 stars. Who is bribing these people?? Not only was this the problem, but there were multiple tables that were seated after us, with bigger parties that received their service before us. We came in at 12:00 and received our food at 1:10. This is unacceptable, it is not an exaggeration to say that we were discriminated against due to our race and age. This ruined our birthday and our food. We lost our appetite and the food itself was unsatisfactory. I had the chicken sliders and found that the potatoes were dry and plain, fruit was soggy and warm, and the sliders were tasteless. I do NOT recommend this place to anyone. Stand up against asian hate and DO NOT support this restaurant. This was our last chance to celebrate a birthday for our LGBIQA+ friend together before we leave for college and go our separate ways. The world is changing and this was our first time to openly celebrate them. This was our last chance to celebrate a birthday for our LGBIQA+ friend together before we leave for college and go our separate ways. The world is changing and this was our first time to openly celebrate them. This was meant to be a happy memory yet instead turned into starving wasteland....

I was visiting family in the Bay Area. They are conveniently not a far walk from downtown Pleasanton. We noticed there were an abundance of restaurants on the downtown Pleasanton strip and figured we should grab dinner. We walked up and down the strip to see what our options are. My husband’s eye caught Elia from across the street due to its absolutely beautiful interior/exterior decor. I loved the umbrellas ☂ hanging upside down in the front entry way. We crossed the street to look at the menu. Looked rather appealing and authentically Greek. We walked away to see what else was there but immediately shortlisted Elia. After 5 or so minutes, we turned around and went straight back to Elia to have dinner. Hands down best decision we made! The ambience is so beautiful. You feel transported to the origins of the food. The service was awesome, so awesome I basically waddled out of there I ate so much. The FOOD was delectable! Phenomenal! Best meal I have had in a long time. Every dish was cooked, seasoned and flavored to perfection. The octopus 🐙 was the most tender, tasty octopus I ever had. I have tried octopus a few times and hated it every time accept at Elia. I would literally come here for endless plates of octopus and wine that is how well made it is. The fresh bread and tapenade is a delightful starter. The lamb shank melted off the bone. The burrata was fresh, cooling and wonderfully displayed. I can’t say enough great things about Elia. It was their second day open when we went and anyone and everyone who has the pleasure to be in Pleasanton figuring out where to eat should not look any further. Elia is the only...