LIMANI GRILLE — Restaurant in Town of Smithtown

Came in for an impromtu dinner on a thursday night at about 5 - no reservation was needed under these circumstances, but the place did seem to fill up and get busy while we were there.

We went with the pre-fixe menu as it is obviosuly the far cheaper option - honestly if I had seen a menu ahead of coming here, the prices probably would have pushed me away. Not exorbitant, steak house level prices, but enough to make my eyes bulge for a minute. They do make up for this with ingredient quality and freshness.

The grilled bread and dips that were initially brought out were ok, but a little weird. We do not like tapenade, so that spread was out - and the eggplant spread had carroway in it - not a fan. So we ate the grilled bread, ok, but pita would seem to be a more normal choice for a mediterranean restaurant?

My girlfriend enjoyed the fried calamari and we both liked the limani chips. The Greek salad is peppers, tomatoes, onions and cucumbers roughly chopped and dressed with a chunk of feta. I found out that this is actually a traditional Greek salad and quite authentic - notwithstanding I was not a tremendous fan -- mainly because too many tomatoes makes my mouth itch -- not the restaurant's fault on that one.

The entrees were well prepared and fresh. My steak kebobs and potatoes were very good and I thought the portion was adequate. My girlfriend liked the cook on the bronzino, but it came out with what looked like a handful of capers on top. She is not a fan and pushed them to the side, but again, weird...

Limani grille seems to be a place that wants to stand out and be different. None of this is bad, but perhaps the manner in which they are choosing these differences just...

I've been interested in trying this place for quite some time now and was excited when my work group decided to have our holiday get-together here. The restaurant is very nicely decorated from the walls and displays when you first walk into the backlit pictures placed throughout the restaurant.

The food is definitely on the pricey side. Costing probably 40-55 per entree on average. My group ordered the calamari (both grilled and fried) and both were good, with my preference being the grilled to my surprise. Especially since I don't generally eat calamari. We also ordered the Beets and Limani Chips. The beers were nothing to write home about, but the Limani Chips were stellar and I highly recommend those.

For dinner I ordered the Short Rib Youvetsi. It was Braised Short Rib over cheesy Orzo and crumbled Feta. I can honestly say this was some of the best Short Rib I've ever had. Pretty much on par with the Short Rib I had from Tavern on the Green only a few months ago.

For dessert we ordered the Chefs Selection and the chocolate souffle and everything on it was absolutely delicious. The Chocolate Souffle must've been good because I didn't even get to try it before all the ladies of my group devoured it. :)

As for the service, the waiter definitely seemed attentive to our needs during our 3+ hours in the restaurant. However I do remember thinking that it took a while to get our food after ordering once or twice, so that part is the only complaint I really have for the restaurant as a whole.

If you're looking for a delicious upscale meal, I can definitely recommend...

Third time dining here. First time okay, second time not so good, third time never going back. Service leaves a lot to be desired. Waiter was absent most of the time. The bus girl gave us better service. Website advertised a $32 price fixed. When arrived menu stated $35. No big deal...$3. Ordered dinner and needed to give desert choice at the same time. Okay, 2 scoops of sorbet. Asked what flavor and was told lemon and raspberry. I asked if I could get all lemon and was told "no changes" on the price fixed. How ridiculous was that? Okay, I ate the lemon and left the raspberry to melt...waste of food? Ordered a bottle of wine which listed for $50 on the menu. It was a wine we always drink at home for $8.49 a bottle, but so, okay, ordered it anyway even though way overpriced. Check came, after a long time waiting, and the charge for the wine was $56, not $50. I questioned the charge and the manager corrected the bill after telling me that the prices had changed and they didn't have time to update the menu. "It isn't a one day process". Really???? How long does it take to take a pen and cross out the price and change it on the menu? Is this what is know as a "bait and switch"? Extremely unprofessional. Ordered my filet mignon skewers rare. Half was rare and the other half medium. I have never had a filet mignon that was actually stringy. Not sure what cut of meat it was. Needless to say, not returning, but you...