Barbounia is one of those places in the city that you've probably walked past a million times and say to yourself that you should check it out but then never do. At least that was my thinking. Luckily, Lav and I finally decided to check it out on her birthday. We were originally going to go to Casa Mono but it was going to be a 30 minute wait (which really isn't that bad for Casa Mono) but we were both starving and luckily Barbounia was able to seat us in 15 minutes. My first impression is that this place is HUGE. And it's surprisingly trendy - less in the Meatpacking sense but more in the sense that it seems like a place a lot of people in their 20's would go to "pre-party" before they went out for the night.
As for the food, it's Mediterranean/Greek and the menu was huge. I actually think Greek food is one of the more easily sharable cuisines because there are a lot of spreads and really delicious appetizers and sides that can be made into a solid meal. Lav and I decided to split a bunch of dishes: spicy feta ($9.50), hierloom tomato salad ($17.95), saganaki ($14.95), flash fried cauliflower ($9.95) and the okra stew ($8). That was plenty of food but I really missed not ordering my usual Greek staples of a greek salad, grilled octopus and a lamb type dish. The food all came out very quickly. The spicy feta came out first and it was amazing. It was an incredibly addictive spread - made more so by the warm, delicious, and olive oil soak bread that came with it. It was a pretty big helping but if I had enough time, I probably could have eaten the whole thing by myself. It's not to be missed. Next I tried the hierloom tomato salad and that was also a winning dish. It was served with beautiful giant chunks of colorful tomatoes, red onions, pita crisps and most importantly crispy haloumi cheese. Although it wasn't a mozzarella or burrata cheese, the haloumi was a great pairing with the fresh tomatoes. Next I tried the saganaki and I always go into trying it with an open mind because who doesn't love fried cheese with alcohol? But every time I try it, it's a disappointment. You've got to eat it when it just comes out, otherwise once it starts to gel and coagulate, it's just really gross and inedible. I had one bite but since I was more into the tomato salad and feta, I just never got into the cheese and it just dried out. The cauliflower was a solid dish as it was lightly fried and served with tahini, pine nuts, parsley and lemon juice. The okra was in a mini pot and was kind of like a Middle Eastern stew with tomatoes in it - it was a fine okra dish but compared to the other dishes it wasn't a huge stand out. If I could do it over, I probably could have gotten get the selection of all 5 dips and a Greek salad and been the happiest person ever.
Since it was Lav's birthday, we had to celebrate with some chocolate cake ($10.95). This was a flourless cake with a praline crust, brandied cherries, caramel sauce and a walnut gelato. The cake was pretty rich and I actually enjoyed the crunchy praline crust but it was too heavy of a cake for us to finish. Overall, food-wise I really enjoyed my meal and while I wouldn't say that Barbounia is some kind of darling of the NYC restaurant scene, it's definitely worth a visit and it'll probably surprise you. Total bill with wine: $120
Photo Credit: Yelp
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