Mesa Greek Cuisine

«…WE LOVED IT ~ FAB FOOD & PLENTY OF IT ~ MY KINDA SERVICE ~ FULL O’ LIFE SPACE…»
Have driven past MESA GREEK CUISINE, Johnston Street, Abbotsford, so many times.
Always admired the building. Looks fairly upmarket. Thought it might have been one of those contemporary Mediterranean and ‘Somewhere Else’ fusion restaurants. You know, where they do the three only. very lonely. items on the big white dinner plate. Hey, we steer clear of that sort of caper. Nope, not for us. We’re eaters not grazers!!!
Last night, caved into my curiosity and finally gave them a go. WOW was I so wrong!!!
Yes, it’s a classy digs, but the food is authentic, home-​style, super delicious and generous. Drinks are good, too. Staff are fast, energetic, no BS — you’re there to eat, they’re there to facilitate it.
We had the set menu banquet for four:
–Started with a trio of house-​made dips; pan-​fried saganaki cheese; meatballs in tomato salsa; baked lima beans; beef & feta filled pasta rings, HOUSE-​MADE Greek-​style bread…
–Then came calamari; white fish fillets; whole king tiger prawns on skewers…
–Followed by lamb cutlets; chicken skewers; chicken & lamb off the gyros; Greek-​style salad…
–We finished with a dessert platter, again to share: custard slice, baklava, selection of freshly cut fruits…
–A glass of wine or a soft-​drink was included in the package — impressed by the glass bottles of coke…
–We finished with a Greek coffee.
The food, ALL OF IT, was FRESH, perfectly cooked, CLEAN, well-​seasoned, DELISH — We couldn’t fault anything. honestly.
##Standouts:
— The bread was amazing, I mean it, we had to order another 2 baskets.
— The calamari were full of flavour, tender, NOT oily.
— The fish fillets were fresh, plump, firm, tasty. [pretty sure it was Aust rockling]
— The lamb cutlets. to die for. I’m gonna dream about these!!!
— The meat off the gyros was chunky, succulent, juicy, tender. [so often, it’s a bit scraggy, salty and dry]
— The feta on the main salad was Greek Dodoni feta. unmistakably piquant and morish. amazingly yum with fresh tomato. so many places use the cheaper, bland Aussie-​made version. [it’s not real good. sorry, like comparing cheese to chalk]
— Their extra virgin olive oil was the real thing. raw, fruity, green-​tasting. [most of that bread went into the dunking of the juices. hey, the only way to do it.]
We were seriously stuffed with fabulous fresh food — I can’t wait to go back!!!
These guys are the real deal — NO skimping on QUALITY or QUANTITY…
[Cost: $ 50 each for the banquet, $ 30 total on extras — Worth every cent.]
Visited on Friday 11 March 2016 for dinner.

We happened upon Mesa when wandering around Johnstone Street after I had decided at the last moment that I wasn’t in the mood for where we had intended eating. My food fairy must have been looking out for me. Mesa gave us a great meal.
As we walked in, busy staff ignored us as they ran to and from tables. We persevered and kept going and at a desk in the lobby, the maitre d’ was welcoming and lovely. She found us a table and let us know it would be a small delay on the food and asked if we were happy to have a drink and wait. I appreciate being told this up front and given an option.
We ordered drinks which came quickly. Our saganaki and mixed dips came much sooner than expected. The saganaki was delicious. The taramasalata was a little low in flavour for my liking but the eggplant dip was chunky and authentic and the tzaziki was garlicky goodness. We had them with house made bread which was very nice, but next time I might order flat bread.
Next we had moussaka and horiatiki. Both were fantastic. They reminded me of when my greek friend cooks for me. Simple, fresh, quality ingredients, put together with a skill that can’t be taught. The food showed a generosity of spirit. Loved the huge chunks of feta on the horiatiki.
We finished up with Greek coffee and walked out feeling healthy and satisfied. We will be back.

Unfortunately mesa was very disappointing — the food was average and the service was awful! We ordered zucchini chips which were oily and flavourless, the haloumi was overdone and the dips were bland. Prices were expensive for the quality. To top it off, the staff were so unaccommodating and quite rude. There are much better Greek restaurants in the area, I’d avoid this one.