The Greek Taverna

Great food! The fried cheese is amazing, as well as the shrimp and feta entrée. We always go here for family celebrations

This is truly authentic and delicious Greek food. A gem in northern Virginia. We go to the Greek Taverna for all special occasions and it is wonderful every time.

I will keep this short and sweet, unlike my visit to this place (yikes!). Being Greek and having eaten at every kind of Greek restaurant in the area, this one is by far the worst I’ve been to! Save your money and go elsewhere! I recommend Plaka Grill in Vienna off of Rt. 123. You will spend ¹⁄₃ of what Greek Taverna charges and find much faster service, better menu variety, and much much better tasting food. Just like another reviewer who was recently tempted, I too almost asked for my money back! The extreme prices are definitely not justified by what is served here.

Service was good. Food was just ok, expect better for the price $$$. The staff was very accommodating, my son didn’t care for the food so I got a sub form across street for him to eat while rest of party (6people) eat. Personally food was eatable, but cooked with way to much lemon and garlic (apparently according to in-​law who lived in Greece for 3 years that is what they do) for my personal taste. Probably won’t eat there again

the service was bad. and it was slow. they gave me the order wrong. and not do anything about it. the waiter was too chatty. he really liked to talk. not busy we could not get seated. and the waiter would not volunteer to do anything for us. we got a complimentary beverage. the restaurant was not busy. we not come back. we had to tell the waiter that we were on a time limit. and it was time to leave. and to get out fast. it was the only way.

A neighborhood staple that never disappoints. Whenever I come here I feel like I am greeted as family and an old friend. My favorite appetizer is the one made with caviar and it’s served with their pita bread which is some of the best around. I love all their lamb dishes. But I will sometimes go for the traditional moussaka. For dessert you can’t miss on their homemade Greek yogurt with Quince.

I found a new reason to like this place. Their branzino whole fish special. I came back from a Greek vacation in September and had this fish in the restaurant in November. Delicious — better than some of the fish we had in Greece. It is $ 29 but comes with bread, salad, potatoes and beans. Absolutely worth the price. I had it again yesterday and it is probably now my go-​to dish when it is one of their specials.

My favorite restaurant in downtown Mclean. I usually get the daily specials, clay pot lamb, chicken avgolomono are great.
The start you off with olive focaccia and evoo, then comes the greek salad (comes with most entrees). The focaccia is soft/​fluffy and the salad isnt over dressed, so far so good.
Today I got the Moussaka and Yefim got the Lamb kabobs, both were awesome. The ground sirloin, was soft/​moist and flavorful, it went well with the stewed tomatoes eggplant bechemel and greek flavors. I dont know how to describe greek flavored ground sirloin other then picturing a baby cow spending their life in a Jacuzzi filled with lemon, dill and garlic. We’ll say the cow also had a flatscreen TV with cable, just to make this story more humane. Yefim enjoyed his grilled lamb kabobs. He claims they were moist and not fatty. Both dishes came with rice and zuchini topped with Dill.
Service was great, water cups were always full and some waiters/​waitresses speak greek if you’re into that.

This is the best Greek food I have ever had!!! Great service, staff and ambiance!!! The appetizer, main dish, side dish, desert and cappuccino — yummy, yummy, yummy!!! Oooh, the olive bread… Yum!!! I can’t wait to go back!!!

Try the avgolemono, ntolmadakia and lamb special. The best I had so far. Ask for Greek wine and do not forget to order the galaktoboureko. Yummy, yummy yummy.
Friendly staff. Nice and cozy environment. On a good day try the outside seating under some grape vines.
Highly recommended!!!

This restaurant seems to be hit or miss for people. We dined out in an unseasonably warm period when they let us dine outside. The international waitress was very easy to understand and explained all the menu options we discussed. She offered suggestions and we enjoyed our meal. It was a good dinner for the area and seemed a fair value for what we paid. We were in and out in a little under an hour. The grape leaves were wonderful as was the lamb. An older male came and asked about the food and service. I am guessing he was either the owner or manager. Very professional.

We really didn’t like the food or service here and thought it was expensive — but — many people love it. The dining room is very brightly lit and it’s offering is upscale and authentic I guess…

Quick Review: impeccable service, wonderful food, a true hidden gem of the DC area. After living in McLean for 3 years, we only recently began visiting The Greek Taverna, it’s easily our favorite restaurant in McLean. Our favorites: tzatziki, hummus, walnut baklava. My husband loves the lamb shoulder that they serve as well, but I go for a menu of small plates! They also offer kids a nice menu and our 5-​yr-​old son enjoys grilled chicken with rice and cucumbers. The outdoor patio must be mentioned — it’s beautifully covered in grape vines and quite lovely. We dined inside for the first time tonight and really appreciated the Greek family atmosphere. It’s a welcoming place whose ambiance and staff make you feel loved. Thank you to The Greek Taverna for many wonderful meals.

This is a truly wonderful restaurant. Favorite dishes on the menu include moussaka, dolmades yalantzi, feta saganaki, garides nafplion (shrimp) and the stuffed salmon. Among the specials, you can’t go wrong with the lemon chicken or any of the lamb specials, like the lamb lemonato or lamb with orzo in a clay pot. The olive bread is a terrific as are the green beans that often accompany main dishes (or just ordered as a side dish!) We love the baklava – and pretty much all the other desserts too. Ask your waiter for advice – the staff is just wonderful, with very welcoming owners and great servers. And they’re wonderfully accommodating to gluten-​free diners too. Can’t wait to come back!

Oh wow…
Food was barely ok, grilled sheep cheese was good, but dip sample was not at all.
Service though is the whole different story.
Rushed when not needed, ie while I was packing my dips I couldn’t even put some bread in my box — that’s how quickly it was gone from the table… Ah, few more examples could be given, but why waste my time.
Second and the last time here.
PS Server’s name was Krishna
PPS Lady (owner or owner’s wife I assume) was nice, but so what? She didn’t serve me…

We absolutely LOVE this restaurant. We’ve been going for almost 15 years and it’s always consistently delicious. Everything on the menu is cooked to perfection & the service is wonderful … they are personable and attentive yet never rush us.

This place was not great. We loved the décor, feel, and the service, but then the food came. Although the appetizer had been delicious and the hummus had been pretty good, our food was so bad. It was greasy and limp and gross. I ordered chicken with mushrooms and oh man was it nasty. I had a bite or two and decided to send it back. I was angrily confronted by the owner who insisted everything was fresh and everyone always loved his food, blah blah. Like that would convince me to like it?! Finally they took it back and took it off the bill, but the meal still sucked regardless. Although the patio and interior are just beautiful, I won’t be back.

Passing by this restaurant with the wooden trellis and center-​of-​town location, I was excited at the prospect of nearby Greek food. I failed to manage my expectations, though, just like when I went to my first middle school dance. In this case, I brought home leftovers instead of my virginity, but still: disappointment.
While it is good food and service, I feel like this restaurant suffers from its location. This is both outside and in, as the ambiance is less than romantic with plain incandescent spotlights and the plain tile floor. I wasn’t discouraged from enjoying my chicken, but considering the current dining preferences, even boring lighting can be death to even the best of food. How can people be expected to take pictures of what they eat with poor lighting? I fortunately bring a briefcase photo studio with me at all times, but if you forget it at home, you’re totally screwed!
I would recommend this to anyone looking for a convenient, prepared meal in McLean. This is not styrofoam box Greek and has a number of interesting dishes on the menu. The restaurant is clean and well run, even though the hours are lacking if you want some weekend lunch. If you are looking for a romantic evening or a bit more of an experience, you might want to try elsewhere and save this for when you just want some good food.
Pros:
Well-​cooked food without fast-​food undercurrent
Waiter was knowledgeable and provided good suggestions and service
Central for those passing through or living around McLean.
Cons:
Décor is rather blasé, with plain lighting dominating.
Hours are not the most convenient, but it is McLean.
Can be a bit noisy as dining room is a single open space.

Very friendly staff and manager. Cute outdoor seating area. The vegetarian platter was pretty good although I found the eggplant to be overcooked and mushy. The flavor was only ok. The other items on the platter were a bit lacking in flavor as well. I appreciated the free salad to start and the kitchen was amenable to dietary concerns. This place was fine, but I won’t be rushing back.

Started with the hummus which was creamy and fluffy — I could eat a gallon of this stuff!
Kalamarakia Ladolemono — baby squids in olive oil and lemon. So I didn’t love this dish. The squids were tender but all I tasted was dill and some lemon. It just lacked some flavor. Very one note — couldn’t eat much of this.
Avgolemono Soup — chicken broth based egg-​lemon soup with rice– baby squids in olive oil and lemon. Like seriously — this was probably the best thing I had. It tasted homemade, creamy and like a warm hug.
Taverna’s Special — Dolmades Avgolemono, Moussaka, Pastitsio and Spanakotiropita. I love moussaka but decided to go with the sampler to see what appealed to me enough to come back and try it. The portions were an okay amount, but if I hadn’t ordered an appetizer and a soup I would definitely still be hungry.
We did get dessert — the crème caramel and the baklava. The crème caramel had a very unpleasant bitter aftertaste, almost as if it had been burned and the baklava was very very dry — needed a lot of water to get this down.
Wine list by the glass is very small — the majority of the wine list was by the bottle and even then I thought the list was pretty small. I will say that I normally don’t drink Pinot Noir but the one they had listed was beyond your typical Pinot Noir and I ended up getting 2 glasses because it was that good.
The owner/​manager was very attentive — she often came by our table to check on us and how our meal was going. I felt like I was in Greece eating at someone’s house which was totally awesome even if the food wasn’t amazing. I’d give this place another try and do an update to this review.