| rev:text
| - I wanted to enjoy this new Greek & Italian restaurant; however, a few failures in our first experience sort of soured it for me. Here's a summary of our party of 3's February visit:
1. the decor is tacky and doesn't speak to either cuisine being served.
2. It wasn't busy at all when we arrived at 4:35pm (four tables with patrons) but we had to wait for 15min. before someone came over to take our drink order. ??? And it was by the man who greeted and sat us originally, our service was pretty spot on thanks to him even though he wasn't planning to be our server but for some reason the woman working our section just couldn't handle additional tables. My only complaint was that he never offered to refill our water and by the end of our 1.5hrs there, I had run out of water and poured some of my co-diner's water into my glass. Never leave a table without asking if anything else is needed or with your hands empty because our empty plates sat too long, as well.
3. for the appetizer round: the saganaki was fun and tasty but may have had too much brandy or was on fire a bit too long because part of the cheese was burned black. The mozzarella cheese sticks were over-fried as two had no cheese inside them but rather all over the platter. The Greek side salad was not traditional as it had lettuce and mushrooms which we of course picked off but what a waste of food when you're expecting a "Greek salad." The lemon chicken soup was delicious and a must try!
4. the bathroom was...the worst experience I've ever had in a public bathroom because the sewer smell coming from the floor drain was so strong that I had to physically keep my appetizers down while in there. There's no way the owner/employees aren't smelling this, too. IMMEDIATELY DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS! Utterly disgusting.
5. there is no kids menu. Surprise is a family town. Italy and Greece are countries that cater to their children - I know, firsthand, having traveled to both repeatedly over the past 20yrs. and just recently to Rome and Athens last April. it's a family restaurant, add some kid friendly options and kid friendly portions on the already four page menu. Small choices like mini pizza, fruit, chicken tenders, broccoli, fries or tater tots, etc.
6. an older stocky gentleman came by the table to welcome us and kept on moving. If this was the owner, he should have taken the time to at least ask how everything was. By the time I said hello back, he was on to the next table.
7. our main entrees: yeeros and pasta carbonara came out hot and huge! I'd recommend the yeeros as the meat was tender, juicy and seemed fresh. The carbonara dish was good with plenty of bacon and very creamy. The garlic bread basket was a nice touch and came in handy with the alfredo sauce. I couldn't taste the garlic on it but I love garlic and would have loved it smothered in it.
8. the dessert came out quick which was great! It's sad that the baklava was served warm and falling apart. I was told because it was fresh, made that day that this is why it's flat with all the ingredients falling away from one another. It was a hot, gooey mess. That's not the baklava anywhere in the US or in Greece I've ever had.
I want this restaurant to succeed because Surprise needs a good, solid go-to Mediterranean restaurant for the masses to flock to and maybe even be transported overseas for a meal (if done correctly). :) In order for that to happen, Mike's needs to iron its wrinkles and fast! I don't know if I'd give it another chance...but if I do, it will be in a couple months just to give this crew some time to fix the operation a bit because they definitely need improvement. Good luck!
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