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Cafe Greco
Category: Restaurants Seafood Seafood [Edit]
1390 2nd Ave FrntNew York, NY 10021
Neighborhoods: Yorkville, Upper East Side
(212) 737-4300
- Nearest Transit:
-
68 St - Hunter College (4, 6, 6X)
77 St (4, 6, 6X)
Lexington Av/63 St (F)
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner, Brunch
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Has TV:
- Yes
16 reviews for Cafe Greco
16 reviews in English
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Review from Amy G.
Manhattan, NY
1/8/2012
We had a party at Cafe Greco with about 40 guests. From start to finish, we had a great experience. They were always available to answer our questions while we were planning the party, and were willing to do whatever it took to make our party a success. We had a beautiful private space off to the side of the restaurant where they rearranged tables to accommodate our needs. They offered a wide range of dishes for our party, and even included a cake! The food was cooked and seasoned perfectly, which is not an easy task when serving a large group. To top it all off, the price was almost too good to be true! Thank you SO much Cafe Greco! I will be back and I will recommend your restaurant to anyone needing a place for a party!
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Review from Jim B.
5/7/2011
While this place does not attract the young and trendy, I was reasonably happy when I stopped by for Saturday brunch with a guest. The room in front is rather dark, but the main seating area towards the back garden is light and welcoming. Linens on the tables. Our waiter was attentive and professional.
For weekday lunch ($19) or weekend brunch ($21), price value is good. Brunch included one drink, first course, entree, dessert and coffee or tea. I can't complain. My guest had a tomato bean soup to begin, followed by grilled hanger steak, both good or better. I ordered the mixed Greek appetizer plate (very nice) followed by chicken parm (good but not special, a big portion). Service slowed down a bit at the end so we skipped dessert. Our waiter was nice enough to take an extra glass of wine off the bill to compensate.
As other reviewers have mentioned, entrees tend to be more Italian than Greek. The starters are concentrated on Greek specialties.
I was very happy to get a bill for $45 before the tip, I will go back. No audible background music in the rear dining area. No street noise to speak of. Room was rather busy but not packed. Not four stars but a solid three. -
Review from Billy C.
Manhattan, NY
11/16/2011
Great Seafood Restaurant, I eat there at least twice a week. I always order Fish from them and they can prepare it any way you like. They are very helpful and great host. The fish always fresh and fair prices.
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Review from Stephanie D.
Manhattan, NY
4/27/2011
The people here are soooo nice!
And their food? Magnifique.
My dad had the cornish hen, my mother the veal parmesan, and myself? The Salmon beurre blanc (which I had never had before, and it has now become one of my favorite dishes). The food was great, the waiter was an adorable older gentleman who was so classy it made the experience all that more pleasant.
The vibe here is definitely an older crowd, but with the neighborhood it's in (UES, old school), what do you expect? They are still a very welcoming restaurant, and being the type that loves older folk (they're hilarious), I didn't mind. Just don't be surprised when someone pops their dentures out at a table near you. -
Review from Rachel J.
7/6/2010
HOW DO THEY KNOW?????
The octogenarians, the septuagenarians, the sexagenarians - they ALL come here!!! Does word fly from nursing home to nursing home? Is there a grandma restaurant hotline? You KNOW these ladies are not reading about Cafe Greco online. My friend's grandmother came here all the way from Long Island. When I asked how she heard about it, she said, "from a friend." The friend happened to be at our table. When I asked HER how she heard about Cafe Greco, she shrugged and said, "from a friend."
They all flock to this white-walled, mild mannered Italian restaurant for the Early Bird Special decked out in their weekend best, wearing layers and generations of jewels. I looked around in awe at the canes and walkers and wasn't at all surprised when our waiter announced the specials in a high-pitched scream. Even so, there were a few mutterings of "Heh? What's he saying?"
The food is good - as many have mentioned, it bills itself as a Greek restaurant, although the food is almost entirely Italian - and the prix fixe menu (which ends at 6:30pm, people) is only $26. This includes decent salad options, a choice between a number of solid entrees, and dessert. I had green salad, penne with mozzarella and basil, and warm apple pie a la mode.
Ironically, the restaurant is filled with steps - levels above, levels below - and the bathroom is in the basement, which requires maneuvering down a precariously steep flight of stairs. I saw more than one person trip, including the waiter. Either the restaurant is not catering to the clientele, or the clientele is more concerned with the cheap menu than saving a hip. Either way, the food was good, and I moved up and down the stairs with ease. -
Review from Ben t.
New York, NY
8/25/2011
great food ,very resnable prices and great staff
home made food its like your mom cooking. -
Review from brenda s.
New York, NY
5/8/2008
Bring ID, They proof you. No admission without your AARP card.
Or you could bring Grandma as your "excuse' for being in such an old age home. And it is an old age home, but luckily with very good food.
Reasonably priced of course.
Early bird special of course.
Greek specialties are quite nice.
Excellent salads, appetizers
Large and bright room
Entrees - large selection and fresh.
HIP CROWD ---- WELL YES, BUT I MEAN HIP REPLACEMENT.
this is a great neighborhood place, fairly priced, with very good and fresh food. Don't miss those croissants in the bread basket.
5 stars for value, but really 4. -
Review from Groucho N.
Reno, NV
1/29/2010
The other reviews are accurate about this place's core demographic; I came here for the early-bird dinner with my 90-something grandmother and her sister.
I was impressed by the place. It was a pleasant white-tablecloth space, the service was exemplary (especially in dealing with the nonagenarian crowd), and the food was flawless. It wasn't especially exciting or innovative fare, but everything I tasted - from the bean soup to the spanikopita appetizer to fish, veal, and scallop entrees - was perfectly cooked. The desserts were a bit lackluster, but overall this place was a bargain, especially for the upper west side.
It's not a place I'd make a trip for, but it's a solid neighborhood restaurant, and one I wish I had in my neighborhood. -
Review from Angela I.
New York, NY
2/27/2009
What a totally random and confusing place! The restaurant says their Greek but mostly everything on the menu were typical Italian dishes (chicken parmesan, pasta). My friend and I walked in randomly for dinner and we were hit with the smell of old; seriously old people. We were the only young people there and were getting stares.
The pre-fixe menu was extensive and very early bird special with a large list of random dishes to choose from. I ordered the mussels to start and the chicken parmesan as my "greek" main course. Mussels were standard but didn't taste too fresh and the chicken parmesan was pretty basic as well. Oh, and to top off the authenticity of this place, I got a side of spaghetti in marinara sauce; average in taste...
The best part of the meal was dessert. When we asked our waiter what dessert he would recommend from the extensive list of choices, he picked the fruit salad of all things. When we asked about the size of the baklava he responded that he doesn't personally like it and he was not entirely sure what it was... oh , did i mention this was supposed to be a GREEK restaurant. Just not sure I put that point across...
WE ordered the baklava anyway which was probably the best thing we had out of the meal.
Two stars because the food wasn't horrible but they need to change the name of this place to Cafe Confuso...
Bread Starter Score: standard like everything else here. It was pretty forgettable. -
Review from Delmar S.
Manhattan, NY
1/6/2012 1 Check-in Here
This must have been an off night, or maybe they're not used to the mid 20's clientele but this was on the top ten of worst service every received! I was seated by a very nice waiter but then Oscar the grouch took over! It seems like this guy just hated life (or us). He never once checked on us and when we asked for a refill of water, he poured it and left the pitcher on the table! We got the crab cakes and mussels for apps, crabcake was not good and o got bots of shell in it. The mussels on the other hand were amazing! I got the shrimp scampi and my lady got the scallops. The scallops were good but the shrimp was overcooked, tough and stringy! The side dishes were also ridiculous! Mashed potatoes and string beans turned out to be instant potatoes and some green bitter leafy vegetable ridiculous, still haven't gotten the string beans yet! I will never go back to this place, may've that was their plan as there was no one younger than 40 in the place.
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Review from T N.
Darien, CT
2/1/2007
Not bad.... not great..... how helpful is that? It depends if you like seafood with a Greek twist. I had the grilled octopus and broiled filet of sole and thought it was above par, but that was it. The atmosphere is nil, service is....well, Greek and the location is neither here nor there. All in all, there was nothing other than the name that would distinguish this place from any other ITALIAN restaurant in the city. Give me a break..... pour on the tazeke and roll on some capers!
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Review from Duyhien N.
New York, NY
8/7/2011
Went here for a pharmaceutical dinner. normally wouldn't have tried this place but sometimes when you get the offer of a free dinner, it's hard to turn down. we parked across the street and noticed that the restaurant was obstructed by construction which would definitely deter diners. Upon arrival, it a had a blue awning, and the decor was not all that impressive (bar at the front, multiple steps that can be tripped on on our way to the back). Diners were of the affluent UES type (aka old) but I normally don't care that much because maybe they know something I don't know. Just returning from Greece for vacation, I was itching to get some Greek food and had checked out their menu already on menupages so was excited to try out what they had in store. It was open menu, so I had the salad with tsatsiki, taramosalata and pita bread, grilled octopus, sweetbreads, and grilled whole seabass. Let me tell you, even though the it was a semi big group (10-15 ppl) the waiters had no excuse for how many mistakes they made during the dinner. I can deal with a rude waiter or two and a mistake here or there but seriously when the waiter has to ask who had what dish for every single dish brought out, it comes to mind that all they knew how to do was write something on a piece of paper and transfer it to the cooks in the back and the thinking stopped there. Maybe it was an off night but just had to put that out there. As to the food, the taramosalata was some fluffed up, mayonnaise tasting spread which was nothing like what I had in Greece and had no evidence of delicious roe. The grilled octopus was rubbery, bathed in oil, and overly salty. Sweetbreads were drenched in a brown sauce which killed the deliciousness of the offal. The only saving grace was the seabass, which was lightly seasoned with fresh lemon on the side. Greek fish is known to be fail safe as it is very minimalistic in preparation and relies solely on the quality of the fish. Did not taste fishy at all. But the price of the entree itself killed it, and it is definitely over priced at this restaurant for what it's worth. Too many restaurants to try in New York to ever have to resort coming back to this place.
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Review from Evan K.
Brooklyn, NY
3/12/2006
My mom made brunch reservations for this place. I found it curious that my mother would plan for brunch at a Greek Seafood restaurant. I wasn't sure what was so special about it. Turns out there's nothing so special about it. There wasn't a vast array of brunch choices. I was in the mood for breakfast and only had 2 or 3 choices the rest was way too lunch-ish for me. Not to mention that it was all the way up on the Upper East side and for the most part I abhor going to the upper east side, especially from the west village on a weekend morning.
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Review from Carrie W.
Manhattan, NY
11/11/2011
sweet neighborhood place. the owners are sweet and work. they always give me the feeling i am a friend and a client. I like the food and the price is fair
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Review from carey y.
Bradenton, FL
11/27/2009
I *think* our waiter was just trying to be funny, but he was really just an ass. He made mistakes with 3 orders and when we asked him a question he would just walk away to go get the menu to explain the answer. Not good. The food was very eh. It's supposed to be a greek restuarant, but more than half of the menu was filled with parmegianas and francais's. heh? Our waiter pretty strongly advised us not to bother with anything aside from the fish. The fish was fresh but flavorless. The sides were kind of like airplane food. The menus in this place are also really weird. You get a regular menu, a prix fix menu and a specials of the day menu. You have to keep cross referencing all three of them to make any sense of it. What the crap is up with that? The best part by far, and really the only part worth mentioning, were the profiteroles. They were excellent. There are about 50 other places within a 10 block radius of this one that I'd have much rather gone to. Ya win some ya lose some.
Listed in: My Neighborhood
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Review from George H.
Stamford, CT
10/30/2010
took almost 30 minutes for three sandwiches from the time we ordered. this was when the restaurant was half empty. when they arrived, two of them were the wrong order and one of them was not a sandwich at all, but a salad. they were just ok and kind of overpriced. ($50 for three sandwiches, no drinks). our waiter seemed to care very little about our table, as he was busy taking care of the party of like 30 people near us.
many much better places on the upper east side.
