Desfina Restaurant

 

5

23

Neno S.

Boston, MA

Desfina is the closest you will get to authentic Greek food in Boston.  It's sort of out of the way, but in my opinion they serve the best food in the Kendal square area and it's definitely the top Greek restaurant in Boston.  
If you want to free yourself from your Greek salad bubble, Desfina has a very diverse fish menu.  I highly recommend grilled octopus or calamari and marides.  Their baked lamb is also out of this world.  It's not fancy it's not pretentious, the tables will shakea bit, but it's a family run restaurant and the food is great!

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8

27

Nancy C.

Boston, MA

I LOVE Desfina!  The girls from work and I go here all the time for lunch.  I think their lentil soup is so good.  But we get it all hummus and chips, chicken salads,.  Everything is so good here.

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13

20

Caitlin S.

Boston, MA

"it's all Greek to me"

well not exactly. You see...my S.O. is extremely Greek and was simply overzealous when Boston Magazine hailed Desfina as the best of Boston. So we made the jaunt out to Cambridge after some investigation of the website( which i recommend everyone to please visit) and found this picture the fiery cheesy concoction which i have come to learn is called Saganaki. Which I was very excited to order. upon arrival you quickly take note on the decor which actually looks just like places that i have seen in Greece. The music is interesting. In short the food was very good. The Saganaki,A Wedge of Kefalograviera Cheese lightly floured, pan fried & flamed at your table, was delivered on fire with a less then enthusiastic OPA! however, was very tasty. The beer and wine are really inexpensive so thats a plus. I would definitely go back

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2

18

Kendall F.

Jamaica Plain, MA

Going along with the "I'm not Greek but my significant other is" trend in these reviews...

The food here is about as authentic as your going to get unless you know some Greeks that will cook you dinner.  I have eaten in Greece and at my boyfriends parents house and the food tastes practically the same!  Expect some foods that you can find in almost every Greek place....moussaka, Souvlaki, salads, Spanakopita.  And for gods sake don't expect lettuce when you order "the Greek salad"  or horiatiki Salata.

They also have some hard to find specialties like these little fried fish that we thought we could only find in Greece...we were so excited when we saw them on the menu.

All in all this is a great place to have dinner if you like Greek food.  In my opinion better than Steve's.

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0

2

Angelos K.

Malden, MA

I am greek and can certify that there is no better greek food in the area. I used to like Meze for its nouveau-greek but overpriced menu and when it closed, I tested every greek restaurant I could find inside 128. Desfina is by far the best.

The food is as authentic as it gets and you can make a meal out of the appetizers alone. The grilled octopus is tender and well cooked and comes in a generous portion and a great price. The various dips are also well prepared and tasty. The lamb chops and moussaka are also great, if you have any room left for a main course. The wine list has a nice but limited selection of greek wines at very reasonable prices. But make sure you save room for dessert, as their galaktompoureko is amazing.

I only wish they would go back to having real greek pittas (the pocketless kind) to go with the dips.

The ambience is cozy and can be sometimes loud, but it's friendly and very comfortable!

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Elite '08

199

512

Tom E.

Cambridge, MA

*scratches head*
hmmm... is this really the best Greek food in Boston?
Improper Bostonian said so for 2007 and some other reviewers liked this place, but I'm really not convinced. This was my first Greek meal in New England and it lagged along way behind Greek food in the UK and in Los Angeles. Sorry. Just telling the truth. Don't Bite Me.

So what's with this place? Well decor-wise, it's just a back-street bar with plastic tables, a sketchy looking front door and Red Sox on the TV. A place for East Cambridge locals, Greeks and desperate foodies. Certainly not a good date venue. Especially if, like me, you think that Greek pop music is punishment from God for all the sodomy committed in their history. It's certainly painful (the music I mean, not the sodomy).

Service is great - the girls who work here are excellent and have a good sense of humor. And the food, it's typical Greek fare - kebab, dolmades, grilled fish, moussaka. Our dishes weren't anything special at all, although certainly edible. The taramasalata was not as good as I'd hoped. If I come again I'll have more of the specials I think.

That just leaves me with one question:
Why are there so many Greeks running pizza places in Boston and yet so few Greek restaurants?  Maybe the Italians should open some.

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Elite '08

27

281

Bryanne R.

Jamaica Plain, MA

It's been voted best by a lot, but I'm still a bit skeptical.  

My big suggestion is that they explain what some of the items on the menu are better - especially for those of us with Greek knowledge that extends only to My Big Fat Greek Wedding.  

I did have some tasty calamari and lamb, so I'd recommend giving Desfina a try.

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0

3

Travis A.

Boston, MA

Hands down the best Mousaka in the Greater Boston area! Whenever we come here my wife and I always seem to order the same food and we recommend it to all:

Appetizer:
Saganaki-it's the most delicious grill cheese you ever will get. it comes with flames!
Pikilia-pretty much an assortment of most of their appetizers.  
Horiatiki salad

I order the mousaka and my wife always has the baked lamb.

We are usually so full from dinner that we rarely would order dessert but the few times that we did we found the Kataifi they serve here better than they do in Greece (at least according to my Greek wife)

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2

21

Tony W.

Somerville, MA

Based on the mostly positive Yelp reviews, the proximity, and the desire to try a Greek restaurant in the area, I took my friend here for dinner the other night.  

Desfina has a pub atmosphere, and it seems like a lot of younger professionals head there after work to grab a pint.  There draught list is pretty impressive for a Greek restaurant - people were milling about and socializing between the bar and the tables, which gave the place more of a pub feel than that of a restaurant.

On a personal note, it could have been a disaster, because I had some sort of weird allergy/sneezing attack before I got there, so my head was completely congested throughout most of the night - thankfully when our Spanikopita (sp?) arrived, the spices cleared things up quite nicely.  We started with beers, which doesn't seem to be very Greek to me, but hey, it's beer - if they served it in church, I probably wouldn't question it. But I guess I would question how it is that I ended up in church to begin with.  Unless it was a special beer church service.  

Anyway, as I mentioned, I have no prior experience with Greek restaurants, but I am familiar with the popular Greek dishes.  As a pescetarian, I was a little bit leery after looking at the meatnormous menu, but the seafood dishes seem to make it worth the trip.  I had the Shrimp Desfina house special, which was great.  Wonderful.  Awesome.  Really, really tasty, and lots of shrimp.  My friend ordered more gyro than she could possibly handle, and some sort of potato side dish that was cooked in butter and lemon.  Also good.  

Overall, great food, good service, and interesting people watching.  Some guy, after what had been apparently a long night of drinking used his liquid courage to chat up some girls sitting directly behind us - that conversation was somewhat amusing!  

Oh, and the prices are about $12-15 a plate.  I guess that should be brought up...

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1

21

Tony L.

Boston, MA

Decent Greek tavern. The best thing about it is probably the food, which is a good thing. The atmosphere is horrible though. Run down.

I wouldn't say it's the best Greek food in Boston, but since there is no great Greek food in Boston, maybe technically its right. There is Greek Corner, Steves, Farm Grill, and that's it. They are all about the same, so so Greek food.

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Elite '08

6

82

Mick T.

Boston, MA

Good decent plain, not too expensive, Greek food!

Lovely fries, great fish, and some decent Greek wine makes this a good neighbourhoodly place. Went here for a Greek friend's going away party and I thought the food was decent. If I lived close by I'd probabably stop here at least once.

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5

23

Kavita P.

Woburn, MA

Now, I am not Greek but growing up with many Greek friends I know a solid Greek meal when I have it! I went there this weekend and was pleasantly surprised with the quality of food and service. Everything we ate was very flavorful including the Saganaki OPA!, Fried zucchini with Scordalia, Mousaka, Chicken kebab, Tzatziki and a side of Greek feta, of course! Oh! And their roasted potatoes......DEE-licious! They have a nice wine selection and some Greek beers by the bottle as well. We will definitely be back!

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Elite '08

4

54

Brian M.

Cambridge, MA

Went there for lunch with my co-workers and we all liked this place a lot.  True, our resident vegetarian declined to come on the grounds that their selection was v limited, but the rest of us will be back.   One guy wanted to go back for dinner.

I tried some of the flaming cheese thing to start - if, like me, you love the taste of overcooked cheese, this is for you.  And the waitress set it on fire for us!  (in my workaday life I am easily amused).  I then  had the chicken gyro - not exactly a radical choice, but the right one - juicy chicken, tasty sauce.

Next time I'll try something I can't pronounce (eh, about half the menu)

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Elite '08

72

289

Daniel S.

New York, NY

Delicious greek food + Full bar = Trouble.

(Great food, personable service, ugly decor...but nice placemats!)

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Elite '08

23

53

Erin B.

Winchester, MA

In the past, I've had quite a lot of exposure to "authentic" Greek food. I'm not an expert, but I thought this place was delicious and tasted home-made.

I thought their lunch menu was also impressive for a restaurant this size. Everything from mousaka, spanikopita, and gyros to stuffed grape leaves and baklava (sp?). They had some less common dishes, as well - such as dandelion salad!!

There was also a full bar.

I'd definitely try this place again!

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Elite '08

8

85

Kathleen M.

Cambridge, MA

I'm a big fan of Desfina for lunch! Admittedly, I've only had take-out, but everything I've had has been fantastic. The Greek salad with chicken is perfectly sized for lunch and comes with some deliciously marinated chicken and TWO pieces of delicious bread. The gyro is enormous, and comes with fries for only $6.25! I've also tried their grape leaves and spinach pie combo, which comes with 2 good-sized dolmades with avgolemono sauce, a big piece of spanakopita, a side of rice, roasted potatoes, or fries, a salad, and TWO pieces of delicious bread, all for $7.75! This stuff is delicious, as well. One of my coworkers orders the chicken souvlaki 2-3 times a week. I can't wait to try more of the menu items!

The restaurant itself is cute, and they have real table service and a small (but fully stocked!) bar. The staff is fantastic, and remember me when I come in, even though I have only been in a few times. This is a great place to get some tasty Greek food at a reasonable price!

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0

2

J L.

Boston, MA

Bottom line: if you don't live nearby, this good Greek restaurant is a bit too far out of the way to visit regularly.  Probably the most authentic Greek food I've had in the Boston area, and if you live nearby, a great choice.

I found this place after doing a Google search for Greek food in Boston, and it was aptly described as a hidden, local's hangout.  Too true.  Every time I've gone for dinner--if you can get here on your lunch break you're probably swinging by after collecting unemployment--the journey was time consuming.  Additionally, be prepared for the assortment of laborers hogging the bar.

I'm not a foodie, but I enjoy Greek, this being the best around.  Bring a book for the T ride, and enjoy.

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2

6

Seph S.

Cambridge, MA

Love it.  Great value.  Good Kebab.  Great atmosphere.  Friendly, attractive waitresses that dance if you're their past 11:00 on Saturday ;)

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11

17

Julie A.

Washington, DC

Do you like lemon? The folks in the kitchen at Desfina sure do. There's lemon in practically everything in their menu, whether you expect it there or not. It's great on their fish dishes and salads. The meat, maybe not so much. But lemon boiled potatoes were a new experience for me. Neato.

I was surprised by an order of lamb kebab that turned out to be a skewer of lamb chunks, rather than the minced semi-sausages I thought the term indicated. Highly recommend the galaktobouriko (but be forewarned, it too has the lemon going on).

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60

1071

lothari o.

Los Angeles, CA

I enjoyed my delivery. Three stars (tentative rating) means not anything special for the price. It's not cheap in my opinion ($10 for horiatiki). I didn't order anything very adventurous--just horiatiki and the appetizer platter.  Liked everything, and liked the bread. Would definitely order again.

Second order: pretty marginal.

Third order: Would give 4 stars if it weren't a bit overpriced. 3.5 stars as is. Much better than Greek Corner imo.

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17

24

Maritza M.

Philadelphia, PA

Not really that great or maybe I ordered the wrong food?  The gyro meat I got was pretty gross and fatty...yuck!  My dad got the mousaka and he said it was pretty good (and he's had mousaka in Greece so I trust his opinion).  The baklava was yummy though.  The fried calamari were also good...but, honestly, can you really mess up fried calamari?

The atmosphere has a "sitting in ma's kitchen" feel to it.  So I liked that.  

Bottom line: I wasn't amazed but I'd probably go again and try another dish.

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15

119

Peter P.

Cambridge, MA

BEST GREEK FOOD IN MASSACHUSETTS! I am Greek myself, let me just say my last name is 11 letters long and ends in opoulos, the food here is incredible! Just like my grandmother makes. In some ways i find it to be better than the food in Greece, if that doesn't say enough, it's cheap, and very friendly! Highly recomended, it has my Greek seal of approval!

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0

7

Silvia S.

Boston, MA

I am not Greek but my significant other is (don't feel bad Peter, his last name is 14 letters long, also ends in opoulos) and we both agrees wholeheartedly that Desfina is the best, by far.
I myself am from Spain and many Spanish dishes are very similar to some Greek ones (salads and grilled fish in southern Spain and the lamb dishes in Castilla). I have been to Greece and have enjoyed food while traveling in different areas as well as home cooking at my in-laws, so I feel I can tell an authentic taste.
 I have only been twice but everything I have tried is excellent: the pikilia (a plate with different appetizers), salads, horta (young dandelion greens with lemon), grilled squid, grilled fished and galaktoboureko (custard-filled phillo in light syrup) and those who ate lamb said it was very good too. I have to mention that they fly the fish from Greece every other day! We asked because they had fish on the menu that we had never seen this side of the Atlantic.
If you go on Fridays, you might enjoy live Greek music (Laika) but it can get a bit loud, so you can sit in the back room and have a view of the open kitchen. You can still listen to the music, but can still keep a conversation.
You might be disappointed at Desfina if you like and expect Greek-American food (gyros, for instance, are very different in Greece than what you usually find in the US.) It is also true that you can find it a bit on the greasy side but that is how Greek food is!

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