Zilli

 

8

42

alan l.

Brooklyn, NY

hung out here on sunday with some friends. while it wasn't fancy or too hip, zilli has a nice outdoor patio.

we enjoyed a pineapple hookah and worked through the sunday page 6 crossword...which made us feel really dumb considering we couldn't finish it...what's up with that? i mean some of the clues were pictures of celebrities...

moving on - i dont think i'd ever plan on going here again, but rather will find myself there again not really knowing how it happened.

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1

2

Dori F.

Brooklyn, NY

It's beyond me why the masses trolling along Park Slope's Fifth Avenue continue to frequent the strip's myriad mediocre spots, when a reliably warm and tasty gem like the Turkish/Mediterranean Zilli remains virtually empty every time I go. No, it's not a speedy meal, nor is it fancy, but it's worth the wait and the easygoing vibe. The Mediterranean salad with cucumber, tomato and feta is addictive--the three kids in tow couldn't get enough of it. The pizza's are smoky and flavorful, although the ones with cheese can get a bit gooey and weigh down the light crust. Still, that bothered no one in my crowd. Borek's satisfy kid and grown-up tastes alike. Hummus and babaganoush are a bit pedestrian if passable--I'd stick to dishes you can't easily find at your corner supermarket.

I've only been with my kids because it's quiet and the food suits us all, but if more adults frequented the spot it'd also be a fun and sexy spot to hang out in.

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Elite '08

267

1274

Irene F.

Morganville, NJ

Hmmmm....hookah and some babaganoush and hummus on a lazy Saturday? Don't mind if I do.

The bread is absolutely amazing here, it's like a lovely toasted lavash, totally perfect for the delicious hummus. I wasn't quite as nuts about the babaganoush. Strange taste to it, lack of mayo or something?

The service is....European, I'd say. Very very very European. Like 45 minutes to get the check European. But it's an outdoor garden, there are liter beers, yummy foods, lovely hookah, and well, are you really in a rush on a Saturday afternoon?

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36

174

Adrienne R.

New York, NY

I had a very unusual brunch experience at Zilli that made me super happy, as I love Turkish/Mediterranean food. For somewhere around $11 you get three brunch choices which includes coffee or tea, a mimosa, and a meal. One of which is an appetizer sampler that had so many good choices -- yogurt dill sauce, hummus, some tomato and bean salads, olives, etc. I had a spinach filled phyllo dough which was also super yum and came with veggies, feta cheese, and a heaping bowl of warm bread (as all the meals do). The atmosphere is also very cute -- it's set up to look like you're sitting in someone's living room with couches, arm chairs and eclectic tables and lamps all over the place. I left feeling full and satisfied :)

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5

33

Nicholas T.

Brooklyn, NY

I have to pronounce Zilli this week's official winner of the Brooklyn Burger Bar Commemorative (Dirty) Cup for Exceptionally Lousy Service.  Even getting our water refilled took something like 20 minutes, and our waitress walked by us multiple times even when we were calling out to her and waving and trying to get our attention - although I will give our server credit for not making any major mistakes on our (extremely simple) meal order.

The food we (eventually) ate was quite tasty - we each got a pide, the turkish "pizzas" that came with a side of "shephard's salad" (standard middle eastern salad), plus we shared some (middling, slightly bland) hummus to start.  It wasn't a huge amount of food, but it was satisfying, and I will gladly admit was mostly delicious, especially when paired with a nice beer (which came in 1/2 liter glasses!).

Now... the service.  After we seated ourselves (which is fine), it seemed to be going well - we got our menus, and after maybe 10 minutes the waitress came to take our order.  So far, so good.

10 minutes later, she brought out our water, and a little while later, our hummus.  Ok, excellent.

I don't think we saw her again for over 30 minutes, and the hummus wasn't *that* large.  We had been hungry when we got to the restaurant, and after close to an hour with nothing but bread and hummus in our stomachs we were getting more than a little impatient.

Finally, our pides came out, and we proceeded to happily chow down - but she only brought one salad.  We waited a few minutes, figuring she just didn't have room on her tray for both, but after 15 minutes my friend got up and just asked for it since she ignored every attempt we made to get her attention.  We finished up, and then tried to get the check.

Yeah, you can see where this is going, right?  He had to get up again, yadda yadda, etc.

All in all, the food is affordable and tasty, but the service is friendly but just slightly faster than watching molasses run uphill.

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