Jasmine Bistro

Not sure why this restaurant has four stars. The restaurant owner/​server was very friendly, other than that he just wanted to make an extra dollar. We asked him to recommend a bottle of wine and he brings out a bottle which was already opened before being served to us. I looked up the price of the recommended bottle and he charged us 9 times more than the selling price. There is no wine menu, the lamb kebob i ordered had no flavor and considering the food wasn’t that great, the menu is well over priced. I can’t speak for the rest of the menu, but the already opened and overpriced wine incident is a deal breaker. I do not recommend this restaurant for a date or a place to try French/​Hungarian cuisine.

It felt like a scene from the rocky horror picture show, the ambience was very strange, and you never knew what was going to happen next. We were seated, not given menus, or napkins… there was no wine list, the owner, knew nothing about the wine, including what type it was. We came here for Hungarian food, however, the purported Hungarian dishes were not authentic at all. The service was awful. They forgot our appetizer. The wine was blah. The food was okay but don’t go here looking for a home-​cooked Hungarian experience.

I will change after I actually eat here. Went here during normal hours and it was closed with no explanation.

I’ve been going here occasionally for years and as recently as last week had a fabulous dinner with a friend. This is a unique adventure in Boston and the food is out of this world! My companion could only say he thought it was exquisite! The lovely family who own this place are as friendly as ever and still remember my name. Five stars indeed!

I wasn’t sure what to expect, but when the owner and entire staff knows the names and dining habits of their regulars (my family included), you should be in for a treat.
For appetizers, I Started off with escargot, which was great. Mom and dad chose an eggplant dish and cucumber dish that were amazing. Our entrees came out quickly, and I was not disappointed by the veal. Dad’s chicken was equally good, and while I can’t remember what mom got, I remember also liking that. I didn’t want dessert, but with the promise of homemade mango ice cream and those little pastries that are pistachio-​filled and look like birds nests (but I can never remember their names) were amazing. I needed to be rolled home, luckily it is across the street.
The ambiance is adorably romantic, service was exceptional, and food amazing. I’ll gladly come back next time I’m in town.

This is such a impressive small bistro.
I am first impressed by the exotic decoration, and then the food. I am a Chinese and one thing I have learned in the U.S. is to not expect good rice besides real Chinese restaurants, but Jasmine has great rice. Also, the vegetables, which I usually hate, tastes delicious and the lamb I ordered was as great as the ones I got from very fancy French restaurants.
The servants are also friendly. Thus, overall I love this restaurant!

What an awesome find! The foods are delicious and super friendly/​attentive service.

Marvelous. I couldn’t decide on what to eat but chose the chicken gulysh with spaetzle and my husband chose the pomegranate lamb. Both were swell. The owner and his son brought out our dessert and sang happy birthday to me. And his wife, who was the cook, wished me a happy birthday on the way out.
The place is small and exotic and very homey. I felt as if I were visiting cousins. Prices are certainly reasonable. If you’ve never eaten Hungarian food before, this would seem to be a fine place to start.

When you first enter Jasmine Bistro, you get the feeling that you are entering the living room of a welcoming family… and you are. My fiancée, a good friend of mine, and myself decided to check out the restaurant last evening, intrigued by the Mediterranean-​Hungarian-​French description. We drove from Quincy to meet up with our friend who recently moved down the street… I wish we lived right down the street!
When we first arrived, the restaurant was packed to the brim– not a hard feat considering there are probably only fifteen tables. The staff immediately welcomed us and asked that we return within twenty to thirty minutes. When we returned, they were ready for us. We asked for a wine list and we told that they do not have one, as they are constantly changing what they’re bringing in. The maitre d’ inquired to what types of wines we typically enjoy and said he had «just the thing.» He returned with a bottle which segued into my fiancée quipping about ‘bringing us the most expensive bottle in the house.’ Naz, as we came to find out his name, then told us a story about buying his car only to find out afterward that it was 60,000 dollars. Again, my fiancée quipped that he hoped the bottle was not on par with the cost of the car– it wasn’t, it was $ 30.00.
We ordered appetizers– the eggplant paprikas and the grilled shrimp ginger. Both appetizers vastly exceeded every expectation. The shrimp came with micro-​greens, asian-​style pickled cucumbers, and one of the most decadent wasabi-​cream sauces I have ever encountered. The eggplant was sliced thinly and fried to a crisp, stacked about seven high, and just smothered in homemade paprikas sauce.
The appetizers were a tough act to follow, but the entrees were ready to take on the task. I ordered the artichoke chicken, my fiancée ordered the lamb pomegranate, and our friend ordered the chicken paprikas. Now, I don’t like lamb. I’ve tried it almost every way conceivable and I just can’t do it– there’s something about the flavor that is just not appealing to me. I tried the lamb pomegranate and let me tell you, it was delectable. It was cooked french-​style, but with a mediterranean and mid-​eastern flare. Pomegranate cream sauce could possibly be the best thing I have ever tasted. I was staring longingly at my fiancée’s plate the whole night wondering if I’d be offered a second bite– I wasn’t…it was gone too quickly. Not to say that my artichoke chicken wasn’t wonderful, too. It was. The all white meat dish was succulent and juicy, covered in a savory sauce comprised of artichokes, bell peppers, and a mixture of spices. I tasted my friend’s chicken paprikas, as well, and it was just like coming home. Again, the chicken was just cooked to perfection and absorbed the array of flavors that it was made with.
We had dessert, as well… Naz confessed that he makes all of the desserts himself during the day time hours before the restaurant opens. Even the ice cream is homemade. We had the Chocolate Mousse, which was light and airy and it was difficult to not lick the plate. We also had a mango custard with homemade ice cream.
Feeling very full and very content, we asked how they came up with such an interesting fusion of cuisines. It would seem that Naz once traveled the world as a hotel maitre d’. I will have to make a point of finding out more during my next visit. Naz’s wife, Jasmine, is the very talented chef and his two sons run the rest of the house. It’s a legitimate family-​owned and operated business– the kind of establishment that you want to support. And support we will– we will be bringing our foodie friends from New York and the next time my father visits, I know where we’ll be going,
Thank you for treating us like family, Naz and Jasmine!

Fantastic! My girlfriend and I went here on a date the other night and was completely satisfied with every aspect of the restaurant. The environment was quiet and intimate, the servers were attentive and helpful, and the food was incredible! It’s definitely my go-​to romantic restaurant now.
PS I’d highly recommend either the lemon grilled salmon and the beef stroganoff

This had to be one of the worst dining experiences I’ve had in Boston since I moved here two years ago.
I was set to meet someone here for dinner at 6. The restaurant is open most evenings from 5pm to 11pm, but when I arrived on a Thursday night at 5 minutes to 6, the place was locked up tight, dark and empty. Fortunately, my date was late, so I sat on the steps and waited a good 15 minutes.
I was about to leave, feeling stood up by my dinner AND my date at this point, when both the owners and my date arrived at once, from opposite directions. I should have taken this as a sign to just end the night, but against my better judgement, I went ahead with the evening.
We entered what seemed to be a time-​stamped version of a kitsch restaurant out of the 1970s, with textured walls, heavy curtains in floral prints, musky tablecloths that were actually flattened pillow covers and the most uncomfortable chairs ever. The tablewear and glasswear was all mismatched, and the decorative plates and napkins seemed to have been in place for days.
Thank goodness I took a Zyrtec before I got there. The dust and mold would have ended the night before we could order…
This place carries water and wine. No tea, no soda, no beer or anything else. The menu is overpriced and very limited, with the same «specials» printed out and inserted clumsily into the hefty, oversized menus on the same paper as the actual menu cards. It’s like they just ran out of space or extra folds and just threw it in haphazardly.
Apart from the lengthy wait and inattentive service, the bread basket was the best part. Lightly buttered with a hint of garlic, it was the star of the night.
My shrimp curry was incredibly unimpressive. The shrimp were rubber and tasteless while the curry was far too oily and runny. My date’s lamb curry was a bit on the chewy, gamy side as well, and I’ve had fresh lamb before. This stuff was either old or just really, really cheap. The rice was the best part of both dishes, with a nice, slightly-​sticky texture and just the right portion to make up for most of the slick that comprised the curry.
Overall, our own company was the best treat of the evening. There were no other guests in the three hours we were there, and due to the lack of music in the restaurant for most of our conversation, I’m sure the owner and his wife got quite the earful of our colorful banter. Oh, and by the way, if your chef is sick, send him home. I don’t want to listen to him hawking up loogies in the kitchen throughout my meal. Totally disgusting.
While I will definitely try a second date with that guy, I will not be visiting Jasmine Bistro ever again.

Why is this called Mediterranean and French? it is HUNGARIAN! And also quite weird. But, if you want some decent paprika soaked cuisine, you’ll put up with it. I’ve eaten a lot of Hungarian food, and this is the real deal. That said, the atmosphere is a bit… odd. It is a fancy looking restaurant that has very high prices, but then the last time we were there the owner and his family sat around the large table by the kitchen and talked and watched TV. This was all about 6′ from our table! And it is often quite empty, yet every place is set. I think if I lived nearby I’d go here all the time to the point that I was sitting around the big family watching TV, too. As it is, if you’re not a family friend you may feel a little isolated. Just relax and enjoy the food, it is worth it.

I cannot say enough nice things about this place. We called to make a reservation for the boyfriend and his parents who were visiting. Boy am I glad we took them here! The owner was wonderful and personable. When we were running late for our reservation, he was so at ease and encouraged us to take our time. When we got there, he greeted me by name and welcomed us to our table. I completely agree with other people that he is extremely warm and inviting… it’s like eating at someone’s home! We ordered an array of dishes (the lamb special, lamb kebabs, beef gulay, and beef strogannoff) and all of us were sooooo pleased with everything.
What I enjoyed most about this was how honest and upfront the owner is. He wants to ensure you have the best time so he won’t swindle you and try to oversell you on anything (from the way you want your meal prepared to the cost of the wines).
We will most definitely be back. Definitely one of my favorite restaurants. =)

More than the food, I loved the decoration! Its a cozy, small place and you feel being at home when you are in there! I went there once late at night with my friend and we were practically their last customers. The manager/​owner served us himself and he was quite nice. The food was good, but I expected a bit more spice, probabely I was wrong to expect so, since that was my first time trying a combination of two-​culture food! Overall I liked it and I will go back to the same place for sure!
BTW, the wine was a good addition to the food, we asked for their recommandation and it was good!

One of my favorite places to eat in Brighton/​Allston. If my stomach had any choice, I would come here a lot more frequently, but the wallet is the real boss, so I only come here on more «special occasions» even though the prices are really quite reasonable for the quality and the service.
The (man who I assume to be the) owner and his wife were incredibly welcoming and warm when we came in. He was very attentive and quite a charmer, haha. The restaurant’s atmosphere is very intimate, so it might be intimidating if it’s a first time, but the owner made sure we were comfortable, explaining various things, joking around. I have a hard time deciding between dishes so I was relieved to find that he was able to make some recommendations according to my personal preferences. Their soupe du jour is always really good too. I was introduced to cold soup a little late in life, but I had it here for the first time a couple years ago, but it WAS SO DELICIOUS – life changing… who knew cold soup could be so good!
So, overall: superb service, and delicious food at a reasonable price. Quiet, intimate atmosphere, tasteful décor. Lots of different wine for a small restaurant. A gem.

What can I say but «WOW»
This is my new favorite place.
My wife and I decided to go to Brighton for a change of pace to see if we could find something new. We happened on Jasmine Bistro at around 6pm on Friday night and we joked we were the early birds. We were greeted by the owner, Naz, and his son, Ray, and they told us we could sit anywhere. Were we in for an experience…
Everything looked great on the menu and we asked Naz for guidance on what he suggested for dinner. He took great care in making recommendations based on our interests. I was interested in Veal and my wife asked for Lamb — so Naz suggested the Veal Paprikash and for my wife the Lamb pomegranate — we asked for an accompanying appetizer — he suggested a cucumber salad for me and an eggplant dish for my wife. No wine list here — Naz buys for pairings and what he sees fit. Then he suggested a bottle of Layer Cake Shiraz to compliment our meal.
Wow, wow and wow… the cucumber salad was refreshing and the Veal Paprikash was tender and oh so yummy. My wife was just as pleased with her dishes — the eggplant/​paprika combo was delicious. The lamb was cooked to perfection (medium rare as requested).
For dessert we had a homemade cardamom ice cream with crushed pistachios and a homemade Belgian chocolate cake with two espressos. What an ending.
Finally, Naz and Ray have a terrific hospitality and make you feel as if you have entered their home and have been friends for years.
Perfect nite.

I’ve lived in Brighton my whole life and just recently (actually about a year ago, but I’ve been too lazy to write a review, oops) discovered this gem! Randomly decided to go eat here with a couple friends and had a great experience.
The man who I’m assuming owns the place is so sweet! He really took the time to explain the dishes to us and make us feel comfortable (he’s super funny). It was a very friendly and intimate experience. I was also really impressed with the décor! Very fancy yet cozy. I went again with family a few months later and had an equally amazing experience. The food is DELICIOUS. Seriously, so good… so good.
I can’t think of any real cons from my experiences. I’m really shocked that this place received a couple bad reviews! Oh well, can’t win them all. I highly recommend this place though!

I guess I’m a sucker for eclectic menus, but this was just fantastic on all fronts. As far as we could tell everyone in the restaurant but us were either related, close friends, or regular customers. Our dishes were both variants of chicken with paprika in sauce over spetzel, and tasted sort of like curries. The savory sauce over the spetzel is delicious. Dessert was something that sounded like «chocolate bomb», in the chef’s words, and was basically just that — the bomb being the caramel center. This place was everything that an establishment calls itself a «bistro» should be.

Jasmine Bistro Ruined My Night!
I chose this restaurant based on the reviews of other users, but my experience with them was the worst I have experienced with a sit down restaurant in years.
It began with a phone call three days ago to make a reservation at the restaurant. It went straight to voice mail, but I left a message requesting reservations for yesterday evening. A day and a half later, I’ve still not received a return call. I call again and this time speak to a gentleman on the phone. I make reservations at 9:30pm for 2, he tells me I’m in the books and good to go.
The night of the dinner, after having driven nearly 45 minutes, I call the restaurant to find out what the parking situation is near the restaurant (it’s freezing outside). A gentleman picks up the phone and tells me that they are going to close early. I tell him the situation, that I’ve been driving for so long, we’re starving AND we have a reservation! He pauses for a while before telling me that he called and left a voicemail message notifying me that they were canceling my reservation. No voicemail message, I assure you. My phone never leaves my possession and I am constantly monitoring it for messages/​vmails.
I remind him that the reservation was confirmed on the phone the night before, and tell him that I was certainly not called or left any voice mail message. And that’s when he gets verbally abusive… I kid you not. I had this guy yelling at me on the phone, abusing me, when I was the one who had been wronged in this situation.
Just surreal. Makes me wonder if all of these glowing reviews about the service were paid for by the restaurant.

Jasmine Bistro is undeniably a total date night destination. While the food itself is what I’d consider middling-​to-​good, the experience of being waited on and having a wonderful dialogue with the chef/​owner is marvelous.
First-​off, I don’t get why it was completely dead on a Friday evening, but the joint was pretty dead. Our dinner ran easily 2.5 hours, and we witnessed –perhaps– five tables during that time… and we closed the place down. If it’s available, the window seat is super cute and let’s you observe the street as a pleasant respite from gazing adoringly into the eyes of your dining companion.
Although the menu’s already pretty extensive, offering a curious medley of French and Hungarian cuisine, we opted primarily for the specials of the day: a lobster bisque starter, the lamb dish with rice pilaf and veggies, and an on-​menu standard chicken gulyas (ohhh, –that’s– what goulash is!) on homemade gnocchi-​like pasta.
We also asked for a recommendation on a nice wine (reasonably priced at around $ 30 for the bottle) and ended up with a delightfully bright NInety+ Cellars Astralian blend. Great by itself, better with meat.
In my opinion, the bisque won hands-​down, with a great spicy kick and a lighter consistency than I’m used to. The flavors on both lamb and chicken dishes were so rich, but I found the lamb a smidge on the tough side and the chicken pretty dry.
And although we deliberated on whether or not to get dessert, by the time we’d finished our extra half-​glasses of Malbec (on the house!), we were presented with two completely different sweets (yet charged for one). Way to save us the trouble of having to choose!
Regardless of the less-​than-​amazing proteins, dollar-​for-​dollar, the service, ambiance, and food are superb values. This isn’t a dash-​in-​and-​dash-​out joint, but a memorable experience.