Avli Estiatorio

We have dined at Avli on many occasions. For dinner this week, I specifically asked for a fireplace table when the reservation was made and repeated the request twice during the call. I was assured that the request would be accommodated. We arrived on time for our reservation after driving for ½ hour, and when we arrived, we were told there was no available table close to the fireplace. We will not go back.

I’m updating because I’ve been informed they do have a lunch menu. Obviously, I wasn’t given one or told of its existence. We were handed dinner menus, and were unaware we had other options since it was our first visit.
Everything else in my previous review still applies.

My work buddy and I stopped in after a long travel day. I had a hankering for gyros and he knew just the place. He didn’t lie. A nice establishment. The service could have been better. They forgot my drink until I was about done with my gyro and it was difficult to flag anyone down.
I have to admit, I couldn’t finish the gyro. It was very tasty however. I would recommend this place to anyone.

Family took us here while we were visiting from out of town. The restaurant had the perfect atmosphere for a cold December night: dark and cozy with a combination between a modern industrial feel and an old world Mediterranean feel. It worked for me! They sat our fairly large group right next to the fireplace, which felt wonderful. Everyone loved their food. Some of the things we ordered were the baby lamb chops, the gyros, the lemon soup, the scallops, the orzo, and the bruschetta. Everything was delicious. The staff happily split the food for those of us who shared. We would definitely return!

Ambience is very nice here, great spot for date night. Our server was very nice. Started with the meatballs which were good, fried zucchini chips which I loved but wouldn’t get again bc it had it with our entrée and was $ 10 alone, yikes! Also tried the grilled octopus which was good and not chewy. Overall all the appetizers were good but they just had too much oil in them. For the entrée we split the lamb burger which was good, but the bread wasn’t too soft, so was having to bite down harder. For dessert had the mini dessert sampler which was okay. I’d probably just come back here for drinks since it’s a nice spot.

Fantastic Food, great service and very homey atmosphere. Started off with Zucchini slices and garlic dip. Lemon soup then the Lake Superior Whitefish with Choclava with Vanilla bean Ice cream.

I was taken to this place by my boyfriend about a year ago. We have gone there many times since then. Their service is good, food is very good. Please try the grilled octopus, even if you think you don’t like octopus! Their Taramasalata is excellent although the portion is very small, and I don’t care for the chopped red onion they lightly spread on top so if you don’t like that strong flavor ask them to leave it off (we always forget). I also really love their beef kabob, the meat is very tender and flavor is always good. They also have an outstanding selection of tea’s (not in a bag, but the old fashion steeped kind) and I absolutely love their chamomile tea. They have been consistent in both service and food so we plan on keeping Avli on our list of local restaurants were we dine.

Went to dinner there the other night as we happen to be in the area late on a Friday night and needed a place to eat. This place was highly recommended to us and it was truly delicious. When we arrived my wife and were dressed very casual and still fit in. It has a great outdoor area but because we didn’t have a reservation we could not sit there. The place was packed and we were lucky we got a table.
I got a tea to start because my throat was hurting and it was the best tea I have ever had! As an appetizer we got the dolmades and something else that I can’t remember. The dolmades were just ok, but wife loves the other thing. I’m gluten free so I could not eat whatever the other appetizer was. We each got a salad — I got the Greek and she got the beet, both were delicious! The feta cheese was the best I’ve ever had and the dressing was just EVOO but it was amazing! As for a main course I got the chicken kabob and chicken was cooked to perfection, delicious! The green beans were the worst part of the dinner, they tasted liked canned — they were quite gross. I also thought I got rice with my meal but I didn’t get it. My wife had the stuffed tomato and she thought it was very good, we both loved her potato that came with it.
Overall the meal was very good! The owner was very nice, the waiter was good not great but the owner made up for it. The menu is well labeled with gluten free options. Overall when I’m back in the area I will absolutely return. Next time I’ll call ahead to get a reservation and sit outside.

Great food, great service… and they have a wonderful private room for a small party!

Always very good! Great food, great prices… Great service… Enrique is the best!!!:)

I made a reservation for this place like a month before for my girlfriends birthday party on a Saturday night around 8pm. I knew I wanted to make the reservation in advance since she had a party of 14 so I really wanted them to accommodate us especially in their much talked about outdoor patio. It really is a spectacular atmosphere outside, you should seriously come here alone for it. I really really enjoyed it and the weather was perfect on a summer evening here. So they seriously get 3 stars alone for that outdoor patio as I would come here just to sit outside.
Now let’s get to everything else. The person I made the reservation was very friendly, the hostess who greeted us, was also friendly. Our server through the night, also super friendly so they definitely get a point for that. However, I wouldn’t say I loved the customer service as some things didn’t exactly impress us. We ordered a bunch of the grilled octopus appetizers, and the server didn’t mention to us that it came in a small and a large and I wish we gotten the small since I didn’t love it here to be honest. It was missing the lemon zest I usually prefer from a greek grilled octopus. And the small portion is $ 12 compared to the large $ 17. We wouldn’t have gotten as many if we knew we would be getting the large portion. Anyways, I would pass on that in general. I did love the taramasalata spread for $ 6 with fresh and warm pita bread, I had so much of that which really filled me up and I wasn’t hungry anymore. It was that good, they definitely did that right. My husband ordered the gyros for his entrée and I ordered the lamb burger on a chibiata bread with zucchini crisps. I tried some of his gyros and they were way too much on the salty side for me. I thought my burger was pretty good, it came with this spicy aoli sauce that went well but like I said I took a few bites because I was already super full.
Since it was a birthday we did bring our own cake so we didn’t get to try any of theres. So overall, we had a very nice time. The server was a little off at times and didn’t really want to split our bill because we had quite a few people, but overall he was friendly and attempted to make conversation with us so that’s always nice. I wouldn’t say I loved the food, minus that taramasalata spread, felt it was okay but overall given their perfect atmosphere I think I’ll be back for tons of wine and spreads next time.

Yet another Unilocal Mobile App find! Thanks Unilocal!The patio was packed and the prices were reasonable considering the real estate. The service was friendly, pleasant and professional. The beer prices for the 16oz were not out of line. The two entrees we tried were good, not great, but good. Not sure what the stand outs here are, but it’s affordable enough with enough swank that we’ll probably be back for more to explore. Bonus, within walking to downtown drag and close to home.

Best Greek food I’ve ever had period! (And I’ve eaten at all the Greek-​town restaurants in Chicago)
The first time I ate here I came with a girlfriend and we dined on Avli’s charming patio — it felt like we were in Santorini with cute hanging lights and a warm spring breeze! We started with a beet salad and a bean app; both were spectacular with super-​fresh, flavorful ingredients. We then split the sturgeon, broiled whole and infused with olive oil and lemons, delish, another winner!
I’m not willy nilly with handing out 5 stars on Unilocal but Avli earned it — flavorful, fresh ingredients, affordable and scenic… this place is a home run! Whether for a date night or a dinner with girlfriends, I wouldn’t hesitate to dine here again and again. (In fact I was back the weekend before last for another fantastic meal!)

Came here for kind of latish dinner, nice that they are open to 10:00 even on week days! The place was still busy when we left a little after nine.
We weren’t super hungry so we decided to share a bowl of soup and a Poseidon platter. The Avgolemono soup, an egg lemon soup with orzo, was great! It came out of the kitchen hot and ready for slurping up. We liked that it wasn’t super thick or overly thickened with corn starch. The seafood platter was grilled octopus, shrimp and calamari with grilled onions and reduced balsamic. We had a little misfire at the start when the waiter brought the wrong platter (only grilled octopus) but the mistake was discovered and handled by the manager and perfectly. We really liked this plattter and would order it again. I loved how the balsamic made the dish sweet and spicy all at the same time. I hope to return again some time soon with a larger appetite and try some other selections.
As an added bonus, although located in the back of a mall, the restaurant’s atmosphere is charming. I liked the exposed brick wall and appreciated how it made me feel like I was somewhere cozy and quaint. Much better experience here than the Greek restaurants that I have frequented in Greektown, Chicago.

We visited them this past Thursday for the first time. I have to say that we almost turned around thinking that the place was closed. You have to park and walk into the mall and make several turns until you find them. We enjoyed our experience, the service was incredible, nice clean environment. Really loved the grilled octopus! Will be visiting them again very soon!

Avli is a hidden gem in this area (seriously, its tucked in the back of a shopping mall, you wouldn’t know about it unless someone recommended it to you). The outdoor seating area is gorgeous in the summer, I absolutely love the décor. Waiters are super friendly and on point with the wine suggestions every time. The grilled octopus appetizer and sakanaki are fantastic, I get them every time. Mousakka is great, the portion is HUUUGE though. You can definitely share between 2 people if you are also getting appetizers.
Need to come back here and try the choclova or the yogurt mousse! I tell myself I’m going to save room for dessert before I go every time but of course I end up eating too much and getting full: p

The very satisfying list:
Appetizer: Spetzofai
Meal: Arni Kokkinisto and Seafood Orzo
We biked up from Evaston. It’s on our way to the Chicago botanic garden. It’s in a little shopping mall. We had an appetizer Spetzofai, somebody’s a big fun of sau’sages…tasty, flavorful but not too heavy (okay, for us heavy eaters). My main dish was Arni Kokkinisto. They do not have it in the Lunch menu small portion but made it from dinner menu (a bit costy and too much for lunch). But I was too eager to try *braised* anything and never will I miss eggplant purée, which always reminds me of Turkish cuisine too. My meal buddy had a Seafood Orzo. We were blown away by the scallop, the tenderness, the juiciness, the thickness… a big portion of our hearts lost in it… The rice shape pasta was easy with teeth but lightly chewy. Will go back to try grilled octopus, mentioned a lot by fellow Unilocalers.

I like this place but it could be so much better. It used to be better, actually, now that I think about it. Attractive place with a nice outdoor patio. Some of the food is very good. Other items just make me wonder what they were thinking.
I have been there for both dinners and lunches. I try to avoid it for lunch because they have such a limited lunch menu, unless you want something heavy. I was surprised that Buon Giorno, in the same block, was mobbed at lunchtime but Avli was empty, until I saw the Avli lunch menu. They really need many more salads, and more interesting ones. I ended up ordering the lentil salad and it was literally a huge pile of not particularly flavorful lentils on top of some lettuce. Nothing else, not even dressing. I know this is a Greek place, but for lunch in the ‘burbs, it’s pretty much the «ladies who lunch» places that are successful, and everyone needs some real salads, IMO.
Service is very nice but very slow, which was odd because it was pretty empty.
I like the owner and staff really want them to succeed.

Tucked away in a converted brick loft commercial building in downtown Winnetka, this charming friendly Greek restaurant serves both classic and updated Greek cuisine, all of which is fresh and tasty. Indoor space has exposed brick, high timber loft ceilings and big windows looking to a lovely outdoor garden/​seating area.
The staff are excellent, professional and you get the sense that the servers and kitchen are tight, coordinated and rarely miss a beat. Nice selection of reasonably priced wines to accompany the meal. Nice menu with interesting appetizers [grilled balsamic octopus, artichoke with capers and lemon zest, cod row with onions and spices], nice selection of fresh meats and fish as well as a limited selection of their slow cooked lamb and other specials. Suggest you call in advance and find out what the specials are and pre-​order if you can as they do go fast.
Having received numerous accolades over the years, Avli is a tasty casual gem in the north burbs. Easy parking.

Moms night out in da burbs– whoo hoo! I decided to pass up my regular GNO spot (holler Trifecta Grill*) & choose a location where we could actually hear each other. The winner… Avli Estiatorio. Unfortunately, the private party room was booked, but we ended up having most of the bar area to ourselves.
If I hadn’t driven with someone who knew where Avli is located exactly there’s a good chance I would have never found it and missed out on good food/​wine. For other first timers it’s inside the building where Café Buongiorno is located.
I started my night with a much needed glass of lovely sauvignon blanc. And then we ordered a bunch of apps for the table to share. We let the mom who had eaten there before do the ordering. She did a fabulous job and we soon had a table full of delish apps. Favorites included the flaming cheese, fried zucchini chips & shrimp tourkolimano. I do think their pita bread could use a bit of work, but besides that they’ve got a good thing going back in the kitchen.
They weren’t very busy on a Wed night, but we were still proud that we were the last remaining table. We got the «hint» that it was time to get back to the (hopefully) sleeping kiddies when they turned the lights on at 10pm.
I hear they have a fabulous (and busy) patio so that’s reason enough for me to get back to Avli if/​when it warms up around here.
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