MP Taverna

I had my birthday party here with the WHOLE PIG dinner. My experience is unique in that I was going to purchase the gilt coupon for the dinner but the manager, George offered a better deal
My party arrived 30 minutes late, not unusual for my fam and friends, but the staff was patient and did not rush us at all. The waiters were attentive and friendly, serving the women first (a sign of being well trained) and making sure our waters were never empty.
But the FOOD! I thought because we were getting a discount that the food and service would not be up to par but WOW was I wrong. We got a wonderful and plentiful sample of what the restaurant had to offer.
The octopus on a bed of chickpeas and mama’s meatballs were hands down my favorite. My friends raved about the smash fries. Even the simple salad and broccoli had a little flare of perfect seasoning or charred that made the dishes special.
And the PIG! The staff was awesome, bringing out the pig whole so that we could take many many pictures haha. There were multiple versions of how it was served and they were all great
Leaving the place STUFFED, I couldn’t have asked for a better place to host my birthday
Can’t wait to go back!

Not what I was expecting. I’m a fan of Michael Psilakis restaurants and food but MP Taverna doesn’t make it thru. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a very good restaurant to have a meal but it’s not at the same level of the other ones and especially since it’s located around the corner of Taverna Kyclades which I think I don’t need to explain why you should go there instead.
Kefi and Fishtag are superior. Even their olive oil taste better. I think MP Taverna is a good combination of both restaurants and placed in the middle of Greek Astoria which it blends perfectly, but I find it pricey and small in portions for a neighborhood like this one. I have to mention that we went on Restaurant Week so portions were probably smaller, but again… I don’t like when they skim food like that just because of the price or promotion. They literally cut in half the dessert which is small already and we got two mini scallops as an appetizer. It was really good but super tiny. The octopus was more decent in size as well as the branzino and paella. The paella at Kefi is way better with plenty of seafood and variety. This one was a lot of orzo and a couple of mussels.
It’s a shame that they do that in RW because people get the wrong idea about the place and probably won’t go back like me since I didn’t find it memorable. And again, if you are making all the trip to Astoria you’ll rather go to Kyclades.

The MP salad was highly disappointing. This was supposed to be a Greek salad. It came with no olives, and more lettuce than anything else. I guess unless in Greece don’t expect a proper Greek Salad or Kalamata olives. The service was not very good. The fish was good but could have been hotter. The dumplings, were good but not dumplings. It was the filling over pasta. All in all, I’m glad I came here for restaurant week because I don’t think what we had was worth the regular menu prices.

I rarely give negative reviews but I’d like people to have a heads up of what they’re paying for. Came for dinner on a Monday night for 2 at 6:30. Each ordered a drink, got the pita and dip trio appetizer, and the Greek paella and the mussels. How do you mess those up? Unfortunately the best thing we had was the chickpea dip. Our entrees were terrible being that it was supposed to be «authentic Greek food” — paella tasted like watered down marinara sauce cooked with orzo. Mussels (I mean really, how do you fuck that up) literally tasted like the paella sauce Cept with a shitload if feta cheese crumbles on top. Our food also took forever to come out (I never complain about that esp because I myself was once a waitress) and it was probably the waiter who messed up our order. But that has nothing to do with my rating. Do yourself a favor and try out the other Greek restaurants on ditmars blvd cause that’s what I’ll be doing. Def. not worth my money.
**and trust me, my fatass is not picky about food. Food quality is very disappointing.

Very good cocktails, Branzino and over all experience.

I have been to MP Taverna many times. The reason that I have gone back is because the food is great.
Recently, however, an experience has left me saddened. I am disappointed to have witnessed capitalism at its worst.
The food is probably still good, but the experience left me so sour, I could not really enjoy my meal.
It is not wise to alienate the neighborhood community and loyal customer base this way.
There were 2 instances of shady business tactics on the same visit.
1. My sister had purchased the Gilt voucher for a meal for 4 people. There was a special menu for the voucher. You could choose 4 apps, 2 entrees, 2 desserts for the 4 people. Well, given that we have been there before many times (most recently two weeks prior), we had an expectation of the portion sizes that would be brought out. They had halved the portions of some of the items. If they wanted 4 people to share the appetizers so that they could only tolerate 2 entrees between them, this was not a nice idea. Also, the voucher would have been a good deal if not for the reduction in portion sizes.
2. This was even more egregious. We happened to go during restaurant week, so we were given the restaurant week menu. I looked into it and they were a participating restaurant in the official NY restaurant week. They offered dinner for $ 38pp. However, the way it worked was you had to be 2 people and would each pay $ 38. But, instead of each getting one appetizer, one entrée and one dessert, you would get 3 appetizers, one entrée (to split), and one dessert. I am not sure of exactly the specifics and their restaurant week menu is not available on the internet so I could refresh my memory. How would it work if you went alone? you would get ½ an entrée? why would the organizers of restaurant week allow a business to do this to their customers. It is a scam. I am certain that the portion sizes would have been abridged (similar to the special GiltCity menu).
They completely missed the point of these types of promotions. It is to bring in new customers. If people look at the prices they charge and see these are the portion sizes, they are not going to bring in many new customers.
Also, they have really left a sour taste in the mouth of established customers like myself and my husband.
Shame on you.

I’ve been here a few times and can’t say that I’ve ever been disappointed. The Gyro sliders are flavored well and the smashed fries are a nice addition to your meal. The food comes out quickly and well prepared. The venue space is large and can accommodate larger parties though I’ve only sat at the bar. The times I’ve been here, it hasn’t been overly crowded so if you’re deciding on a place to eat, this might be a nice place to consider.

This is a amazing place to have a good drink and food and drink. The music is ideal to have a good conversation no to laugh. The service is amazing even the manager is supervising everything is running well. Friendly stuff and good atmosphere.
We had for appetizers mussels and Gigantes and grilled Octupus with a delicious Greek salad and feta cheese. We had a awesome beer and a sparkling seltzer water. 100% recommend to come with friends and family we definitely will back soon.

Went there for Drinks & i’ll ordered a Cosmo & i got Like Lemonade with Vodka
Food is Really Good

Stopped in for some appetizers and drinks one night and was beyond impressed! We shared the dip trio which came with yogurt dip, chick pea, and eggplant dip. We also got the mussels & gigantes which were cooked to perfection! My favorite dish were the grandmas Greek meatballs, which were so flavorful!
Cannot wait to come check out some other amazing dishes they have to offer!

I wanted to love this place but I left a bit underwhelmed. It has a clean and modern décor which I really liked, with a really nice and long lit up bar. The 2^nd floor has plenty of seating for larger groups.
We have a very large party, +20, and they did a great job with serving us. They were very attentive and accommodating if we had any issues. The food just feel a bit short for its price.
Pita/​3 dips — it was good, but pretty pricey. They were really good about bringing out extra pitas.
Octopus — I didn’t have it, but heard it was amazing. Pricey at $ 17.
Salmon with salad — It was a beautiful plate but salmon was a bit dry and small. Not sure if it was worth the $ 22.
Chicken souvlaki — Definitely not authentic. They had a few pieces of chicken with dressed lettuce and sauteed peppers and onions. Did not seem like a souvlaki.
Smashed Fries — they were okay, a bit too over fried and salty.
Crème Brulee — it was okay, the actual crème brûlée lacked flavor but the cereal like toppings made up for it.
Carrot cake with ice cream — was good when it was warm, but as soon as it sat out for a bit, it was pretty dry in the middle. It was probably sitting around and they warm it up to soften it up.
Seems like they are trying to a bit fancy/​clever/​trendy, however, they’re falling short. Drinks were also expensive here.
Overall, it’s a nice spot for a date but if you’re looking for authentic Greek, this isn’t it. Not sure I would go back with all the other options that are in the area.

Friends and I came here on a Saturday night. We were late for the reservation, so they had to give our table away. We waited for about 15mins and a table opened up — we were very happy!
To start, we tried the Grandma’s Greek Meatballs, Octopus, and Barrel Aged Feta. The meatball were awesome! Ocotpus was good, but I suppose that’s expected from a Greek restaurant and the cheese was just OK — so greasy! Our favorite entrée was the Lamb shank and the lamb chops! we also tried the branzino and errr… can’t remember, but everything was great! The Napoleon and Chocolate brownie was a great way to end the meal! Not sure when i’ll be in Astoria again, but I’ll def try to eat here again :)

I have to give it to them for accommodating about 20 people. The guys at the front were really kind and patient.
Our waitress had her moments. She started off really friendly but one small complaint about an order and the smile turned upside down. (Hanger steak and Greek sausage had only three small pieces of steak versus a whole steak like mine)
Crispy cod fish was anything but crispy. Flavor was just ok.
The octopus wasn’t cooked all that great. The ends were grilled far too long leaving it burnt. The chickpea salad was really good though.
The hanger steak and Greek sausage was a recommend by someone at the bar. It was not good. Lots of lemon flavor but somehow the meat was dry. The sausage was eh. The fried potatoes were crispy and good.
People were accommodative and nice but I wasn’t crazy about the food.

I had high hopes for MP and unfortunately, it was not reached.
I made same day reservation for 20 at 8pm. I was quite impressed. The lady on the phone told me it’s not a problem and that the table will be ready even before 8pm, if anyone arrives earlier.
We decided to come a bit earlier to maybe enjoy ourselves at the bar before the chaos. Table was not ready. Apparently, what the lady told me over the phone does not apply in real life. Our table didn’t become completely available til a little before 9pm. I suppose it’s still a plus cause they actually pulled sitting us together.
Just one speed bump I suppose.
We ordered three things to share. Grilled Octopus with chickpea salad, Crispy Cod and Hanger steak with Greek sausage.
The Octopus was char grilled not to perfection. The pointy part of the tentacles was burnt and totally inedible. The chickpea salad saved this dish.
Crispy Cod was not crispy and it has some sour taste to it.
The Hanger steak although recommended by who seems like a loyal customer was a bust. Nothing special. The smashed potatoes that came with it was alright as well.
Service was ok at the beginning but the «attitude» was so obvious after one of us had a complaint about a subpar piece of hanger steak.
For a table of at least 20 that included children, we were actually very well behaved. Except for that one time with the steak, everyone kept to ourselves and didn’t bother any of the waitstaff for anything. So I couldn’t think of any other reason for the sour attitude coming from our waitress.
Oh well. Never coming back here again.

This is how you lunch. A few of us came here for late lunch on a Saturday and were more than impressed. Being a Greek restaurant in Astoria, competiting against heralded institutions like Taverna Kyclades and Psari, is a tall order, but MP Taverna more than holds it’s own. Not surprising coming from the Greek powerhouse that is Michael Symon…-er, I mean… Psilakis. Wait… which one is which again?
A few blocks from end the Astoria-​Ditmars station, MP Taverna is located in fairy unassuming street corner nestled away among the prewar building. As you enter, before you is a stylish, fully-​stocked, large marble-​topped bar with more than ample seating. The high ceilings, earthy tones, and dark wooden tables succeed in creating that faux-​tavern ambiance.
I’m kicking myself for not ordering the prix fixe lunch, like the everyone else, but I opted for the Chicken Souvlaki ($ 13). Stupid me thought that «I shouldn’t eat that much». C’mon. Who was I kidding? Don’t get me wrong, the Souvlaki was delicious — tender and perfectly seasoned. And the smashed fries were crispy awesomeness. I only had buyers remorse because of how awesome the prix fixe lunch was — $ 20 for appetizer, entrée, and dessert. Everyone that got the prix fixe opted for the meatballs, dumplings and baklava. All of which were tasty and on point. Luckily for me, they were more than willing to share their bounties.
As first impressions go, this was a great one. I’m keeping my rating at 4 stars for now, with a definite potential to move up from there. I’ll most definitely be back again, and I’m hoping the dinner options are just as delectable. I think I just found a new Greek place to add to the rotation. Yamas!

Hurricane Joaquin definitely did not stop us from having some delicious grub in Astoria! Our original plan was to eat at Taverna Kyclades, however, the wait was 30 – 40 minutes. I don’t blame them but we were all getting HANGRY! So I looked up alternatives around the area and guess what? I had already had this gem bookmarked on Unilocal.
We arrived and was immediately seated upstairs. The décor is pretty neat, modern and great for family gatherings or a date. For appetizers, we ordered the mussels, which was served with a white wine sauce, tomatoes, veggies and feta cheese AND we also ordered the octopus which was served with chickpeas, red onions, corn and tomatoes. Both were really delicious, the octopus was grilled to perfection and went well with the chickpea salad tossed in butter and olive oil.
For drinks, I personally had the Grecian mule, which was fig vodka, grapefruit juice and ginger beer. The drink was a ‘miss’ for me because I didn’t really taste the alcohol, the ginger beer was flat and the drink kind of tasted like cold medicine… I will be trying something else next time.
For the entrees, we ordered the lamb chops, medium well, and it was marvelous. It was chewy, juicy and not gamy at all. Probably one of the best lamb dishes I’ve either had. We choose the fries as the side and they were overly fried. They need to change a new patch of oil too. We also ordered the Special Fish of the Day, Grilled Lavrarki, which was a white flaky fish which was 75% filleted, down the middle (careful, might be a few bones in there!). It was light and not overly cooked. It was served with fresh parsley and olive oil with butter sauce. I wished the fish was a bit more fresh though.
Overall, my experience was good. I would definitely come back again for the lamb chops and the grilled octopus!!! One thing is that you have to place your whole order at the same time, appetizers and entrees all at once!

Tried this place for the first time last night and will definitely go back. First of all, I like how even though it was a Friday night, it wasn’t mobbed and we were seated right away; they have indoor and outdoor seating, which is always a plus. Take this with a grain of salt, as it is Labor Day Weekend so there’s a good chance it might get more crowded on a Friday where a lot of people aren’t out of town for a holiday.
The server was extremely nice and took our drink and appetizer orders right away. We ordered Grandma’s Meatballs, which is lamb meatball with little triangles of pita bread and a side of tzatziki sauce. I didn’t know it was lamb until I took the first bite and my date informed me, which is good because I’ve always been anti baby meat and, had I known beforehand, I would have seriously missed out. I’ve seen the light, sorry morals.
I got a hamburger for the main dish and it was cooked perfectly with a delicious grilled bun. The side of french fries were also cooked to perfection. They give you BIG portions and, as much as I wanted to keep eating, I could only finish half. I’m eating the leftovers as I write this and it’s still delicious.
They have a bar and it would be a nice spot to use as a starting point of your night. Definitely a place where you can relax and make conversation without having to strain your ears and scream over other people.
¹⁰⁄₁₀ will eat here again.

My friends and I had an ODD experience here.
My friend ordered a glass of Merlot from the bartender. He said they didn’t have it. He offered a comparable glass. When she closed out the tab came to $ 14. The original glass she had asked for was $ 9.
We were seated at a table and I went to order my wine. Conveniently, they didn’t have mine either so I had to select the more expensive glass. UM, OK 2 in a row? At least I wasn’t tricked.
Annoyed, my friend told the servers what had happened. The manager came over apologizing and promised to take care of us.
Strangely we had 2 servers, who took turns asking us the same thing. One would ask for our order and leave and the other would come up and do the same thing.
Towards the end of the evening, the manager came up to us and said «Ladies, I took $ 3 off your bill» with a huge smile on his face. THAT’s your idea of taking care of us? It wasn’t even the full difference of the glass of red wine!!! If he had any concept of customer service he would have given us a free dessert or a half carafe of wine. Or taken a few glasses off the bill.
He then went out of his way to circle the $ 3 off from the bill! Like he did us a HUGE favor. And both of the servers went out of their way to point out we got $ 3 off. WTF?
The food was good (we stuck to apps, fried cod, fried cheese, scallops, tomato salad, gigantes). I loved the tomato salad, it was so simple yet flavorful and refreshing. And you can’t really go wrong with fried cheese.
But with the service being so bizarre and with so many other choices for Greek food in Astoria, I wouldn’t come here again.

After a bad experience at Zenon Taverna tonight, me and my friend were going to check out Taverna Kyclades instead but holy moly there was a mob of people waiting outside… hell to the no! I looked quickly on Unilocal and found MP Taverna, which also had pretty great reviews and we decided to try this spot out. The hostess gave us a choice to sit indoors or outdoors so we got a table in the outdoor seating because it was a nice night. I was busy like always checking into Unilocal and Swarm. The staff were so friendly and attentive like our server Rocky M. and the General Manager… I believe George came by our table and other tables to check in and see how his guests are doing which is an A+ in my book!
Meze: Cypriot Lamb Sausage… omfg the flavor profiles from the delicious sauce to how the lamb sausage was cooked… simply perfection «MAMA LIKE»
My friend ordered a Chicken Souvlaki and I ordered a Beef Souvlaki. I could barely eat my souvalki because I was so stuffed from the bread w/​olive oil and Cypriot Lamb Sausage which can be the main entrée because it was pretty fulfilling!
George was like your friend finished and what happened with you lol… I laughed and asked if they had a dessert menu.
Dessert: When I was ordering the «GALAKTOBOUREKO» Crème Brulee… Rocky M. was being funny saying the only way that I can get it is to pronounce the whole name hahaha so I was like blah blah in «» crème brûlée hahaha… when we got the dessert and it was very different from the other crème brulees that I ate in the past and look more like cereal but woah baby «MAMA TOTALLY HUBBA HUBBA LOVE IT!!! Few berries and pomegranate seeds topping with shredded crispy things on top… MMMMMM!!!
Definitely a MUST TRY so BOOKMARK IT YO!!!

I came here last night since Kyclades was packed. We sat at the bar and our friendly British bartender was the best! He suggested we get the lamb shank and I had asked a couple next to us which dish they ordered and instead they suggested the Lavraki (regulars clearly). Delicious Lavdaki although the lamb shank was not that flavorful. In addition, we had the chickpea appetizer to start and I washed it down with some Angouri cocktails (cucumber infused vodka and elderflower? Yes, please).
The bartender also told us they have great happy hours where the souvlakis are $ 3. Done.