Plaka Estiatorio

We were recently visiting Seattle from Chicago for a graduation. We love Greek food and this place was recommended. There were 8 of us dining and each meal was better then the next. From the appetizers to their own «quince» dessert. Each meal was better then the next. The baby lamb was delicious the spinach pie loaded with feta and amazing. The family that owns the place could not have been nicer. A must try if you like Greek food!

OH MY Goodnessss!!! This place is AH-​MAZE-​ING!!! All the food is so good. They import everything directly from Greece. It tastes amazing. Family owned and run! You can literally taste the love. If you want an amazing, authentic, delicious night out, you will have such a great time at Plaka. Can’t wait to come back. The best Greek food in Seattle!

this is the best Greek food I’ve ever had. I’ve come here several times and I’ve never been disappointed. the family atmosphere, the warm service, and of course amazingly fresh and tasty food, is all here. I like ordering the small plates so I can try a bit of everything and share with those I’m eating with. family style is my style.

Plaka Estiatorio is a must, it screams authentic. I first heard about this place in my Seattle Magazine, and I have to give it 5 stars. We started with octopus braised in herbs with lemon and my taste buds were exploding & craving for more. The octopus was juicy & tender with the right amount of herbs and flavor. My main entrée was the lamb lollipops, the lamb was so tender that you didn’t need utensils. I can’t say enough of the hospitality from Nia and her mother. We will be back with family & friends.

We were visiting Seattle from Chicago, for my sons college Graduation. Chicago is known for the best Greek food. All my son wanted was «Good Greek food like Yia Yia makes, not on a stick». Plaka Estiatorio was recommended. We have never had such a delicious meal out anywhere. The roasted baby lamb was amazing, spanakopita (spinach pie) fantastic. 7 of us passed meals and every one was better then the next. The owners greeted us at the table and were genuinely happy to hear of our visit. Don’t miss the Quince Dessert

Food at this place is not even close to the Greek food. My meal was half cold half warm — it was not heated properly. Served lamb was definitely not fresh. Moreover, they have a secret menu for friends and family. So you can end up eating poor-​quality food while watching other people eat better food. You tell the server «I want that, what those people are eating», and he brings you something else.

My family and Our guest from overseas had the best dinner and received the most friendly hospitality ever I had in Seattle. Delicious food and great owner. will definitely go back and recommend it to all.

I love this place and the wonderful family that runs it. Our large party was made to feel like we were part of the family. There is a warmth and hospitality of Plaka that will keep me coming back over and over again. They are proud of their Greek culture, their food and love to share it with you. The food is delicious and very reasonably priced. They just get it. Clean restaurant, clean bathrooms, great, fun service, wonderful food. I will be customer of Plaka Estiatorio as long as they will have me.

Rated best family-​owned Greek restaurant in Seattle by… Me! By far the most delicious and authentic food. Wonderful atmosphere, easy parking and the family is there every single night. Wonderful dedication and wonderful hospitality.

Having lived in Ballard for many years and having seen the scene change over that time– I have to admit– I am over the next best or biggest thing.
I needed to feel like there was something more like family, a restaurant that cared more about you than how important they were– and I remembered I hadn’t been to Plaka in years.
My family had the best night out in a really long time. Thank you for the wonderful food and making us feel at home in our neighborhood again.
Merides and Galacto bourekos– I’m coming back for you again and again.

My husband and I visited this wonderful greek spot Saturday night (just when they opened at 4pm). This place tends to get busy late so if you want a more quiet experience, I would recommend an early dinner — perhaps 5 or 6 pm.
My husband is greek and we tend to try a lot of greek restaurants — Vancouver being one of our favorite spots because we have always loved the greek food there. Yet, we are always looking for that authentic quality locally since moving to Seattle some 17 years ago. We grew up in Chicago which has its share of greek restaurants.
I believe we have found it and will look no more; we so enjoyed Plaka Estiatorio. From our outstanding service to the spot-​on dishes. We began with the smelt appetizer and the horiatiki salad. I was pleasantly surprised that the garlic mashed potatoes that came with the smelt went wonderfully with them and did not contain milk. YES! I cannot do dairy so I was a happy camper on that note. The horiatiki salad for those unfamiliar is simply a greek salad, minus the lettuce but the surprise here was the figs which I have not had on this tradition salad before and which really added a wonderful unexpected element.
In speaking with the owners charming daughter, we learned her mother grows some of the items used in recipes, like grape leaves in the summer for the domates (stuffed grape leaves). We cannot wait until summer for that rare treat.
My husband ordered the spring lamb, which was delicious with a blend of spices that were perfect. I ordered the lemon chicken (I don’t eat red meat) and it was wonderfully spiced as well. The lemon potatoes and beans that accompanied it were just as perfect! For dessert the baklava of course and believe me when I say I’ve had a lot of baklava at a lot of places… the best I have ever had at Plaka Estiatorio! The generous filling was the key, which can often times get overwhelmed by the phyllo dough. Not here, it was a wonderful treasured pastry and the perfect end to a delightful evening of conversation with staff and great food. OPPA! We will see you again soon!

Really amazing service… like when you go home to mom’s and get the «treatment». Everything is authentic homemade Greek food and absolutely incredible.
The lemon potatoes in the slouvlaki are a must try.
Only thing I was not totally loving was the Greek beer.

Best gyro I have had in Seattle and perhaps ever! Huge portion and next time I am asking to cut it in half before I begin because if I don’t I will eat the whole thing! I even had it with tomatoes on it and I don’t eat tomatoes. These were wonderfully red and ripe and totally added to the experience. So, maybe I do eat tomatoes now!
Don’t miss this little jewel of a restaurant hidden on a side street in Ballard!

We tried this place with some friends over the weekend and loved it. I ordered the Spring lamb and found it tender and full of flavor. It reminded me of dishes I ate while traveling through central Greece. The highlight of the meal was the baklava, which is made in-​house. It was loaded with nuts and topped with cinnamon. As a self-​proclaimed baklava snob, I was very pleased.
Service was a little slow — it took us nearly 45 minutes to get our dinner after we ordered. But our server was friendly and helpful, and we had a great experience overall!
We will definitely be back.

Came here for dinner with my sister last night, she had a Greek salad and I had the Gyro plate — having not been here before we decided to go for the obvious staples as a means of gauging the food. Not sure what she thought of the salad but it looked pretty tasty to me, and had a giant wedge of feta on top of it. My gyro plate however, was pretty mediocre. The lamb was a bit dried out and the seasoning was not very exciting, the portions however, were giant.
They only have wine as far as libations are concerned, and only Greek wine at that — not much variety, but we both had a glass (different kinds) and found them to be pretty ok table wines. The service was great, they were really sweet and appropriately attentive without being obnoxious.
Overall this was just an ok experience, we may try it again if we’re in the neighborhood and feeling Greek food — but it probably won’t be a destination.

We just moved to the neighborhood on Friday and after a day of unpacking, we were looking for something yummy and satisfying. When we pulled up local options for dinner on Unilocal,this place was one of the first that came up. Quite different from Cap Hill!
We entered and were greeted with the warmest welcome you could get — you feel like you’re walking into your grandmother’s kitchen. This was hands down the most delicious dinner we have ever had in Seattle. The lamb literally melted in our mouths and the chicken was nice and flavorful.
One of my favorite parts was how the owner walked around to everyone’s table to check in and see how things were going. Really nice touch! Highly recommend and definitely will be back.

All I can think of about going here is: «wow so much expensive for so little food».
Also a bit weird for a Greek place to charge $ 2 /​person for adding a few crumbles of Feta cheese to an already overpriced $ 16 dish. I was expecting substantial Feta added to the main course, but just some crumbles were added to the over-​oily salad they made.
I’m also averse to dine-​in places that serve canned soft drinks instead of refills.
On the plus side, the gyro meat was really good, for what it is worth.
The lamb skewers were overcooked.
The tasty picture uploaded from the lamb lollipops simply was not on the menu.
On the down side I paid $ 50 for a meal for lunch for 2. Save yourself some serious money by trying a gyro place on the ave.

This was a very disappointing meal. I research a lot before I choose a restaurant to go to and this place had great reviews but I felt so let down afterward. The pork chop was the driest I have ever had, aside for asking it to be medium and the potatoes and «green beans» that came with it were so forgettable. The octopodi was nothing to write home about, either. The salad was plain and safe.
I was expecting this place to be modern, fresh Greek, I guess I was wrong.
Our waitress was sweet, that’s where the two stars are coming from.

Excellent service; they make you feel like family! :)
I don’t think I’m the biggest fan of Greek food (don’t hate me), but their service was so helpful and you can tell they really enjoy working there and their proud of their food, that it makes up for my lack of desire Greek cuisine.
The food is really authentic and I did find some things that were delicious! We shared family style:
*Lemon Roasted Potatoes
*Amazing fall-​off-​the-​bone ribs (can’t remember the name)
*Gyro
*Baklava
*Fruit, pastry roll
This was a great intro to Greek cuisine for me and I am planning on coming back to try other items on their menu.
Bottom line: authentic with excellent service.

It is freaking amazing here! I took my love to dinner and we honestly had the perfect meal, some of the best Greek food I’ve ever had!
We were brought out some delicious bread and olives with our water. We than started off with a couple small plates. The fried smelt was light, crispy and delicious. The spanakopita was very flavorful and flaky, just the right spinach to feta ratio. The calamari was nothing special, a little bland but good texture. The dips and pita were good though. We opted for the eggplant dip, tzatziki, and red pepper dip. All were tasty and went perfectly with the warm pita (which I noticed was wheat! healthier option I suppose;D.)
We ordered the lamb chops for our main course and… OMG. hands down the absolute BEST lamb chops I’ve ever had in my life! They were juicy and extremely flavorful. They were cooked perfectly, juicy crunchy char on the outside and a perfect tender medium rare on the inside. They had the most wonderful salty, savory, Mediterranean flavors ever. We could not stop raving about them on the way home!
Plaka is a hidden gem in Ballard, you can barely see it from the main stretch. It’s warm and cozy. The service is absolutely wonderful, warm and attentive. It is family owned and operated and they definitely make you feel like family when your eating there. I can’t wait to come back, Still thinking about those lamb chops!