I've dined at Ilona more times that I can count and the quality of the food is consistently delicious-- it's my go-to when someone is visiting from out of town. I've tried almost every non-meat dish on the menu and would recommend it all. The food is family style/shared. Ordering the crispy eggplants is a must. We order one crispy eggplant per two people at our table, so if we go with six people, we have three orders! Yes, it is that good. Every other food item is delicious due to the freshness. I recommend the georgian cheese bread, the swordfish kabobs (tender and saffron flavored), the greek salad, and the calamari. I think you really cannot go wrong. Service can be somewhat slow so expect to have a longer dinner here. The ambiance is fun and lively, but it is loud and can be challenging for those who are hard of hearing, so take that into account.
Their reservations only go live two days ahead so it is often available for a last-minute reservation, which is rare in Boston. I recommend reserving indoors because even with an outdoor reservation, if it rains, you lose your spot.
Kenny Mok
Good vibes, pleasant atmosphere and attentive service. Good for small to medium size groups. Menu offers wide variety of dishes and good for sharing. Really enjoyed all the dishes and they all tasted good however the portion was kind of small. Price was okay a bit on the high side. Anyway, excellent service and I’d recommend it.
Rachel Boisclair
Hunter is the best bartender around!! It’s amazing how creative he gets with the drinks and they all taste amazing! $1 oysters on weekend nights can’t be beat either
Qaarlos Hilaal
4.5/5 Vibes and staff are amazing!! Drinks are really good - You're sure to have a great time at Ilona!!
Some food items are mediocre, but the food is generally good!
I had: Manti: Not a real anti but not bad Octopus: Good Chicken Kebab: Not Bad Fish Kebab: Good
Drink: Ouzo: Mega recommended, it's a Greek staple / local drink made of anis seeds
Mason Quintero
I went here with my girlfriend and we LOVED the Crispy Eggplant, Pilika, and arugula salad. The Patatas Harras were very good but maybe a little too acidic?
Bogdan, our server, was kinda and accommodating. He answered all the questions we had!
Yao Leung
Great experience after our reservations were miscommunicated at their sister restaurant GiGi. Food was delicious and highly recommend the fried eggplant. Very welcoming and again amazing food. Highly recommend..
tl;dr - An almost perfect experience and my new favorite spot in Boston
So one may ask, if it was an almost perfect experience, why not 5 stars? I'm glad you asked and I am hoping that the management/ownership takes a moment to read this review because if they tweak this one thing, Ilona is truly a perfect restaurant.
Let's start from the beginning. Ilona takes a unique approach to reservations, opening them 1 day in advance. I LOVE this. It allows you to have stand a chance at getting a reservation and not needing to do so months in advance.
The space is small and busy but it does not detract, it's lively without being overwhelming.
Service is on point. The servers know the menu well and time out the experience perfectly. The bartenders are quick, support staff delivers food while it is still piping hot and fresh and clean plates efficiently without being intrusive.
The food. My God, the food. So. freaking. good! Ilona is mainly small plates which is great because there are so many amazing things to choose from. We had the fried eggplant, halloumi, octopus, ribs, roasted cauliflower, lamb souvlaki, and khachapuri, plus some buck a shuck oysters. A buck for the absolute best east coast oyster I've ever had?! Amazing - get the 1620 if they have it. Rarely do you get lamb souvlaki that is cooked anything but well done. It was medium rare, tender, and flavorful. The ribs were unlike anything I've had, drizzled with honey over a tzatziki sauce. Who thinks of this because I want to congratulate them in person. Don't take my not calling out each dish as a slight, I just don't have the characters left to do so. Seriously all was amazing. I can't wait to visit again!
Ok so let's get to why this is an overall 4 stars. First, I'd rate this 4.5 stars but Google doesn't give that option. The half star docking is for the 90 minute time limit on the table. Look, I get it. Some people are rude and linger at a small place like Ilona and it screws up the reservations all night. But from my time in the industry, those are the exception. Don't set a negative tone with every table because of the outliers especially at the onset of the night. Handle this either through the reservation system, printed on the menu, or on an exception basis and Ilona becomes quite honestly a perfect evening.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Halloumi, Crispy Eggplant, Octopus, Oysters on the Half Shell, Lamb Souvlaki
Gabi Cortez
So good! I have a few allergies and they were so incredible about alternatives and making sure I knew exactly what I could and couldn’t eat. And all the food was amazing!! I think my favorite was the lamb kabobs. The sangria was so unique and tasty.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Octopus, Fattoush Salad
Christine Harrington
Just ate brunch at Ilona’s. It was fantastic. The fried eggplant appetizer was to die for. Will definitely be back for dinner one night soon.
Went here for oysters, the oysters were shucked horribly and full of pieces of shell… Wasn’t being careful of shell (because normally you shouldn’t need to be!!!) and chipped my molar badly!!! Restaurant staff did not seem to care at all and barely apologized. Would not return here… oysters were fresh but what does that matter when they’re full of shell!!!!!!
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 1
Gant Redmon
I eat in the South End all the time and believe this is one of the most creative and savory menus in the area. And the mood and ambiance is top notch. Cudos to Felipe and Antonio.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Eggplant
Hannah Redmon
Beautiful restaurant and wonderful food! The service is impeccable and you have to try the eggplant. Very vegetarian friendly and plenty of seafood and meat for those inclined.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Eggplant
Doug Jacobs
Some of the best small plates and tastes around Boston, with an electric wine menu. Don't miss the shish barak, crispy eggplant, oysters, and ceviches. Desserts were a little overshadowed by the regular dishes though.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Eggplant, Grilled Octopus, Oysters on the Half Shell, Shish Barak
The Food are good, but the service it's amazing
I've dined at Ilona more times that I can count and the quality of the food is consistently delicious-- it's my go-to when someone is visiting from out of town. I've tried almost every non-meat dish on the menu and would recommend it all. The food is family style/shared. Ordering the crispy eggplants is a must. We order one crispy eggplant per two people at our table, so if we go with six people, we have three orders! Yes, it is that good. Every other food item is delicious due to the freshness. I recommend the georgian cheese bread, the swordfish kabobs (tender and saffron flavored), the greek salad, and the calamari. I think you really cannot go wrong. Service can be somewhat slow so expect to have a longer dinner here. The ambiance is fun and lively, but it is loud and can be challenging for those who are hard of hearing, so take that into account.
Their reservations only go live two days ahead so it is often available for a last-minute reservation, which is rare in Boston. I recommend reserving indoors because even with an outdoor reservation, if it rains, you lose your spot.
Good vibes, pleasant atmosphere and attentive service. Good for small to medium size groups. Menu offers wide variety of dishes and good for sharing. Really enjoyed all the dishes and they all tasted good however the portion was kind of small. Price was okay a bit on the high side. Anyway, excellent service and I’d recommend it.
Hunter is the best bartender around!! It’s amazing how creative he gets with the drinks and they all taste amazing! $1 oysters on weekend nights can’t be beat either
4.5/5
Vibes and staff are amazing!! Drinks are really good - You're sure to have a great time at Ilona!!
Some food items are mediocre, but the food is generally good!
I had:
Manti: Not a real anti but not bad
Octopus: Good
Chicken Kebab: Not Bad
Fish Kebab: Good
Drink:
Ouzo: Mega recommended, it's a Greek staple / local drink made of anis seeds
I went here with my girlfriend and we LOVED the Crispy Eggplant, Pilika, and arugula salad. The Patatas Harras were very good but maybe a little too acidic?
Bogdan, our server, was kinda and accommodating. He answered all the questions we had!
Great experience after our reservations were miscommunicated at their sister restaurant GiGi. Food was delicious and highly recommend the fried eggplant. Very welcoming and again amazing food. Highly recommend..
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Eggplant, Fried Eggplant, Slow Roasted Lamb
tl;dr - An almost perfect experience and my new favorite spot in Boston
So one may ask, if it was an almost perfect experience, why not 5 stars? I'm glad you asked and I am hoping that the management/ownership takes a moment to read this review because if they tweak this one thing, Ilona is truly a perfect restaurant.
Let's start from the beginning. Ilona takes a unique approach to reservations, opening them 1 day in advance. I LOVE this. It allows you to have stand a chance at getting a reservation and not needing to do so months in advance.
The space is small and busy but it does not detract, it's lively without being overwhelming.
Service is on point. The servers know the menu well and time out the experience perfectly. The bartenders are quick, support staff delivers food while it is still piping hot and fresh and clean plates efficiently without being intrusive.
The food. My God, the food. So. freaking. good! Ilona is mainly small plates which is great because there are so many amazing things to choose from. We had the fried eggplant, halloumi, octopus, ribs, roasted cauliflower, lamb souvlaki, and khachapuri, plus some buck a shuck oysters. A buck for the absolute best east coast oyster I've ever had?! Amazing - get the 1620 if they have it. Rarely do you get lamb souvlaki that is cooked anything but well done. It was medium rare, tender, and flavorful. The ribs were unlike anything I've had, drizzled with honey over a tzatziki sauce. Who thinks of this because I want to congratulate them in person. Don't take my not calling out each dish as a slight, I just don't have the characters left to do so. Seriously all was amazing. I can't wait to visit again!
Ok so let's get to why this is an overall 4 stars. First, I'd rate this 4.5 stars but Google doesn't give that option. The half star docking is for the 90 minute time limit on the table. Look, I get it. Some people are rude and linger at a small place like Ilona and it screws up the reservations all night. But from my time in the industry, those are the exception. Don't set a negative tone with every table because of the outliers especially at the onset of the night. Handle this either through the reservation system, printed on the menu, or on an exception basis and Ilona becomes quite honestly a perfect evening.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Halloumi, Crispy Eggplant, Octopus, Oysters on the Half Shell, Lamb Souvlaki
So good! I have a few allergies and they were so incredible about alternatives and making sure I knew exactly what I could and couldn’t eat. And all the food was amazing!! I think my favorite was the lamb kabobs. The sangria was so unique and tasty.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Octopus, Fattoush Salad
Just ate brunch at Ilona’s. It was fantastic. The fried eggplant appetizer was to die for. Will definitely be back for dinner one night soon.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Great food and lovely service!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Went here for oysters, the oysters were shucked horribly and full of pieces of shell… Wasn’t being careful of shell (because normally you shouldn’t need to be!!!) and chipped my molar badly!!! Restaurant staff did not seem to care at all and barely apologized. Would not return here… oysters were fresh but what does that matter when they’re full of shell!!!!!!
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 1
I eat in the South End all the time and believe this is one of the most creative and savory menus in the area. And the mood and ambiance is top notch. Cudos to Felipe and Antonio.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Eggplant
Beautiful restaurant and wonderful food! The service is impeccable and you have to try the eggplant. Very vegetarian friendly and plenty of seafood and meat for those inclined.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Eggplant
Some of the best small plates and tastes around Boston, with an electric wine menu. Don't miss the shish barak, crispy eggplant, oysters, and ceviches. Desserts were a little overshadowed by the regular dishes though.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Crispy Eggplant, Grilled Octopus, Oysters on the Half Shell, Shish Barak
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