Food was okay for the most part considering how high each main entree, appetizer, and starters were priced. I ordered the branzino fish entree. It was embarrassingly thin for $32.95. The short ribs was $38.95 for small portions as well. What's even worse was that the restaurant charged an extra 4% of the total bill for credit card fees. As if the prices on the menu were not high enough, let alone have your customers pay for your credit card fees. Maybe be more transparent instead of having a small fine print at the bottom of the menu that could have been missed by anyone.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 2
Ангелина Бондарская
Beautiful interior. Cool presentation of dishes, but the food itself is extremely mediocre.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 3
Aida Curraj
This is the best Mediterranean food I have ever had.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We loved the flavors of the food. AJ was our server, she was great! We were 7 people and sat right next to the kitchen where the heat lamps made us warm...the three of us, with our backs to the kitchen, were literally warm to the touch. The warm pita was out of this world! The hummus portion was not enough for 7, so we should have ordered two. IMO, the hummus should have been larger, especially for $15... Ask for extra bread. My skewers were delicious and filling/ lamb, chicken and shrimp. Yum. Byo... will go back. The appetizers were so good- dumplings, shrimp with mushrooms. The sauce was devoured! Hence, the extra bread!!
Adam Seltzer
I’ve had to come into town for my job a few times now, and this is a must stop. I can’t recommend it enough.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Christopher Tonstad
Had an excellent time here last Friday, and highly recommend to anyone looking for a quaint evening out with exceptional food. Admittedly my date and I were late for our reservation, but we were seated right away regardless of our tardiness.I had given my date two long stem roses, the staff took note and offered us a small vase and water to hold them while we dined, which was an excellent touch right off the bat. We started with the Zucchini Beauty, which was a fresh zucchini salad that was nicely dressed and offered a great start to the upcoming entre. I had the lamb shank, which was seasoned wonderfully, cooked to be succulent yet fall-off-the-bone tender, and paired excellently with the vermicelli and jus sauce. Afterwards, the Turkish Coffee was a nice jolt of flavor to round out the meal.The dining room is cozy, but does carry sound, and the other diners' conversations did make it hard to converse with my date due to the loudness, but you can't control that sort of thing unfortunately. Overall, we had a fantastic time at Aspendos, and look forward to returning soon!Dietary restrictions: Are happy to accommodate diners with selfish allergies and assure them of no cross contamination.
Food was great, worth the price. Best Mediterranean food I had in a while.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Stan N
The food tastes like it was made in a traditional Turkish of Greek family kitchen. The flavors are exquisite. The complete opposite of street food. Adam is a most gracious owner. An awesome surprise to be found in Princeton.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Mary-Ellen Mess
We enjoyed a quick meal before a performance of the NY Arabic Orchestra at Princeton University. The food was excellent. We ordered soup, a starter, and 2 appetizers to share all of which was delicious and filling. Service was attentive but not rushed and the modern but comfortable ambiance made for a relaxed experience. Many of our fellow diners were of Middle Eastern descent and also attended the concert which indicated Aspendos is the real deal for middle eastern cuisine.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kristina Choe
Some to die for's: the complimentary bread, hummus, rib short bread, oxtail. Will say the lamb shank was a bit dry and the branzino could've had some more flavor itself. Staff was very kind once we got there, although our reservation wasn't ready for quite a bit and they had forgotten out birthday celebration. Overall would return to try some more appetizers! [Until next bite -K]
Omg, can we talk about the bread!!!!!!The bread was absolutely amazing. And the burratta/olive oil that they serve with it just melts in your mouth, the oil was light yet bold!The bread was so delicious that my mouth is watering right now thinking about it! The bread had a delicious chared flavor, with a hint of rosemary. It was light, airy, warm yet fuffy, just pure bliss in my mouth.The lamb was tender, flavorful with the perfect seasonings. The only negative is that my shrimp seemed to be a bit over cooked for my liking. It was a little bit rubbery. But the flavor was great!Besides that everything else was on point. I will definitely be back! I want to try the lemon curd rose dessert. I sent my friend there and she said that it was fantastic. But I just was so stuffed that the night that i was there I didn't even have room for dessert and I usually always have room for dessert.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Huda S.
I tried Aspendos for my first time at a birthday dinner. It's been a while since a restaurant in Princeton has caught my attention; I've felt for a while that the food scene was lacking in variety. We came in on a weeknight to a pretty quiet restaurant. The menu offers a variety of Mediterranean dishes, some distinctively Turkish. The restaurant is BYOB but has a variety of non-alcoholic beverages. Our server did a great job answering questions and providing his input on several dishes. My party ordered a variety of appetizers, entrees, and a few mocktails. The drinks came out shortly before the appetizers. They were presented well and tasted fresh. The Pan Fried Potatoes were the highlight of our appetizers. Each piece consists of many thin layers of potato baked into a crispy square. The toppings and yogurt sauce also added great flavor dimension. The kitchen ran out of the pastrami that comes with the hummus appetizer, so we had just the hummus and fresh bread. I've tried plenty of hummus varieties as an Arab, and I was surprised by how good this one was. The fresh baked bread on the side definitely contributed to the quality of the appetizer. My Lamb Casserole entree was quite disappointing. The menu description is very vague in its description. It lists the item as 'chopped lamb pieces cookies in brown butter sauce.' There is no listing of a veggie variety, and this casserole came with A TON of mushrooms. I'm not a mushroom fan, so I picked them out of the dish as I ate. I was shocked to see how small the portion of meat was after taking all of the mushrooms out. I tried some of my friends' entrees which we all seemed to enjoy joy. I enjoyed my experience here despite my main dish being disappointing. Most of the other dishes were flavorful and very high-quality. Service was consistent throughout the visit, and I could see myself returning when I'm in the Princeton area again.
Benjamin Faino
Went this past weekend with 7 of us, 4 adults 3 kids. From the atmosphere, staff, to the amazing details the chef takes in his food, this restaurant does a phenomenal job at it all. I’m here on Monday morning hungry craving many bites, we will certainly go back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Albert Gonzalez
A lovely town with the loveliest places to eat. Count this one as astounding. A beautiful, elegant decor, spacious dining area, attentive and welcoming staff. Then there is the food...fresh plus! Everything is plated thoughtfully, the portions are balanced and generous and the aromas just invite you into their flavors. All of our dishes were delightful in every way and we look forward to going back soon! Congratulations the leadership, you have done a wonderful job and only hope that you maintain that level of exquisiteness for a long time to come! Sakshouka, Mucver, Branzino, Lamb Casserole, and Pontus Flat Bread...again, all amazing!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
S A.
Good food, nice ambience, a bit overpriced but it's something different on Nassau St in Princeton. Love the puffy bread and butter.
Food was okay for the most part considering how high each main entree, appetizer, and starters were priced. I ordered the branzino fish entree. It was embarrassingly thin for $32.95. The short ribs was $38.95 for small portions as well. What's even worse was that the restaurant charged an extra 4% of the total bill for credit card fees. As if the prices on the menu were not high enough, let alone have your customers pay for your credit card fees. Maybe be more transparent instead of having a small fine print at the bottom of the menu that could have been missed by anyone.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 2
Beautiful interior. Cool presentation of dishes, but the food itself is extremely mediocre.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 3
This is the best Mediterranean food I have ever had.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We loved the flavors of the food. AJ was our server, she was great! We were 7 people and sat right next to the kitchen where the heat lamps made us warm...the three of us, with our backs to the kitchen, were literally warm to the touch. The warm pita was out of this world! The hummus portion was not enough for 7, so we should have ordered two. IMO, the hummus should have been larger, especially for $15... Ask for extra bread. My skewers were delicious and filling/ lamb, chicken and shrimp. Yum. Byo... will go back. The appetizers were so good- dumplings, shrimp with mushrooms. The sauce was devoured! Hence, the extra bread!!
I’ve had to come into town for my job a few times now, and this is a must stop. I can’t recommend it enough.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Had an excellent time here last Friday, and highly recommend to anyone looking for a quaint evening out with exceptional food. Admittedly my date and I were late for our reservation, but we were seated right away regardless of our tardiness.I had given my date two long stem roses, the staff took note and offered us a small vase and water to hold them while we dined, which was an excellent touch right off the bat. We started with the Zucchini Beauty, which was a fresh zucchini salad that was nicely dressed and offered a great start to the upcoming entre. I had the lamb shank, which was seasoned wonderfully, cooked to be succulent yet fall-off-the-bone tender, and paired excellently with the vermicelli and jus sauce. Afterwards, the Turkish Coffee was a nice jolt of flavor to round out the meal.The dining room is cozy, but does carry sound, and the other diners' conversations did make it hard to converse with my date due to the loudness, but you can't control that sort of thing unfortunately. Overall, we had a fantastic time at Aspendos, and look forward to returning soon!Dietary restrictions: Are happy to accommodate diners with selfish allergies and assure them of no cross contamination.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Zucchini Beauty, Octopus, Lamb Shank
Food was great, worth the price. Best Mediterranean food I had in a while.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food tastes like it was made in a traditional Turkish of Greek family kitchen. The flavors are exquisite. The complete opposite of street food. Adam is a most gracious owner. An awesome surprise to be found in Princeton.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We enjoyed a quick meal before a performance of the NY Arabic Orchestra at Princeton University. The food was excellent. We ordered soup, a starter, and 2 appetizers to share all of which was delicious and filling. Service was attentive but not rushed and the modern but comfortable ambiance made for a relaxed experience. Many of our fellow diners were of Middle Eastern descent and also attended the concert which indicated Aspendos is the real deal for middle eastern cuisine.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Some to die for's: the complimentary bread, hummus, rib short bread, oxtail. Will say the lamb shank was a bit dry and the branzino could've had some more flavor itself. Staff was very kind once we got there, although our reservation wasn't ready for quite a bit and they had forgotten out birthday celebration. Overall would return to try some more appetizers! [Until next bite -K]
Restaurantji Recommends
Omg, can we talk about the bread!!!!!!The bread was absolutely amazing. And the burratta/olive oil that they serve with it just melts in your mouth, the oil was light yet bold!The bread was so delicious that my mouth is watering right now thinking about it! The bread had a delicious chared flavor, with a hint of rosemary. It was light, airy, warm yet fuffy, just pure bliss in my mouth.The lamb was tender, flavorful with the perfect seasonings. The only negative is that my shrimp seemed to be a bit over cooked for my liking. It was a little bit rubbery. But the flavor was great!Besides that everything else was on point. I will definitely be back! I want to try the lemon curd rose dessert. I sent my friend there and she said that it was fantastic. But I just was so stuffed that the night that i was there I didn't even have room for dessert and I usually always have room for dessert.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I tried Aspendos for my first time at a birthday dinner. It's been a while since a restaurant in Princeton has caught my attention; I've felt for a while that the food scene was lacking in variety. We came in on a weeknight to a pretty quiet restaurant. The menu offers a variety of Mediterranean dishes, some distinctively Turkish. The restaurant is BYOB but has a variety of non-alcoholic beverages. Our server did a great job answering questions and providing his input on several dishes. My party ordered a variety of appetizers, entrees, and a few mocktails. The drinks came out shortly before the appetizers. They were presented well and tasted fresh. The Pan Fried Potatoes were the highlight of our appetizers. Each piece consists of many thin layers of potato baked into a crispy square. The toppings and yogurt sauce also added great flavor dimension. The kitchen ran out of the pastrami that comes with the hummus appetizer, so we had just the hummus and fresh bread. I've tried plenty of hummus varieties as an Arab, and I was surprised by how good this one was. The fresh baked bread on the side definitely contributed to the quality of the appetizer. My Lamb Casserole entree was quite disappointing. The menu description is very vague in its description. It lists the item as 'chopped lamb pieces cookies in brown butter sauce.' There is no listing of a veggie variety, and this casserole came with A TON of mushrooms. I'm not a mushroom fan, so I picked them out of the dish as I ate. I was shocked to see how small the portion of meat was after taking all of the mushrooms out. I tried some of my friends' entrees which we all seemed to enjoy joy. I enjoyed my experience here despite my main dish being disappointing. Most of the other dishes were flavorful and very high-quality. Service was consistent throughout the visit, and I could see myself returning when I'm in the Princeton area again.
Went this past weekend with 7 of us, 4 adults 3 kids. From the atmosphere, staff, to the amazing details the chef takes in his food, this restaurant does a phenomenal job at it all. I’m here on Monday morning hungry craving many bites, we will certainly go back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A lovely town with the loveliest places to eat. Count this one as astounding. A beautiful, elegant decor, spacious dining area, attentive and welcoming staff. Then there is the food...fresh plus! Everything is plated thoughtfully, the portions are balanced and generous and the aromas just invite you into their flavors. All of our dishes were delightful in every way and we look forward to going back soon! Congratulations the leadership, you have done a wonderful job and only hope that you maintain that level of exquisiteness for a long time to come! Sakshouka, Mucver, Branzino, Lamb Casserole, and Pontus Flat Bread...again, all amazing!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Good food, nice ambience, a bit overpriced but it's something different on Nassau St in Princeton. Love the puffy bread and butter.