Love it or Hate it?

My first trip to Stephos came at the age of 12. I woke up one summer morning, and my family had planned to go for a trip downtown. My aunt and my sister were debating over a few restaurants at which we should eat at. It was my sisters Idea to go to the small greek taverna on davie street. We decided to try it. After a long walk in stanley park, and some shopping, we drove to Stephos for the first time. My sister had already been there once, and she loved it. Stephos often has line-ups, its a really busy, popular restaurant. 

After waiting for maybe 20 minutes we were seated and I instantly loved the atmosphere, It was so well lit, not very bright, but not too dark either, there aren't really many lights at all, the candles make up most of it. The servers are fun and easy going. A proper Greek Taverna. Greek and middle eastern music (some persian too) songs are always played, and its never a quiet place inside Stephos. One of the reasons why its such a great place to eat.

The atmosphere and spirit inside stephos is only the second best thing about the restaurant. The best thing is the food. Specifically the amount of food you get, for the little amount of money you spend. The entrees are under $10, and the amount of food is more then enough to eat. For that money you get a big plate of rice, stephos's greek potatos, and a greek salad, as well as whatever entree in the dish. Many times we take the food home. For the money, compared to other restaurants, stephos is a great deal. It's well worth the experience. 

 The food itself is very well done. Some question the freshness of stephos, however, I believe much of their food is fresh and tastes great! I always order the 'Kalamaria dinner' which has all the rice potatos and salad except with a mountain of perfectly crisp, deep fried calamari on top, to eat it with. I've tried so much of their menu (just by tasting my familys orders) yet ive also ordered (myself) much of the menu. Having had most of it, I have never had enough of the calamari. Its not so crisp that it makes a crunch, but its not soft or breaded like. You can really taste the calamari, and its perfectly cooked. The worst part about ordering the Kalamaria dinner is running out of the tzatziki sauce, which goes so well with the calamari, its bound to finish before all of the calamari is gone. Im still learning about how to conserve it! If you love calamari, and would rather order it as an appetizer (as it is one) and try another dish, well, I wish you well. As the appetizer has about the same amount of calamari as the dinner, and is only two dollars less. Yes, the appetizer, a small plate of calamari (still stacked tall) costs $7.95, while the dinner, costs only two dollars more at $9.95. 

Stephos is in no way a fancy restaurant, but its not a diner or anything. It's a fun place to be. However, I recognize that Stephos is one of those restaurants were people either love it or hate it. Theres not much in between. Many love the food, many hate the food. I am a lover, I think the foods good quality for a very cheap price, big portions of food, and a great atmosphere. I've rarely had over or undercooked food at Stephos, and I don't think many others have either. The one thing you should take away from this review is this: Go down there, and see if your a lover or a hater! 

That day, at the age of 12, I had walked out of Stephos dieing waiting for the next time I could go. I loved Stephos, and I wanted to go again. We definitely did go again, many times, and I encourage everyone else to give it a go, if you're in the mood for greek, Stephos is the place to go. 

• Atmosphere: 10/10
• Food Quality: 8.5/10
• Value (price):10/10
• Service: 8/10

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Milad D.