The Greek Kitchen, Cardiff Bay Greek restaurant review

Tucked away in a quiet street near the Senedd, The Greek Kitchen shares a venue with Cardiff Bay’s long-established Cafe R. During the daytime in the week it’s an Italian cafe and in the evenings and on weekends The Greek Kitchen team take over. Much like Paysan and Blue Honey Night Cafe, this kind of clever venue sharing is cost effective and lower risk for businesses looking to get started.

Whenever an interesting independent pops up in the chain-laden Cardiff Bay it's worth taking interest. So, after a leisurely weekend stroll from Penarth across the Cardiff Bay Barrage, Mrs G and I were gasping for a bite to eat.

With its lovely waterside spot and soundtrack of Greek music, we could almost have been on holiday in Greece; if only it was a little bit sunnier.

The Greek Kitchen’s menu follows a formula which will be familiar if you’re a fan of Cardiff’s other Greek restaurants. Starters focus on dips and cheese-based dishes whilst mains focus on grilled meats (plates and wraps) as well as the essential bonus moussaka.

Our first starter was killer. Greek Secret (£5.50) saw a creamy and salty ooze of melted feta cocooned in crackingly crisp filo pastry drizzled with honey vinaigrette and sesame seeds. Whilst it all could have been a bit rich, an acidic note from the vinaigrette brought balance to the dish. 

 
The Great Alexandria (£4.50) comprised of a half grilled aubergine loaded with a month’s recommended intake of garlic, crumbled feta, chopped tomatoes, briny capers and parsley. It was a lovely combination of flavours but the aubergine would have benefited from being a touch softer. 

 
I always find it hard to resist a pile of meat and the Greek Kitchen’s Greek Mythology Platter (£21) was the size of Mount Olympus.

It was mostly very tasty. The highlights included a pair of beef patties (bifteki) twanged with fresh mint and a snappy pair of coarse-textured and herb-laden village style sausages. 

 
Pork and chicken souvlaki were pleasingly tender and pork gyros commendably crisp but they all could have done with a much bigger oomph of seasoning.

Deliciously squidgy pitta bread was an ideal mop for any stray meat juices whilst fresh tomato and onion salad and creamy and garlicky tzatziki added freshness to the dish. 

 
A generous side of fries were nicely dusted with oregano. 

We had a tasty lunch at The Greek Kitchen. Not everything blew us away but it’s a solid independent option if you find yourself down the Bay. It sounds like they’re popular too as they’re already considering expanding into different premises.

The Details:

Address - The Greek Kitchen, Discovery House Ground Floor CF10 4PJ
Web - https://thegreekkitchenwales.co.uk/
Telephone - 07306 612244