Smyrna Restaurant

I made a reservation for 4 for Smyrna and when we arrived we were greeted by a very friendly server who surprised me by addressing me by name throughout the evening! He was incredibly attentive to all of us at the table while we dined. The food was fantastic. We started with a generous portion of the house hummus and soft pita, which was terrific. The following were ordered as principal plates: Smyrna burger, seafood kebab, and lamb kebab. All were excellent (if there is one suggestion to be made: it would have been nice to have a slightly larger slice of halloumi cheese on the burgers:) The server continually refilled our water. The music wasn’t too loud, which was conducive to regular conversation. The atmosphere was pleasant. Very fresh food at a fair price, and again, wonderful service at the table.

One of my all time favourite restaurants in Halifax - incredible, caring staff & Owners. Beautiful Food.lovely candle lit atmosphere, perfect for a romantic date night. Absolutely in love with everything about this space. I highly recommend mixing the spinach tarator and falafel with babaganoush together, with bread and butter wine and baklava for desert.

Tastiest kebabs ever in Halifax. Super friendly staff and a nice ambiance. Definitely recommend their kebabs. A hidden gem.

Really tasty food & the staff were really nice.

Highly recommend the Saganaki - soooooo tasty!

Baklava tasty too!

We found this hidden gem a few years ago and decided to drive from Wolfville on our vacation to try it again. Somehow the restaurant has gotten.even better! There's now a wonderful cocktail list with twists on classics with Ouzo and other alcohols the kitchen uses in their the cooking. The sharing plate was amazing, and we asked for more bread to mop every last bit up. Everyone loved their plates (kebabs, manti) and I could eat that fig salad every day for a year and enjoy it thoroughly every time. My only regret is not having room to try the lamb and yogurt kebabs I had last time we visited.

And the service is absolutely impeccable. Friendly, welcoming, accommodating without being intrusive, informative, and just all-round wonderful. Our server was born to work with the public and made this visit extra-extra special. Kudos to him for being just about the best server we've ever had, anywhere, and making us feel so at home. Thank you to all the staff. We will be back next year for sure!

Was delicious.
Lamb was very good, spicy chicken and kebab were amazing. I didn’t liked the Lamb souvlaki, needs more seasoning/improvement.

Came back from Istanbul a month ago and was craving some Türkish kebabs.
Was so happy to find this place and explore the area. Very kind staff and chef is an amazing person. Truly appreciate the experience at this restaurant.
I am a lover of the rice, that they serve with meat, so I got an extra plate of rice ha-ha?

Such an amazing experience restaurant was very clean. Staff was excellent and food was amazing. We will definitely be back!

The doneness of the lamb kebabs, lamb chops and chicken was spot on. Juicy, tender, and tasty. One of the best places that offers lamb chops and kebab l.

STOP! You have to eat here! A must try is the mixed grill plate! A perfect mix of chicken souvlaki, lamb souvlaki, lamb Kafta and chicken kafta served over a delicious rice! A must try as a starter is the Truffle Hummus!

The food is fresh and delicious.friendly service.one of the best Mediterranean food in the city.

Amazing food and cozy accommodations. Waitress was extremely helpful, and chef even came over to check to see how our meal was. 10 out of 10

Fantastic food and service. Price point is excellent as well. The honey and fig salad is amazing.

We were looking for a change from the Waterfront fare and found this gem just a mile away from Pier 21. We enjoyed our meal - kebabs prepared on a real charcoal grill in an open kitchen; babaganouch and eggplant sauté made at the restaurant. But what we enjoyed the most is chatting with Chef Michael and friendly waiters after we finished dinner. Looking forward to our next visit to Halifax and to Smyrna.

Chef is very sweet along with staff - food is amazing! I had the chicken souvlaki and it was delicious!

Amazing place with the best service! Highly recommend the Fig salad and red sangria. Mixed grill is also very good! Love coming back all the time!:) such a great place and experience

Extremely overpriced and not very good! The menu says entrees come with veggies and rice but they dont.when we asked the waitress told us they dont do that anymore, even though the menu says otherwise.we ordered two entrees, and i guess the waitress brought us the wrong menu item for one of them: it was $14 for a tiny piece of meat, a single blackened tomato and a single blackened pepper.they comped this because of the misunderstanding.we also got the smyrna lamb which was similarly abysmal. $24 for a small amount of meat and a dollop of sour cream (?) no rice or veggies, and it was bland and gross.they just shrugged when i asked about the missing sides, and we did end up paying full price for it, regrettably.we kept laughing because we felt like we were on an episode of kitchen nightmares! Wish i had have snapped some pics, definitely avoid.

It was the best food I had in Halifax recently, service was great, Sila was very caring and friendly, she explained the traditional foods in detail for us. We ordered baklava at the end which was delicious. Overall it was an amazing experience. We’ll be back!

Food was fantastic! Lovely girls night out for us with fabulous food to match! The mojitos were great and it was hard to go wrong with a mix of amazing meze. The patio was great and the service was just as good, we will definitely be coming back.loved the fact that we could reserve a spot on the patio made things just that much better and easier.

Delicious food, friendly atmosphere. They serve halal food too. I ordered seafood kebab and did not regret at all. A special shout-out to Josh for making our dining experience pleasant and memorable!

It was horrible Saturday night. Firstly, person was standing on the grill was very rude and loudly to all staff. He was throwing plates, yelling to another people and it was open kitchen. Everything was seen by all customer. Secondly, we received our main dishes after 1.5 hours later. I was going to leave but servers were very nicely and manage the situation very well. It was unacceptable to send food that late and being really annoying to all customer. That’s Saturday night and I went there to enjoy my night but it was totally horrible.
Food quality was good but it doesn’t mean I enjoyed. I went to place to enjoy my night but it made me more upset. I believe store will be better without that person taking care off grill.
I hope they will make some adjustments for their future.

I travel for business and recently spent two years in the road in N America. My experience at this restaurant was exceptional.outstanding. It felt like a truly Mediterranean experience! They offered complimentary olives, olive oil, and bread. I immediately thanked the chef. The Smyrna salad was out of this world. I almost cried. I highly recommend!

Smyrna is simply the best Mediterranean restaurant I have been to. Everything from start to finish was stellar. You have to go. Amazing.

Amazing service. Especially by the server Connor who was just amazing. The food was the best I’ve ever had in Halifax. Would recommend to everyone. Best restaurant in Halifax!

Our first visit to Smyrna was 3 weeks ago. The food and service was amazing. That night, Emin and Raif prepared our food, with Emin handling the grill and I think our server’s name was Mel. She was very accommodating, friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. With that experience in mind we decided to visit again.
Tonight however couldn’t be any more different from our first visit. It was a fiasco. As a person
that has worked for years in the food industry, I didn’t care so much about our food being close to 2 hours late. I didn’t really mind that the food was subpar to what we had the first time.
What really bothered me was the loud, obnoxious, yelling gentleman in the kitchen, who was having a meltdown and was clearly bringing all of the staff in a very difficult position. What was even worse is that we came to find out later that he was the owner. The two tables that were next to us were very irritated as well. I felt really bad for the servers and the cooks. It was uncomfortable at the least. Connor and Nick did their best to save a situation that was out of control and apologized a thousand times when they shouldn’t have to.

Delicious. How do I give this place more stars? ! We ordered two extra mains to take home. Unreal. We'll be back very soon!

We had an excellent experience dining at Smyrna!
The service provided by Emin was amazing, personable, professional that is often lacking in restaurants today. When you do go to Smyrna ask to be served by Emin and be prepared for excellent service!
Our meals were excellent in portions, quality and taste.it was noticeably how cooking on charcoal enhances the flavour of the food! There’re is an extensive selection of wine, beer, cider, cocktails, coffee and tea to choose from!
We enjoyed hummus, (complementary) Tzatziki, homemade flatbread, Chicken Souvlaki, Lamb Souvlaki, Greek Lemon Potatoes and complementary Baklava to cap off a birthday celebration.

We already are looking forward to another excellent dining experience at Smyrna!

The food was phenomenal and the service was excellent! My husband and I had such a wonderful experience in this restaurant during our trip to Halifax. Such a great chef, friendly staff, and lovely atmosphere! We look forward to come back to Halifax for this amazing experience again!

Wow So Delicious Food and Owner Hosted Us like Family of his Own ️ Highly recommend Sincerely yours Ukrainian Customers

Absolutely wonderful food and a great atmosphere. Chicken was delicious and the garlic sauce was some of the best I’ve ever had.

This is my first time eating Mediterranean food and I have to say it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. My husband and I went for the chef experience and it was amazing. I have never had an experience where I didn’t know what foods are going to come out and that is something I recommend everybody try. It was a lot of food which means that we have a lot of food left over that we brought home. Our server Connor was amazing and so intentive to our needs. I highly recommend this place to anyone looking for a good night out. It’s a birthday I will never forget.

It's ok but not the best. It takes long time the order to be prepared but they served hot. The rice portion could be a little bit more and sidings should be more than a half of the pepper and onion. I wish I had a little bit yogurt or salad instead of the onion. The breads were delicious. The baba ghanoush was a little salty and overall the menu was pricy for the quality of the food but not that bad for the downtown location.
It was my first time that I have been in the Smyrna, but we have been visited Effendy, the restaurant before Smyrna. I was expecting to see some changes in the restaurant atmosphere, new colors, new decorations, but everything was as same as before. There is no doubt that the quality of the food at Effendy was excellent, it was the best in my opinion.
I hope the new owner takes more care about the quality of the food. I'll be back for sure I'm the next couple of months and I hope to see the changes in my next visit.

We visited Istanbul couple of years ago. After watching Netflix's Chef's Table we went to Ciya. The taste buds in Smyrna reminded us of that restaurant. Although they don't have the same variety as Ciya I can say best mediterranean restaurant experience I ever had since our visit. The food and service was amazing. Chef Michael invited me to cook my order on the charcoal grill:) The wine and coctail menu was good. Only downside was the white wine selection it needs improvement.

Cozy atmosphere. Delicious food. Moderately priced. Worth a visit if you like Mediterranean style food. On Dresden Row.

A TRUE find. I don't often give reviews, but Smyrna is something very special. Simply put, my wife and I discussed this afterwards, and we both concluded it is the best middle eastern food we've had, ever. We love this cuisine, we've travelled in the Middle East, including Jerusalem, and anywhere we go we seek out middle eastern food. We own every cookbook written by master chef Yotam Ottolenghi. We know the food. And on our first visit to Halifax we were shocked by the quality of this restaurant. You MUST go. And by the way, the staff were great.

As someone from the Middle East, it’s not easy to impress my taste buds, but Smyrna definitely did. Had the yogurt kebob and a couple of other dishes that were truly wonderful! Definitely recommend!

Recently moved to NS, and starting to explore around HRM. Last night my wife and I went to Smyrna for our anniversary dinner. Staff was very friendly and helpful, food was on point from start to finish. I envision us returning many times to explore more delicious items from the menu. Well done chef!

Easily the best Mediterranean restaurant in Halifax. Food was absolutely delicious and loved the local beer on tap. Great service and good music!

Delicious food. We ordered the eggplant, calamari, halloumi as appetizers and the mixed grill as a main. The bread was so good. Highly recommended.

A must go and check it out incredible food, taste to die for great service aswell keep up the great work guy's.

Excellent food, friendly and attentive service, everything arrived quickly. We ate on the patio, which felt very Covid-safe. Highlight of the meal was the pre-starter: flat bread with toasted sesame seeds, olives & very flavourful olive oil.

This restaurant is one of the worst places to eat in Halifax. The food is subpar with barely any seasoning. But what made this whole experience a lot worse is the seating. The bbq'd food is done indoors right in front of the tables and there is barely any ventilation to ensure proper removal of smoke. The soot and smoke fills the entire restaurant and you can barely breathe. The tables were covered in soot when I wiped it with a tissue. On top of all of this, the food is expensive compared to other Mediterranean restaurants in Halifax.

The food was ok not super. I have been to alot of places in Halifax serving the same food menu with less cost and way better tasting than this place.

It was nice to find a patio table on a warm evening.
Our server, Narin, was excellent.

I had the Kofta kebab in pita = delicious, though too much tomato sauce for my liking.
My partner had lamb's liver, which was tasty, though we could both taste vinegar (often used to wash meat that's about to turn). It still tasted good.
There was also another lamb dish at the table, which was also very good.
Interesting that none of us ended up with rice - which pleased me (I feel rice is an easy kop-out).

Overall, impressed.

This weekend I had the best mediterranean experience at Smyrna restaurant. I usually don't give any ratings to any restaurant or organization but the food was so good that I felt I was in Greece and Turkey which I have visited both countries many times that I said to my self I got to tell people about this hidden gem.
Great job and we will be back.

Awesome authentic food, I've been overseas a few times. This is the best Turkish/Greek food I've had in Canada so far!

Authentic food, great quality for a fair price, variety menu, simply super tasty dishes, nice interior, real charcoal barbeque in the kitchen, welcoming atmosphere, simply a very nice restaurant to discover in central Halifax!

Possibly the best greek/Turkish food restaurant I have tried in Halifax. I highly recommend it. A good quality-price ratio. Very kind people! Authentic and tasty Mediterranean food.

In Short AMAAAAZING. Food is so good; appz are creative and delicious, mains - meats spiced up amazingly and cooked perfectly and the rice (yes the rice) heaven and at the end, best baklava you'll have. On top of all that staff is great, Chef/owner is creative and you can tell he loves what he is doing, putting the extra effort into everything.

Smyrna’s food is absolutely delicious! There are so many options, and each one is better than the next! The atmosphere is also beautiful and elegant, and the staff is so kind! Can’t wait to come back

One of the best mediterranean restaurants in Halifax! The food is so flavourful and unique that it makes you wanna come back over and over again! My favourites are the mixed meze and the fig salad.

Had dinner at Smyrna this evening, a fabulous experience. Friendly staff, great food, generous portions.we will be back. Our only problem was deciding what to order, we wanted to try everything!

We've been here a few times now, the food is great (especially the roast lamb), portions are generous and the service is excellent. Highly recommended.

Smyrna is one of the most authentic and delicious Mediterranean restaurants in Halifax! Chef Michael is so talented, clean and generous with his food portions. Not to forget the amazing staff and the welcoming and charming restaurant ambiance. My favourite dishes are the Mixed Mezza Platter, Fig Salad and Mixed Grill. Totally recommend!

This has to be the best Kebab in town! The food was amazing and it's cooked right in front of your eyes over a coal pit. Generous portions and excellent presentation. Will be back soon!