Review Hellenika - Brisbane

We celebrated our work Christmas dinner here and had the banquet menu. The food was average. Grilled prawns were very chewy and overcooked, the serving of dips with pita bread ratio was not even (there was heaps of dips leftover and not enough pita bread to have for dips) lamb was good and fish was okay. Although, cocktails were amazing, It just takes time to order one so make sure to order one right away even you’re just halfway through your current glass. Service was good though! Definitely a place for drinks and socials!

Impressive dining experience from top to bottom. The service staff were friendly and attentive. The food was incredibly delicious and the ambiance was wonderful. The dishes were brought out with a lovely display and spot on temperatures. Literally could not fault a single thing about this dining experience. Very keen to repeat!

Cool place but that's what you are paying pretty much. We had a birthday dinner and since we were more than ten we had to do a pre set menu. $95 pp (this was the middle option) Even though there was quite a lot of food, it wasn't worth $95. I had pre set menus all over the places and for a lot less you get pretty much the same. It is a lot cheaper ordering from the menu. It took ages to get the mains served. Also, they forgot lots of drinks that we had to cancel since we already finished eating. The staff did their best but they couldn't. Quite hectic overall. Also, you pay $95 and as a dessert you have two pieces of some sweet stuff and freshly cut watermelon. 😅 I don't think I'll be back. 😔

Serving sizes were generous and good for a sizeable group, I personally wouldn’t go to Hellenika with less than 4 people if you want to get a good spread of dishes due to price point and serving sizes (literally so big). It makes most sense to have 4-7 people and share everything across. For example the Moussaka is mammoth sized (I’m not complaining) but we shared it across 5 girls and struggled to finish the rest (we didn’t). We really like the Moussake! The lamb was delicious also and you can’t come without ordering it- moist, juicy and well flavoured. The sauce on the side was a highlight for me. Taramosalata dip w the pita bread also a stand out, very fresh and worth it imo it’s yummier than the many supermarket ones I’ve tried (from Aldi to all the Harris farm selections). Zucchini chips are a must order and not to be missed, the cold avocado peas salad also delicious compliment to the rest of the meal. Saganaki isn’t anything to write home about- same as other Greek restaurants but priced higher (however- when at a Greek restaurant it’s a bit sacrilegious to not order this no?). Octopus I had high expectations for that fell a bit short- found it rather chewy but flavour was delicious. All in all, lovely meal with good service in a nice location. Our bellies were left feeling very, very full and all of us are big eaters. I was pleasantly surprised by how vegetarian friendly their menu is, it was extremely easy to accommodate our vegetarian friend. We didn’t get to try their drinks as it was a week night but will definitely be back on a weekend!

Nice venue with attentive staff. Ambience was charming by the pool side. Ribs with a side of the most amazing Tzatziki I have ever tasted, beans and charred calamari were big share plates. All dishes were tasty! The decor was sweet and simple.

Wonderful restaurant in a breath taking location. The staff were very attentive, our waiter went through the menu with us and was patient. We couldn't get enough of the zucchini chips! This place is a must!!

Was expecting a lot from Hellenika after not yet trying it since it moved up to Brissie from the GC. Expectations on food, service and drinks were met and it wasn’t priced too excessively considering it’s location at the Calile. However, the delivery of dishes was completely out of order, with our oysters being forgotten and not coming out till after mains and the cabbage salad was extremely over salted on that day. Highlight of the meal was definitely their signature Kolokithia (zucchini chips) and we received complimentary dessert as we were celebrating an achievement. Will be back!

Food is awesome 😋 we went with the banquet I have dietary restrictions they were very accommodating! lovely place, atmosphere and service. The staff are lovely ☺️ definitely going here again 👌 Was not impressed by wine tho 🍷 😬

Had dinner here the second night they were open after covid 19. Had high expectations, as we had been told by friends and read reviews about Hellenika being a top restaurant. We were seated in a Cabana near the pool which was lovely however, we were served with plastic wine glasses. To be served expensive wine in plastic glasses just took away the feeling of it. We promptly told told the waiter and he seated us in an area we could use glass. We were served our entree of dips and olives which were nice, however small serving for sharing. We were not served our drinks until sometime later when a couple of the mains had been bought out. The moussaka was delicious, and the waitress did compensate with a dessert on the house. Overall it was enjoyable, however service wise and value of food was a bit low. This could be a result of only have been open two days after a long hiatus.

After the recent review of the City Winery that recalled my dining experience of this renowned restaurant located just around the corner. <br/>It was early Feb that we arranged to have a weekday dinner here. Surprisingly, it was a full house evening but service was still hospitable and friendly.<br/>Ordered the cured white anchovies, it’s signature zucchini chips for entrees and the grilled lamb cutlet and bay bug pasta for dinner.<br/>Well, we have not had so satisfied dinner for a while. Dishes are faultless. Zucchini chips are crispy, anchovies are refreshing. Homemade pastas are al dente with juicy bay bug meat and the lamb cutlets are superb. <br/>Love this restaurant and we highly recommend it👍👍👍

The most average meal we’ve eaten in a long time. Overall this was a disappointing dining experience for us. Unfortunately the service was fairly poor.. After being seated, we were then ignored for about 15 minutes before drink orders were finally taken. Those drinks then didn’t turn up for another half an hour, and well after our small plates had arrived. The food itself was ordinary and overpriced for what it was. The sausages and meatballs were both dry, and were plainly presented, as was the saganaki.

Rude staff, overpriced food, cannot cook poached eggs, once again ‘the beautiful people’ who do not know how to cook or what is good food have created another restaurant monster

What a great night out! Came here for dinner for our wedding anniversary and experienced great, attentive service, and amazing Greek food!<br/>Food highlights were the kokkinisto (octopus stew), the taramosalata dip, and the slow cooked lamb.<br/>Would love to come back for drinks and desserts by the pool in the future!

Went here a few months ago so a late review. It was good. Hard to evaluate Greek food since there’s not a lot of skill required to cook it. ( don’t hate me!!). Good service and very decent food but it is what it is and the sum of the parts equal only that and not more. I want more.

We had high expectations before coming to The Calile, and unfortunately we were all extremely disappointed.<br/>The service was horrible - particularly from one girl who served us the whole night. She kept reminding us that we had to finish at a certain time, and if we chose a certain dish that would take too long to cook she would tell us. When given the dessert menu, she told us we had only 20 minutes left. Made the dining experience very uncomfortable.

We were seated 15mins past our booking time as the table was not ready. Then the waiter proceeded to tell us we had to be out 2hrs from our booking time even though they were the ones who seated us late. Different waiters kept bribing out incorrect dishes to our table our double ups. Much confusion between waiters and kitchen. Very unorganised on a Saturday night. My “clean” knife had a dead bug on it. Food was not bad but definitely did not live up to the hype. Zucchini chips were however outstanding. Definitely worth trying. Would like to go back on a less busy day to see if things improve. Was very disappointed as this was my birthday dinner. Seating in the Kabana by the pool was nice though.

Amazing! Food is always delicious and service is fantastic. Love the zucchini chips, spanakopita and sagnaki. Always look forward to dinner here!

Visited Hellenika on a Wednesday night for dinner. Vibe was great, staff were very knowledgeable and kept the upbeat mood throughout the restaurant. The zucchini fries were amazing and the greek salad was super simple but delicious. We can't wait to come back

Restaurant was beautiful and wait staff were very attentive. Unfortunately, three items on the menu we wanted to order weren’t available/sold out. The food we did get to order was nice.

Been twice, and twice had the middle / $79 banquet. twice been incredibly impressed. My partner keeps going " its 'just' Greek Food ", and yes that's true but OMG they do it well ...  everything cooked to perfection, very good service, managed to find a few wines under $100.<br/>Highly recommended

Overpriced and food doesn’t live up to the hype. Nice decor. Average service. Had one cocktail that was good. Also didn’t provide us our change when paying the bill.

My friends and I (table of 4) dined here last weekend for dinner as my friend was in town from overseas and had heard great things about Hellenika. I booked a table online for us and we were allocated seating right next to the pool in the cold wind with no lighting and an umbrella pole blocking the view of each other across the table. This made it hard to see the food, difficult to have a conversation with each other over dinner and meant we had to scoff down our food quickly otherwise it would’ve gotten cold. Also, as we were outside right against the pool we found it hard to get someone’s attention to take our order and light the single candle on the table. Being outside by the pool also meant that we had to drink our wine from plastic cups. Although this may be great seating for customers during the day or in the summer, it doesn’t seem to be the best experience for a $250+ dinner on a winter night. Despite the unfortunate environment and inattentive service, the food was good.

Amazing food. Amazing experience. Amazing service. Love the aesthetic and don’t have one bad word to say about it. Good serving sizes. We got a variety of smaller plates and shared it and it was more than enough! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼 check out my insta: @foodfantasia_ for more Brisbane food photos

Best dining in brisbane! Breakfast, lunch and dinner always 10/10. I love coming here because of the service, staff, food and atmosphere. All the staff are so friendly! Love the zucchini chips and the chicken with garlic herb side sauce.  Chocolate tart is the best desert to have here... tastes incredible!!! The Georgy M is also a popular cocktail to have. :)

Have visited hellenika twice for breakfast. This place would easily be one of the most expensive and overpriced breakfasts in brisbane. Not good value for money and the food is not amazing. <br/><br/>If you really want to go check this place out then go for it but it is not a great place for breakfast. Go for dinner instead. <br/><br/>Cool venue located at the Calile hotel. The staff are always nice and the service is good.<br/><br/>

Six of us had lunch and were advised that the menu is designed on a shared basis. This permits them to charge for example $48.00 for a small serving of spaghetti with some apparent bug meat to be shared for six people. The food is quite tasty as one would expect, but the venue is noisy and quite obviously the latest over hyped hot spot to be seen at. <br/>The food is way over priced, and if I had known it had to be shared I would never have patronised the place. Obviously will not recommend and return.

Seriously hands down the BEST Greek I have had in Australia! Everything from service, decor and staff was A+. We had the $78 per head banquet and it was insane, perfect amount of food! Do yourself a favour and try their espresso martini’s

Went for dinner with some lovely mums. There was 13 of us and the staff at Hellenika were very accommodating to all our needs. Very patient. Great drink variety and l loved the food banquet options. We opted for the $68 banquet which had the following:<br/>dips<br/><br/>saganaki<br/><br/>southern calamari<br/><br/>salty pork belly<br/><br/>veal dolmades<br/><br/>classic baked junee lamb<br/><br/>w horiatiki salad<br/><br/>fresh watermelon<br/><br/>little greek sweets<br/>Everything was great and very generous. Loved the location as well. Great night out.

Wowsers. Was a little under dressed for this amazing venue. Bloody good food. Faves have to be the feta red pepper dip and the dolmades. Great job. Would love to go back! Yummy ❤️

Very very good food, not cheap but ultimately value for money given the quality of food and the surroundings. The moussaka which is served in a clay pot is sensational.

Wow - my new favourite Greek restaurant! Set in an incredible pool decked area of the Calile Hotel, Helenika delivers in ambience, service and food. Highly recommend the veal dolmades which were light yet tasty. The flash fried calamari were a delight, the chicken souvlaki were flavourful and the eggplant mousaka was the best I’ve had. Our Greek Salad was fresh with a touch of dill to really complement the meal. PRobably give the saganaki a miss next time. The only trouble we had was finishing it all as the proportions were generous.

Lovely evening out for dinner. Thinking it’s school night and no reservation required, WRONG<br/>It was full and even as we left around 9pm, people were still coming for dinner. <br/>I don’t believe I’ve seen so many waitstaff at a restaurant. Service was quick and friendly, food was amazingly quick. <br/>I won’t go through a dish by dish review as we had many. What stood out was the dessert. Bougatsa, boooooyah, it was amazing <br/>Just a word of caution, flavours are intense <br/>When dish calls for salt, it’s salty, if it calls for citrus, it’s citrusy and so on and so forth <br/>Overall it was s lovely night, lovely spot and just great food <br/>Thanks Kevin for making date night a success

We arrived to Hellenika after much excited anticipation from all the great things we’d been hearing. <br/><br/>Upon arrival we were lead to an empty table next to the servers desk - I wasn’t pleased to be sat next to a dirty dish cloth and general mess, anyhow cocktail ordered and trying not to look the dirty cloth in the eye. There were by the way other empty tables we could have been seated at. <br/><br/>Gimlet wasn’t to my liking, had to remove the extra lemon as I felt like I was drinking a $20 glass of lemon squash. <br/><br/>The service was fine, not amazing, not terrible, just average. It was however rather awkward overhearing the servers at their desk complaining about other customers. I also wasn’t thrilled about the service charge being added to the bill automatically. <br/><br/>The food however was the saving grace - beautiful tender lamb ribs and salty crispy courgette chips. Very rich and afterwards couldn’t eat another bite, quite literally! <br/><br/>A bit disappointed that the dolmades were made with silver beet and not vine leaves, they were quite crumbly and difficult to eat but yummy nonetheless. <br/><br/>One note though, don’t bother with the calamari. 30 something dollars later and you’d get something just as good down the fish and chip shop. It was nice but not worth the cash. <br/><br/>Lots of other bits and bobs with the fit out and decor but I’ll leave that alone...<br/><br/>Overall it was nice, but not worth the hype. <br/><br/>

Great ambience and perfect for a relaxed but still classy dinner. I'd recommend the lamb and the fish which both literally fell off the bone! Will definitely be coming back to Hellenika.

First time dining at Hellenika, after hearing rave reviews of their GC restaurant. Ambience is chic resort casual feel. We stated with shared Mezze & then shared Mains so we could have broad taste of their menu. All food was very fresh & tasty, however meals are too small for the price! Service was average, had to go looking for waitress a couple of times, should be more attentive!

Not your average greek restaurant, casual but elegant surroundings, great food. Taramasalata is fantastic, honestly a couple glasses of wine and a few bowls of that and you've got me. They should sell it in jars. Veal dolmades are great, calamari and octopus while small dishes are perfectly cooked and tender, served with a little lemon and olive oil and you're set. Spanner crab orzo is a show stopper. Going back just for that and the aforementioned dip. Bread is outstanding. Lamb shoulder is as expected, well executed but not super memorable. Complimentary fish soup as amuse bouche is a nice touch and despite appearances, absolutely delicious (I like something that surprises me once in a while). Worth a visit for sure!

Two work colleagues were up from Melbourne yesterday and had booked our table of six for a lunch with business partners.  Greek isn't my usual go to for a boozey long lunch but happy to be led by others when they booked and was pleasantly surprised by this new venue being full on a Tuesday lunch sitting.<br/>Staff were prompt and welcoming keeping our drinks topped up and replaced on a muggy Brisbane day.  We opted for the $78pp banquet which I can tell you was plenty of food.  A complimentary amuse-bouche of fish and lemon soup was a great way to get started followed up by bread and a trio of dips and beautifully salty saganaki.  After a few beers and with entrees on the way, we opted for the 1500ml 2012 Chablis and the 1500ml 2015 Nebbilio by Luke Lambert which were both outstanding wines paired with king prawns, pork belly and veal dolmades.  Mains of daily fish (ours was swordfish) with horiatiki (Greek) salad and junee lamb (baked with bone in which it fell off...) with roast vegetables also went down a treat.  It seemed quite a 'meaty' meal so far which I am ok with as am an avid carnivore but for others, the other banquet offerings may be more suitable.  I was glad when fresh watermelon came out with little Greek sweets which was a mix of great baklava and bougatsa.  These were accompanied by the 2017 Pikes The Merle Riesling from the Claire Valley. <br/>Overall, a lunch enjoyed by all six of us with pretty good food, great wines and service that we were happy with so will be back and recommend to others.

3.5<br/>This Gold Coast icon has opened a poolside outpost at the Calile Hotel. We were lucky enough to secure the last table in a full restaurant for Thursday lunch. Clientele is a sea of Camilla kaftans, an actress of the small screen, posing insta-models & some fellow business lunchers. It’s a lot. But the vibe of this newbie is electric & trending hard.<br/><br/>Short menu makes for easy choices & quick decisions. Meanwhile a complimentary amouse bouche of fish & lemon soup zested up our tastebuds. This briefly lured us towards the seafood options til we saw that prawns cost *ahem* $12 each. Haha yeah nah. Moving on: we’d heard on the DL that the kolokithia zucchini chips are a must. Now trust me on this: the zucchini chips are a MUST. They adorned most tables like pretty floral arrangements & tasted just as beautiful. Saganaki is salty simplicity in grilled kefalograviera form. Then the most straightforward (dare I say ‘basic’) plating I’ve ever seen delivered tender chicken souvlakia with indulgent, crispy skin. Wish we’d had the budget, time & tummy space for more dishes - word on the street is the lamb shoulder rocks. Also would have been tempted by another vino had it been offered by our aloof server.<br/><br/>Greek isn’t instinctively go-to cuisine for me but happy to partake when led by others. Cutting through the flashy hype, Hellenika is still fun & yum.

Hellenika has opened its doors recently in the Calile Hotel, serving up authentic Greek cuisine. This is the Brisbane sister to Hellenika on the Gold Coast. My food blogger buddy Lorraine from Not Quite Nigella was up in Brissie last week, so we met up for dinner here. I’ve not been to Greece for many years, so I can't tell you if the food is currently authentic or not, but I do know it was delicious.<br/><br/>You can either walk up an intimidating amount of stairs to the pool level where Hellenika sits, or take the lift in the lobby. If you're in high heels, I suggest the lift. You will see a very inviting area with a pool, and cabanas where you can sit and drink, or order from the poolside menu, which has snacks and wraps for your delectation.<br/><br/>We started off with cocktails: I had a gimlet, which is gin, elderflower, lemon and prosecco, while she had an ari onassis - similar to mine but with mastiha - a liqueur flavoured with mastic, a resin exclusively from trees on the island of Chios. They were refreshing on a warm evening, though I think Lorraine had chosen the better one. I was hoping for a bit more oomph in mine.<br/><br/>The fetta and capsicum dip was rich and a bit oily, and came studded with chunks of fetta. I can't say it rocked my world, but we both happily slathered the dip on the crusty bread, and chowed down.<br/><br/>We also ate saganaki for starters; this is grilled cheese with lemon; a salty, chewy treat. It's made with kefalograviera, a sheep's milk cheese, dusted in flour and fried. I'm not much of a cheese eater, but this was well-flavoured and tasty. And always made better with a squeeze of lemon.<br/><br/>Oh my, the baked Murray cod with caramelised onion was absolutely superb: tender and moist, sitting in a creamy (capsicum?) sauce, with soft, sweet onions overlaying it. It was a mild, not overly fishy fish dish, and really moreish. We both loved the texture and flavours of this one. A real winner, and highly recommended by me! And Lorraine too, I'm sure. The flesh seemed to be boneless, apart from a few in the head. And you can just see the eye peeking out from under the onions. I would happily eat this every week. Though I don't think my budget would like that:-)<br/><br/>We also tried the kritharaki, orzo pasta with Fraser Coast spanner crab. There wasn't a hugely crabby flavour here, though you can see it dotted amongst the orzo. I enjoyed the texture of the orzo, and found this a pleasant if not spectacular dish.<br/><br/>I really loved the halva dessert of vanilla ice cream with a generous coat of halva on top. It was cool and nutty (or should I say seedy?), smooth and delicious down my throat. A winner for me! Our waiter definitely steered us right with this one.<br/><br/>The waiter told us the bougatsa was another popular dessert, and it being a fave of Lorraine's, we ordered this too. Phyllo wrapped around a custard filling, with a warm lemon syrup - you can't go wrong with this. Crunchy outside, smooth inside, icing sugar and sugared lemon strips on top. We were full, we were happy, we decided to call it a night, sans coffee as I have enough trouble sleeping:-)<br/><br/>You can enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner here every day of the week. Or just a drink and snacks by the pool. Or go ahead and eat popular Greek dishes like moussaka, or spanakopita or baked lamb or ... well, you get the picture. You can even get married here, if you feel the need. Our waiter told us the restaurant is booked out for Fridays/Saturdays till March 2019! So get cracking, and maybe try another night. It was full even on a Monday night when we dined, so remember to reserve a table.