Nostos - Great Greek Gastronomic Goodies - Tysons Corner

I received a tip from a friend that there is a Greek restaurant in Tysons Corner worth checking out.  So I grabbed a foodie friend and headed to TC.  I really like Greek food but beyond Zaytina, I haven't found any Greek food in this area that I liked much (Note, I don't consider Komi really Greek).  So I went into this dinner with high hopes.

The location is set in the heart of Tysons Corner on route 7 near the mall.  The interior of the restaurant is modern with whites and mints dominating the color palette.  We arrived at 6 pm and it was already bustling and filled to capacity before our food arrived.  Hint, make a reservation or it's unlikely that you will get seated.  Word is out.  Nostos is good.

The menu is about 80% small plates which is my favorite style of dining.  Lots of tastes and flavors instead of one huge entree I can't finish.  But before we ordered food, we selected a couple of glasses of Greek wine, which were both excellent. The waiter was kind enough to provide me with complimentary tastes of two wines so I could made an educated decision.  Fantastic service!  After careful consideration and consultation with the waiter, who was a doppleganger for Peter Gallagher from tv's "Arrow", we made our selections.

An accidental sexual presentation?... I don't think so.

First, the bread came.  Not Pita.... bread.  Can you possibly forgive Nostos for placing bread on the table instead of the traditional starch of Greece?  The answer is "YES".  The bread was excellent and served with one of the best small dishes of hummus I've ever had to to along with it.  We decided to start with their Greek version of baba ganoush, Melitzanosalata.  I'm not a huge fan of eggplant (has the word egg in it, after all) but this was actually very good.  We quickly got into a second loaf of bread and a second round of the complimentary hummus while scooping this dip up.

Stuffed Grape leaves

I sometimes get a craving for stuffed grape leaves.  If they are done well, they can be extremely tasty.  Nostos does a great job with theirs and drenched two stuffed grape leaves with a lemon-egg sauce.  Admittedly, they aren't the most beautiful things to look at, but they were excellent.

Something on the menu jumped out at us and was also recommended by the waiter so we tried it.  The Saganaki which is a thick slice of kefalograviera cheese flambeed tableside with oil and lemon.  The result?  A salty, crusty piece of warm cheese to spread on the bread.  This small plate is around ten dollars and is a must-have, not just because of the taste but the oooo and ahhh factor as the entire restaurant turns to see the explosion of flame at your table.

Peter Gallagher produces cheese flambe'!

The next two dishes came out together.  First, fried zucchini with a yogurt dill sauce.  The second, pieces of fried cod with a lemony garlic bread puree.  The zucchini tasted like it should.  Lightly fried and a yummy dip.  You won't blow your mindhole eating it but if you like fried veggies, you can't go wrong.

It is almost criminal to go to a Greek restaurant without eating fresh fish.  But since we loaded up on numerous other goodies, there was no room left for a full fish entree.  So we opted for the fish bites.  The fish was fresh, it was fried and it had a good sauce to dip it in.  Let's move on.

Grilled Octopus.  A must-order!

The next two dishes were a sauteed shrimp, feta and tomato dish.  I've actually cooked something similar to this before.  Very tasty.  But what I really want to talk about is the Grilled Octopus.  For whatever reason, my expectations were very low, in spite of the waiter giving it his highest recommendation.  The octopus came out as a single, long tentacle obviously grilled over and open flame.  It was lightly seasoned and incredibly fresh and served over some sort of pureed veggie.  The texture was unlike anything I had eaten before.  Normally, cooked or raw, octopus is fairly gamey.  However, the meat of this octopus was more like eating succulent cooked lobster.  It cut easily under the knife and was delicious.  This dish is a must-have if you dine at Nostos. 

For dessert, I obviously went for their creme caramel.  It was just "ok" but keep in mind when I say that, that it is increasingly difficult to impress me with a flan or creme caramel.  The interior of this dessert was a little bubbly and the caramel sauce was a little too sweet for my taste. 

Had to dive into this before I got the photo

I stopped the manager to comment on his serving skills and overall swagger (if you see him, you'll see what I mean by witnessing how he carries plates and glasses of wine around) and he brought us some greek dessert wine to enjoy after our meal.  I love places that go above and beyond like that.

Overall, Nostos is a restaurant I will be frequenting for any special occasion I might have.  The service was top-notch and my server was a true professional, offering excellent recommendations and clearly loving his job.  The prices were reasonable for the quality of food and service, but for two people that are drinking wine, it is likely going to run you around 100 dollars for the meal.  That is always money well spent for a meal that you can remember one day.





Rating - 5 out of 5 stars.