Long Island’s east end, north shore residents have been boasting of Alexandros for years now.
It was about time I caught up.
The restaurant itself is its second location. Formerly in Miller Place, Alexandros quickly became a staple in the community. In 2008, it relocated to 25A in Mount Sinai, and has grown even greater in popularity.
The building itself stands alone in a spacious parking lot that may be hard to see from the main road due to its subtle lighting. From the very moment you pull up to the restaurant, the stage is set for the entire dining experience.
Visiting Alexandros feels as if you are dining inside someone’s home and is a rather casual experience. Upon entering, you walk into a decent bar area, with many regular patrons who boast of the establishment’s delicious, original cocktails. You are then led to a small, charming, and dimly lit dining area, really setting the stage for an authentic cuisine.
While I didn’t get the opportunity to sit inside, I was more than pleased to sit in their outside dining room, which also granted us with a bona fide Mediterranean front. Our service was impeccable. Our waitress had patience and was super attentive. We were immediately served with triangles of warm pita bread. I skipped the spread, though. It wasn’t really doing it for me- but that didn’t at all hinder the rest of my experience.
For starters, we ordered the spinach pie, mussels, the everything calamari, saganaki and of course, a Greek salad. The spinach pie was wonderfully made – with the right amounts of feta in a flaky phyllo crust. The mussels were probably my least favorite, as I feel as though they could have had more flavor. The everything calamari was the most flavorful appetizer we ordered.
The calamari had the perfect crisp and was paired with a creamy sauce that we couldn’t get enough of. The saganaki is a taste of fried cheese with lemon – two items you may not think go together but trust me, they do and you need it. A friend from Greece once told me that the key to a delicious Greek salad is its feta – and the Greek salad at Alexandros had it. I just wished the salad was chopped up more as it would have been easier to enjoy.
For an entrée, we tasted the shrimp and gnocchi and the lamb chops.
The shrimp and gnocchi were delicious. On the menu, its description reads, “bacon, spinach and cream sauce,” but that doesn’t capture the actuality of the dish. The shrimp were big, juicy, and cooked to perfection. The gnocchi was tender, but the cream sauce, with its fine hint of bacon, tied the entire dish together.
At a Greek restaurant, it’s almost mandatory to get the lamb. I asked a friend of mine who I was with, “How do you think the lamb is?” and he replied, “Whatever the perfect way to cook a lamb is, I don’t know if its medium, or if it’s rare, and I really don’t care. All I know is that this is how you do it, so whatever way they made this, this is one of the best pieces of lamb I’ve ever had.”
Though our indulgences ruled out dessert altogether, I asked other customers, and they highly recommend the chocolate cake. I’ll be sure to try it when I return.
Alexandros is located at 1060 Route 25A in Mount Sinai. Reservations are a must on the weekends – call (631) 928-8600 to make yours!
