This isn’t a diss–just a statement of fact; I love tzatziki, but I don’t know if I’ve ever had it at Stamna! How was the taramosalata?
“Still looking for that “great” in this part of NJ.”
That’s how I feel about sushi. Some good. But nothing is outstanding. Not like when I lived in Boston. Down here, it’s the same number of ingredients mishmoshed 1000 different ways.
Wrong thread for this, I know. But, what is it? Why? Is it a NJ law/health code thing? In Boston, there were daily specials, and I had things I’ve NEVER even seen in NJ. Is it what’s available in this area? Does it have to do with distributors?
We’ve got nearly everything else down pat. But sushi in NJ, as someone said, is a wasteland.
Using a meal delivery website that we use frequently, we ordered food from Stamna last night. It will be the last time. The delivery window was 7:10-7:20. The food arrived at 7:45. (Usually, the time frame is updated on the website so you know when the delivery time is pushed out. Not this time.) We ordered a $19 seafood salad to share. It was gorgeous except for the soggy, limp greens. The first bite of grilled calamari was divine. Upon digging in, while the tomatoes were tasty and fresh for this time of year, something was fishy in the salad. Neither of us could eat it. We ended up throwing most away. We ordered a gyro to share. It was not good. The meat was dry and one of the vegetables was bad. I think it was the lettuce, which shouldn’t be on there to begin with–based on my gyro-eating experience and their menu description (tomatoes, onions, tzatziki). Finally, the $4 french fries were exactly one potato, sliced into coins. They were greasy and tasted of olives (not olive oil) for some reason. Of course, the gyro and fries were cold. (I know. You’re thinking who expects fries to be delivered hot. It can be done! Ask Jrs.) I wiped the oregano off the fries and heated them in oven. We shared a potato for dinner.
What website do you use?
Unfortunately what you are describing sounds like a place on it’s way out…I’m local to it and honestly I love Greet Eats and The Greek Spot I forget Stamna is even there. That location is cursed.
Have you tried
Im not an expert on authentic Greek food …but i enjoy coming here with family …brought other people no one complains
Anemos is very good.
Grubhub. We’ll try the two that you recommend.
We tried this restaurant for the first time on Sunday. We usually go to Niko’s in Long Branch, but it was way too crowded, so we headed out of town. The restaurant is tucked into a small strip mall in Lincroft. The ambiance is pleasant. The menu is pretty much like every single other Greek restaurant in the area. There was only one other couple in the restaurant when we were there. The waiter brought over a plate of Greek Olives and toasted bread to munch on while we decided on what to eat. We started with the mixed Greek salad. Large chunks of feta cheese and cukes, with sliced red onion and some olives. There were no tomatoes, stuffed grape leaves, anchovies, or anything else. We had a side of tzaziki that tasted fresh and homemade. It came with a side of pita bread. My husband ordered the mixed grill, which consisted of a Greek Style hamburger (the spice mixture is apparently what makes the burger Greek), gyro meat, sausage and chicken. There were no lamb chops on this mixed grill. I ordered the whole Bronzino (fish). It was very tasty. Both of our orders came with a side of lemon potatoes.
The restaurant is not one that I would go out of my way to visit again, but would definitely go back if we happened to be in the area and had a yen for Greek food.
You’ll find a whole lot of commentary on Stamna on these threads, if you’re interested:
I’m still partial to the location in Bloomfield, not just because it’s where I first discovered REAL Greek food; I’ve never had an ‘eh’ meal there, it’s always packed and lively, it’s BYO, and I’ve just had too many good times there. That said, I’ve only been to the Lincroft location and I do think it’s the actual location that’s hurting them; any mostly=empty restaurant seems sad to me, I guess. Still, I haven’t had anything bad–it’s just a different experience.
Nice report. That mixed grill looks like it has a decent amount of meat. With nikkos and Greek eats I never saw a reason to go here.
So every few months someone mentions Lincroft and we have to ask the age old question, “what’s going on with the Lincroft inn?”
Still an empty lot as of two weeks ago.
Isn’t there some law where you can keep one wall up and a place can still be classified as a historic property? I remember hearing about that but it could be BS.
Wow…umm…I should know this.
The laws are tricky when it comes to restoring vs. demolishing. A historic site can be demolished if it is determined the structure is unsafe or that so many modifications have been made over the years that it is no longer historic. That is what did in the Lincroft Inn. They argued that over 300+ years there were so many alterations that the historic value was lost. The historian in me sees this as a cop-out, but as someone who works at a museum housed in a 125 year old building, the amount of money needed to repair such a structure is astronomical.
Historic designation also varies by town. Some are more open to protecting a location than others.
But to actually answer your question, no, I believe leaving one wall up will not be enough to classify/protect a property.
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Assuming I did this right, I merged the new thread with the existing one.
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Looks like this location must have changed hands. Now says Greek Taverna with some small lettering underneath that I couldn’t read from the road. Maybe third owners will be the charm at this cursed location.
Too funny you mention this, last week I noticed them on Grubhub (Or DoorDash) and I didn’t recognize “Greek Taverna”. Upon further googling I realized this was Stamna but didn’t put the pieces together as you did.
I’m happy / sad to report I wasn’t that impressed but since it was delivery I wasn’t going to post a bad review on Stamna knowing how highly regarded they are. Well I don’t think any delivery is a proper way to review a restaurant.
Stamna may be highly regarded by some, but definitely not by me! The one meal we had at the Lincroft location was awful.
If you have ever been at the Bloomfield/ Montclair location, you’d understand why people rave about it.
My wife and I ordered delivery once and pretty much agreed with you as we thought it was terrible.
