what do I know

A friend of mine has been mentioning Niki’s Rainbow Restaurant to me for some time now. I always pass by it when I’m beachside and, no matter what time of day I go by, the parking lot is always full. Make no confusion however, even though they share the shopping plaza with a few other places, Niki’s is the reason that lot is full.

So that same friend, another friend, and I all met up for lunch today at Niki’s eagerly anticipating our pending meal. The menu is a simple three page menu chocked full of choices, even for those who aren’t partial to Greek options, but my eyes shot right to the “Rainbow’s Grecian Special” section. All of the expected favorites are present, so I was worried that my choice would be really tough and I’d end up ordering more food than I probably should. That is, until I spotted the Combo Platter (~$11). The Combo Platter comes with a portion of gyro, spinach pie, 2 grape leaves, pita bread, and your choice of soup or a Greek salad; I went with the soup of the day (New England Clam Chowder). The soup came out first with a basket of yeast rolls and crackers. The rolls were nice and light and the soup was thick and hardy with big chunks of clam. Before I could even finish my soup, the meals were on the table. The gyro was topped with a generous dolip of tzatziki and was homemade. Usually tzatziki is a little too creamy for me, but the way it was made was the perfect balance of yogurt to cucumber/garlic/lemon/oil/etc. The gyro was sliced straight off of the rotisserie spit and, not surprisingly, tasted great; not too salty or seasoned and also, homemade. The spinach pie was layered, flaky pastry crust with spinach and feta and for a change actually had more spinach than cheese which I enjoyed (and also homemade). The grape leaves were different from what I expected in that they were stuffed with ground beef and rice rather than just rice, but were delicious. If you’ve read my previous reviews, I’m not a fan of grape leaves that haven’t been slow cooked or that are tough. Niki’s grape leaves were so tender, that I was able to cut them with a fork; just awesome quality (did I mention homemade?). Even the pita was out of control good, not dry and more like a flat bread, it’s the only thing that Niki’s brings in. According to our waitress, it can’t even be bought anywhere but Niki’s which has an exclusive deal with the distributor. At ~$2 for a side of the pita bread, you may find yourself with an order to take home.

Also at the table we had a gyro sandwich (~$7) with fries (~$2) and a falafel platter (~$10) which came with fries and a greek salad. The gryo sandwich was made with that great pita bread, tomato, onion, and tzatziki. The falafel was put together simliarly and the chick peas were fried locking in the moisture which was nice to see since usually falafels tend to be dry. And if all of that food wasn’t enough to get your appetite going, we also stayed to try the baklava (~$3).

Now Cedar’s makes a killer baklava and I have to say I preferred it over Niki’s. That being said it’s a different style of baklava and good in its own right. Niki’s baklava seems to be made in the traditional sense but is more doughy than flaky. It comes topped with a sweet sauce which tasted like a mixture of honey and citrus and is super tasty. I’m not saying I wouldn’t order it again, it’s just not my favorite.

If you noticed a theme, it’s because there is one … homemade food. Everything but the pita bread is made daily from scratch. In addition to all of that homemade food, our waitress was on top of everything; our drinks were always full and our food spent almost no time between the kitchen and our table. Our waitress was even kind enough take time to tell us a little about the food and the restaurant. In summary: excellent service, homemade, hot food, and a must visit. In fact, I’m going to go as far to say that Niki’s Rainbow Restaurant is now my new favorite Greek/Mediterranean restaurant in the Brevard area. Not only is the food amazing, but the work placed into each meal makes it that much better.

Niki’s Rainbow Restaurant is located at 570 Highway A1A, Satellite Beach, FL.

When Mediterranean food comes to mind, we are fortunate enough in Suntree to have quite a few places within a few minutes drive. There’s Niki’s, Grecian Garden, Yanni’s Deli, and my new favorite Cedar’s Cafe. Cedar’s advertises itself as a Mediterranean and Lebanese restaurant, but for those who are more familiar with Greek cuisine you should still feel comfortable. Cedar’s is about a 10 table restaurant with indoor/outdoor seating and a great local vibe. The first thing that I noticed when looking at the menu (because I’m cheap) was that they are very reasonably priced. This of course leads to the question, how’s the food and the service? Well no worries, Cedar’s does not disappoint.

A large group of us went out to lunch and called ahead to be safe. Without any problems, we were accommodated and there were no questions when we asked to split the check. I started with a small order of the vegetable grape leaves (~$3) and then ordered the gyro wrap (~$6) for my lunch. The grape leaves came out very quickly, there were 3 in the small order, and were delicious. The grape leaves themselves were nice and thin and the taste wasn’t overpowering at all. They were stuffed with rice and bigger than I expected, so I was starting to fill up by the time my sandwich arrived. Recently I’ve been ordering gyro’s at bars or local sandwich shops, but all you get is the “out of the bag onto the grill” experience. Cedar’s helped to remind me what a gyro should taste like. The gyro wrap came with lettuce, tomato, onion and tzatziki sauce with thin slices of meat. The meat tasted like a mixture of pork and lamb meat prepared on the traditional roasting spit. I would have liked to have shredded cabbage instead lettuce, but the sandwich was great none the less. When the time for dessert came, we were all pretty stuffed, but once we saw the baklava we loosened our belts. There are about 4-5 variations that they make fresh daily and, wow, I will be stopping by more often just for the dessert. I got the roll as well as the pistachio stuffed pieces (~$1.50) and it was some of the best baklava I’ve ever eaten. If you just want to stop by for something sweet, the baklava is definitely worth the trip.

Overall the experience at Cedar’s was great and I feel like I finally have a reliable Mediterranean restaurant to put into the rotation. Did I mention the baklava?

Cedar’s Cafe is located in the Publix Plaza at the corner of Post Road and Wickham Road at 4100 North Wickham Rd, Melbourne, FL 32935.

NOTE: If you enjoyed this restaurant, you may want to read my review for Niki’s Rainbow Restaurant beachside for another great option.