ilona
Mediterranean restaurant · Roxbury
783 Tremont St, Boston, MA 02118
Highlights
Eastern Mediterranean tapas, cocktails, and wine in a vibrant setting
Eastern Mediterranean tapas, cocktails, and wine in a vibrant setting
"Ilona is the type of trendy place that makes you feel like you should get a haircut before eating there. But it’s more than just a restaurant that looks good, it’s a legitimately excellent place for rich, warming Eastern Mediterranean small plates, and a great option for celebrating something with friends (though not too many because it’s not particularly big). The menu shares some similarities with Ilona’s nearby sister restaurant, Kava Neo-Taverna, but Kava is on our Greatest Hits for good reason, so that’s not a bad thing - especially when some of those similarities include perfectly cooked octopus and fried vegetable chips." - dan secatore
"In the South End, Mediterranean restaurant Ilona is shucking oysters for $1 apiece all day on Thursday and from 4 to 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday." - Erika Adams
"Dressing up for your birthday can be fun, but velvet sport coats and vintage fuchsia dresses can feel out of place at your neighborhood Legal Seafood. That’s why you should head to Ilona, a beautiful high-end Mediterranean spot in the South End. You’ll fit right in with the pink suede seats, and you and your well-dressed friends can also enjoy some great mezze plates, like tempura-style eggplant and saffron seafood risotto." - joel ang, dan secatore, tanya edwards
"Coming to Ilona might make you sad about all the mismatched Ikea furniture in your apartment. But this place doesn’t just look good - start eating and you’ll discover that even more effort was put into the menu than the color scheme and selfie-bait murals. It’s an Eastern Mediterranean restaurant in the South End that serves a lot of saucy, meaty small plates. And while the menu has a few things that seem ubiquitous, everything is perfectly cooked, and somehow unique, like the roasted chicken livers in spicy hummus or halloumi with grapes, sesame, and honey. Given that it’s from the same people behind Kava Neo-Taverna, we had a good feeling when it opened up, but it’s even better than we expected." - dan secatore
"Ilona is an Eastern Mediterranean restaurant with some of the best small plates around campus. You’re going to want to try just about everything on the menu, so either come with a lot of friends or when you’re with someone else who’s footing the bill. It’s fun, it has good cocktails, and it kind of looks like a boutique hotel owned by a wildly successful fashion photographer, so come here, start with the crispy eggplant, and have a good time." - dan secatore
