Cava Mezze
2940 Clarendon Blvd, Arlington, VA, 22201
Cava Mezze Menu
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Visit below restaurant in Arlington for healthy meals suggestion.
Visit below restaurant in Arlington for healthy meals suggestion.
Visit below restaurant in Arlington for healthy meals suggestion.
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Address :
2940 Clarendon Blvd
Arlington, VA, 22201 - Phone (703) 276-9090
- Website https://www.cavamezze.com
- Click To Get Directions
Opening Hours
- Mon :5:00 pm - 9:3
- Mon : 5:00 pm - 9:3
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : Yes
Delivery : No
Take-out : Yes
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Good For : Dinner
Parking : Garage, Street
Bike Parking : Yes
Wheelchair Accessible : Yes
Good for Kids : No
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Trendy
Noise Level : Average
Alcohol : Full Bar
Outdoor Seating : No
Wi-Fi : No
Has TV : Yes
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : Yes
Categories
Greek Cuisine
Greek food is a fine melody of the finest pressed olive oil, fresh fermented bread, colorful vegetables, juicy meat, sea food all cooked in spices and fresh rosemary. The people from Greek were great scholars who aimed to excel in everything they do. The results are quite visible in their food as they are the inventors of olive oil which is beneficial to health. Greeks also made different type of wines from the best quality of grapes fermented in controlled environment.
Today, you can find hundreds of restaurants offering authentic Greek food or popularly termed as Mediterranean cuisine in New York city alone. People wait in line to taste the exotic Greek dishes like saganaki, taramasalata, souvlaki, loukoumades, spanakopita, moussaka, and many more. One thing which most people like about these authentic Greek dishes is abundant use of lemon juice, olive oil, fresh rosemary and sea salt. A smart mix of few ingredients can virtually take you on the pebble streets of beautiful city of Greece.
For those who don't have time to enjoy fine dining should try tasting the famous souvlaki with pita which is type of meat dish, also a trademark Greek fast food. For those who are vegetarian, or vegan can try different versions of Greek Salad. So, if you wish to enjoy a hearty yet healthy meal that tastes divine then try dining at the best Greek restaurant in your city. Greek cuisine not only tastes good but also help maintain your body in a natural way through healthy diet.
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Kristina V.
I loved this place for brunch! I've been here before for drinks and then another time for dinner. I didn't know they had a back patio with outside seating, we sat there on a nice Sunday afternoon. We sat down and got started. We just found ourselves ordering and ordering more and more delicious plates. We got the banana fritters TWICE, that's how much we couldn't stop eating them. The Nutella waffle was my second favorite (I forgot to take a picture). I highly recommend those two especially if you have sweet tooth like me. Basically everything we got I recommend. The bottomless mimosas were perfect and I had the grapefruit for the first time and I'm so glad I tried it first here. All the food was delicious and fresh and the mimosas included. The staff were friendly and the place is just inviting and a perfect place to enjoy a Sunday afternoon.
(5)Alan G.
Came here with my fiancée and a friend for brunch at around noon on Saturday. We were seated immediately upon entering, which was very nice and unexpected. All the items listed on the menu are supposed to be small plates. We ordered the crazy feta, lollipop chicken, spicy lamb sliders, and zucchini fritters. The crazy feta and zucchini fritters were both very creamy. The lollipop chicken was sweet, crunchy, and delicious. The lamb was flavorful and delicious as well. The service was courteous and efficient, and the prices were fairly reasonable.
(4)Irene C.
Waiter: Mo Restaurant Manager: Chris I had made reservations for 7 for my friends who came from out of town. A few of us were already here and we decided to order drinks to start off (speciality drinks & a grapefruit mimosa-- which is part of the bottomless brunch and penny mimosas). Our friends get here and we decide to order the bottomless tapas & mimosas. First off, I order the pork belly & EGG along with the salmon to start off. Everyones food comes out at random times and 40... 50... 1 hr... 2 hr.. later I did not get my first 2 tapas at ALL. 40 minutes in, when everyone already got their 2 tapas, and I had gotten 0, I ask Mo where my food is. He goes, 'it should be coming out soon' without even checking. Sure, 4-5 plates of regular pork belly comes out but NOT pork belly & EGG. I literally told every single one of the servers who come out, I did not order regular pork belly but the pork belly with EGG. Literally, 2 hrs later, i FINALLY get my first tapa that I ordered. WTF. For a bottomless brunch for $30 and a limited 2.5 hr brunch time, I expect my food out in a reasonable time ESP when we are limited to the number of tapas we can order at a time. I order another tapa: steak & eggs. The steak is literally burnt and completely overcooked. By that time, I was just DONE.. with the service (or lack thereof), FOOD, MIMOSAS. Mo was the one who offered to bring us a mimosas pitcher when we first started off but when we asked the 2nd time for a grapefruit pitcher, 25 minutes later, we get nothing. I ask him where our pitcher is and he goes 'i can't bring out a pitcher but I can refill you'. like why would you offer to bring a pitcher out in the first place?!!?! so basically, we had to wait for 25 minutes for a single refill of mimosa. Multiple times throughout our meal, Mo forgot to put in our tapas order. It wasn't only I kept asking the server where the food we ordered was, that they just brought it out from the kitchen. Mo completely forgot to put in multiple orders. Not only that, my friends pasta was bland and oily, pork belly with egg (when I FINALLY got it 2 hrs later) was dry and bland where as the regular pork belly which i got 5 plates of mistakenly, was completely too sweet. The french toast was completely sweet even to my friend who loves sweets & french toast. Steak & eggs was literally completely overcooked and burnt to the crisp that it was black. When I asked Mo where our food was after 1.5 hrs of waiting, he said the kitchen is backed up and i'm like 'the kitchen is backed up for 1.5 hrs?!'. He was completely moody, disrespectful and didnt try to resolve the issues that he caused in the first place. When the check comes, Mo decides to charge us a grapefruit mimosa full price and when I ask him what the charge was b/c we already asked for bottomless mimosas, he goes 'its because you ordered the mimosa BEFORE you said you were going to get the bottomless brunch'. WTF. He refused to do anything about it until I asked to speak to the manager. Chris comes out and obviously he blames it on the holiday weekend and kitchen being backed up. Chris was kind enough to take off 2 brunch costs for us but the food was god awful, service was just terrible and my friends who were vising were just not impressed. I actually enjoy their dinner food but this whole experience today will just be the last time I ever come back to cava.
(1)S M.
Service was 5 stars and food was 3.5. We got a nice bottle of white wine. A crisp Spanish wine. Blanking on the name. Servers kept glasses full and bottle chilled at the table. Nice touch. The dipping sauce combo appetizer is good. You get hummus, a salmon dip, yogurt sauce with full, an eggplant dip and another one that was okay. I liked the salmon dip and hummus the most. We also got zucchini fritters. Unfortunately those rest on a bed of the yogurt sauce so I was pretty yogurt sauced out. Also I tend to expect zucchini fritters to have vegetable chunks in them. These seem to be made of a puréed vegetable and zucchini melange which is then made into a patty and fried. All in all the fritters were disappointing. The beet salad is excellent and I wish we had gotten more. Yellow and red beets rest on arugula and other greens with dollops of goat cheese. The dressing is very light and the flavors blend very well. We also got a seafood risotto and some bbq shrimp. The shrimp were cooked well as in not dry but flavor wise were noting fantastic. The risotto was very good with a nice earthy flavor. In the end my dinner companion and I agreed that the wine, risotto, and salad carried the meal. If I return I will likely order those items again and try a few new things.
(4)Jesse L.
5 stars for food. 2 for price. 5 for service. The appetizer pita bread and dip is amazing. The food in general including the lamb chops were on point. Good malbec wine. Nice atmosphere. Friendly service. However, the prices to me seemed a bit steep. $9-15 for tapas is more DC pricing than Arlington. But no complaints about the quality.
(4)Nina P.
I never thought I'd write a 5 star review for a chain restaurant but the $30 unlimited brunch at Cava Mezze is spectacular. Having fallen victim to similar brunch schemes, I was very skeptical but each dish was fantastic and it was truly a "deal". Standouts are the pork belly, salmon, and green eggs, but everything else we tried was delicious. Not really knowing how or what to order, the bartender Matthew suggested he just pick for us and have things come out. This was a great idea as everything came out in a timely fashion, and we didn't have to think about it. I also very much enjoyed the cocktails I had. One in particular with the word Sunset in it was a nice balance of stiff yet refreshing.
(5)Kimberly K.
Delicious! Host and hostess were sweet and warmly greeted us. Our server was very cool. Attentive, great personality and friendly. The meal starts off with complimentary pita, olives, olive oil, and Harissa. She was so sweet to bring us out more pita and dips. A couple of dishes that really stood out to us were the Spicy Lamb Sliders, Lamb Chops, and Lollipop Chicken. Everything we ordered was seasoned well and cooked to perfection. Restrooms are towards the front of the restaurant, across the bar area. Plenty of indoor and outdoor seating, but this restaurant can get really packed. I love that water comes in a glass bottle and you serve yourself. Perfect for people who drink a lot of water. Their Strawberry Limeade was incredibly refreshing. Highly recommend. So glad we finally got to try Cava Mezze.
(4)Jenn M.
Delicious food to be had here! We really enjoyed ourselves here. Our server Alex was amazing and is an asset to Cava Mezze! He made our first experience here a great one. Beet salad - refreshing and delicious, good way to start a meal. Falafel fritters - better than your average falafel, we liked them! Can't go wrong with this dish. Octopus - surprisingly delicious! I was a little hesitant but the octopus turned out to be my fav out of everything we tried. Expensive for such a small piece! But worth it. Spicy lamb sliders - my least fav of them all. It was a bit too spicy for me and tasted "lamby". I like lamb when it doesn't taste like lamb, I know it doesn't make sense but that's just me! My bf really enjoyed it though. French toast - recommended by our server Alex and he was right! This was the perfect way to end our meal. The French toast with the cream, honey, and fresh berries were a great combination. You have to get it! I would like to come back and try their brunch. I can't believe I waited this long to come here. So glad we tried it! It won't be our last time!
(5)Margaret Z.
Incredible food and great service. Mediterranean food served tapas style (small plates) meant to be shared. Each of the plates is perfect for splitting between 2-3, but consider ordering multiples if you have a larger group. My favorites: - Lollipop chicken (a MUST) - Lamb sliders (spicy!) - Cauliflower - Zucchini fritters - Calamari - Scallops risotto There are a lot of simple dishes here but the sauce pairings and seasonings are fantastic and bring a lot of life to each plate. I also recommend the cocktails - mango mojito was delicious! Half price wine bottles on Tuesdays. Make a reservation if coming after 5:30-6 PM on a weekday, or anytime on a weekend.
(4)Rachel S.
I've been to Cava Mezze a few times. While in general I'm not a huge fan of small plates, I have to admit their bottomless brunch is fantastic. (Can't really beat 1cent mimosas!) For brunch, you can't really go wrong- everything is delicious- but my favorites are French Toast, Spicy Lamb Benedict, and Cava Home Fries. They have a small patio so it's especially nice if you can manage to grab a table there and people watch. Despite the awesome brunch deal, I give Cava a 3-star rating because if you go anytime other than brunch, it's kind of disappointing. The food is still good, but the plates are entirely overpriced. The price of some small plates is what I would pay for a whole plate of food at another restaurant. The service isn't great, either. I'll be back to Cava, but only for brunch!
(3)Candace T.
I live for bottomless brunch and Cava Mezze did not disappoint. With penny mimosas and choices of OJ, grapefruit, or cider, I was as happy as any drunk girl could be. I only got the grapefruit mimosa but I would highly recommend it as it wasn't too sweet but it also did not have the typical bitterness that grapefruit tends to have. We sat on the back porch and the weather was beautiful and service was still fast and friendly. The food was fairly basic with different combinations, but still very enjoyable. Altogether I had a great time with my girlfriends here!!
(5)Pegah Y.
I wish I could give this place more stars, as I love the concept of Mediterranean tapas, but we didn't have the most amazing experience at Cava Mezze. The service was very slow and the food really didn't amaze us the way we were hoping. The food was tasty enough, though not very creative and a little overpriced for what you get. My fiancé and I visited for date night and were pretty excited. We got there fairly on a Friday (around 6pm) and had reservations that we didn't need. The place does get fairly crowded quite quickly, though, so you'd probably need a reservation if you plan to arrive much later than 6:30pm, especially on a weekend night. We ordered sangria and a mojito for our drinks. The drinks were really tasty, and probably the best part of the experience. We also ordered a number of tapas dishes, including: -Scallops Risotto (two U-10 dry scallops, mushrooms, saffron) - This was by far my favorite dish. I think the seafood dishes are really the way to go at this restaurant, as all the other tapas are a bit boring. I really loved the saffron risotto and how flavorful and delicious those scallops are! If I visit again, I would certainly order scallops risotto, and maybe only that. -Grilled Shrimp (Santorini fava puree, dill, lemon, oregano) - This was my second favorite dish. Honestly, I would mostly focus on the seafood dishes here, as everything else was mediocre. This was decent, though I would have preferred a slightly more flavorful seasoning. -Octopus (grilled octopus, red onion, capers, parsley) - As you can tell, we really stuck with the seafood tapas dishes. This was alright, though the presentation was a bit lacking and the octopus tasted mushy in a weird way... I wasn't a huge fan of this dish. -Falafel Fritters (crispy chickpeas, cilantro, tahini, lemon) - As a lover of falafel, I'm pretty picky about it. This was tasty, though a bit dry... -Grilled meatballs (beef, pita, tomato, onion, saffron oil) - The meatballs tasted a bit funky and I honestly didn't want to finish them, even though they were the first thing served and I was quite hungry. -Saganaki (kefalograviera, lemon, brandy) - This was the signature flaming plate of cheese that they present to you after setting it on fire. We initially weren't going to order this, but we saw it at other tables and thought it looked fun and interesting. I wasn't a huge fan of the cheese. It was really sour in a weird way and I just couldn't eat more than a few bites. Disappointing :( Service was also not great. We had to wait about 20 minutes to get acknowledged or get our check. They brought out the food in an awkwardly non-staggered way, but also served one or two of our tapas much, much later than the other ones, so we waited a while. Yes, it was crowded, but they shouldn't completely ignore a table for 20-30 minutes. Overall, the food was decent, but not the best and certainly not worth what we paid for it. Service could be improved as well. There are so many amazing restaurants in Clarendon (and Arlington generally) and I would prefer going elsewhere for date night in the future.
(3)Kate P.
One of my fave spots. Great outdoor patio and inside is dark, rustic and comfy. Tapa style plates, great selection, unique good cocktails. The brunch is awesome. I'm pretty confident that we tried every single selection on the brunch menu. My favorite? The French toast (this is like dessert). Dip Tasting: wonderful sampling. Eggplant is great. but each one is amazing. Saganaki: this is fun. It's cheese, it's fried, and it's all shiny and lit up. So of course it's good. Win. Falafel Fritters: pretty good flavor Zucchini Fritter: these are great Brussel Sprouts: these are wonderful Mini Chicken Pita: jam packed with toppings and flavor, huge size for the price Spicy Lamb Meatballs: tender and delicious Lollipop Chicken: one of my top faves.
(5)Alexandra D.
We started with hummus and calamari and then had lamp chops and octopus. Lamp chops were small and average taste, but octopus was amazing!!! Service was good and place got crowded around 6pm. While we had a nice experience, not sure if we'll go back, unless for octopus ;) and calamari :-p
(4)Merry K.
Best brunch ever! Had the grapefruit mimosas which were big and tasted like fresh grapefruit. The banana fritters and French toast were to die for. We got there at 11:15 and it was perfect timing. By 11:30 every table was taken and it was busy! Didn't slow down the food or service. Stuffed my face like a classy pig, had great service, and can't wait to come back again.
(5)Kristine K.
I am a scavenger eater-- as in I'd rather eat little bites of everything than one huge dish. Cava Mezze is a tapas style restaurant so they have small plates instead of entrees. Depending on how much you eat, 2 to 3 plates is enough per person. My table of of 2 ordered 4 small plates and not only were we full but we had leftovers to take home! Each dish was so good and so different from the other it kept my tasetbuds on their toes the entire time. I can't pick a favorite because each dish was equally delicious!! -Lollipop Chicken ($9.95) - Sweet sweet honey flavored chicken fried to crispy perfection with yogurt sauce. -Scallop Risotto ($15.95) - On the pricier side, espeically for its size but the scallops (comes with 3) were phenomenal and risotto was bombbbbb -Brussel Sprouts ($8.95) - This was one of the best brussel sprouts dish I've had at any restaurant. The skin is crispy and burned just the right amount and the smokey taste was complemented the dish very well. -Saganaki ($9.95) - Very interesting dish. It's a decent sized block of cheese and they torch it for you with brandy right in front of your table. End product = Sizzling hot, chewy cheese. I can't say enough good things about this place. Definitely worth trying it out of the many delicious eats in Arlington.
(5)A. P.
Around dinner time, while strolling around Clarendon we decided to try out Cava Mezze. The hostess was friendly and helped us be seated in their indoor space outside. The waiter was super friendly and very pleasant. We ordered -Classic Mojito (I liked it but my dinner party stated it was too bitter) -Zucchini Fritters (absolutely delicious) -Mini Gyro (really good in a super cute display) -Eggplant Dip (tasty but nothing to lose one's mind) and -Grilled Shrimp (extremely delicious) Overall, we liked the food a lot but wished the plates were a bit bigger :-) we'd def. recommend this place.
(4)Tadessa H.
Wow! I love the food here and the service is outstanding. Came with a group around 6pm for happy hour. It was really crowded and seating was limited at the bar area so we sat on the side. The bartenders were graciously patient as we ordered numerous rounds of drinks and food. The mini gyros and spicy lamb slider were absolutely delicious! I had to order them twice and they were a steal for $3! Also had the chicken souvlak which was okay. The cucumber gin & dark and spicy were my fave cocktails here and only $5. I will definitely be returning for their all you can eat brunch. Will also run to Whole Foods to buy their dips which were all so so delicious with pita bread.
(5)Kathryn M.
Absolutely delicious. The lamb sliders in particular are to die for - just a bit spicy and completely amazing. Everything is great, though. The small plate format is a perfect way to taste everything. There's also a really nice mellow vibe, at least at lunch, with cool music- kind of new age jazz. Darkish lighting amps the ambiance, too. Definitely worth a look if you're in the area.
(5)Neha M.
I finally came to try their happy hour and it's so so worth it! We got there early before the restaurant even opened but the manager let us have a seat and explained politely that they aren't open yet for food but go ahead and have a seat and order drinks! I love that. They have plenty of cocktail, wine, and beer options for happy hour. Food wise- they bring out harissa and olive oil dips with pita bread complimentary! You can get as much Harissa you want and wow - this has to be my favorite dip in my life. We got lamb sliders which were also Flavorful with that buttery bun. They add a little bit of Harissa to it but go ahead and spread some more on it! We also tried spanakopita stuffed with spinach and cheese! All this was Hh so definitely cheap and delicious. Then we decided to try something special that we heard was amazing and haven't tried. It's saganaki - a smoky cheese that is put on fire before serving to you and they add lime juice right after the fire goes out. Wow it's like fondu but so much better because of the cheese quality! I could come back just for that. Cava you have won my heart compared to last time and I love you for it!
(5)Alisha C.
Great food, great service, what's not to love?! After seeing all the good yelp reviews & overall 4-star rating, I'd been wanting to try this place for a long time, so glad I finally I did. Well worth it! Made a spontaneous decision w/ my friend to go here for dinner. The nice hostess was able to seat us right away w/o a reservation (despite being Friday night ~7:45 pm), which was great! There was a 30 min. wait for outside seating, so we gladly opted to sit indoors. That being said, here's my breakdown on 3 important categories - Ambience, Food, & Service: 1. Good Ambience - simple, modern/trendy looking (w/ dark brick walls & wooden furniture), and dim lighting. However, it was rather loud with all the people inside, so I found myself having to talk to my friend loudly during dinner. Otherwise, enjoyable ambience. For outside seating, I suspect this probably isn't a problem. 2. AMAZING FOOD - really delicious! I loved everything I ordered, which included the mojito w/ fresh mango, lamb sliders, & chocolate cake w/ nutella for dessert. Oh, I'd also like to pt. out that their tapas portions really impressed me! They don't bring out skimpy sized food that are only like 3 bites, such as Zaytina or La Tasca do. Also, they bring out fresh, soft pita bread to dip in olive oil, and a well-made spicy tapenade - which is a nice touch! I didn't order it this time, but a lot of people were getting the flaming cheese dish (Saganaki), I mean huge flames were literally going up everywhere in the restaurant while we were there! So, it's definitely on my list to try next time. 3. Great Service - server was very attentive & came by our table regularly to check on us. He also was able to recommend dishes/drinks to us when we asked & to suit our tastes. And, our food came out quickly! I definitely will be going back to try more on their menu!
(5)Bernadette S.
We are fans of Cava Mezze Grill (the chipotle style fast food option), so when we learned of the restaurant, we were excited to try this place. This location is fairly busy so reservations are highly recommended, most especially if you are doing brunch. Street/Garage parking only. Service was fantastic. Their food is greek tapas style. We decided to go here for brunch (party of four). They offer an AYCE brunch special for $30 and with that includes penny mimosas and $2 sangrias. Keep in mind that if you opt for this, everyone must order the AYCE special. We decided to order a la carte since some of the items we wanted to try were on the other menu. Doing it this way worked out better for us and the bill came out to be less than expected for our party. We tried the following: Lollipop Chicken: honey fried chicken with a yogurt and nut dipping sauce - very delicious Scallops Risotto: scallops were cooked to perfection and the risotto was amazing. Mini beef and lamb gyros (the guys liked it so much they ordered this twice) - very flavorful and they stuff fries inside it. The yogurt sauce was yummy. Crispy Pork Belly - we are filipino so when we tried this dish, all of our mouths were rejoicing in the fatty goodness. The meat was tender and was cooked to a perfect crisp. The drizzle of honey on the pork belly gave a good balance of sweet and savory. Spicy Lamb sliders - very juicy. Im not a big fan of lamb but these sliders may have converted me. Nutella waffle - because nutella, bananas and waffles - who wouldn't love this? Banana fritters - bananas fried in dough, drizzled with honey and powdered sugar - great end to a heavy meal! The portions are just right and good enough to sample without feeling like a fatass. We loved this place and will definitely be back to try some more dishes!
(5)Bhavi A.
Me and sis came here with exactly one hour to have the best lunch we could possibly find and Cava Mezze sure delivered. Within minutes of sitting down we were treated to fresh, warm pita with dipping sauces which was so yummy we almost forgot to order from the menu (brown people are cheap y'all). When we came to our senses, I got the lamb sliders with crazy feta (whipped feta) and my sis got the beet salad, spanakopita, and.. The chicken freaking lollipop. Everything was very tasty and the service was great but that lollipop sure put a spring back in my step with all that tender juicy meat laying on a rich layer of Greek yogurt and honey. I'll never look at lollipops the same again.
(5)Justine S.
Cava Mezze has to be my favorite restaurant in the area--Mediterranean cuisine is always an A in my book. Not only do they have an array of tasty dinner options, but their brunch is also amazing ($30pp for unlimited food and 1 cent mimosas!). I personally love their chicken lollipops with yogurt & honey dipping sauce, crispy pork belly, spicy lamb sliders. Their meat is cooked crispy on the outside yet stays juicy on the inside and the seasoning/natural flavors are just unique and will please multiple flavor palates. For brunch, their french toast and spicy lamb benedict are my go-to orders.. I could order these again and again and be happy for the rest of my life. Honestly, anything you get here will be delicious; they are one of the few restaurants that have stayed consistent in quality. They also provide complimentary pita bread with olive oil and harissa dip. Order the hummus/tzatziki/crazy feta/eggplant dips small plate and that's already a meal right there. Their signature cocktails and wines are also extensive as they are amazing. Because it's a tapas style/sharing plates restaurant with plenty of seating, this place is welcoming to groups. The service is also spot-on--always friendly and attentive from my past experiences. In addition, I love the ambiance here. The dim lighting gives this place a very intimate and trendy vibe. On nice, sunny/good weather days, you can utilize their tables outside and enjoy your meal. It is always a good time when I dine here, regardless if it's with a date or a group of girlfriends. I know Cava will not disappoint! PS: Make sure to make reservations at least five days ahead, as this place quickly fills up with hungry customers!
(5)Caroline C.
Great food great service great interior. -1 star because I wish pita was not so soft (crispier is good) & the side salad was pretty pathetic. I half expected a Greek salad and instead got lettuce leaves and some cucumbers in a tasteless dressing. The gyro was amazing though and the servers were really informative and friendly. I would def go back. Probably for hh or brunch!!
(4)Steve T.
Huge fan of Cava Mezze Grill, so I had to give the sit-down restaurant a try, even though it's in Brosville, VA aka Clarendon. To no surprise, the bros were out in full force, wearing all green and stumbling around from day-drinking because of St. Patty's day weekend. The hostess was a little iffy about requiring 4 out of the 6 people on my reservation present, but I guess that's okay cause this place definitely fills up. The endless warm pita, hummus/harissa/olive oil you get right away instantly reaffirms that you made the right decision on where to eat. Most of the food there is really good, but what really stood out to me was the grilled octopus. It's only like 2 tentacles, but it's cooked perfectly. It had a nice burnt crisp outside, while the inside was firm and chewy. It's kinda pricey for how small the portion is, but it's worth trying at least once. Grilled meatballs, falafel fritters, fried calamari, and the beet salad are definitely on the must try list. Things I would avoid because they're too "basic" would be the mac n cheese and the zucchini fritters. I mean they're good, but you could probably go to Silver Diner and get the same thing. The pork belly is like over half fat too. I only ate the meat part, and it was delicious, but it seems like a waste if you don't like eating the entire thing. My friends had no problem doing that though, so I guess it's just personal preference. Wait service was good, food came out pretty quickly, and drinks were topped off regularly. All in all, it's definitely worth coming out for, even if it means Brody McDudeguy is sitting at the next table - probably giving you a weird look - but you can't tell because he's wearing his sunglasses, indoors, and at night...
(4)Alex P.
Cava I love you but WHAT HAPPENED to the Clarendon location?!? I've brunched and dined many times at the Eastern Market location and I've always been more than thrilled with the food and service. This past weekend at Clarendon was such a let down! I met up with a few of my sorority sisters for brunch on the lovely outdoor patio but the service was vertically nonexistent. Drinks went empty, and we actually left without receiving some of the dishes we ordered (which we asked about multiple times). Food service was incredibly slow and inconsistent. Our waitress avoided our table and was really just all over the place. Its a shame really that the Clarendon location fails to compare to the others. Cava Mezze is one of my all time favorite brunch spots, but it looks like I'll be sticking to the Eastern Market location!
(2)Reyna C.
Just flew into town and was recommended Cava for lunch. I have to say that I'm very happy with the recommendation. Having just flown in, my phone had no battery remaining. The hostess was very friendly and found out where there was a plug by the bar and walked me over to it. The bartender was also very nice and made good lunch recommendations! The brussel sprouts were delicious as well as the hummus and the chicken lollipops. The drink was also very good :) The staff was very welcoming and accomodating.
(5)Marina R.
Overpriced and under salted. That's what this place is. Food was bland, very bland. When I think of Mediterranean what come to my mind are tons of garlic, tomatoes, olives, fresh herbs, very fresh food. None of their food really tasted like that. Food needed some serious seasoning. Flavor and aroma were non-existent. The bill for two people was just under $100 dollars with tip for: One salad plate - WATERMELON SALAD ($10) feta | mint | kalamata olive puree 3 little pieces of watermelon with some feta on top, olives puree was non-existent. (My favorite dish and definitely the most overpriced of all) Cheese Plate - SAGANAKI ($10) kefalograviera | lemon | brandy One piece of fried cheese - it's a nice show when they put fire on it, but I couldn't really taste the lemon much less the brandy that evaporated with the presentation. Vegetable Plate - MUSHROOM HASH ($10) fingerling potato | charred cremini mushrooms | roasted summer corn | asparagus tops Biggest dish we got but still very overpriced for what it is. I do love all the ingredients in the dish separately but together they need some seasoning and herbs to tie all the flavors together. It was very bland, but it was pretty and fresh looking. Seafood Plate - SCALLOPS RISOTTO ($14.50) two U-10 dry scallops | mushrooms | saffron As it says on the menu are two U-10, well it was just two but I don't think they were U-10 though, unless they shrunk a whole lot while cooking. Taste wise they were alright, better than average but not amazing. For the price and for just two pieces I expected it to be much better. The Risotto didn't taste like anything to me. Meat Plate - CRISPY PORK BELLY ($10.50) Red Top Farms berkshire pork [non-GMO/humanely raised] | braised & fried | thyme | honey 5 cubes of pork belly - It needed some serious salt on it. It would be great if it was slightly more seasoned. One bottle of Wine - $16 (half price special) - Very fair price. I'm sure I can eat much better for way less somewhere else. I'm used to the concept of tapas/mezze/small sharable plates as it is very common back where I am from so it's not like I dislike or didn't know what I was getting into. It was also very hot inside the restaurant, but it is summer in Virginia and I have a very low tolerance for the heat so that might be my fault. It's not say that the place didn't have anything going for it either; the décor was nice, the booth was comfortable, the waitstaff was friendly and the half price bottle of wine was cheap ($16). I loved the carafe of water on table - even though they never refilled ours when it got empty; it's not overly noisy (unusual for a Clarendon Restaurant). I do love their fast casual restaurant at Tyson's Corner. The company also makes a couple of very yummy dips; I always buy the crazy feta and harissa dips at Whole Foods. Cava Mezze was not for me, however.
(2)Kelley C.
We went for the $30 unlimited brunch. You get unlimited small plates and bottomless mimosas. The food and service was very good. We arrived right after they opened and the restaurant filled up very fast. I would recommend the gyro hash and the steak and eggs. The brunch deal is definitely the way to go. It is a great way to try a bunch of different items. Especially since some the small plates were priced individually around $10. The food came out very quickly and our server was very good about brining us more drinks. Most of the small plate options came with an egg so it would have been nice if there was a little more variety, but overall it was a great meal and I would go again.
(4)Chrissy L.
My favorite greek restaurant! Love everything on the menu, especially the chicken pitas and spanikopitas!
(5)Tracy S.
You must go for brunch. No excuses. There is a $30 per person brunch with mimosas for a penny! The mimosa options are orange, grapefruit, peach, and Apple cider. The peach was my favorite, but the apple cider was surprisingly successful. Doing the $30 all you can eat brunch is basically a buffet where you sit and everything is brought to you. We had essentially everything on the menu because there were four of us to work through it all. All of the Benedicts were really tasty. The Greek yogurt with granola was excellent. The gyro hash was perfect- though a tad spicy. The pork belly options were ok, though the menu only really needed one of them. They were tiny and wouldn't be worth it if you ordered it a la carte. I feel that way about a lot of the brunch options. If you don't do the all you can eat - it is probably not worth it. The showstoppers were the breakfast burrito (huge, dense and spicy), the Nutella waffle (can it get any better?!), and the banana fritters. Also a shout out to the amazing French toast. Really killed it. Now excuse me while I go buy bigger pants.
(4)Amber G.
Cava in Clarendon = really good Mediterranean tapas. Unfortunately I have trouble sharing food so this poses a problem haha, but I'd highly recommend Cava for anyone looking for good Greek small plates. It certainly, in my opinion, beats out Kapnos Taverna in Ballston. The scallops with risotto is by far my favorite dish here (although it also happens to be one of the most expensive dishes at $15). The lollipop chicken is another solid choice, with honey and greek yogurt to dip the crispy salty chicken drumsticks in. The grilled octopus is also good to try. Cava has a nice ambiance for a happy hour or for a date night. It's dimly lit with dark wood tables inside and a bar area. It gets super crowded though, so prepare to wait for at least a little bit during peak hours (although really I've never had a crazy upsetting long wait even when the place was packed to the brim). Be warned it also gets really loud inside when it's crowded. Tip: They do Penny Mimosa brunches on the weekends!!! Due to VA's ABC laws, Arlington restaurants can't do bottomless drinks, so this is as close as you'll get! If you do the all-you-can-eat brunch, you'll also get penny mimosas with it! They have mimosas in various flavors like peach and grapefruit. Brunch is always a good bet here (try the gyro hash).
(4)Dimitri S.
Ambiance, food, and service was all phenomenal. The food is served as a tapas style which is great because you are able to taste all of the different dishes on the menu and I promise you will not be disappointed.
(5)David M.
Went here last night for my anniversary. Mara, Chris and Basel did an amazing job. The food was great and they took the time to not only congratulate us, but even did a few things to make it extra special. A very human, real touch. My favorites: Great dirty martini, lamb sliders, shrimp and scallops with risotto. I know they have been around a long time, but nice to see they still care about the making the overall experience a great one. Well done.
(5)Tiffany J.
I made a 1:30 reservation for a Saturday afternoon of brunch and we were seated for a table of 2 about 5 mins before our reservation time. I made the reservation through Yelp & I was sent a confirmation text an hour before our seating time to make sure we were still coming. We had the AYCE brunch at $30/pp with the penny mimosas which come in flavors of orange, grapefruit, peach, and apple cider. The apple cider was my fave. As far as the food, my 1st round was a huge disappointment. Most of the eggs on the menu are poached and fried (1 side only) which isn't my fave. The potato hash has a very off spice in it that smells like musk :/ and the pork belly was dry and flavor was MIA. I've never had pork that didn't have flavor, but this was a major disappointment. My bf said the steak didn't have any flavor either. My favorites were the chicken sausage, frittata, spicy lamb Benedict (I got the eggs scrambled instead of poached), and the grilled cheese which was just pita bread w/ feta, olive oil, and fresh oregano. Idk what made that grilled cheese so good but it was amazing. The lamb was SO good, I ordered 2 of those. Anything w/ those potatoes were a buzz kill. The challah French toast were greasy, definitely a thumbs down. Service: food came out expeditiously. The waiter was attentive and didn't mess up our order. HOWEVER when the bill came it was $205, why?!?! Because he thought we ordered a la cart and not AYCE. Sir we drank 14 mimosas, WhyTF would we not do AYCE. When I saw that bill it definitely took away my buzz. He fixed our bill at the end but now I'm sitting here 6-7 mimosas in and don't even feel my buzz any more. Lol! Summary: Would I come back? Yes, but I wouldn't order anything that had those potatoes and I would ensure the waiter heard me say AYCE and make him repeat it back to me. LOL!
(4)Laura E.
I've been here twice with my guy and the food is amazing! Since I was in the neighborhood for work beforehand, I arrived early and sat at the bar for happy hour. I ordered the fries, which were sprinkled with feta and had a side of tzatziki sauce. Normally, I'd ask for a side of ketchup but both the feta and sauces were delicious that no ketchup was needed. Also, let me mention that my like for the sauce says a lot as I'm not a fan of cucumbers. In addition to the fries, I was given the free appetizers which consisted of pita, olive oil, olives, and harissa sauce. Word to wise--the harissa sauce is spicy so don't take too much of it at a time! When my guy arrived, we were seated at a table where the waiter brought the rest of my fries and more appetizers. Because the above dishes I mentioned were filling, I just ordered the grilled octopus. The octopus was tender and came with onions, capers and tiny pieces of roasted peppers. I had some of my my guy's mac and cheese, and it was seriously some of the best M&C I've had. Unlike many versions where the creamy sauce overwhelms the cheesiness, Cava Mezze's version was not creamy at all. Of course, feta was used in place of traditional cheddar or mozzarella cheses being that Cava Mezze is a Greek restaurant--which was fine by me because I love feta and it made the "cheesiness" aspect stronger without being overwhelming. We had the loukoumodes (donut holes) for dessert, and those were a perfect end to an yummy yet filling dinner. Now I can see why CM is one of my guy's favorite restaurants, and I look forward to trying many more dishes on future visits. On a side note, I would strongly recommend coming during the week as close to opening as possible. If you want to be able to talk with your dining companion(s), I'd strongly encourage getting a table away from the bar. My guy said the noise level is loud over the weekend, and I probably would not want to come there then due to my hearing/ear issues.
(5)Annie K.
After frequenting Cava Mezze a few more times since my last review in 2011, they definitely earned a shiny 5 star rating in my book! This is one of my top choices for a dinner date with the boyfriend or brunch with my girlfriends. They have an extensive wine selection of Greek wines (their reds are much bolder than regular reds) and cocktails to sip on, a wide variety of tapas to share (favorites: spicy lamb sliders, lollipop chicken, zucchini fritters, scallops with saffron risotto), and a nice ambiance. On weekends, they offer an unlimited brunch for $30/pp with 1 cent mimosas in several flavors (peach, grapefruit, apple cider, etc.) -- which basically means you can have 100 mimosas for a whole dollar! They also have other brunch cocktails to try out if you don't feel like drinking mimosas. My favorite tapas from their brunch menu are: nutella waffles, french toast, spicy lamb benedict, pork belly and eggs, and the mini Cava breakfast. I look forward to coming back for brunch and/or dinner!
(5)Rebecca Y.
Great place for food. The flaming saganaki (flaming cheese cooked in lemon and brandy) is a showstopper and delicious. I liked my chicken lollipops (fried chicken with honey and greek yogurt) and my zucchini fritters with feta, mint, dill, and Greek yogurt. Both were fresh, crispy, and delicious. I had a cocktail, Green in the Garden, which was decent. I'd definitely come back again.
(4)Susan F.
Okay so have you ever been to Cava Mezze Grill? Where it is kinda like Chipolte but Mediterranean? Well...that my friend is the "Regular Cava" and Cava Mezze is what I call "Gucci Cava." They are owned by the same company. Cava Mezze (Gucci Cava) is a different experience where it is a sit down restaurant and food is served tapas style. The food is delicious at both....just different experiences and different menu. You get a bigger menu at Cava Mezze but I love the experience of Cava Mezze Grill and choosing what goes into my meal. Now which came first? Cava Mezze (Gucci) or Cava Mezze Grill (Regular))? I am not sure...nor am I sure if a chicken or an egg came first...? So the day we visited in the evening and ate off the dinner menu. Here are some of the items we ordered: -Sangria- delicious. I had the red. -The pita bread is just amazing. No words to describe the amazingness of it. -Beet Salad- Popular with my husband -Roasted Potatoes- So soft and almost sweet. Seasoned just right! - Falafel Fritters. Very good...but very tiny...and only four. - Grilled Meatballs- This is the REAL reason why I like Cava so much...okay and maybe the harissa and also the pita. Stick them all together an it is pretty much a mediterranean hamburger. :) -Crispy Pork Belly-A slight disappointment. Not as much flavor as I would have liked..ok...I may be comparing this to Honey Pig's. I would not order this dish again here. Too many other dishes that are so much better. -Crabcake- My little guy who is 6 devoured this....so I assume it was good. :) -Hanger Steak- so tender and good flavor. ***4 1/2 Stars***** Why 4 1/2 stars? I feel the price is high for some of the tapas considering the portion size. Cava Mezze does have a three course lunch deal that my husband has discovered for $15.00. I totally think that is a fair deal which my husband gets on occasion since he visits one of his work locations right there. Perhaps I need to plan some lunch dates?? Would I go back? For lunch menu? Yes! For Dinner? Yes, but maybe without the kids. Atmosphere is nice and I felt my kids did well there and enjoyed the food...but if I am going to a finer restaurant I would rather it just be just my husband and I on a date.
(5)Shirley S.
We went there for brunch and did the bottomless deal ($30), which includes penny mimosas (Orange, grapefruit, or cider). We probably tried about half the menu to share and loved them all (Gyro Hash, Spicy lamb Benedict, challah French toast, steak and eggs, etc.)! The only disappointment was that they didn't have the Nutella waffles because they ran out already. Service was great and the waiter was very attentive and prompt with refilling/getting new drinks. I would absolutely go back and look forward to it. As we went on Labor Day weekend, we made a reservation, which I would probably recommend doing for brunch. I already like the fast food version, Cava Grill, so I might try going for a normal meal here, too, so to compare with the excellent brunch, and the others in the party agree. Yum!
(5)Antonia N.
I've been to Cava Mezze several times and have always enjoyed the food! A few times, it has been a little on the salty side, so that's something to consider. We just had our engagement party catered by these guys and they were awesome! I changed my order a dozen times and they were so flexible about it. They even cut back on the salt for us. The delivery was early and the food was hot. The only thing that was slightly disappointing is that the zucchini fritters and spanakopita were both soggy - I guess that's just the nature of having those kinds of foods delivered. We will continue to be customers!
(4)Helen Z.
I'm a huge fan of Cava already, but based entirely from their Tyson's location which is more of a fast casual place, similar to Chipotle. I had heard good anecdotes about this "fancy" Cava but didn't expect to be blown away as I was by the food we had there. Cava Mezze in Clarendon is tapas style - they recommend two-three appetizers a person, and sharing family styles. I went with two friends and between the three of us, we ordered seven dishes and two drinks. The total bill ended up around $120, tax and tip included, so not the cheapest meal. That being said, food was delicious. Details below: Drinks: -jalapeño ginger: I've never had a spicy cocktail before but this was good! I loved the kick at the end. -Hibiscus pisco sour: for those of you who have never had it, pisco sour is a Peruvian drink featuring an egg white which creates a foam on top of the drink. I think I prefer the regular version to this adaptation though. Tapas: -Stuffed tomato with lamb, rice, and feta: This was the daily special. Beautiful presentation, and great flavors. Prob my second fav of the night. -Scallops and risotto: It was good and the scallops were decently sized, but nothing to write home about. -Grilled octopus: Very tender! I've had overcooked octopus before but this was done perfectly. Kudos to the chef! -Dip sampler: I wasn't the biggest fan of this sampler (Zaytinya's is much better) though this is a good way to try the classic cava dips, most of which are also available at whole foods! -Cauliflower: well seasoned though I wish there had been a slightly bigger serving size. -Local mushrooms: probably my least favorite dish of the night. Too oily for my taste, and the mozzarella on top didn't really melt onto the mushrooms but rather had to be cut separately. -Kikkonista: saving the best for last, this was the star dish of the night. Braised beef with tomatoes, feta, and other various spices served over steak cut fries. Literally every bite of this was delicious and I'd love to learn how to season my own cooking this way. I only wish there had been more meat - just one more bite!
(5)Kate M.
Went to Cava Mezze for brunch with a friend on a Saturday afternoon. First, the place was completely overrun with bros and their female counterparts - I think I saw two people over 35 the entire time I was there. Unfortunately there's absolutely no waiting area at the front so those of us waiting for tables were all smashed together by the door while the hosts took their time getting everyone seated. Not being a noob to DC brunch, this is all more or less expected, and the grapefruit mimosas go a long way toward taking the edge off any irritation you may be feeling when you get to your seat. However, the real disappointment was the food. Our party tried two different versions of eggs benedict (classic and salmon), both of which were at best lukewarm and had almost no hollandaise (which is the whole. freaking. point. of eggs benedict). We enjoyed the chicken sausage, but found the french toast to be essentially bread saturated with sugar water, and the nutella waffles were unfortunately not enough to make up for it. On the whole, I'd be tempted to see if their dinner service is better, but for brunch you're much better off at Circa down the street.
(2)Randi C.
They weren't lying when they rated top 20 brunch spots to eat at in the DC area. You can beat their bunch deal... $30 all you can eat small plates and penny mimosas (I high recommend the peach mimosa). Definitely my go to spot in the Arlington area for brunch. Everything on the menu is delicious. My go to plates are: the gryro hash & french toast. Highly recommend trying this place out. You wont be disappointed!
(5)Jade N.
Checked this place out the other night for dinner. I really wanted to love it based on all these great reviews. While the place was by no means bad, I really was unimpressed. I ordered the chicken souvlaki which was extremely bland and boring. Also ordered the rocket salad, which had good flavor, no real complaints. I then ordered the muscles, which were good but I've had better. I agree with the other Yelpers, this place is pretty pricey for the size of the portions. Don't get me wrong, I understand its tapas, but 10 and 12 dolllar plates for a few bites is pretty pricey, even for this area. I'm only able to give this place 3 stars right now based on the food I had. However overall the service and experience in general were very good...so I may have to go back and give this place a second shot.
(3)Ayana P.
I had dinner here tonight and seriously needed a cigarette when it was all said and done. I don't smoke BTW. Anyway, I was with my boyfriend, so I guess it was a threesome. This restaurant is everything. It's my mother, my father, my sister, my brother, my everything. I don't actually have a brother but you catch my drift, right? I have to divide this review into sections because I'm not sure where to start or end. As a matter of fact, this review may never end. Just a warning for ya. Food: Amaze-balls. I mean everything from the chicken lollipops to the crazy feta was so freaking good. This tomato dip thing they gave us was delicious. My favorite was the mac n cheese though. It's not your traditional mac n cheese but it is excellent in every way imagineable. The portions are perfect, the pasta is al dente, and the cheese and arugla compliment each other very well. Drinks: This is interesting. I tried the Cava Hard Lemonade twice. It was extremely weak. It was good but I'm pretty sure they only added a half shot of vodka. I'm 100% sure. For that reason, we planned on getting the check and having drinks somewhere else. But then this guy, I guess a manager, read my mind and came over and asked me how we were doing. I mentioned my weak drink to him and like magic, I ended up with a tasty and strong drink. He was great. He checked back to make sure I was enjoying it and even took one of the previously ordered juices..., I mean drinks, off the check. I like that he listened and made that shit right. Ambience: Loud, lively, fun. The place is really trendy. Our waiter and the drink/manager guy totally matched the atmosphere of the place. They were energetic but not over-bubbly. Loved everything about this spot.
(5)Alexis T.
The food, atmosphere, and service at Cava are amazing every time we come here! The unique cocktails always make for a refreshing drink, no matter what time of day you come. The staff is always on point, engaging, and fun to be around. They make you feel at home! Our favorites are the Saganaki - you can't go wrong with flaming cheese! And the French toast for dessert. I promise you will enjoy it and want to come back sooner than later!
(5)Dawn B.
If you're looking to have a great time at happy hour than look no further than Cava. There happy hour menu was amazing and reasonably priced at $5 a pop. Savory chicken kabobs, chicken gyros, hummus are you drooling yet? or need I say more? Bottom line try Cava for some delicious happy hour treats.
(4)Lisa N.
**3.5 stars** It was hard to decide whether to round up to 4 stars or go down to 3 stars, but the below average service made me lean towards a 3. I've been dying to try this place out and I'm glad I got the chance on a not-so-busy Tuesday afternoon. The great thing about Cava Mezze is that it offers a wide variety of tapas-style dishes and there's something for everyone. My girlfriends and I ordered a bunch to try: Flaming Cheese or Saganaki ($10): Using brandy, they light up two large blocks of cheese so that there is a quick burst of fire, thus it's name. The fire gives the cheese a nice soft texture, but be sure to eat it quickly because it hardens and becomes less tasty as the meal progresses. In my opinion, it's cool to watch but I probably wouldn't order it again. Crazy Feta ($7): A whipped, jalapeno feta with an olive on top. It's a nice amount to share with the pita they give you. Lollipop Chicken ($10 for 3): A drumstick of crispy chicken with honey & Greek yogurt. The chicken could have been more tender, but overall, this dish was ok. Pork Belly ($10 for 5): Probably my favorite dish. This came with 5 huge pieces that were super tender and juicy. I loved loved loved the honey sauce it came with as well! Mini Gyros ($11 for 3): The gyro meat was tender and this was a nice, filling dish. Scallop Risotto ($16): Probably my second favorite dish. It came with 3 seared scallops and a melt-in-your-mouth mushroom risotto. Although it was pricey, it was worth it in my opinion! Brussels Sprouts ($9): How can you not like oven-roasted brussels sprouts?! These are good, but for $9, I feel like they should give you more. I've heard Zaytinya's is better but I haven't had theirs. Spicy Lamb Sliders ($11 for 2): The spicy sauce inside was delicious and the lamb was tender; I would definitely order this again! It's great to share between 2 people and very filling. Mac n Cheese ($10): This is not your typical mac n' cheese, but more of a pasta. I liked the papardelle pasta, but the cheeses they used weren't that great. I probably wouldn't order this again. Since we ordered so many dishes, waiters and busboys were constantly delivering dishes and taking ones that we were finished with, away. Despite this, they never really asked how we were doing or if we needed anything. When we were done, we waited a while for our waiter to come by so we could ask for our check... They have a decent HH, but it's only available at the bar. Another minus about this place is that they keep the inside super dim/dark (my poor Instagram photos...!) Overall, the dishes are hit or miss and the service can be scanty, probably due to its popularity. I'd definitely come back, but I'll stick to my favorites: Pork Belly & Scallop Risotto!
(3)Cherie O.
We really liked this place. There are so many delicious options on the menu that we ended up ordering too much, which can get quite pricey. Favorites include the octopus and the scallops. Can't wait to return to this place to try their brunch.
(4)Kat W.
This place is amaxing .... Very intimate and relaxing the small plates with all the varieties is a great way to start a conversation and enjoy a wide range of food in one meal... The service was amazing also with dow n to earth servers and nice host... if you go you have to try the baklava .... Thanks Beka (server) you were great
(5)Puja L.
I find it very strange that every Cava establishment I've been to has such a different vibe. I was not a big fan of the cramped, dark restaurant in North Potomac, but loved the to-go style version in Bethesda. My friend and I were wandering around Clarendon on a beautiful evening trying to find a place where we could sit outdoors. Of course, there were hundreds of other people who had the same idea. We rushed into Cava when we noticed someone leaving their table outside and asked if they had space. Magically, we were seated right away on their back patio. The patio was perfect. It was open and airy and very inviting. We ordered cocktails (if I remember correctly, a mango mojito and a jalapeno margarita? Those are the right flavors, just don't entirely remember the mix). Both were delicious. Because my friend is vegetarian and I like sharing, we ordered only veg items. Got the dip platter, the asparagus, and the zucchini fritters. It was a surprisingly enjoyable vegetarian meal. We did get bored of the dips after a while, but everything was tasty and the servers were friendly. We had a nice evening and I think Cava was partially responsible for it!
(5)Jess K.
This restaurant is cavernous, especially compared to the typical restaurant size in NYC... but seating was plentiful, there were tables and banquets near a floor to ceiling window towards the front of the restaurant and along the perimeter of the large space. There was also a wide bar in the center of the space flanked by two flat screen TVs tuned into ESPN. The walls were adorned in horizontal wooden planks with steel lighting accents, making the space feel intimate despite the high-ceilings and square footage. The menu boasted a variety of tapas ranging from small plates to brunch options. We had the tasting platter that included hummus, baba ganoush, a yogurt cucumber dip, and several others - I believe 9 scoops of dips which were all delicious -- the pita was warm and endless. We also ordered the grilled octupus salad on top of mashed chickpeas and the orzo salad, both were well flavored, and despite being a small plate, it was large enough for each of us to have a few spoonfuls. My favorite dish was the spicy lamb egg benedict, there was only one on the plate, but the spices were perfect and the lamb was delicious, I loved the combination of the yokey egg with the lamb and pita. Cava is well-priced and has a great range of items on their menu, I would go back to try new things and of course order the lamb benedict again.
(4)Jocelyn F.
I thought the food at Cava was pretty good. The scallop risotto was delicious and even though it's small plates, I was so full. I'm actually in between a 3-4 only because it was frustrated that they will only seat you until your entire party arrives. I know it was a Friday night and very busy but we may have moved the process quicker if we were able to be seated. But other than that, I enjoyed the food and we had great service!
(4)Gino V.
Wonderful place with a great atmosphere. I had the the chicken lollipop & scallop risotto & both were outstanding. They have an interesting cocktail menu as well..some of the drinks I wouldn't normally think to order but were refreshing and festive. The staff is friendly, attentive, and very personable. Highly recommend this place..I will be coming back again.
(5)Kaye P.
I loved this place! There was quite a bit of a wait considering it was Tuesday night last time I went but I was still impressed: Great atmosphere and food; the service is pretty good. They really could work on their lighting - I've been twice and both times we sat in the front and I felt like the hanging light was falling on me in a strange way. my friend LOVES their lollipop chicken - he remarked twice that he orders it each time he goes there...which is often considering he lives around the corner. I ordered the Green Beans- which had garlic, tomatoes, and onions - excellent I also ordered the Sparraggia- which had Asparagus, lemon vinaigrette and feta - pretty good but the BEST part of my order was the Cava Mac 'n' Cheese - if you go here you must order this. I will be venturing back as soon as I return to the area.
(4)Audrey M.
Love this place. I've been here several times and always with a group on the weekend, which would explain the slightly long waiting times. That being said, it' no big deal to grab a drink at the bar and hang out until your table's ready. The trendy ambiance makes it perfect for a date night or ladies night...also a place I'd bring out of town guests. Food wise, I'm obsessed with the chicken lollipops. The crispy-saltiness of the chicken just works with the sweet Greek yogurt/honey/walnuts to create one of the most delicious food marriages. It's amazing. The flaming cheese is just as good to eat as it is for entertainment value, though you definitely need at least 2 servings if you're feeding more than 3 people. Also adore the mini gyros, lamb sliders and baked feta. The meatballs are tender and flavorful. Opa Opa shrimp is to die-for....keep extra pita on hand to soak up the juice--it's divine. Let's be honest, I've never had a bad dish here. The jalapeno margarita was also tasty with the perfect amount of heat. I'm always looking forward to my next visit, which is now going to have to be soon!
(4)Jackie N.
My girlfriends and I love cava! Their small plates are the perfect size when you want to try lots of different foods. For two girls, we usually get 5-6 plates and then dessert of course. The haloumi cheese is my favorite. Everyone gets the flaming cheese, but it's too much of a lemon taste for me. The haloumi is grilled and tastes delicious with the pita bread and spicy spread they give you. We also got the cava mac n cheese, spicy lamb sliders, grilled meatballs and roasted mussels. My favorite was the spicy lamb sliders, but there was a little too much bread. The mussels and meatballs were good, but pretty normal. Our least favorite was the cava mac n cheese. Don't expect normal mac n cheese. It was papardelle pasta with cheese and arugula. It wasn't terrible, but the papardelle pasta would be better with a cheesier sauce. For dessert, we got the French toast, which was delicious and a good size, because by that time we were pretty full. No drinks this time, but I've had the, before and their delicious. I gave Cava 4 stars because it's always a fun time. The atmosphere is fun but intimate and tapas/small plates restaurants are always awesome. My go to dishes are the haloumi cheese and anything lamb. Delicious!
(4)Courtney F.
Went this weekend for the $30 all-you-can-eat brunch and had a great experience. The service was good even though the restaurant was totally packed. My friends and I tried a bunch of the small plates and the favorites were the breakfast burrito, frittata, spicy lamb benedict, and the nutella waffle (cannot recommend that waffle enough... seriously). They had a good selection of juices (orange, peach, grapefruit) for the $.01 mimosas, but there was WAY too much juice in the drinks for my liking. Our group switched to sangria, which was also on special for $2, very delicious! My only real complaint about the food was that I had a poached egg come out that was completely underdone and inedible. But overall, it was a great time! I will definitely be heading back.
(4)Chad P.
Amazing Greek Tapas. The bread that you start off with is warm and tasty and that spices red pepper dip is legit. We tried the gyros, chicken Slovaki, shrimp dish, hummus, and this cheese plate that they light on fire. It was all fantastic, and the service was excellent. Our bill was a 100 for all that food two martins and a bottle of wine. We will be back again and again.
(5)Local L.
I've been hitting the various area Cava restaurants for a while now and have really grown to love the food. It's a great take on Greek food and in some really cool spaces. My go to Cava is Clarendon. It's a relaxed atmosphere and I always feel at home. I'm often in there with customers and the bartenders always take great care of me. Kyle and Gal are standouts for me and I'm always hoping they're there when I come in. Great attention to detail and always remember what I had, what I like, and that I get the check regardless of who I'm with. On a recent trip to Cava, I had a fairly large group of folks for lunch and the outing was impromptu. The manager, Anthony, was all over us from the second we walked in to ensure we had a great experience and it was flawless start to finish. My standout food items include the Saganaki which they set ablaze in front of you (get your camera out for a great picture), the Crispy Meatballs, the Pork Belly, the White Bean Ragout is awesome as well... even the pita and dips they give you are just awesome and is it turns out, they're for sale across the street at Whole Paycheck. I highly recommend they Gyro hash off the brunch menu and then mixing in some of the harissa that comes with the pita to spice it up. Amazing. The Clarendon location has an awesome back patio as well, but I have yet to take advantage of it. All in all, Cava has an awesome atmosphere, great food, and the service has always been spot on for me.
(5)Suzanne W.
Best lamb sliders ever! The taziki tips raises the roof! I dream about the food here sometimes. The happy hour prices are outta this world! I have never had a bad meal here. The bar tenders rock the house! So quick and efficient! This is my favorite restaurant next to Lyon Hall and Liberty Tavern. My only complaint is I wish the bar was larger. I love sitting at the bar and eating but it's often too crowded.
(5)Aubrey C.
food is awesome here. Love the vibe and the consistent quality of the food. we're regulars and are here at least 1x a week. The chicken lollipops and crazy feta are musts. does get super busy on weekends for dinner. so come early or if you're lucky grab a seat at the bar. Brunch is really good too! Esp the french toast. its like eating cake!
(5)Janice B.
Great options for vegetarians. Solid Greek and other Mediterranean food -- reasonable pricing. The inside restaurant is high decible level -- the interior (outside) courtyard is wonderful in good weather. Greek wines are nice, reasonably priced -- house variety is good.
(4)Jey J.
I love the intimate dining that they have as well as amazing customer service. I love so many things on the menu! The calamari old style is amazing to start off with. Saganaki and Haloumi (sp) cheese is delicious especially with the little show the Saganaki comes with. For the main course, i cannot come here and not get the scallops risotto. it is to die for. the brussel sprouts are delicious too.
(5)Kun K.
This used to be my favorite place to go eat but after going there the last two times, once about two weeks ago and the previous time back in January, I've become a bit disappointed in their quality and quantity of their dishes. They have definitely gotten a lot smaller. Plus, when my group and I have asked for a certain dish, they had run out of one of the ingredients for the dish at times. Still, don't get me wrong, the food there is usually amazing and half off bottles of wine on Monday nights make up for some of the shortcomings that I've noticed recently.
(4)Emily D.
After some debate we decided to try the bottomless brunch and were happy to have given it a try. We enjoyed trying all the different dishes and the 1 cent mimosas didn't hurt! Service was great and pretty fast.
(4)Whitaker S.
This is one of my "go-to" places for a date night in Arlington. First, the fresh pita and harrisa is divine...if you like spicy things. Then, the small plates do not overwhelm you and are great for sharing. Frankly, I have not had anything I did not like at Cava. My favorite dishes are the lollipop chicken, the spicy lamb meatballs, the brussel sprouts and all of the dips(just get the "dip tasting"). And last but definitely not least...the Haloumi! The atmosphere is cool with nice dim lighting for ambiance.
(4)Joanna M.
I am not a fan of tapas style eating because I often leave feeling hungry or spend a ton of money to feel full and that's neither feasible nor fun. I came here for dinner with a girlfriend and we sat by the bar. The bartenders were awesome and recommended some great dishes. We took advantage of the special on wine that night and ordered a bunch of plates. The cheese on fire is served to you flaming:Theatrical and yummy! Mussels were good, lamb was good. Bartender recommended the french toast dessert and promised if we didn't like it he'd give us something else. Challenge Acceptedl! We ordered it and OMG it was love at first bite and I would totally go back just for that.
(4)J Z.
I love tapas, mezze and Mediterranean food and have enjoyed many great Mediterranean restaurants. But my experience at Cava left me feel very angry and aggravated and thought that restaurant is a ripoff. It was poor value on both quality and quantity. My husband and I went to Cava for a casual lunch because we love the Cava hummus we get from Wholefoods and thought to give the restaurant a try. We surprisingly found that Cava has a pricy menu with average price for a mezze dish ranges from $8-$14. This price range is equivalent to menu price at Zaytinya (another Mediterranean restaurant in DC known for high quality food, vibrant atmosphere and great decor). We ordered a side of hummus, watermelon salad, falafel fritter, and crispy meatballs. Hummus was $5.95 for a one scoop amount. The watermelon salad costs $8.95 and it was a plate of literally four 1.5x1x1 inch cubes each topped with a tiny feta cheese cube and a mint leave. The $7.95 falafel fritter dish was three thin round chips (each is 1 inch diameter) lie on a thin layer of hummus. And the $10.95 Crisped Meatballs dish was the most overpriced and poorly executed. This dish is composed of four quarter diameter sized meatballs lie on four thin small potato chip fries. The four pathetic looking chip fries were soaked in oil. At the end, our casual lunch cost $45 with two iced tea without alcoholic beverages. The total net to $55 including tips! And we are still hungry!! We enjoy fine restaurants and are happy to pay for great quality and good value. The food at Cava is okay (nothing special) but it was poor value on both quality and quantity. DEFINITELY not going back.
(2)Lauren P.
Good lord do I love this place. This is the real deal when it comes to Greek food - none of that food court crap. You call that a gyro? Yikes...anyways. Cava is delicious. Everything is authentic. I don't know where else you can get saganaki (aka 'Flaming Cheese') in DC. Items are served as small plates, but portions are large and you'll want to try everything anyways - trust me. Drinks are great too. I love a good mojito, and this place knows what's up. Downsides: It's LOUD & they don't take reservations on weekends. In conclusion, I would never say no to a meal at Cava as long as you promised me I could have one of their Mojitos while I wait ;)
(4)Nyasha C.
If you're looking for a fun food experience, then you need to go to Cava. My girlfriends and i had such an amazing time there. The atmosphere is great, and i would recommend that everyone try the cheese on flames...i think they call it Sakataki???I had grape leaves for the first time and they might just be my new favorite thing. The lamb gyros were a fav and so was the scallop risotto. However, its a little loud, but i just think its because everyone's so excited about the food. So go to Cava, you will love it!
(4)Chelsea C.
Excellent spot for any occasion! Whenever I have friends visiting from out of town, I bring them to Cava to show that Arlington can be trendy too. Fantastic food, excellent atmosphere, and a good wine list. Low lighting makes it a great spot for date night too. I highly recommend Cava to anyone with a penchant for Mediterranean cuisine.
(5)Jason M.
3.5 stars. The food here is really good greek, and our waiter was high spirited and attentive. However: -1 star: they don't take reservations, and don't even allow my girlfriend to hop out of my car while I park to put our name in. Virtually any day of the week, especially Thurs-Sat, there is a 45+ minute wait for a table of 2. That's just obnoxious to not take reservations. Your only recourse is to cram into a tiny bar area and watch basketball. -0.5 stars: They have no carpeting or really anything that would inhibit noise. That's fine if you're a bar, but if you have seating and waiter service, I'd like to be able to talk to my waiter without him having to bend down to hear me yell. I'd also like to be able to talk to my girlfriend, but instead we sat mostly in silence. Unless something was worth yelling about. It feels like Cava Mezze tries to be a hybrid of a restaurant and a bar, and ends up striking out at both. "A fox that chases two rabbits goes hungry." There should be no reason that people are cramming into a narrow bar area as a destination for a night out. Cava Mezza should be a great point to start your night with some tapas and friends.
(3)Theresa W.
Somehow not quite as intimate feeling as the Eastern Market one, but I'm glad there's one closer to me. Service is good of course, and it's so fun to see the servers lighting the flaming cheese dish on fire. The scallops and risotto are wonderful. The dolmades were good but not that exciting--unless you've never had them before, I'd try something more interesting. The wilted greens were disappointing--I was expecting spinach type greens but it was frisee type stuff that lacked flavor. The oysters were pretty good especially with the squeeze of lemon, but not as distinctive as I'd hoped. All of their mojitos are fantastic and they do a good job representing interesting Greek wines! There's more space here than at the DC location, so even on a Saturday night, you might be able to get seated pretty quickly. I didn't have trouble with the noise issue.
(4)Jonathan W.
Love their lollipop chicken and especially their French toast dessert which is to die for.
(4)Green G.
Went back to Cava Mezze for the 2nd time with one of gal plas last weekend. It does not disappoint! That flaming cheese and the unique cocktails are fabulous. For beverages: We tried the mojito, social butterlfy (with lavender), and the cucumber one. All YUMMY! Other than the saganaki, I highly recommend the roasted mushrooms and mini gyros, too. The place is loud, and at first, that turned me away. But, with interesting company, and tasty food... it all fades into the background enough to enjoy the experience.
(4)Megan A.
I've been to Cava one time and it was a satisfying experience. The space is cool inside, though we were seated at a small 2 seater that was at the intersection of a couple different walkways, which had a bit more foot traffic than I would have preferred. Aside from that, the waiter was very knowledgeable about which items were gluten-free (my companion had Celiac Disease) and was more than willing to provide additional sliced cucumbers instead of pita bread. We tried the hummus, baba ganoush, the cauliflower (really good), the brussel sprouts (also really good), scallops (decent). Would definitely recommend for HH, dinner with friends, or a date.
(4)Yuvia M.
A disappointing experience. We visited for Easter Brunch and were very dissapointed by the quality of food and dishes at Cava. The place was not busy so we cannot blame quality due to being overbooked, the reality is that a lot of what we tried just does not work. Our table ordered the lamb benedict, french toast, home fries, regular benedict, gyro hash and lamb hash and out of all of that, nothing was great. Let's start with the lamb, the lamb is spicy which typically would have been a hit with our table but this lamb was too spicy for the food it was paired with. There was something about spicy lamb with hollandaise sauce that just does not work. The spiciness of the already weak flavored hollandaise. It just didn't work. The lamb did work on the hash but unfortunately they hash is 50% potatoes, 50% tomatoes. Every bite you taste tomato and tomato only. The gyro hash, home fries and regular benedict were average at best. The potatoes lacked taste and salt or pepper. The french toast with honey could be a real winner if they put let sugar on their honey syrup. I have a sweet tooth and this is the first time in my life a sweet dish was "too sweet" for me. The first couple of bites are delicious but as the dish goes on and you keep eating it is almost impossible to finish because of its sweetness. I felt like I needed a glass of milk. I'm sad to write this review but Cava was less than average at best.
(2)Patricia O.
Great energy, great food and Amazing drinks! Watch out for the Saganaki flames! The relatively dark restaurant feels bright as day when waiters light up the brandy covered plate of Kefalograviera cheese. With a light crispy outer layer and a warm oozing cheesy center it's worth the potential fire hazard. Highly recommend the Cucumber Gin cocktail made with Hendricks. For Gin lovers this is a great choice. Recommend: Saganaki, Tyropita, Cava Half Smoke, Braised Meatballs
(5)Jessica H.
Seriously, this is one of my new favorite places. Best new addition to Clarendon. It seems like some places in Clarendon (ahem, Mad Rose...) can get away with mediocre food, because people are just looking for atmosphere. But Cava's got it all. Greek tapas (small plates). We have found two plates per person to be enough. It seems like most people get the saganaki, which is turkish/greek cheese that they pour bourbon over and light on fire next to your table, and then sprinkled lemon juice on. It's heavenly, and it's fun to watch. The dining room is generally quite dark, so the flames are verrry noticeable from across the room when someone gets some every 10 minutes or so. We've also enjoyed the dip sampler, the lamb meatballs (shaped like sausages?), the mini lamb gyros, the spanakopita, and some other tasty things I can't remember. And some cocktails, maybe? Whatever, it was all good. The only detractor is that it's LOUD. Very loud. We watched the table next to us try to conduct a first date last time, and it was kind of difficult. I wish they could do something about that. Also, after 7:30pm on weekends, there'll be a wait for sure, and they don't take reservations.
(5)Luke T.
my favorite place to eat in Clarendon, no question. If you ever leave here still hungry, you are just a cheapskate, or do not like good food. It's great for dates, group dates, and just grabbing dinner with some friends. I will say it's not the most ideal place if you plan on going out for a big night after, as you usually are in a food coma when you walk out. pretty decent beer selection, but could be better. - favorite dishes: Spicy Lamb meatballs, mini gyros, flaming cheese., mac n cheese. crab bomb. -the only downside I have to this place, echos everyone else, is that it can get extremely loud inside.
(5)Stephanie M.
I've been here a few times. The food is delicious, including the Lollipop Chicken, Zucchini Fritters, all the meatballs, and of course the Saganaki. Sangria was delicious the first time I went. All a little overpriced for the size of the portions. Service is so-so. I've had great, and I've had okay. They are always polite, however, and accommodating, though sometimes the servers can take awhile or disappear. Service overall is a 3.5/5. Ambiance is nice, and not too loud. Some corners are a little dark, but that's a restaurant for you. During the week isn't too crowded, though if you have more than 4, I'd recommend making reservations. Weekends can get crowded. There is a back patio that will be great in the summer! Especially with a glass of Sangria.
(4)Constance C.
I would like to come back here again. A huge fan of Mediterranean food, tapas are the perfect way to try a little of everything. My husband and I ate lunch around noon and were full into the late evening, with 4 tapas total and a small avgolemono.
(4)Tim F.
Solid food, good service. Can't remember the dish we had but they set it on fire which was pretty cool.
(4)K K.
Good food. HORRIBLE service. Incredibly rude waiter.
(1)Food L.
I brought my girlfriend here for our anniversary. Everything was handled smooth and the staff was very accommodating. By the end of the night I felt like I was valued and part of the family. I especially liked the cucumber martini. Delicious! Anthony K, went out of his way to make the night special and my lady happy. I will definitely be back!
(5)Molly M.
I have been to the Cava in Clarendon and DC, and have very much enjoyed both visits. The staff is friendly and helpful, and the atmosphere is laidback and fun. I love doing the small-plates thing, so Cava is great for that. The hummus and tzatiki are very good, as are the kabobs and gyros. They also have nice selection of wine, including Greek wines that are pretty good.
(4)Mindy K.
This review is for Cava's Catering service...I KNOW, we were ecstatic as well to discover that they cater!!! We decided to go with Cava Catering after being quoted outrageous prices from catering places. I'm a huge fan of Cava restaurants, and love their catering service even more now. We had a formal dinner for 16 guests at our private home, and Scott from Cava was so helpful - and spot on! - in helping select a menu that catered to a variety of tastes. He even held me back and convinced me to not go overboard :) when I called him the day before to order more food for the party. Scott was extremely helpful, and Cava Catering also provides servers for $40/hour. To be honest, probably some of the best $$ spent for the party. Our server, Andy, was extremely professional and set-up the entire food service for 16 guests and cleaned up afterwards. He took attentive care of each of our guests and helped to explain the food, and even after when the night was winding down, I checked in, only to realize he had washed all of our dishes AND placed the leftover food in to-go containers. I can't express how happy I am that we went with Cava Catering. Their food was superb and they have a great selection through their catering menu. The lamb Kapama was a huge hit, as were the spanakopitas and cheese pies. And on top of delicious, well-plated food, the service from when I initially ordered (with Scott) to the actual dinner service (with Andy) was superb. If we host another formal dinner party, I won't hesitate to hire Cava Catering again and if you do so, be sure to request Andy!
(5)Stephanie H.
Wow has Clarendon changed a lot in a few years. It was going through so many changes when I last lived in the area in Rosslyn in 2006 but wow! I stopped in here with a friend to catch up. I'm generally not a an of tapas type places because I eat a lot of food and it's a little awkward to have a bunch of plates piled up in front of me. We started with some hummus which was good, the side dipping plate was a little weak and I didn't think the red pepper dip was fresh, probably came from a can. We split the saganaki (fire, fire!), lamb sliders, chicken gyros, and pork belly. THe saganaki was fine, the lamb sliders were ok, the chicken gyros were fine but nothing better than I could get anywhere else. The pork belly was very nice. In general the prices were reasonable but some of them were insane, why is a lamb tapas plate $15? Service was fine, but nothing spectacular. The ambiance was nice but I could see how this place could get really loud and crowded quickly. If only Arlington would stop building everything on top of each other every place won't be so packed!
(3)A C.
One of the top spots to eat in Clarendon- the food never disappoints and provides a warm chic dining atmosphere. I love their focus around small portions and delicious vegetables! The lemony orzo soup is light, tangy and packs a delicious punch- it feels like a warm hug from your Greek grandmother. I love the dips starter, so many different textures, heat levels, flavors all in one dish, and the pita bread- doughy, fresh - perfection. The french toast is out of this world- they torch the top to give a carmelized crust that contrasts well with a scoop of ice cream. When I want guaranteed fantastic food at moderate prices, I always go to Cava.
(4)Sofia K.
Came here yesterday after reading these rave reviews to sit outside in the beautiful weather. My friend brought her Boston Terrier along. We were pleased to see other dogowners dining outside as well. When we asked to be seated, however, the host was very uncomfortable and basically refused to allow us to eat there because of the dog. I made the mistake of pointing out that others had dogs too. The host responded by going outside and talking to those diners in the middle of their meal, effectively RUINING EVERYONE'S DAY. Apparently Arlington County has asked businesses in Clarendon not to allow people to eat outside with their dogs. While I do not fault Cava for such a policy, I did not appreciate the way the host communicated this bad news, and particularly disliked the fact that he was willing to not only lose our business, but insult other customers as well. Terrible attitude, completely turned me off, not worth it.
(1)Elly S.
One of my favorite quotes is "A recipe has no soul. You, as the chef, must bring soul to the recipe." And this is exactly what Chef Dimitri Moshovitis does at Cava. There is no way to describe menu items such as his pork belly and sous vide short ribs, other than to say your mouth and palate will be making love to them with each bite. Other items, such as his lollipop chicken, are a purely different delight - a perfect blend of sweet, savory, and just the right level of crispiness to tantalize each taste bud. No matter what you choose on the menu, you honesty cannot go wrong. Take this from a Cava "junkie" ;-) As far as the Clarendon location itself goes, I *loathe* the state of Virginia, but I love this spot! The atmosphere is loud, energetic, and fun, and most importantly, they've brought the cream of the crop as far as their staff goes, which makes each dining experience that much more enjoyable and memorable. Their owners also do a great job of visiting each table and checking on their guests, ensuring that every experience at their restaurant is a pleasurable one - and this truly sets them apart from other restaurants. The visibility and openness of their management team really lends itself to the family atmosphere and reminds me of the television show Cheers, "where everybody knows your name." This is precisely why I not only bring my friends to Cava, but also each of my clients, and have never been anything but delighted with my food, service, and experience.
(5)Doe T.
Arrived at 6:30pm and got a booth right away on a Saturday night - I am sure it was because of the Labor Day weekend. Everything was awesome, from start to finish. Waiter was great and let us take our time, celebrating a birthday. Each Cava is different decor wise...sort of partial to the Rockville location. Excellent evening!
(5)Sarig A.
The food is four stars. The management... 3.5 stars. The hosts...a generous 3 stars. Reservation system: They tend to overbook the prime time hours. We made a reservation for Saturday night, thinking that we could count on it. We checked with the host about 20 minutes prior to the time, no problem. At our reservation time, several other couples were being seated except for us, even ones without reservations. The manager explained that they have a "policy" where there is a 30 minute window for seating. This means that whatever your reservation time is -- arrive exactly 30 minutes early to actually get your reservation. This is poor restaurant management. Either you take and honor reservations or not. Now everyone knows... The hostesses are greeters but have no skills beyond that, which is why the manager walks around with an iPad. The food: Very good, not generous in size, but good. The grilled haloumi, the lamb meatballs, the tsatsiki, hummus, were very good and authentic. The fried calamari... was average, standard. The pork belly was very good but for my taste felt more gastropub than Mediterranean. The cab soaked pear was also interesting and felt light but I didn't check on calories. For the price point - I think this is good Greek food. I would go again but perhaps during a less busy time.
(3)P H.
Went here for dinner on a sat night around 10. And although the scene was lively when we arrived it died quickly. However, the food was fantastic as always. Finally a good restaurant with a great atmosphere in Arlington! Service was decent or better than what you usually get in the DMV. This is a must go!
(4)Karena J.
You gotta go. Food is amazing. Plates are slightly larger than tapas so getting 4-5 tapas is good enough for me and my hubby. The 72 hour sous vide short ribs are to die for (Chef Dimitri trained with Michel Richard of Cittonelle and offers this dish at a fraction of the price). New York strip is flavorful and perfectly cooked. Lollipop chicken are batter fried to a flavorful crispy crunch and served dry on a bed of yummy yogurt and honey sauce so you can eat it with a lot of sauce or barely any... It's up to you. Saganaki is a Greek cheese dish dramatically flash flamed golden toasty right in front of you- order it to impress a new date or to get heads to turn (Why not? Clarendon packs a good lookin' crowd). Orzo pasta is like gourmet comfort food for me- tender morsels of orzo pasta in a flavorful cinnamon tomato sauce that sounded odd to me at first but is something I craved the next day after trying it. French toast dessert is a great way to end the night. Beer taps are really important to my husband... Here's what I remember: face plant IPA (hubby's favorite), delirium tremens, guiness, hoegaarden, strongbow Cider, magic hat 9. Wine selection looked great. I love the dark candlelit ambience and the beautiful setting. The staff is the most friendly I've met in a long time and I found out just chatting with them that the wood utilized to build the restaurant is recycled from demolished barns.... Cool to be green AND chic at the same time. If you are Yelping Cava right now to decide whether to go, trust me.... You gotta go. Yes, it's loud and lively and I love it.
(5)Maggie M.
Came here on a Friday night, the place was busy we had to wait about 20mins for our table which isn't to bad seeing as we got there around 8pm. The atmosphere and decor here is nice, dark, romantic, and very earthy. Lots of exposed wood. We got seated towards the back of the restaurant and you could see all the condos above us. Which is pretty neat. We ordered the baby octopus, zucchini fritters, lamb shank, chick peas, and the kokkinito (beef dish). The chick peas were severed warm with lots of garlic, tomatoes and onions. Absolutely delicious. I could have done with out the zucchini fritters, they were just little fried balls, not much flavor and a bit dull. Lamb shank - so tender, melts in your mouth delicious. Kokkinito beef dish served over fries and had crumbled cheese. The beef was again very tender falls apart in your mouth and full of robust cinnamon flavor. I saved the best for last the grilled baby octopus was divine in a little plate full of red sliced onions and i believe cabbage. The octopus was cooked to perfection and full of flavor. Go there and order it! Our server was great. My only one gripe with this place which most probably wouldn't be effected by is they're tea selection is so weak. Being a Middle Eastern mezzo restaurant I would imaging they would serve delicious spiced teas or even something minty. All they had was generic tea bags. Step your game up Cava. Other than that i'm going back!
(4)Marissa C.
loveeee this place. i come here just to order the cheese on fire! and other tapas of course. But the cheese on fire is entertaining:)
(4)Maryanne G.
Little plates with HUGE tastes!! I can't believe I have never been here before. Went last night and was absolutely delighted with every aspect of the experience. Drinks - great! Service - friendly and very attentive! Food - just stellar!!! It's a wonderful menu for foodies - you can tell the chef really cares about what's being presented. Two of us shared five plates - the Crazy Feta (OMG just heavenly!), Spicy Lamb Meatballs (great heat!), Falafel Fritters (which take falafel to a whole new level - yum!), Baby Octopus (my husband had this one and loved it - I abstained, not my favorite food), and the Pork Gyros (I could have just ordered this over and over!). The space is attractive, they go local and organic wherever possible, and tell you exactly what farms they frequent. Just LOVED the place and can't wait to go back. It is NOT your typical tapas place - and that's a good thing!
(5)Aruna A.
After a ridiculous trip across the country, I arrived at my friend's doorstep - hungry, tired, and in need of a good hearty meal. She had been looking fwd to taking me to Cava, and off we went. When we arrived, we were starving and decided to order a number of different small plates. Those that we tried: halumi sliders saganaki lentil soup lamb shank hummus tzaziki baklava All of which we were pretty darn happy with. I'd gladly recommend them to everyone! The saganaki is flambeed at your table - unique and easily one of the best things we ate there. It was BEYOND delicious. The hummus and the tzaziki were amazingly fresh, simple, and greatly flavored. The baklava had a scoop of pistachio ice cream on top that was to die for, and the lentil soup was perfect. The only things I didn't try was the lamb and the sliders, the lamb was sitting on a great bed of risotto - which I did try, and found it to be amazingly great. I'd definitely eat here again, and in fact plan on it. The drinks were also unique and delicious - we tried the strawberry apple smash (really yummy) and the cucumber jalapeno drink (had a great kick to it). Overall: very pleased. Can't wait to go back. Service was also lovely.
(5)Heather H.
Congrats! You've secured a Match. com date with a girl whose profile states that she likes to "eat and have fun". (You go Glen Coco!) Where do you take her for your first date? The pressure is on. Oh I know, Cava Mezze! They have flaming cheese. Let me say it again, flaming cheese, cheese that is engulfed in flames, the cheese is on fire, we don't need no water let that mother fucka burn! Wait... where was I? So yeah, even if you are one of those desperate, boring, typical DC bureaucrats, (which you probably are because let's face it, you're accepting dates with women who only post photos from the neck up) your date will still remember you and all due to that gosh darn, delicious flaming cheese! I would be remiss if I didn't mention that it is dark and cave like in Cava Mezze. It's so dim that you could almost get away with the fact that your profile photos are about ten years old and you've lost a lot of hair over the past decade. The octopus and cauliflower were actually pretty tasty for those who hate fun, aren't looking to indulge and/or are probably a terrorist- whichever.
(5)kris w.
Me n my girlfriends came here last Friday , the place was pack. Food was great but pricy.... Kind of ur typical Arlington bar .. n the services was good too... The thing I don't like is the place was way too dark... Take awhile to get ur eye adjust .. It looks like they only use candle light!
(3)Adam A.
After some great reviews from some friends of mine, I decided to give it a go and was very pleased. Huge menu with tons of options for even the pickiest eater. My wife is a vegeterian who eats seafood. I dont eat seafood. But between us, we were able to find a good mix of mezze that were fantastic. We started with hummus and grape leaves, then on to spanakopita and green beans, then I had honey chicken and meatballs, and she had mussels with risotto. Everything was great - especially the green beans and meatballs. Both are must haves. Great drink menu, gorgeous interior too. Loved it, will be back.
(4)Heather K.
I love the Cava in Capitol Hill, so I was super excited when they opened their Clarendon location! We were there 2 days after they opened, and I was absolutely blown away! The food was fantastic, per usual, but the service really went above and beyond. Our server was quick, friendly, and knowledgeable, and both the manager AND the chef came by our table to see how our meal was. Our table ordered the saganaki, baby octopus, beet salad, Cava mac and cheese, spanakopita, and the mini chicken gyros, and everything was cooked to perfection and delicious! We couldn't resist dessert- the French toast (to die for) and some sort of chocolate coffee truffle, which was also unbelievable. I cannot recommend this place strongly enough, it was a fantastic dining experience and well worth what we paid!
(5)S S.
I have eaten here twice - the first time with a Greek friend who recommended Cava. I rarely give a 4-star but this place has amazing greek mezze plates. I have sampled the spicy lamb meatballs, the lamb chops, the lamb sliders, chicken shawarma, grilled squid, salads, and many others and none have been less than stellar. Their harissa is also amazing. Servers are well educated in the food and are happy to explain ingredients and make suggestions. Sometimes the service could be a bit more attentive (reason for 4-stars) but that is my only complaint. The interior dining area is truly a "cava" because it's very dimly lit - good for intimate dining but that's about all. Limited outside seating in the front on the street but they have a large, albeit sterile atmosphere, terrace in the back.
(4)Alexandra S.
Go here, eat delicious greek food and make sure you order the flaming cheese. It's the best thing they have. Oh, and also order the chicken pitas. YUM!
(5)Ken B.
Screaming loud. Like so loud you can't even think. I ordered the hummus as an appetizer and the pork souvlaki. Some waiter (not mine) rushed by and dropped off the hummus, but no pita. That came about 3 minutes later. Then - before we were done, the souvlaki came. Exactly 10 small pieces of grilled pork; that was it. No garnish, no side, just 10 small hunks of meat. Really? Really. I have to say that it was OK for what you got it was stupid overpriced with garden-variety service and no atmosphere. meh. There's lots of good restaurants in DC. No need to waste you money here.
(2)Martha M.
The food is really good and so are the drinks. I love the atmosphere but it's really really loud in there and a little too dark. I've gone twice and each time it was raining. The roof seemed to be leaking in some parts of the restaurant both times. I wish they would sound proof the place, fix the leakage, and make it just a little brighter in there. I think it would be perfect once those things were fixed. Oh and the service is really great, everyone is really nice and attentive!
(4)Jacqueline L.
I could not be more excited that Cava is in Clarendon now!! My friend and I went, and we had a great time! It seemed a little too dark, and was definitely loud, but the food was AMAZING and our waiter was so nice! We each ordered a drink and 4 mezze to split, and it was the perfect amount. Also, Cava is very gluten friendly! They brought out cucumbers for my friend to use with the dips instead of pita, and there are tons of gluten-free options on the menu. Read more in my post here: eleventhfloorview.com/20…
(5)Emiliy F.
We(couple, 42, no kids, no pets, dine out frequently) ate there last night for dinner. I had big hopes. The happy hour is decent with $4 glasses of house wine and some single servings of small plates for $3 or so. That is from 5-7. But it gets crowded fast and it is very, very loud -- all throughout the dining room. I have a pretty high tolerance for noise but it requires a near scream to communicate with fellow diners. The evening starts with pita bread, olives, a tapenade and olive oil -- nice touch. The food was just ok though. They have a very interesting menu and we ordered a number of things with feta in them, which we love. The crazy feta was too spicy and I couldn't eat it. The red pepper feta was much better. We also ordered spanokopita (you get 3) and zucchinni fritters (you get 4 little balls)-- both were very good. We also ordered the lamb chops. At $15.95 we had expectations. We were EXTREMELY dissapointed. Most of the chop was fat. We only got a few bites of meat to eat. We raised this with the waiter, including the high cost for the appetizer. He apologized and said he'd bring it up with his manager. Several more times he brought it up and apologized. BUT, he didn't take it off the bill. Our bill for 2 with 2 beers, 1 glass of wine, and a fair number of plates was over $80. As mentioned above, we would not go back. We would eat at the Lebanese Taverna which has far superior food. Other tidbits: we ate outside on the back deck which was nice, much quieter. There is a little courtyard there. Kids were running around a bit but it didn't seem that smoking was an option out there which was nice. Service for us was very good -- minus the lamb chop fiasco. Most small plates are $6-$10 and serving sizes (except for the lambchops --I know, I'm just beating it to death) were pretty good. Lots of pita provided. You can do better. We're tired of paying big bucks for average food and dining experiences!
(2)Emilie M.
Love Cava. Wonderful server tonight for our first visit and delicious food. We had trouble deciding what we liked best, and the Greek wine was a plus, too. Nothing to keep it from being a five except the noise level. Thinking "sails" suspended from the ceiling would help soak up some of that and still give the airy "urban" appearance they want. But in every other way, this was superior. Looking forward to a return trip. (Oh, I'm not a French toast fan, but their French toast dessert is to die for.)
(4)Colleen N.
The place is loud and trendy, but don't let that fool you. The food is some of the best in DC! Absolutely amazing!
(5)Leslie G.
If you like Greek food this is the place! The gyros and appetizers are great and the rocket salad is tasty! Never tried anything that wasn't good. And the servers are so attentive. They make you feel like you're a guest! The only downside is the restaurant itself is very noisy and makes it hard to hear but can't beat the food!
(5)Harry C.
Food and service top notch. Loses a star for the NOISE. It is deaf making. At night the places dark as well except for the dramatic flaming cheese. It is an experience but bring your ear plugs
(4)Liv H.
"Wow, this is amazing", is all we could say at dinner last night. I have never had Greek food before and I am a super picky eater. My boyfriend found Cava Mezze online yesterday as a potential date night place to have dinner. I was skeptical at first just because I wasn't familiar with the menu choices and I have a gluten allergy. When we walked in the restaurant was dark and candle lit. It was cozy and romantic. It was a little hard to hear because the place was packed with people but understandably so after trying their food! It is a tapas style restaurant so we had a few smalls plates to start. We had the Beet Tartare, Cava Fries with Yogurt dipping sauce, and the Crazy Feta and they were amazing! Then I had the Opa Opa Shrimp, upon the suggestion of our waiter, and it was AMAZING! I am very picky about how shrimp is prepared and it was perfect! I was excited to see that they had marked the gluten free options on their menu and there were many many choices! We were completely stuffed but the waiter brought over the dessert menu and I thought I would try the dark chocolate truffles (there are 2 truffles and they are so amazingly delicious and rich that I could only eat a 1/2 of one and had to take the other one and a half home with me, yum!) and my boyfriend ordered the French toast upon the suggestion of our waiter. The waiter told us that the French toast was "life changing". I have never liked French toast so I figured it would be all for my boyfriend to enjoy. He suggested that I try a bite so I did and I ended up eating half of his dessert and decided my gluten sensitivity was worth dealing with for this amazing treat! The French toast is deliciously buttery and crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside and covered with a thin but memorable layer of honey. Topped with homemade whipped cream and berries. It is arguably the best dessert I have ever had. We had the best waiter as well. He was very knowledgeable and helpful with making suggestions and he left us to enjoy our date night without constantly asking us how things are. He was very attentive when we needed anything. Before we left we were already talking about how we couldn't wait to come back again! We have long been in search of our favorite place since moving to the DC area and we have definitely found it!
(5)Sanjib S.
I enjoyed the tapas here. They were reasonably priced! Good bread. Enjoy the Babaganoush.
(4)Eston M.
I was initially enamored with this place, but after a couple of visits, that ended. For one thing, the meats pretty consistently were overcooked. For another, a few of the small plates instead
(3)Caroline H.
This place is fabulous- one of the few places in Clarendon/Ballston that my husband can agree to go at most anytime! Food is great, martinis are great (the Cava Strawberry is my fave!!), and the servers are excellent. Only thing- if you're in a hurry, don't go here. They don't take reservations and the hostesses won't even take your name unless your entire party is there- which is absolutely ridiculous, but whatever. Now that the weather is nice and they can utilize their outdoor seating, you can get seated much quicker. But don't go here on Friday night at 8pm and expect to wait less than 45 minutes. You just have to prepare that you'll be there for a while. Cava adds flare to Clarendon that was so needed- so tired of all the BORING american eateries around there that suck and are over-priced.
(5)Chikkibee S.
We absolutely loved this place. Randomly on Sunday afternoon walked in... and were pleasantly surprised. It is I guess a Greek modern fusion place... has TVs to watch football, a very enticing bar area, and very open exposed room with stone pillars. Tapas is always a crap-shoot, but this place hit it out of the park. My boyfriend is Armenian, which their food is extremely similar to Greek food. Him, growing up with authentic Greek food, was very impressed. Firstly they give delicious warm pita bread and trio sampler of amazing olive oil, olives, and roasted red pepper paste to dip in and try. Delicious! We ordered Tzatziki cold plate - which was really good, then the Lamb Souvlaki and Grilled Meatballs. All were cooked so well - so freaking good and authentic. Highly recommend this place. Ambiance is chill- modern, but definitely very nice, if you want to have an intimate relaxing meal. Service was great as well. Our server even gave us take-away of the fresh pita bread and starter olive oil, red pepper paste and olives. Delish!!! -- by the way... this place may seem expensive, but you order just 3 plates, and we were both stuffed... it is not overpriced. The food quality is great for what you pay for.
(5)Mckenzie Y.
just had din here for the first time and really enjoyed it! so.. i haven't tried the other locations before (but i've heard that they're great too). But the arlington location experience was quite pleasant -one of the better restaurant food qualities i've had in DC/VA! the food was really tasty, the portions just right! The menu selection was stellar and not overwhelming - there is something for everyone. It was recommended that two dishes = 1 person. I recall having the flamed cheese, eggplant, gyros, spantapakos (or whatever u call it) all were soooo tasty and filling!. We also had lamb souvlaka (which was a little tough/medium = too well-done for my taste), the mussels whcih were sort of really sad small little mussels... so i guess i would avoid the seafoods/meats that you probably would save for a more hearty liek steakhouse/seafood spot. but pretty much anything on the left-column of the menu is liek a homerun. L-O-V-E'd the gyros! The vibe is great too - from friends, to dates, to etc etc - a great relaxing yuppie atmosphere. (but deeefffinitely not really a place for children/baby-carriages...) The downside... is... the DARK. the restaurant is SO insanely dim - i'm not sure why they designed it this way - maybe it creates this sense of privacy in a huge-lofted-ceiling space since u are huddled around the candle at your table and it's too dark to see anyone else,.... but you adjust quickly. and secondly the place is SO LOUD (not a place for the hard of hearing, or geriatric sort). I can't quite recall WHY it was so loud, if it was music, or kitchen noise, or ambiance sounds.. but seriously, it's like ur yelling across the table to your dinner-mates. So yea... it's sort of like your sitting in boombox of something. anyways - my vision and hearing all recovered - and i'm def going back.
(4)j m.
I've been to Cava Mezze twice this month - each time with a girlfriend, first visit for dinner, second visit a week later for drinks. Dinner: we sat right away on a Tuesday night. Nice atmosphere - dim, but pleasant, with a candlelit feel. One complaint is lack of space - we sat at a tiny table which was really too small for our water glasses, cocktails, bread plates and all the small plates we ordered. Nowhere for our handbags or coats to go. Other than that, everything was great! Our server made good recommendations and was timely and friendly. I ordered a Cava Strawberry which is basically a delicious alcholic liquid strawberry, and my friend got the jalepeno margarita, which we both agreed was very refreshing and unusual, and had the right amount of "bite" at the finish. For plates, we chose the Crazy Feta (whipped feta cheese with jalepeno), the White Bean Ragout, Fried Calamari, and Mussels Risotto. Everything was absolutely delicioius, but I thought the White Bean Ragout and the Mussels Risotto were the stars of the show. The Ragout is vegetarian, but I SWEAR I could taste bacon - it was extremely rich, savory, and tender. The risotto in the mussels was slightly more al dente than I would have preferred, but the dish was otherwise perfect, and we had no trouble cleaning every plate. Drinks: on a Friday night, the bar was too crowded to find a seat. We felt like we were in the way everywhere that we stood. It was lively, but not so loud that we couldn't talk. The cocktails were terrific, and there are some inventive choices on the drinks menu. Again, the one complaint was having to hold our coats (and scarves, and hats, and mittens) for lack of chairs, hooks, coatracks, etc. None that we saw, anyway. Overall, very pleasant experiences, and I will definitely be going back!
(4)Jay W.
I've been to Cava multiple times (I believe the Arlington location prepares better lamb than the DC location). The waiting staff is consistently an added bonus to the experience of having some great food. A close friend has thanked me profusely for having told him about this restaurant. He's a big Greek food fan (and picky) and loves this place. I took a date here who said she didn't like lamb, and a more accurate statement is that she'd never had properly/well prepared lamb (lamb seems to be an extremes taste-wise, good or bad). She's now a "believer" as to lamb being delicious if prepared well (due to Cava Mezze). Lastly, we ordered a dish for dessert that's also served at brunch ... and later returned for brunch. It's Cava's French Toast. HOLY SHINOLA-BALLS.... You've never had French Toast so good. Think Angel Food cake .. sliced, then prepared French Toast-style. Their brunch selection (available on Sundays) carries the dinner choices, as well as some unique brunch dishes. VERY good, and worth trying if you don't want the night crowd and want something different for brunch.
(5)aj g.
Wow. We were told 45 minutes for a table; 75 minutes later we finally get a table. To add insult to injury the food was excessively salty. We won't be going back again.
(1)Kate M.
We had Sunday brunch and no wait, which may change soon once people find out how great it is. From the Screwdrivers with fresh squeezed orange juice and Bloody Marys, the challah french toast and walnut waffles w/ berries and honey, to the omelets and eggs Benedict with spicy lamb, it was amazing. I loved it and am absolutely all about going back. They have that industrial feel, wood and steel, I would imagine it gets a little loud but the food was worth it.
(4)Diana H.
Went for dinner with another couple. We were seated and given pita with olive oil, olives and a yummy spicy spread. They refilled at least twice which was great because we really enjoyed all of these items. Our waiter was on point and knew a lot about the menu and helped us pick out items when we weren't sure what to get (everything looked incredibly tasty). We decided on lamb sliders, crazy feta, macaroni and cheese, a chicken dish, fried oysters and the lamb shank. The crazy feta is a MUST ORDER - the jalapeno didn't overpower the creaminess of the feta and it was perfectly salty and smooth. The lamb sliders were also fantastic and spicy enough where you feel the kick but not too much that you couldn't taste the lamb. The tzatsiki was great. I didn't try the oysters or the lamb shank but my friend and boyfriend seemed to really enjoy them. The chicken dish had a hint of cinnamon that really complemented the sauce and this was probably my least favorite although it was still pretty good. The mac and cheese was incredible - creamy, salty and not too much cheese as sometimes happens. It felt light and I probably could have eaten the entire order myself... and maybe a 2nd one too. The drinks were also good - we had a couple of beers and I enjoyed a very refreshing raspberry mojito. It had the right mix of mint and raspberries. All in all, a great meal with fantastic service! I'll definitely be back!
(4)V. B.
Waste of money. Went with a small group on a Friday night. Service was Fine, food was average to lousy. We started with a dish our server recommended: lamp kapama, which sounded terrific but was gloopy sauce with some crunchy undercooked pasta scattered over the top of meatballs. No thanks. Would have left the plate uneaten, but someone at my table scarfed it down, complaining all the while.... We then veered to more conservative items on the menu, with perhaps predictable mediocre results: hummus (pretty much the worst I've ever eaten), chicken souvlaki (utterly dry and tasteless), shrimp souvlaki (good, but nothing special), and grilled meatballs (ordinary). And then finally a few dishes we actually enjoyed: zucchini fritters, spanakopita, and the hot pepper spread. These were not interesting enough, however, to entice me to return. The Greek white wine was good, and the atmosphere was fun and upbeat.....but it was so loud we all had headaches by the end of the meal. And indigestion. And a very large tab for not much food.
(1)J D.
My wife and I hit Cava for lunch on a Saturday. We both had a cocktail to get started - her the Classic Mojito and I the Hard Lemonade. Both drinks were well done and refreshing as it was a hot August day. We started out with some hummus and I'm not sure that I've had hummus that tasted as freshly made as this did. It was very good. It was accompanied by three other dips of which we thought the spicy, sun-dried tomato one was the best. My wife had the baby octopus the last time she was in and, on her recommendation, we got it again. It did not disappoint. It was plated on a fava bean puree with onions and tomatoes and was delicious. We had no idea what to expect when we ordered the half smoke and I was blown away by it. Feta and a hot dog - who knew? It was definitely my favorite. We also had the souvlaki shrimp and, while good, the other dishes were so much more unique and creative, the shrimp just didn't stand out in comparison. The service was very good and the restaurant itself has a great atmosphere. Cava is definitely a winner.
(4)Caroline f.
The food here was really very good but not good enough to make up for the impossible noise level. I came here with two friends on a Thursday nigh at 7:30t, had no trouble getting seated, but it was definitely a strain to carry on a conversation. Everything else impressed though. Our server was pleasant and very efficient, the ambiance very dark with high ceilings and exposed brick. Before the food even came I had gorged myself on their warm, fluffy pita and gotten a tad tipsy off of a spectacular strawberry martini (it is so delightful to find a fruity cocktail that is not syrupy sweet). The food is all small plates of greek cuisine and left me with a general impression of freshness & rich earthy spices. We ordered the chicken souvlaki, scallop risotto (overpriced), grape leaves, chickpeas, orzo and eggplant. The chickpeas and orzo were in my opinion particularly good, and I love how many options they had for vegetarian/vegan diners. Maybe next time I'll get takeout to enjoy the food without being bothered by the noisy environment , or alternatively check out one of the other solid mediterranean restaurants nearby.
(3)Aditi T.
Maybe I'm biased because I grew up in the Middle East and I've had phenomenal (and real) Mediterranean food. But this place was a little bit of a let down. We stopped by here for lunch one afternoon on our way to DC. We got the hummus, babaganoush (roasted eggplant), mini chicken pita, spicy lamb sliders and falafel fritters. They had a lot of different options on the menu, but overall the majority of the food we ordered was just "meh". Pros: +They have gluten-free options! + They have amazing bread (and harissa) + The ambience and service is great! + THE SPICY LAMB SLIDERS Cons: - The food wasn't all that authentic - The falafel fritters were mushy and somewhat undercooked on the inside. I don't regret the decision to dine here, and I would recommend it to someone looking for Mediterranean/Middle Eastern food - but I wouldn't say it's the most authentic food I've had.
(3)Jennifer M.
Was very excited to come here again since it had been 2+ years since my last visit. Was beyond disappointed by the terrible service. We were seated outside and waited over 10 minutes without even a simple acknowledgement of our presence. Some pita bread finally came from a bus boy who took pity on us, and after an additional 10 minutes had gone by, we moved inside to see if we could get some service at the bar. The bartender informed us that he was "just a bartender" and wasn't aware if the kitchen was even serving anymore. At that point, we gave up and decided to go to their next door neighbor and competitor, Circa, and we recommend you avoid the hassle and do the same.
(1)Karisa D.
Sharing is caring Cava Mezze is the inspiration for Cava Mezze Grill. It's essentially a sit down version of Cava Mezze Grill, with more food options. They pride themselves in small plates/sharing, which seems to be a trend lately. On this occasion, I count small plates as a win because it allows you to try multiple items! We started our meal with a round of white sangria, which were delightful. A very light and refreshing drink. For food: myself and my friends ordered the following to share: roasted brussel sprouts, gyros, spicy lamb meatballs, a sample of dips, and their dish that is known as the flaming cheese. They also bring out fresh pita and a trio of oils and olives for dipping. Everything was tasty and surprisingly filling for being presented as shared plates. I loved everything that we tried; standouts were the flaming cheese, gyros, and surprisingly roasted brussel sprouts. Look mom, I ate my sprouts! I definitely enjoyed our meal and would come back. It is a bit pricey, depending on the dishes you order. We all paid about $40 each when all was send and done.
(4)Sharon S.
Holy crap guys, Cava Mezze is amazing. This is the kind of place that you need at least a table of 4 so that you can order tons of goodies and not feel bad about it. We had a group of 5, which was just barely too big for most of the servings (usually 3 or 4) so we had to order doubles of most things. NOT A PROBLEM FOR ME! Yum Yumma is all I can say. But I guess I will say a whole lot more... FOOD/DRINKS: - Cucumber Gin Drink: This was delicious - order it if you are a fan of Gin and want something that transports you to all the spa days you have ever had in just one sip. - Chicken Lollipops: Crispy on the outside, and SUPER juicy on the inside. I'm talking fall off the bone, juicy meat. Flavor was rather mild - would have liked a spicy kick or something but it was still yummy. - Zucchini Fritters: So so good. Despite a menu packed with meat options, I really enjoyed their veggie sides. These fritters were a highlight of the meal - Cauliflower: Good but not great. A nice light complement to everything though. - Lamb Sliders: Yum these are so good. I'm not a massive fan of Lamb but I loved these. - Crazy Feta Dip: I've had this several times bc they also serve it at Whole Foods but it was so much better in the restaurant. The ones sold at Whole Foods don't seem to have as much of a spicy kick as this did - it was delicious. Definitely one of the best dips I've ever had. - Baba Ganoush: This was good but not overwhelming. I've had lots of baba ganoush in my life so I was hoping this would exceed expectations, but it didn't. - Saganaki (Flaming Halloumi Cheese): Best for last. We knew these were a big hit from all the reviews - who doesn't like flaming cheese?! We initially ordered two for the table and they were such a bit hit with everyone, that we ordered a 3rd for dessert! Simply amazing. Goes great with the pita that came with the table. Absolutely delicious and it's clear why this is all the rave. CONCLUSION: I'm never in Arlington but this is likely the only place I'll come out here for. Though I'd probably visit their Eastern Market location first.
(5)Jeanie N.
Saturday brunch, restricted times, $30 for all you can eat tapas, mimosas (grapefruit, pear, classic, and cider) for a penny, $2 sangria, $2 certain beers, and they're are other specials I'm forgetting. The most IMPORTANT thing is that your whole party has to do this option in order to go through with it. We came at 11am with a party 7 without reservations. They weren't too too busy, but they didn't have big tables to accommodate us and seated us at 2 separate tables. Not ideal. They didn't even try pushing tables together. But when it came bringing us out drinks and food constantly, they were REALLY good at that! They never seemed to mind when we ordered in 2-4 things per person per time. They were really good at clearing our plates and we never waited too long to be served again. Mimosas: Don't expect them to be strong, but you will start to feel it after 3-4. Grapefruit was my favorite - tastes like the grapefruit izzy, you have to like grapefruit to like this one, the champagne doesn't mask the grapefruit flavor. Cider was really good too - seemed like they use real apple cider that's a bit thicker from orchards. The pear one was good tood, but the sweetest of them all and didn't super taste like peach. Crispy pork belly was better than pork belly and eggs. Loved all their salmon dishes! Lamb bennie really good. Steak and eggs really good. Banana fritters super good - but this is definitely a large portion with its sweetness. Banana nutella waffle was exactly what it sounds like, nothing special though. French toast - bread really well made: crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. But the glaze and the cream made it too sweet. Was not disappointed with any of the dishes. Left really full and really happy.
(4)Jesse F.
Pretty much everything on the menu is very good and the drinks are well made. I like to sit outside, order a sidecar, some lollipop chicken, brussel sprouts, and see how high the flames go when they light up the saganaki (which I have more than once accidentally referred to as nagasaki). The service is prompt, and while the ambience inside is warm and inviting, it can get quite loud inside, so sit in the back patio if it's open and the weather is nice.
(4)Mallory M.
Great brunch spot! To compete with the dc bottomless brunches, Cava Mezze offers a pretty sweet brunch deal in Clarendon. $30 for unlimited options off the brunch menu and unlimited 1 penny mimosas!!! They have a variety of flavors for these dirt cheap mimosas - grapefruit, orange, peach, and my personal favorite apple cider. The food is DELICIOUS. Some highlights include the cava hash, Nutella waffle, French toast, and the breakfast burrito. The food comes on small plates so order as much as you want and the food will just keep coming! To put the cherry on top, the waitstaff is amazing. They are extremely helpful, attentive, and friendly. They easily accommodated our group of 8, which is not a simple task! They even split the check for us!!! Go to Cava Mezze for brunch. Go now!!
(5)Matt S.
For being a chain, Cava is pretty good. Being a fan of Mediterranean cuisine, Cava never disappoints. Whether it be for a causal dinner or brunch or on a date, I've had enjoyable experiences for all events. Their tzatziki is quite good, anything with lamb is always delicious so they have about 5 or so dishes that are delicious. Their spanakopita is solid along with the brussels spouts. I would recommend Cava to anyone looking for some solid Mediterranean tapas.
(4)Jess Y.
I've been here for dinner once and for happy hour last week. You must order the lollipop chicken...it's a no brainer. In fact, you might as well just order one order of the lollipop chicken per person since you will fight to the end for the last bite. Overall though for dinner, tapas can get a bit pricey. But, what I was really impressed with was their affordable and delicious happy hour options! I came here for a first day of school happy hour with some teacher friends last week. The delicious cocktails were $5 each and they had delicious mini pitas for $3. I ordered a mini gyro pita and it was JUST what I needed to satisfy my hungry appetite! Seriously, the prices were such a steal! Our bartender, Grant, was very attentive. He never let our water glasses go empty and always asked (without being intrusive) if we needed anything else. I also appreciated that he gave me a glass of water without needing to ask for one. At the end of our happy hour, our bartender brought out three orders of the french toast dessert on the house. I guess that he had overheard that we were teachers so he wanted to show us some teacher appreciation! :) But that french toast...oh my goodness it was delicious. And I'm not just saying that because it was free. It was super crispy and served with yummy berries and heavenly whipped cream. Seriously, the best french toast I've ever had. I would definitely order it again.
(5)Archer L.
We went for Sunday brunch. It's a really good deal if the whole table participates. They have a wide selection of options, but my favorites are: french toast, nutella waffle, gyro hash, and crispy pork belly. All of the other items were good, but those were definitely the standouts for me. The brunch was a little pricey, but well worth it. I also went recently in the evening and had sangria (which was also really good and refreshing) on the back patio. It's private and very open. I didn't even know they had a back patio.
(4)Mark R.
I have been wanting to check out this place for awhile but the food snob that lives in that town discouraged me so MUCH that it took this long to finally to check it out. Atmosphere is gastropub style with wooden tables and a small bar area to the right of the entrance. The crowd is young and vibrant for sure. I had hard time making the reservation and even changing it. However, the hostess at the entrance was really accommodating and helped us find the right seat at the right time. Thank you. I like the fact that they text you when your seat is ready. Scallop and risotto, grilled shrimp, octopus, spicy lamb meatball, dipping sample with cucumber slices, crispy pork belly (sweet), and the highlight of the night ~~~~ flaming cheese. You cannot go wrong with the food but just becareful because the bill can get pretty BIG. Between the 3 of us with couple of drinks and chocolate dessert came out to about $60 per person with the tax and tip. I might have to watch that video again with the flame. Every time someone got this order, I could feel the heat half away across the restaurant. Awesome!
(4)Cassandra P.
So yummy! Everything on the menu here is delicious. Lots of vegetarian friendly options.
(5)David N.
Cava is a great local restaurant that's perfect for grabbing a quick bite to having date night. Their fried cheese is obviously one of the best things and popular but they have some other really great dishes. The scallops, cauliflower and Mac and cheese are dishes you shouldn't miss! They also have some great cocktails, the crazy dirty and social butterfly are two of my favorites. Also can't pass up the French toast. From start to finish everything is done very well. Cava also offers a really great brunch, which can be seen by just how busy they are every Saturday and Sunday. The staff is always welcoming and friendly. They always have answers for any question and make an obvious effort to recognize regulars. This is hands down one of my top picks for restaurants to go to in the Clarendon area. If you haven't been yet make sure you do!
(5)Michelle M.
Excellent restaurant! Went here with a friend. We got brussell sprouts, shrimp, salmon and short ribs. The food was excellent and great service. I recommend this place.
(5)Rachel P.
The person I contacted to make reservations was extremely accommodating. I had to change the party from 7 to 5 and she was more than willing to assist. As far as food, it was delicious and came out fast. For drinks, we drank the "penny" mimosas because they were advertised with the $30 all you can eat brunch. The mimosas were extremely weak and I left the brunch barely tipsy :( Don't know if I'd come back for a "drunk brunch" or I would sacrifice more money for stronger drinks.
(4)Donna H.
The food is delicious! Ordered the Lollipop Chicken, Lamb Chops and the Scallop Risottos. The Lamb Chop was good. The scallops was decent but not bad. I liked the hummus and pita chip dips. The atmosphere was very modern and not boring! Definitely recommend to go for a group night out. Went for a friends birthday and everyone enjoyed it.
(4)Elizabeth M.
Who would have thought this was a great place for a baby shower? The staff accommodated our large 20-person group expertly for Sunday brunch. Mini-plates and mimosas were brought to our table quickly and regularly. They even provided plates for our own cake. Everything tasted great!
(5)Kruthika S.
Man did my boyfriend and I pig out at this place. Sunday brunch is incredible. For $30 per person, you get an all you can eat tapas menu and penny mimosas. I would love to list and everything we ate but the list is long (and I kind of don't want to admit to the world how much we ate). I really loved the pasta and egg. I hadn't tasted anything like that before and it was delicious and creamy. The egg was perfectly cooked. I also got the apple cider mimosa which was weird and delicious. Service is fast. Things come to the table as they're made so don't plan for courses. Just keep eating and don't slow down because you're brain will realize how full you are.
(5)Chris L.
I'm a big fan of the food here. They have a good variety even though it all has a Greek flare. The food comes in better proportions than a tapas style restaurant, still perfect for sharing though. The wait staff has always been friendly and competent, but I have been here and felt forgotten about..I'm assuming it was just being understaffed during busy hours.
(4)Adam F.
No need to say more than the food was absolutely delicious. Four of us shared 8 (tapas) plates and 2 desserts, gorging on all sorts of textures, flavors and aromas. Most of the dishes were suggested by our server, who was spot-on with her recommendations. She said the restaurant suggested two plates per person, but I think 1 or 1.5 per person is enough. The desserts were free (a Father's Day Special), so that's why we over-indulged. Prices were fine, atmosphere was casual & trendy, and service was pleasant and attentive. I look forward to going back soon.
(5)Thomas C.
My wife and I used to live on Capital Hill in DC. We would eat at Cava Mezze a few times a month. The food and service has always been outstanding. We haven't lived in DC for more than 3 years now. We were there this weekend for a wedding and definitely wanted to eat here again. Even after 3 years the place didn't let us down. The hummus is amazing, the Halumi sliders are great (just a lunch time item), the braised short ribs are great, the mini Gyros are great, etc. This is a restaurant I would recommend to anyone looking to eat amazing Greek food or just amazing food in general.
(5)Christine B.
This review is only for the unlimited brunch. I really enjoyed the concept, and the mimosas were good, but I was underwhelmed by the food. We were a group of 5 so I tried several dishes. I was really excited about the pork belly and poached egg, but the pork belly was really overcooked and the hollandaise had a weird flavor. The grilled cheese was good, but was really a mini pizza. One friend loved the pasta and eggs. I would say my favorite was the French toast. I'm not a sweet breakfast person, but the savory items just weren't that great. They take reservations, and the drink special is a good deal, so I might go back with a big group, but otherwise I need to try some of the other brunch spots in the area. I will also say that our server was very nice and attentive, and the food came out quickly.
(3)Nikki B.
Sunday brunch is one of the best in the city. Penny mimosas? YES! Dinner is also fantastic here - beautiful and delicious cocktails... And the food - well that's the best part. Get the lollipop chicken and fried cheese. Yes - fried cheese. Servers light it on fire at your table and it's delicious. Small plates so it's perfect for sharing. Great couples spot and also fun for groups. One of my favorites in Arlington!
(5)Meredith V.
This is a hip, chic tapas restaurant in Clarendon. Fun and interesting cocktails. The brussel sprouts were insanely, surprisingly delicious and the hangar steak was good except it was served in a mush of fava beans?? Very bizzare. But other than that, basically everything we consumed here was perfectly executed and tasty.
(4)Jo L.
I eat at Cava Grill almost weekly, so have been dying to try Cava Mezze for a while. I'm glad I did! We were a large party, so tried several great dishes: Crazy Feta (they light it on fire!) 5 dips Spanakopitas Brussel Sprouts Mac-n-Cheese Falafel Shrimp Lamb Sliders White Wine Sangria (yum!) The service was wonderful (especially for our large group) and the plates came out relatively quickly. I'll definitely be returning. Only four stars because of the price for each small, tapas plate.
(4)Allison F.
We ordered eight small plates for five people, and we feasted on some good shit, such as the lamb meatballs, scallops, chicken, falafel, and haloumi. Food came out hot and promptly (which was great considering it was a busy Saturday night), and I can't complain about anything on our plates. Everything was well-seasoned, flavorful, and--most importantly--delicious. I would definitely come back for more!
(4)Trang H.
I was excited to finally pay a visit to this restaurant since I'm a big fan of cava mezze grill. My friend and I went for Happy Hour so this is based on that menu. For starters, there wasn't as many food options as I thought. The portions were underwhelming as well. The chicken souvlaki was mediocre and a little on the salty side. However, I really enjoyed the spanakopita as it was flaky and filled with cheesy goodness (paired really well with arugula). I was surprised that they also gave us complementary pita bread. Overall, I would stick to cava mezze grill but would recommend cava mezze if you want to try the cava ingredients in different form of dishes!
(3)Rose L.
Tasty menu with lots to offer. We tried the saganaki which came out in a big fire show. Also had the scallops which were tasty & flavorful. Next was the crab cake which was tender & delicious. And last the lamb shank in a nice tomato purée w orzo. All good. Def fun for a sampler palate & good for date nite.
(4)Judson W.
This is probably my favorite brunch that is offered in Northern Virginia. For $30 you have an unlimited selection off their small plate brunch menu (which runs 20+ items) and all the mimosas are a penny! It seems too good to be true. You can really order AS MUCH food as you want? Yes, you can. It's a fantastic deal and the food is so, so good.
(4)Sara R.
I'm not good at sharing my food - especially when it's DELICIOUS. However, one of my girlfriends swears by this place so I decided to man up and try out the happy hour here on a thursday night. This place was bumpin! Since there was a wait for a table (and specials are only at the bar), we squeezed our way to a spot at the bar. Verdict: delicious. You must try the crazy feta, and chicken souvalaki (named "chicken slovakia" after a few drinks). Hydrate with one of their jalapeno vodka beverages (can't remember the name of the cocktail). Mini Gyros and Chicken pitas are small but delightful. Minor glitch was that the chicken pita didn't come out until we were ready to go, but I guess stuff like that happens. You could easily get away with just ordering 2 items each from the happy hour and get a solid meal and happy hour beverage for around $15-20. Not bad people!
(4)Caitlin M.
Went here with 3 friends last night. We had three plates for appetizers (and they give you pita with some oil/dips to start) and each got one meat/seafood plate for dinner. We also had a bottle of the Greek cab. The food was really good (brussels sprouts!) and the service was attentive. Our bill before tip came to $132. I would say light/medium eaters would be happy with two plates here, heavier eaters would probably want three. The meat plates were, generally, pretty rich.
(5)Naa P.
I don't see what the fuss is about. They had happy hour white wine--one of the worst glasses of wine I've ever had in my life. Crazy feta was ok. The spicy dip was good. After those disappointments I had no desire to continue eating.
(2)Monnia D.
The harissa here is the BOMB. They bring it out with the olive oil to accompany the warm pita bread and it is just PERFECT. It reminds me of that Frank's RedHot commercial where the old lady says she "puts that **** on everything." I really do want to put this **** on everything. It's just that good. Drinks were hit or miss. I would suggest the green garden as my top choice for cocktails and the Santorini white as my choice for wines. Food was overall decent: we had the beet salad (great!), the spring pea salad (not digging it), the mushroom hash (WONDERFUL!!!!), the saganaki (cool visuals with the whole fire display but the actual dish was disappointing), the octopus (too dry), the fried calamari (excellent- loved the yogurt saffron sauce), and the short ribs (very tender - overall satisfying). Get the green garden cocktail followed by the beet salad, mushroom hash and fried calamari. Shouldn't go wrong with those three solid choices.
(4)Marcus H.
Good food, drinks and ambiance. Lollipop chicken and the original cocktail is currently my combo of choice. Patio out back and outside seating in front keeps the place less congested.
(4)Nishi P.
I've been to Cava a few times, but I think their best offering is brunch. For $30 (everyone at your table must participate), it's all-you-can-eat from the brunch menu and mimosas for one penny. The all-you-can-eat brunch offers small plates of various breakfast foods. Nutella waffle, banana fritters slathered in honey, home fries, veggie frittata, french toast, greek yogurt with granola, eggs Benedict -- the list goes on, and you'd be hard-pressed to find something not tasty. Because all the dishes are smaller portions, it's worth it to spend $30 and try everything, though you might find it harder to be a functioning adult after eating so much.
(4)Austin S.
Went with some co-workers and it was really good. The falafel fritters were really really good. I did feel kind of dumb though. There are apparently two very different restaurant concepts at play under the Cava Mezze name. Cava Mezze is a nice sit down restaurant where we each spent around $20 a person on small plates of food that we shared. Cava Mezze Grill is like Chipotle but with Greek food. I had only been to a Cava Mezze grill which is definitely a better bank for the buck (it was about $10 and more food than the $20 at this place) and that was what I was expecting. So I guess pay attention to whether you are going to a Cava Mezze or a Cava Mezze grill.
(4)Irene M.
Amazing! This is our favorite restaurant and never lets us down. The new menu is awesome, we got the crabcake special, hanger steak, saganaki, scallops risotto, spanakopita - everything was awesome. GO THERE!!!
(5)Daniel T.
Cava Mezze is the bomb! I love the idea of tapas. All the different dishes I've had here were good. This is a really trendy spot as it is in the heart of Clarendon. Expect a lot of people in their 20s and 30s, possibly drunk, enjoying the food here. They have a brunch buffet that has limited options, but just about everything here is good. It does get pretty loud and I feel the way the interior is decorated, sound radiates. Definitely stop by if you are in the area. FYI this is the sit down/wait-staff version of Cava Grill.
(4)Lisa W.
TRUST ME- I know what I'm talken about. (I'll start with this isn't my first time here) When you come here, and you must, try the pork gyros. I know it is out of our comfort zones as foodies, but I promise it is fabulous. There's something about this tasty bite-size gift. The pork has a crispness that lamb gyros just can't achieve. And to top it off they invite a FRY to the party. It will be amazing or you can write your own review . Other randomness: the baby octopus: cooked perfectly- tender not, chewy; a lite and wonderful treat. Service: spot on. Questions? They've got answers. Price: it is what you make it. You can cash out reasonably $$ or super nuts at $$$$. Children: If they only eat chicken nuggets- get a babysitter. The atmosphere is family friendly with out a doubt; the menu is well developed and does not have a kids section. (Example: the Cava Mac-n-cheese comes with Greek cheeses and arugula) Cheers and Enjoy!
(5)David B.
Went to Cava Mezze with a friend. Place was very busy, but the environment was inviting.. It is a narrow restaurant (maneuvering around when it is busy is tricky) with an attentive staff. When we arrived, the bar was full but the bartenders were very good in getting you in an out despite the packed bar itself. We ordered the Lamb sliders, Chicken Mezze and scallops risotto. For dessert, we had the Baklava and Greek Doughnuts. The sliders were spicy and good, the Chicken maybe a bit dry (needed a sauce) and the scallops were tasty. the Baklava was average as were the Greek Doughnuts. For the appetizer, we had a Cheese Flambe that was very good. The food did come quickly, but in phases (not at the same time) so it was an easy flow. Parking is tough up to 7:30 or so, so plan extra time to find parking. Prices were what I expected for the quality.
(4)Chris R.
Great menu with delicious food. We had no trouble finding great dishes for our whole table to share, including a tween diner. Good wine selection. Not for the hard-of-hearing though. Hard surfaces and loud music made it difficult to hear.
(4)lilibet m.
Went for lunch today with a friend. We decided on doing the 3-course lunch for $15. The food portions are large and everything was amazing. The stuffed grape leaves were so flavorful and the tzatziki sauce was phenomenal. I can't wait to go back again for another lunch.
(5)Shiva H.
Went here on a Friday evening with the girls and it was packed. We waited at the busy bar for about 45 minutes before we were seated. However, once we were seated the service was outstanding! They immediately brought the warm pita with their delicious spicy harissa. I could not stop eating the bread with harissa, it was amazing! We ordered the dip tasting appetizer that came with like 5 dips and a couple grape leaves. The dips were overall really good, the tzatziki and hummus were my favorite and the other girls really loved the crazy feta as well. The grape leaves were ok, pretty underwhelming for me. We accidently ordered the haloumi instead of the saganaki because we didn't know which one was the flaming cheese but the server was extremely kind about it and quickly brought out the saganaki instead. I am not a huge cheese person and I thought that the saganaki was pretty good, but the other girls who are bigger cheese fans absolutely loved it! Very fun to watch them light up the cheese in front of you. The brussel sprout veggie dish was to die for. The brussel sprouts were super hot and crispy and the yogurt sauce beneath it was the perfect dip for it. The lamb kapama was very delicious! It had a really good flavor and the lamb shoulder was really tender. The chicken souvlaki was also really tasty and tender. For dessert, we ordered and shared the baklava with pistachio ice cream which was pretty good. I've had better baklava so I am definitely biased but I will say the pistachio ice cream was really yummy. A perfect place to catch up and share some yummy dishes. Very reasonable pricing. I will definitely be back to try some other dishes!
(4)Kevin L.
This is the sit-down, tapas version of Cava Mezze Grill. The food was quite good, and hopefully they expand into other cities soon.
(4)Amber s.
Love this place. Great feta cheese dip- I've been to a few locations and enjoyed them all.
(4)Monica S.
This place was awesome for brunch!! I was shocked to find that for like $30 you get unlimited drinks (mimosas, bellinis, etc.) AND unlimited food off their brunch menu. I had the spicy sausage and eggs which WAS spicy but delicious, as well as their eggs benedict, and their nutella waffle was scrumptious. It is definitely far past value for price paid and I will definitely be going back there. It gets crowded!
(4)Meredith B.
Went and had brunch there today for a date and was pleasantly surprised. The $30 all you can eat brunch tapas with penny mimosas was a great deal! The tapas were pleasant combination of Mediterranean and your typical American breakfast. I would say my favorite had to be the green eggs and ham and the grilled bacon was to die for. I'd recommend ordering 3 things at a time because all of it comes out sporadically. It also gets really crowded so if you aren't getting there at 11 when it opens, make a reservation. I really look forward to going back here again! Would be great for a birthday or a bunch of friends catching up too!
(4)Whitney M.
This review is only for brunch, but probably one of the top five brunches I've had. The hubs and I came with another couple on a Sunday morning, we had reservations so we were seated immediately. The atmosphere is great, part modern, part rustic, very comfy. The server wasted no time getting us our mimosas, thank goodness! (Although, really Virginia? Bottomless is against the law? Sigh) We ordered probably twelve plates for the table. My favorites were the hanger steak, nuttela waffle, and gyro hash. Everything was so good though. The hash, burrito, and steak all had similar taste profiles so it appears their savory dishes are fairly similar. We will be back for sure, but maybe at their Columbia Heights or Capitol Hill location for bottomless mimosas :-)
(5)Katherine H.
It's embarrassing to see how often and how much I eat here. Service: Great. I've come straight from work (so biz clothes) and I've run here from my place up in DC to sit on the patio, and each time, they treat me the same. So far, the servers have been knowledgeable and fun. One weak spot is they started bringin all our food out at once, even when we ask them to please NOT do that so we can just have it come a little at a time like it used to be. The most recent time the waiter just put in our food a little at a time, which helped. Food: Where to start. I love it all. They do charge a ridiculous amount for cucumbers to replace pita for those of us who are gluten-free. Returning from North Africa, I was hopelessly addicted to harissa, a spicy chili-pepper dip. Fortunately, they not only have it, they also sell it in Whole Foods. I eat that by the tub. The brussels sprouts are must haves, as is the grilled octopus. Fried cheese is ridiculously good (and fun!), but I do tend to shy away from dairy. Scallops and risotto are also "shovel to my belly through my mouth" wonderful. Kokkinisto, spicy lamb meatballs, screw it, just get the whole menu, that's what we do. Most their dishes can be modified for those of us gluten-intolerants with relative ease. Seriously, I've yet to have a dish that I said "oh no..." Drinks: love their jalepeno mojito. Often get frustrated as they are consistently out of the 3 wines we always ask for. Monday evenings are 1/2 price wine bottle nights, we tend to go there a lot on Monday nights...coincidence? Maybe...
(4)Monica C.
Me and 5 of my girlfriends are visiting our friend in Claredon/DC for the weekend. After several recommendations we came to Cava Mezza. THANK GOD we did. I have never been a fan of Greek food and the food was BEYOND PHENOMENAL. Everything was cooked perfectly and super tasty. Highlights were the saganaki (better than fried mozzarella), mushrooms, falafel fritters, mini chicken pitas, and scallop risotto. The sangria was the BEST I've ever had (and we're from FTL/Miami!) and the wait staff (particularly Allison and Sean aka big sexy) were wonderful. Great service and super friendly! I would not come to the DC area without making a stop here. Can't wait to come back again :)
(5)Caroline F.
really always very fun. Definitely get the cheese that lights up on fire it is delicious.
(5)Saara Z.
Cava Mezze is probably closer to 3 stars if you're strictly talking greek food but a combination of location and ambience make it a 4 star restaurant for me. The menu is mezze style (Mediterranean tapas) and features a wide range of options, including a few standout items. **Important Tip: Most portions are optimal for ~3 people. You can stretch most things for 4 but a party any larger than that will end up fighting for a bite of each item. Salads/Cheese/Vegetarian; -Beet tartare: Super fresh and a perfect balance of beats and cheese. I was really pleased that the acidity/cheese in this dish wasn't overwhelming. (Not sure if this item is still on the menu but they have something similar). -Saganaki: Flaming cheese, this is probably overrated but I don't think anyone can really hate warm flaming, melty cheese - especially when served with yummy pita, harisa spread, and olive oil. Meat/Seafood; -Lollipop Chicken: Awesome combination sweet and savory here - 3 fried chicken drumsticks on a spread of creamy greek yogurt, drizzled with honey and walnuts -Mini Gyros: 3 mini gyros served with fries - pretty standard gyro - this is a good item to order to make sure you will be full at the end of the meal -Scallop Risotto: scallops with creamy risotto - really delicious dish, loved the subtle taste of saffron Cava Mezze can get pretty noisy at night when it's busy. My best experience here was in the late afternoon when there was not much of a crowd and it didn't feel so much like a cava. Can't complain too much though, "cave" is in the name.
(4)Laura G.
OMG, the gyro tapas are as delicious as they are cute. The meat was moist and flavorful, the pita was soft and warm, and the tzatziki sauce was a nice thick consistency. Wonderful atmosphere, free pita and olive oil/sauce starter, and great service. Ready to go back, like right now.
(5)Frank K.
Not sure if this place is trying to be authentic, because it fails at that, which is pretty sad since traditional Greek food isn't supposed to be presented in a particular way. The server said the dishes were "tapas-style" (instead of actual "mezze"), although the portions were a little too small to share honestly, and the plating didn't seem like it was presented in a way that would have facilitated sharing, which the server said was the purpose. Had the calamari first, too much batter and served with some sauce that didn't compliment it too well, though there wasn't a lemon which would have been more appropriate. My friend had the tzatziki which was good, though a relatively small portion size. The complimentary pita and dipping sauces/oil were great.
(2)Kimberly T.
This place was on my list of restaurants to attend for HH and it wasn't a bad choice. I shared the traditional pork, calamari, spicy lamb slider, chicken souvlaki, and meatball slider with one other person. They were all delicious, however their portions were kind of small granted each order costed $3-$4, I just expected two per order as oppose to one. I think Cava Mezze Grill is a better option and I still get a delicious bite of everything under $15 bucks! I would like to come back and try their brunch menu though, those items look worth trying.
(3)Brenda M.
Our server Kate was amazing. We all ordered the unlimited brunch and 1 cent mimosas. Super good deal. The food was delicious but in the beginning it was taking a long time to get our first round of food. Not a fan of the food drop off system. The runners do not have any idea who's food it is and the plates just come out random. Our server made sure to let us know so we understood completely but still didn't like it. She was very attentive, super informative ( it was some of the guests first time ), patient we had a large group of women and just overall great. Her management informed her to tell us that we were reaching our contract time up right before our 2 hour mark. The contract I agreed and electronically signed said out large party could enjoy the seating for 2.5 hours. We got a last round of drinks and waited for some of the guest last round of food. When our server told us that her management was saying we had 8 mins left I didn't even think to check the time just agreed with her. I asked her to wrap everything up regarding the check and last minute drinks. I asked her to ask her management for a couple mins since our food was taking forever in the beginning. Kate handled the situation appropriate and with professionalism. While I was getting payment from all my guest I looked over to my right and my server was getting pressured to get us out by her manager. I didn't not hear the conversation but I saw him pointing at my table and looked distressed. I felt like that was not handled appropriate. My reservation was for 11:30 am and at the time it was 1:40. I still had 20 minuets on my reservation. If you double booked your restaurant you do not take it out on your guest. I have worked in the hospitality industry for 10years and I would never make my guest feel uncomfortable or even let them see that in the dinning room. He made us very uncomfortable and we felt like we were being kicked out. He came over and asked is how everything was. That he heard that our food took long apologized and asked if we needed anything. I said no I am gathering payment together since I'm being asked to hurry up when I still have 15 mins left on my reservation. We were celebrating my cousins birthday which our server acknowledged and took it the time to but a candle on the french toast for her. Kate was amazing and we would probably only come back because of her and the food. But next time management should not rush people out 30 mins prior till the contract time. Made us feel unwanted and uncomfortable. Your hostess should be aware of the 2.5 hour seating also.
(5)Amanda M.
Four of us met here for brunch yesterday afternoon. It was busy but not overly crowded and we were seated right away thanks to the reservation I was able to make the day before online. While I missed a few of the items that are on the dinner menu, I did not miss the noise that comes along with the dinner crowd. For our group of four we ordered olives, two orders of the spicy sausage (we ate it too quickly for me to snap a photo), green eggs and ham, shrimp souvlaki, spicy lamb sliders, beet tartare, and gyro hash. These dishes, combined with the complimentary pita and dips (oil, olives, and harissa) filled all of us right up. The gyro hash was my least favorite of the dishes we ordered. yelp.com/biz_photos/cava… The potatoes were right on the cusp of being underdone and without the tzatziki it would have been really bland. With the exception of the hash, however, everything was 5-star. The shrimp souvlaki was grilled to perfection - firm without being overdone with a nice sear on the outside. The shrimp were served piping hot and the lemon wedge that accompanied them added just the right level of brightness. yelp.com/biz_photos/cava… Can we talk about the sausage? I know, sausage is sausage, but Cava's is spicy, savory, grilled, and the skin pops when you bite into it. It is no wonder that we ordered a second batch. And the sliders? Oh the sliders! Spicy (harissa and jalapenos), tangy (marinated tomatoes and pickled onions), with a creamy kick from the tzatziki. yelp.com/biz_photos/cava… The beet tartare was a lovely plate to balance out the heavier flavors of the sausage, hash, and sliders. yelp.com/biz_photos/cava… Grilled beets, a touch of olive oil, sea salt, and some feta. The beets are roasted to the point where they still have a bit of a bite but aren't crunchy. If you like beets, you really must order this plate. Finally, the Green Eggs and Ham - deviled eggs topped with bacon, served on top of a smear of the deviled yolks and drizzled with an herb vinaigrette. yelp.com/biz_photos/cava… I don't think I can adequately describe the heavenly creamy goodness of this dish. Just trust me and order it. You won't be disappointed. Now granted, Cava is more expensive than some of the other brunch places in Clarendon, but the quality of the food and the specialty cocktails make it worth it. If you are looking for a unique place to grab brunch, stop in at Cava. Get the spicy sausage and the lamb sliders. Order one of the martinis. Relax and enjoy your afternoon.
(5)Heather R.
Everything they brought out was fantastic. I highly recommend the ratatouille - I'm not sure what Evonne is talking about with only 2 stars -I lived in the south of france (home of ratatouille) and this was better than what I had there. It was really amazing. Just make sure to get a reservation especially on friday or saturday.
(5)Brendan M.
We've been there for dinner a few times now and it's great. Love the size plates and prices. Interesting drinks as well!
(5)Melody D.
One of my favorite restaurants. The service is always exceptional and the food is absolutely delicious. I have yet to try that flaming cheese but the lamb shank is my favorite lamb anywhere. It is so good. The lollipop chicken is pretty good as well. I can't wait for the Cava Mezze Grill to open in Merrifield Town Center.
(5)Dan B.
good food, good service, neat atmosphere
(4)Allan B.
I've tried a bunch of dishes so far and each one is at least good. Some are great, like the lamb sliders, or just about anything with goat cheese. The beer selection is pretty good too.
(5)Hannah B.
It's all about the flaming cheese! And maybe the IPA beers on tap. Love the little show they put on with this dish and the cheese is really good. We tried 6 or 7 dishes because they reccomend 2 per person. The gyros were just OK. I liked the lamb slouvaki and chicken lolipops. The humus at happy hour is a good deal. The service was good but it's kind of a bummer they are not on opentable.com .
(3)Michael M.
Met some friends here for drinks.. Really liked the Cava Hard Lemonade. Loved it even more when the bartender substituted Rum for the Vodka that comes in the drink.. Good food on the menu. A bit dark in here but if your looking for ambiance, this is your place.
(3)Travis P.
We just went here last night (Sunday evening at 6) with a group of 10 and it was a great/unique experience! This is a great addition to the exploding neighborhood of Clarendon! Our server/service was excellent and the food was great! I also enjoyed the ambiance! This was my first visit and I will return. 5 stars thus far! I am sure when it newly opened it was pretty crowded as ANY new place would be in this area and as far as loud, that is what you're going to get when a new hot spot opens in this area. If you want a quieter scene, check out Eventide or Eat Bar!
(5)Bridget N.
I absolutely love, love, love Cava. For starters the food is just hands down amazing! The Lollipop chicken is a must also the zucchini fritters are phenomenal. Secondly, the service is always great. There is this one guy I've had a couple of times and he always makes some great recommendations, like adding habanero sauce to the gryos, as well as he is just super nice. I just love it here and it is the perfect place to sit outside enjoy a yummy cocktail (blood orange mimosa) and have some delicious tapas.
(5)Alexandar I.
This place is pretty good. The food is 5 star, I'm only giving 4 stars because of the service. I was there with a friend and we were carrying on a conversation the whole time which must be a crime because the waiter expected us to just come in there, eat, and leave. He constantly tried to pick up plates that we had barely even finished halfway. We were taking our time and conversing, sorry if that's a crime in restaurants these days... Anyway, the food was awesome. We had the Chickpeas 3 Way, Spicy Lamb Sliders (AWESOME), and pork souvlaki. Everything was good and the pita bread you get with the meal is perfect, soft, and warm. The pork was a bit fatty, but overall had a nice texture and was very tender. My friend had a mango mojito which I tried and was very good as well.
(4)Steph W.
What an awesome addition to Clarendon. Great selection of tapas and drinks! I highly recommend the dirty martini and cucumber/jalepeno margs. As for the tapas, the saganaki was one of the best cheese delights I have ever had...YUM!!!! I went twice in one week just for more melty hot goodness. As for the rest, the spanakopita is delicious, mini gyro pitas, and spicy lamb meatballs are all top notch. I have also tried the Crab bomb, but wouldnt recommend it as it tasted really fishy for my taste buds. I also tried the lamb souvlaki but it was pretty chewy, and I heard the chicken souvlaki was MUCH better, so keep that in mind. Overall, they have a great selection and everything is usually quite tasty with a nice, swanky, setting. LOVE it!
(4)Brittany M.
Amazing atmosphere, delicious food! Great place to meet up with friends for dinner/drinks. Great customer service as well!
(5)Kate R.
SOOO GOOD. We had a party of 9 and we pretty much ordered the whole menu. The top choices for me were the green beans and the eggplant (the gluten free guy). The zucchini fritters were pretty tight as well. The best part was the copious amounts of alcohol that we consumed and the variety of ones to choose from. The meat eaters were big fans of the steak (rare) and scallop risotto. The fried cheese was a nice experience, but certainly not worth the calories. That argument can not be made about the french toast desert. BANGIN' Staff was super helpful and a cool spot in the suburbs, can't complain about that!
(5)Gino S.
Went here for the first time for my moms birthday. The atmosphere was kind of dark, every table was lit up by candles so that was kind of cool but I would have preferred more available light. The Food was really good, in total we had 7 people and ordered 7-10 dishes and we were all satisfied. The food is kinda pricy considering the serving size, around eight bucks or more a plate, but the quality was top notch. The waiters were pretty nice too. The only negatives were the atmosphere being a little dark, I guess its more for people who go out at night, and the price. Other than that considering the small plates, you get filled up pretty quickly.
(4)Pamela F.
Great atmosphere on back patio. Inside is a little loud. Food was great.
(4)Kevin W.
I've enjoyed several great dinners here, and just discovered that they do brunch, and the concept works great, lots of flavor, small portion great for sharing or just getting good food without overloading on portion size. The walnut waffles are fantastic.
(4)Gayle L.
Food was great, especially the Scallop Risotto - three large, perfectly cooked scallops atop a delicious risotto. Service was fine - food came out very quickly, wine and water were much slower to arrive. Ambiance is fun but the restaurant is insanely loud. We were at a table for two in the middle of the room and it was hard to hear each other speak from across the table. And that's on a Tuesday night, so I can't imagine a weekend. Overall, great spot!
(4)Kristin C.
I love this place. Yes, it's loud. Yes, you end up sitting very close to people you don't know. But honestly, I don't care. The food is consistently amazing! Some of my favorites are the Mini Gyros, Lamb Bolognese, Scallops Risotto, White Bean Ragout, obviously the Crazy Feta. Also, I LOVE their Harissa and smother everything I eat in it.
(5)Ambi C.
I was thrilled when I heard that Cava was going to open in Clarendon. I came here with my girlfriend for dinner and the food was absolutely delicious. Granted, it was a little too loud, even on a Tuesday night and our server seemed to rush us as well as the busers, the food was excellent. We split three dishes, the Greek salad, the three types of hummus and the spanakopita. The pita was warm and tasty as well. My only complaint is that Cava does not take any reservations. :( So, if you would to go here, I recommend going early in the week as it will be less crowded and you can actually here the person across the table from you. :)
(4)Elizabeth S.
I went here for dinner last night with friends and really enjoyed it. We started with the eggplant dip, which is really delicious even if you're not totally sure you're a fan of eggplant. We also tried some of the Greek wines, and our server was very helpful in making recommendations. We didn't sample a huge selection of mezze but my friend and I each tried a different pasta dish and thought they were both delicious. I had the carbonara made with greek yogurt and it's honestly one of the best pasta dishes I've had. Another friend tried the scallops and the chickpeas three ways and all were great. Highly recommend checking out this place.
(4)Good E.
3.5 stars Review : Oct 2011 Most dishes average about $13 we ordered 1 bottle of wine everyone ordered 2 dishes per person - plenty of food Group of 5 Total Bill : $160 (not including tip) Average : $37 / person Favorite dishes were spicy lamb sliders and lamb shank. Just ok - braised pork, halibut, eggplant dish, other dishes not memorable Ridiculously noisy on the weekends. Better to go on weeknights. prices are reasonable and portions were reasonable as well. Good date location. They don't take reservations. Would I return : Maybe
(3)Josh M.
I recently moved to Arlington about a month ago, and have been trying out various restaurants every weekend in the hope I will find a few favorites. Cava Mezze will not be on this list. We visited the restaurant right around 6pm, about 15 to 30 minutes before the rush. The restaurant was mostly empty at this time. The hostess took my girlfriend and I all the way to the back of the restaurant and seated us near the back at a cramped table (stuck between two other tables a foot on either side) by ourselves. -- I cannot figure out why hostesses often seat patrons way in the back of a semi busy restaurant away from everyone else and in one of the worst seats in the place. --- We asked our waiter if we could move two tables over to a better spot, and he shrugged with a kind of glum look on his face and said he couldn't help us. He told us to go up front and ask about this. I went to the front to talk to the hostess and ask to move, at which she followed me so that I could point out the table we wanted to move to in a completely empty restaurant. She pondered for a minute and then said she thought she could do this for us since it wasn't that busy yet?!?!?!? She made it seem like she was doing us a favor to move us. I will say that our new waiter was fantastic though. So I assume the wait staff is kind of hit or miss in regards to great and terrible. The place actually looks pretty cool, kinda dark but still inviting. The concept was great. They serve larger style tapa's dishes intended for two people to share. You would get about 3 dishes for 2 people sharing, and there is a quite a good selection to choose from. I could see that people really seem to like the Cheese Flambé, where the waiter will come to your table, set fire to the cheese dish as a spectacle and then serve it to you. We had the sauteed calamari which I was hoping would be somewhat crispy or have some kind of bite to it, but instead it was basically rubbery and looked like it had been stewed instead. It was ok. The other dishes were also just ok. Overall, its an ok 3/5 restaurant for food. The staff and service drop this down to 2/5. I think it is really sad that in a town that has soo many restaurants, that you can afford to give subpar service and treat your customers like they should be honered to dine at your so-so establishment. If you are looking for tapa's in general, I would suggest Jaleo's in DC or Crystal City instead.
(2)Kate T.
My first experience of Cava was take out crab cake sliders, eh. However, my next trip was dining in on a busy week night with a friend. I am so happy we went, it was so great! I definitely recommend the dip sampler, shrimp skewers, beet & goat cheese salad and the cava Mac n cheese. The service was good but a little lacking, it was very very busy though. I will definitely return for dinner, the lunch menu is a bit limited.
(4)Dana M.
Good food and good atmosphere... I'm knocking it 1 star because it was a bit dark and quite loud. The food was excellent. The warm pita bread with olive oil and red pepper had us asking for seconds, which is probably why i had left overs for the next day. I had the mini Gyro and my fiance had the meatballs. The gyros were amazing, but the meatballs were so so... it was as if she ordered a hamburger without the bun. We had a few veggie plates too which were quite tasty. Overall, good food and service.
(4)Anne B.
My first 5-star food review in Arlington. The prices are a little bit steep, but once you've tried the food, you understand. Do yourself a favor and get some flaming cheese and cava fries. The meatballs are ridiculous. So good. My vegetarian friends always find good stuff too. I'm glad to say most Friday nights this place is hopping. Glad I don't have to go to Eastern Market to get their food anymore.
(5)Sally R.
Nice trendy, comfortable, young atmosphere...definately could see hanging out for a happy hour here. Went with a couple people last night and was pretty impressed with almost everything. Our server was friendly, on top of drinks and checking in on us- even though they were busy and I'm sure he was, we were never neglected. For dinner we decided on saganaki, tasting of dips, broccolini, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, shrimp and polenta, pork and potatoes, baby squid and lamb with orzo. The saganaki you can never go wrong with- who doesn't love cheese served in a blaze of glory?! Dips were delicious with their pita and all the vegetables were just perfectly cooked, especially the cauliflower which is sometimes the dark horse of vegetables- but it was perfect. The baby octopus was great, just the right texture (sometimes you have to worry you might end up with a rubbery texture, but not at cava mezze). The lamb, shrimp and pork were good, but not as great as the rest, I guess we just ordered things that were too similar, but they all had they same flavors across the board (minus the obvious differences between shrimp, pork and lamb). Dessert I think might be their weakness- we got the truffles which I think would have benefited from being served at room temperature instead of cold and hard. Overally, not super impressed with the dessert list, but I would definately look forward to going back to Cava Mezze and trying some other dishes another time.
(4)Kate E.
The food was outstanding, and I loved the cucumber martini as a compliment to the Mediterranean flavors. Saturday night at 8-ish, it was so loud, though, conversation at a two-person table was impossible.
(4)Kerri C.
This is the perfect place for people who like to share a lot of small plates rather than having one large meal. They have a decent wine selection and I highly recommend trying the houlimi cheese plate. The staff is extremely attentive and friendly. My only comment is that it is pretty dark and somewhat loud (when restaurant is full). Don't let that stop you from trying out the restaurant. Overall, I would say that this is a nice change of pace from the normal Arlington food options.
(5)Karen C.
I've been to Cava twice in the last couple of weeks, for lunch and dinner. First off, the service both times was great - the servers were fast and helpful and the food came out very quickly. But the food....maybe I've been spoiled by Zaytinya and Me Jana, and maybe it's just too Americanized for my taste....but the food is just OK. Nothing really blew me away. It was all well-executed, but it didn't have the spice, the depth of flavor of other Mediterranean style restaurants in the area. The grilled octopus was a huge portion, but it was just giant pieces of octopus, not much else - doesn't hold a candle to the Zaytinya version. The lollipop chicken was chicken tenders on a stick. The zucchini fritters were more fritter than zucchini. It's like if the Cheesecake Factory opened a Med tapas place, which might be fine for some, but I guess I'm looking for more.
(3)CBS X.
Two visits. Two very different experiences. I'll definitely be back based on the 1st visit and half of the second. First visit - a Tuesday a month or so ago. The place is still busy. We ask the waiter for some recommendations. He offers great feedback on what's popular, what that dish actually is. He doesn't know as much about their beer but he knows the food menu inside and out. We get the scallop risotto, kokkonisto, the white bean ragout and I'm told we got a fourth dish. The scallop risotto was great. I don't usually like scallops unless they're wrapped in bacon. I liked this. The kokkonisto was awesome. I think it had meat and cheese french fries and some other more interesting things in there two. I'm told the white bean dish was good too though I don't remember it. No idea what the fourth dish was. Overall a great experience! 5 stars. Second visit - 45 minute wait. not surprising on a friday. head to the bar. great service through the crowd. we get a couple drinks. Eventually find some bar room to order a bite as we are starving. We get the flaming cheese. awesome, fun presentation. I didn't find the taste to be very interesting. It tasted a little like popcorn. maybe there's corn oil. That's all we order at the bar as it's date night to celebrate a new job. That said, service at the bar is great. The manager steps in to help and says hi and people are nice and accomodating. The cava cocktails we got were both good. Then we're seated. We're placed next to cash register or something next to the bar. the waiter talks to us by peering over the wall next to the register. it's a little creepy. we ask him for recommendations. he's all over the place. we tell him we don't want appetizers, he suggest the eggplant dish that is basically babaghanoush, we get that, the lamb chops he recommends, medium as recommended and mr. fred's halibut. the halibut was good. at the end of the order he calls the eggplant dish dip so we realize that is not something we want. we flag him down 30 seconds later to tell him this and ask him for a different dish, his response "well it's right here" and puts it on our table. i ask again for a different eggplant dish and he relents. the second eggplant dish was actually really good and simple. eggplant, tomatoes, goodness. The lamb chops come out later and are overdone. Review on this review - too damn long!!!
(3)A. S.
Owners, please read! I really like Cava, and want to write a very good review, but I'm giving them an average review for the following: It. is. so. dark. in. there. it's. scary. Please, turn up the lighting a little before I trip & fall. Even though there are salads on the menu, this is not a place I can go when I want a great big beautiful entree salad. The outdoor patio is attractive, but dogs are allowed, and I saw a server being friendly by petting a customer's dog & of course the dog licked all over his hand. Yeah, I want him serving me my dinner. NOT. I love dogs, but animals don't belong around food service. I wonder if there's some Arlington County ordinance that addresses this issue?
(3)Posh K.
A very welcome addition to the neighborhood! Delicious food and so many choices. I feel iucky they happened to open as soon as I arrived! Very cool decor as well.
(5)Jackie W.
Super excited to try this DC staple now that it is in Clarendon. We went for a friend's birthday and the food was AH-MAZING. Try to crab bomb, chocolate truffles and pita sliders. You won't be disappointed.
(4)gator s.
Great new spot in Clarendon! Great food, lovely ambiance... very LOUD, but otherwise, excellent restaurant. Food is superb. The tapas portions are generous, and the flavors are fantastic. Our server, Alex, was very helpful and gave great suggestions. Everything we had was great! The grapeleaves, the grilled meatballs, the lamb souvlaki, and saganaki were all terrific! And, don't miss the french toast for dessert!
(4)Sherri D.
Went here for brunch for the first time over the weekend and Cava Mezze gets another 5 stars from me. My advice is get there early though or try to make a reservation a week or more ahead! We were lucky enough to get a table on the spot. I believe itw as $30 a person for unlimited tapas and one mimosa... then it's a penny for each mimosa after that. Seriously, a penny? How can you go wrong with that?! We brunched away until about 3:30 PM and pretty much tried everything on the menu and all the mimosas. Not only was our server attentive and quick, but she kept the mimosas coming and kept track of our continuous orders for food even though the place was busy. The food was great and like always, the staff is very friendly and courteous. We didn't feel rushed at all. I'm impressed! MASA 14 is my favorite brunch place right now, but Cava is a very close second and I'm so glad it's right down the street from me! Mimosas: you get to pick either orange, grape, apple, or peach. My favorite was the apple! It tasted very similar to the peach, and for a penny a pop? I mean, go ahead and try both. You're not losing anything. Food: our favorites at the table were the pork belly, the gyro hash, the spicy lamb slider, nutella waffle, and the french toast. The french toast was perfectly plump and sweet. Not mushy at all or tooo sickeningly sweet. The spicy lamb sliders definitely were spicy! It had a nice little kick to it which I love. Try it. Like it. You'll love it. Then the pork belly... oh, the pork belly. Just make sure to put in 2-3 orders if you're with a group of 3 or more. You only get 2-3 small pieces per tapas plate, so get a few to share amongst yourselves. I highly recommend checking this place out for happy hour and brunch. It's such a steal for great food and yummy drinks!
(5)Danny K.
While Max had a busy day to day, mine was all about relaxation. So for dinner our friend Nam joined us and we hit up Cava Mezze, Neither of us had ever been there before, we had heard good things from the chain, and I'm addicted to Crazy Feta. We grabbed a slew of dishes, but to avoid being long winded I'm going to address the standouts instead. The lamb sliders we ordered took savory to a whole new level. The spicy sliders were made from ground lamb, harissa, tzatziki, marinated tomatoes, onions, and arugula on a toasted brioche bun. I generally avoid harissa as it's a little too spicy for me - but the harissa paired perfectly with arugula and was tempered by the tzatziki. I could have eaten those sliders for days. Please, sir, another of those - thanks. The braised short ribs were pulled and plated on top steak fries. The fries were honestly my favorite part of the dish - soft with a little crunch and soaked in the juices from the ribs. It was like Greek gravy fries. My stomach hurts because it's so full - and yet I'm getting hungry thinking about it. Next came the falafel fritters, sandwiched between hummus and another cream. I forgot to ask what it was, but all that matters is that it was crazy delicious. Crunchy on the outside, moist on the inside, sandwiched in dual sauces. Dining at Cava Mezze in itself was a pleasure. It was definitely dark, so I'm glad I brought by camera so I could get better exposure. Everything was lit by candles, and periodically things would burst into flames (we later found out that the bursts of fire was fried cheese being finished off with Bacardi set on fire). I was comfortable there and it was definitely somewhere I want to go back to with friends. The drinks were reasonably priced and they had a decent bottle and draft list. I was happy to see Great Lakes Elliot Ness on tap, it was a taste of home (wuddup, Cleveland). If you're looking for a great place to share food and drinks with friends - definitely hit up Cava Mezze in Clarendon.
(4)Briana B.
This may just be the brunch of all brunches... I stumped across Cava while looking for a bottomless brunch which has become a tradition for me and my brothers when we are all together. This not only has bottomless food but it basically has bottomless drinks (1 cent mimosas!). I was so excited (and hate being late) that we ended up showing up about 10 minutes before they opened. The atmosphere was really cool and everyone was very friendly. We took the option of the bottomless small plates for $30 per person and went to town. We began with a couple plates each and sampled over 50% of the menu. That being said, I will just highlight my favorites here. #1 favorite was their french toast. I like french toast, don't love it, but this french toast was one to talk about. It was so good my poor brother who ordered it only got a small piece because we all jumped in. Good news is, he could order another. Other favorites included the gyro hash, which is basically a deconstructed gyro with an egg (yum!) and grilled cheese (which is basically a feta pizza). But everything we ordered was really good and the service was quick. I sampled the orange, peach and grapefruit mimosa and my favorite was probably the class orange with fresh squeezed juice! All in all, it was a great brunch experience and I can't wait to come back for dinner sometime in the future!
(5)Dick F.
My first time here and wasn't very impressed..First off it's very loud inside I couldn't make reservations last minute so it took about 25 minute for a table even though I saw at least 4 tables available while I sat at the bar waiting The food was average at best..nothing really stood out taste wise and we had a variety of plates.. Location is the best thing about this place and the bartender was fast and did a great job knowing the menu very well
(3)TR T.
I come here all the time, probably too much. They have the absolute best weekend brunch in Arlington, $30 all you can eat off their amazing Mediterranean tapas menu. The outdoor deck fills up fast on weekends so get there early! Sit up at the bar with Matt for top notch service and custom drinks. If you are a whiskey drinker ask for whiskey cubes, they keep a few in the freezer.
(5)Katina K.
Cava Mezze is an exceptional greek restaurant. I am greek and have a difficult time finding good greek restaurants with quality food. The menu has a lot of great choices to choose from and I can't wait to go back and try other things! Tonight we ordered: 5 dip tasting which I highly recommend since they are all delicious! Brussels sprouts Village salad Lamb sliders Gyros All of the food tasted exactly how I wanted it to. The atmosphere at the restaurant is great as well! Looking forward to coming back here again soon. I highly recommend this restaurant to those looking to try somewhere new.
(5)Babak Bobby J.
Sunday brunch brought on some tapas action...and my belly was happy with my decision. In hindsight, I should've gone for the $30 all you can order option. Before I forget...get the French toast. It's mooo'ey bueno. We ordered salmon eggs Benedict, French toast, mini Cava breakfast and chicken sage sausage. I know, am I on a diet...no, but it was a first date, so I couldn't go full "Sunday brunch giittttit getttitt" mode. Our server was excellent and based on the conduct of her colleagues, that is a theme @ Cava Mezze. I'll be back in short time with a larger appetite and elastic sweatpants.
(5)Ylonda C.
Cava Mezze has always been one of my favorite places to dine. On my recent visit, I got a little nervous to see the menu had changed, but was pleasantly surprised and calmed to soon find that even though there were some menu changes, the service and the food was still on point....and many of my go-to dishes were still there. The decor of Cava is still dark and cozy, but at the same time kinda lively. I started of my visit at the bar and found that that Cava is now moving towards craft cocktails. Delish! I had the Chairman's Mule. Which is take on the moscow mule with ginger, but made with spiced rum and habanero. We moved to table and found that the flaming cheese (saganaki) was still on the menu, but the crazy fries weren't. No worries...they still prepare the fries if requested. We also had the lambchops and braised beef. Both very tasty. The lamb was definitely my favorite and the beef had a sweet smell and taste...probably from the cinnamon. Even with the menu changes, Cava is still Cava!
(4)Yang H.
I like this place a lot. Been for dinner on a Friday night. They didn't take reservations so we waited about 20 minutes for our table. Inside is dark and pretty loud. As soon as we sat down we got complimentary pita bread and olive oil. Food arrives really quickly since it's small dishes. Scallop risotto is amazing. Steak is pretty good too. For their vegetables I recommend their cauliflower and brusselsprouts. They're so crispy and delicious! Also been for Sunday brunch. They offer a la carte and $30 unlimited tapas with 1 cent mimosas in various flavors. We opted for the unlimited option. Everything was great! Our server was really good about asking us if we wanted to put any more orders in and he was really quick to refill our drinks. Everything was yummy especially the bacon and steak & eggs. The only thing that was kind of disappointing was the "grilled cheese." It's not the traditional grilled cheese -- its feta on pita basically.
(4)Mike B.
I prefer the DC location over this one. They have the best mac and cheese in the DC area here though, so any location is worth visiting for that alone. The place just seemed a bit to chaotic and the tables were pretty small, which is hard to manage when you order lots of small plates.
(4)Jessica M.
I have had a really bad experience at Cava and a really good one. I bumped them up to 4 stars because my friends love this place. The first time I went, I ordered the scallop risotto, and it was disgusting. The scallops were entirely too salty, and everything tasted burnt- including the risotto. I also got the crazy feta dip, which is heavenly. Jalapeño peppers and feta cheese belong together forever. The second time I went, I ordered the zucchini fritters and spanakopita. They were fantastic! The zucchini fritters were crisp on the outside and creamy on the inside, and they were topped with some sort of delicious feta sauce. So good. The spanakopita was also great. It was creamy and cheesy on the inside and the phyllo on the outside was light and flaky. I will definitely be going back for the crazy feta and zucchini fritters. I may even give them the benefit of the doubt and try the scallop risotto again.
(4)Gretchen P.
I'm a food sharer. It's what I love, it's who I am. Whereas Joey Tribbiani may shout from the rooftops that "JOEY DOESN'T SHARE FOOD," I might as well be singing out loud "GRETCHEN WILL TRY YOUR FOOD." So you can imagine my joy at finally -- FINALLY! -- being able to try out the deliciousness that is Cava Mezze and the many, many, many small plates that they offer. I've eaten at Cava Mezze Grille (their fast-casual concept, which is basically like Mediterranean Chipotle) many times, so I already knew that Cava's dips were very good. What I didn't know is how many other amazing things they offer! Our party tried all the following dishes: Dip tray with warm pita: Comes with an adorable sample-sized scoop of all their various dips: tzatziki, hummus, crazy feta, walnut spread, eggplant dip, plus a sliced up dolmades. The dolmades weren't my favorite -- rice seemed undercooked -- but everything else was AMAZING. Grilled octopus: Can't see grilled octopus on a menu and resist ordering! It's served sliced up in a delicious lemony butter sauce. Really, really good. Butternut squash pie: Think spanikopita, only with butternut squash instead of spinach. Their phyllo crust is SO crispy and delicious, and the filling just melted in your mouth. I'd order this again in a heartbeat, really, really good. Scallops with saffron risotto: I love a good scallop, and these did not disappoint! Cooked perfectly and served over a bed of saffron risotto with little pieces of mushroom. Very, very good. Fried zucchini balls: served with more of Cava's tzatziki, these are little zucchini fritters that were very yummy. However, they were probably one of the more forgettable things we ordered, so I'd probably want to to do some more menu exploration before ordering these again. Short rib with fries dish: I can't remember what this was called, but it was a pulled shortrib dish in a tomato sauce served over french fries. Really good, deep flavors, but also probably the heaviest/heartiest thing at the table. By the time this came out I was too full to try more than a tiny bite! Anyway, as you can see, the food at Cava was epic and is perfect for food sharers just like me. I can't wait to go back!
(5)Sharon X C.
I had the most wonderful meal at Cava last night complete with 2 glasses of their cheapest red ($7), which actually tasted super great with my meal. We started off eating about 2 baskets of the delicious pita with that extremely tasty red, spicy dip. The waiter made sure to check on us every few minutes to make sure we had water and that we weren't waiting for him to order, but wasn't too aggressive like he was rushing us or anything. After reading some reviews, the two of us ended up ordering the Saganaki flaming cheese, the lamb sliders, meatballs and spanakopita. Definitely recommend all of the above esp the flaming cheese and the lamb sliders YUM. Ordering these 4 plates to share between the two of us was definitely overkill though. It was probably for the best though because apparently the minute we left college our alcohol tolerance dropped way down and the 2 glasses of wine got us pretty tipsy--the excessive amount of food certainly helped us sober up. The meal was a bit pricey $75 total before tip, but I would pay it again to get the delicious food and wine we got, and the great service!
(5)Sally C.
I love the concept of this restaurant. Brunch tapas so you can try multiple things...why haven't more restaurants adopted this idea? I would come here for the French toast alone. It's honestly one of the best French toasts I've had in my life. Challah bread perfectly toasted, drizzled with honey and topped with berries and fresh cream. It's literally orgasmic. My second favorite thing was the green eggs and ham, which were deviled eggs with crisped bits of ham. It was incredibly delicious, albeit a bit on the salty side. I was tempted to lick the plate clean. We also got the gyro hash, which had potatoes, gyro, tomatoes and eggs with delicious tzatziki sauce on top. Large portion and very filling, and would recommend trying. Lastly, we also shared the challah Benedict, which was okay. Solid brunch place and I would definitely come back again!
(5)Calvin Y.
Very vegetarian friendly. Also omnivore friendly. Have been here several times. Has both food and drink specials for for each day. Best recommendation is for the red wine sangria.
(5)Aylin S.
Cava Mezze is AMAZINGG. If you like Mediterranean food and small plates then this is the right place for you! Yes the food is amazing (mini gyros, lollipop chicken, flaming cheese!) but the French toast dessert is probably one of the best things I've ever had in my life. Love this place but it gets so crowded on the weekends so make sure to get there early or you'll be waiting forever!
(4)Ryan D.
One of the best places to eat or drink in Clarendon. Small plates are great. Like to sit at the bar with the low lights. Really friendly bartenders.
(5)Chad K.
Great restaurant with good atmosphere. Hands down one of my favorite restaurants in Arlington. Tons of options for me and my vegetarian partner, good drinks, and consistently good service.
(5)Alex W.
Their food is amazing! If you have not had the food here, go today! I went during happy hour (5-7) since the prices are a bit steep during regular hours, and they only offer happy hour at the bar, which gets crowded very fast. I wish they offered happy hour at the patio because once 6pm rolls around, it starts becoming overly crowded, with people reaching over me and hanging on my chair.
(4)Tricia B.
Thank you very much for a wonderful, first time visit. The food was delicious, and well enjoyed. Dessert too. I'm not much of a lemonade drinker. I tried the hibiscus lemonade, and it was nice. Your staff was pleasant too. :-)
(5)Allison N.
Went here for brunch on a Sunday and they had a great idea, just didn't execute it well. To get around the evil "no bottomless brunch" law in Virginia, this place makes their brunch drinks cost 1 cent - just as good right? Well, not when the service is so slow that you can never get more. Food service is also painfully slow. You're told that you have unlimited orders of brunch plates until a certain time, but you only get 1 tapa at a time and they come SO spaced out - again cause of the terrible service. It was very empty when I was there as well. If this place would have better service , their idea for brunch would sell.
(3)Kristen W.
It will be hard to write anything that hasn't already been written in the 300+ previous reviews, but I will try. 1) I have been here several times and always liked the food, but what I found out during my most recent visit is that Cava is a family operation. My husband and I were there on our first date after our baby was born, and the waiter spent 5 minutes looking at pictures of our baby and then showing us pictures of his new baby niece. First of all, it is adorable that he took the time to do that with me, but then second of all, as we were exchanging stories, I came to find out that there are family members - fathers, brothers, uncles, cousins - working in various capacities throughout the restaurant. Somehow that fact gets lost in all the modern marketing, prime location and social media surrounding this restaurant but it might be my favorite fact. 2) My husband irrationally "does not like" (a.k.a. will not try) ethnic food. I guilted him into coming here and the menu is so diverse that we were able to find PLENTY of delicious dishes for him to enjoy. I would highly recommend the brussels sprouts, mac and cheese (fresh pasta with a flat noodle!), and the spicy lamb meatballs. But everything was fabulous. The one downside - tapas style anything is fun, but pricey, and Cava Mezze is no exception. It's a hefty bill at the end but the food is delicious and the experience is great. Looking forward to our next visit.
(4)art f.
Good food, good drink, but very loud - even early on a Tuesday evening. Unless you're sitting by the window the ambiance is dark - but in a pleasant/romantic way. Good cocktail and beer selection. We started with crispy Brussels sprouts - maybe a little too crispy. The roasted beet tartar was a salad of roasted beets molded in the shape of a large hamburger. Clever. I know so many restaurants offer roasted beet but we love them. A gyro platter offered 3 small gyros with a few fries in each. I'd pull out the fries and enjoy them separately to savor the gyro taste. Next was a plate of 3 small chick pea fritters (felafel). Quite OK but I think felafel needs more saucing and vegetables. We ended with the daily special - two huge meatballs simmered in a tomato sauce over lightly mashed potatoes. Real comfort food but we took one gyro and one (1/2) meatball home. I'll go back - it's such an interesting menu. A little traditional, a little edgy.
(4)Jain P.
Octopus is so tasty. I would skip out on the frittata. Grapefruit mimosa was delicious on a nice sunny day with the girls. I thought the waiter could have been more friendly, but not bad. Not really authentic Greek but food was overall good.
(4)Ashley C.
Obsessed with this place. Bottomless brunch is amazing. Lollipop chicken is the best. Awesome bartender. Can't say enough great things!
(5)Krista B.
I had brunch here with a couple of girlfriends. It was not busy at all and the atmosphere was great! I loved the exposed brick walls, wood, and wrought iron details throughout! I was the first to arrive in my party and was greeted and brought water by a very friendly waiter. He offered to get me an adult beverage or coffee while I waited for the rest of my party to arrive. Once we were all seated and drinks had, we ordered the dip appetizer to share. Our waiter was very patient and gave us the space and time we needed to catch up on chatting before ordering. The pita bread was a bit hard, but were served fresh warm and soft pita bread upon request with no trouble. The dips were great- my personal fav was the crazy feta- super spicy!! But oh so good with that salty bite and spicy finish! We each ordered something different- I had the rocket omelet with egg whites- which was great! Not too much cheese and perfectly prepared. My friends had the lollipop chicken (I didn't try but heard it was yummy), french toast (looked heavenly with lots of fresh whipped cream!) and deviled green eggs and ham. We all agreed our food was great, service was fantastic, and overall great dining experience. I would definitely come again!
(4)Duy N.
Cant rave highly enough about our experience. needed to make reservation for party of 20+. Email communications with Mara were seamless and proficient. She was able to accommodate all of our needs and constant adjustments. At the restaurant, the service was outstanding. They even accommodated separate checks for all of the different couples and families. Food was outstanding too! Tip, they only accept reservations up to 8 online. Call and get contact info for their group coordinator for anything larger than 8. We will definitely return, atmosphere was great and so were drinks!
(5)Linda V.
Tomatoes in Village salad where pale and flavorless in August when the produce everywhere else is fab. The skin on the lollipop chicken was flabby and fatty. The pork sliders were bland. The brussel sprouts were blackened on outside and hard on inside. The spanikopita was fried and greasy. This is the second time I went back to give Cava another chance. This place was wonderful when it opened, but I'll never go back again. BTW...you know it isn't just you when you complain to the wait staff and they get a glassy-eyed look that says "oh no, not another one."
(1)Natalie L.
Really great wine, even better food. A very cool place with a fun vibe (it's exciting to see cheese lit on fire left and right!). Good for date night, girls night or with a group.
(5)Grace M.
Great food but restaurant seating is kind of cramped (in the back area) and the lighting is too dim.
(4)Brian H.
Instant five stars when the waiter offered to swap out my mediocre beer for a better beer at no charge. It also helps that he did a really good job and the food was good. *Avoid the Blue Island beer
(5)Keith O.
Went with three other friends on a Friday night. It was very busy but we apparently came in at the right time as we were seated immediately. The interior was dimly lit but bright enough to see people around you. The menu had a comfortable selection, not too many choices as to overwhelm you. Ask for Allison, she was the awesome server for where our we were near the front. She was friendly and welcoming, and all the items she recommended for me to try were spot on. We started with the tzatziki for a dip with the pita. The yogurt, cucumber and garlic tastes were well-balanced. I like lamb. So when Allison confirmed the spicy lamb sliders were a favorite of hers, that was what I ordered. The lamb did not have its typical overpowering smell and taste, so it was very easy to appreciate. One of our friends ordered the grilled meatballs and she was very impressed with how flavorful it was. For our finale, Allison recommended the french toast. I was hesitant as french toast was typically a breakfast item. But she promised it was very good and was a crowd favorite. So I relented. She was right. One of our friends described it tasting like s_x in the mouth. Hmmm... It had a slightly crunchy crust yet easily melted once the bite was in your mouth. Thanks for the recommendations Allison. You were awesome. Our used dishes were cleared quite quickly, and our water glasses were filled frequently. No big servings here, but the plates were enough to satisfy, unless you have a large appetite. Prices were reasonable. I would have given it 5 stars except that it was a bit noisy. Anthony, the manager, came over to chat with us and we pointed to that concern. He said acoustic materials were installed. But he acknowledge it may need to be placed all over. Please do Anthony. It was an overall pleasant experience, made even better by Allison's excellent work, but slightly tainted by the above average noise decibel. I would go back in a heartbeat.
(4)Tiffany N.
Been here twice for brunch and lunch. Wonderful lunch deal. Salad or fries and a wrap of your choice. Yummy salad. Light and flavorful. Delicious falafel and the complimentary pita bread appetizers are fantastic. For the brunch all you can eat tapas and mimosas. The mimosas are okay, not as strong as other places, but still good. They come in 4 different flavors so you can mix it up. The Nutella waffle and gyro hash were the best things on the brunch menu. I would say it is a better deal to go for lunch cause the deal is just that good. But, brunch ain't bad either.
(4)Marcus H.
The village salad and the hummus were both very nice. The bread was warm and soft, and I really enjoyed the spicy spread that came with it. The staff were attentive, and friendly. The other customers seemed very festive, and ready to party (this was the evening of July 3rd). The only thing I didn't like was the acoustics. The volume of the background noise was more than I enjoy. Overall I would recommend it for the hip and hungry who like Greek.
(4)Noel B.
I decided to celebrate new year's eve with a special dinner at Cava. This was my first time there, and despite this being a last minute decision, was thrilled that they were able to seat me and my partner quickly. Our waiter was very knowledgeable and knew the menu, and was good about frequently checking up on us. As soon as you are seated you are provided with complimentary pita bread, as well as olive oil and their red sauce to dip it in. Once we ordered food it started coming out within minutes. Now the food. The food was amazing! Scallops with mushroom risotto. Big portion of 3 oversized scallops, that were very tender and fresh. The mushroom risotto was rich and creamy. This was my partner's favorite dish. Saganaki- this is the cheese dish you will see everyone ordering that they set fire too right before they serve it. Our waiter had suggested we use it as a dip for the pita bread, but we also found it to be good just eaten plain, and the exterior of the cheese forms a nice crust. You get two nice sized pieces Zucchini fritters- super moist, reminds me of a twist on falafel. The tzatziki sauce that is served with it is very flavorful, and you get more sauce than you really need, so we just started using the extra for pita. Hanger Steak with potatoes- cooked to order and was the perfect medium rare that I love. Very juicy. Pork Belly- very fatty, but very good. they serve some sort of sweet maple glaze on the meat which goes very nicely. You get 5-6 pieces. We also got lamb sliders, but then realized we had too much food, so those are in a doggie bag in my fridge, but they looked super fresh and if it is anything like the rest of the food I know they will be great. Overall a little pricey, but definitely worth it if you are looking for a place for that special occasion.
(5)Marie C.
This place is a bit on the pricey side and its very dark inside but other than that the food is delicious! I recommend the Brussel sprouts and the saganaki is a fun experience bc they set it on fire at the table and its flaky and soft on the inside. The crazy feta is a good choice also! The pork belly was decent. Some of the pieces were soft but some overcooked. The sliders are pretty substantial for those who need more to fill them up so they are a good choice. The chicken lollipops, zucchini fritters and eggplant dip are not one of the better dishes so since you have options I would choose other things. It gets busy so I would recommend getting there early.
(4)Dereck S.
Spicy red dipping sauce that you get with the pita is boss! Great food all around, went to dinner with my gf and got the octopus, mini gyro, spicy lamb meatballs and very fresh scallops. Nice place seems to get busy but service never was lacked. Instantly became one of my favorites
(4)Amy D.
Our experience could not have been better. My boyfriend and I got the salmon, the halloumi, the brussel sprouts, and the lamb sliders. Everything was amazing quality! The brussel sprouts blew my mind (never thought I would love brussel sprouts this much) and the lamb sliders were out of this world. Absolutely the best sliders I have ever tasted in my life. Everything looked and tasted like a personal chef was presenting us with his own favorite recipes. We were served by Tom. He did a great job making us feel very comfortable and helping us with the menu. He was happy and he seemed to enjoy his job. A great night of dining. We will be going back soon!
(5)Kat V.
This place is phenomenal!!! I always avoid tapas-style restaurants because I'm a food monster, and I always think BIGGER IS BETTER- but CAVA wiped away that nonsensical thinking, and I have a new appreciation for this dining style! I came here for my sister's birthday in a group of 10 and ordered probably about 6 or 7 plates to be split with my honey. FRIED CHEESE, ZOMG. OCTOPUS, ZOMG. PORK BELLY, ZOMGGGGGGG CHICKEN LOLLIPOPS, ZOMGGG HEAVEN, ZOMG. Everything was amazing, from start to finish. When you order so many different types of food, I expect at least ONE to be off, but every dish was fantastic. The pork belly was a stand-out, I've only had pork belly cooked asian style in a stew or grilled, but this was a fresh spin. It was so tender and was served with some sort of sweet glaze. It was one of those dishes that made you want to fall to your knees and praise the Lord for blessing you with something so fantasticly yummy! The Chicken Lollipops were also a stand out. I usually try to avoid ordering chicken in restaurants since I eat chicken a few times a week, but THIS amazing dish is truly memorable. Tender, delicious, yum-tastic. My only complaint of the restaurant would be that it is SOOO dark, but, that's ok, because you can order cheese that comes out on fire and use it as your light. =P Besides, you will quickly forget, because the food and service is top notch! 5 stars for me =)
(5)James M.
I've only been here once, but the crazy feta is worth the trip alone. I could eat that stuff on eggs (wait...I did this morning, haha). Everything comes in small portions, so it's great for sharing.
(4)J T.
Delicious food. Poor service outside, the day we went, a few weeks ago. Perhaps the problem was that I went with my two (preteen, extremely well-behaved) kids or that it took me a while to decide where to sit (we went to the back terrace first, but a baby kept crying there so we moved out front instead). But we should have still received good service. It took forever, each time, for our waitress to return. I did not get a dishwashing-liquid-tasting mojito replaced during the entire time we ate our food because it took her so long to return. This was not on a busy day, by the way. Then when she did come back, it took ten minutes for her to bring our check, take my credit card, and return. She took my drink off the bill, which I did appreciate. But even after that, the total - I think it was about $60-$70 - seemed a bit much for a meal with my two kids. They just had appetizers and apple juice, and I had one main course. Bottom line: go if you have time to wait and money is not an issue. The food is great.
(2)Fari N.
Great food! Great service! Combination of modern arabic and american dining.
(5)Carly F.
We really enjoyed our dinner at Cava Mezze. We had no reservation but they were able to accommodate us after a short wait which we did at the bar. The bar and the restaurant were very busy. Suited to a young crowd. It is a little dark and loud inside but I thought it added to the atmosphere. Good food and service.
(4)Lori W.
wow...200 reviews. big fan base. Easy to see why. Please open in Old Town so I don't have to metro over to Rosslyn, change to the orange line and get off in Clarendon. We had an amazing server, who let us know that the big moustache he was sporting was being shaved off for charity that night - you could tell he was ready to dispose of that 'stache! 3 of us - all first timers (I know...sad!). Gave us great suggestions, which we took. We ended up having 6 small plates and devoured everything. Fresh fresh fresh ingredients. Generous warm pita and a trio of dipping items to start - FREE - yay! General Manager Anthony walking the restaurant, stopped by to introduce himself and ask how everything was - amazing how many places do NOT practice this. Glad to see halloumi on the menu!! Even more exciting that I know how to pronounce it. Didn't realize that Cava also sells their tzatziki to Whole Foods - it bears their name. Am I losing brain cells? Why didn't I put this together? Bonus: the tv was showing my Oklahoma Sooners vs TCU, on their turf and we pulled out the win. Great food day and great football Saturday.
(4)Antonia S.
Yes, Arlington is a culinary wasteland for those of us that love food; and this place embodies that sentiment.
(2)Nena 9.
The food very good and the people were nice and helpful. I will definite go back for a especial occasion .
(5)David H.
crispy pork belly is a new (ish?) addition...amazing
(5)Alene Y.
I love, love, looove this place. I come here for happy hours with my friends often and it becomes their favorite too! I'm a huge fan of their harissa (the spicy red North African sauce) and recently found out it's sold at Whole Foods and now I polish off a container at least once a week. You MUST try the flaming cheese, it's awesome and you will see it appear in a huge burst of flame at least once every ten minutes in the restaurant. The wait staff is awesome, the food is great, if you like Mediterranean food you'll love it too!
(5)Dominique F.
LOVED IT! I passed by this place a few times, butI was either not interested in eating, or was too hungry to wait for food. :D Yesterday my friend and I were finally at that point where we thought we should just go in and give the place a try. Thank God it was a Monday night and while the place was crowded, we got seated right away! All mezzes (appetizer style dishes) are not too big and it's more fun to grab a few and just share; my friend and I got the cauliflower, the scallop risotto and the octopus and everything was soo delicious. Service was also very friendly. I am definitely coming in again! You should too.
(5)John E.
Always a good date place. Sit outside in the back if you can, really loud inside. Custom made shrimp risotto featured 4 large shrimp that could have been fresher. I still can't believe they removed the ratatouille from the menu. Horrible move.
(4)Mattie C.
YUM YUM - the pita pieces and olive oil they bring out in the beginning is addictive, and very helpful to make you order less as you can't resist shoveling it in. Sooo tasty. Happy hour prices (at bar only) are pretty decent too. I had two raspberry mojito cocktails for $5 each and the portion size wasn't bad. The drink was great! I would definitely come back for the HH alone. As for the meal itself, the food was very tasty and the portion sizes actually weren't that small. My favorite in the world was the crab bomb! It was a ball of crab meat about the size of a baseball and was absolutely delicious! Highly, HIGHLY recommend. And I had rissoto in some kind of tomato cream sauce too. Tasted incredible, was served piping hot and the portion was satisfying. I was pleased with the amount of food I got in the end and wasn't stuffed. The decent portion sizes plus the free pita bread were huge pluses as it made it easier to share and fill up without buying a ton. A friend got the gyro plate and only ended up being able to eat 1/3 because of all the amazing pita bread! I sampled some of the pork belly (mediocre) and a mussel (good) and a little piece of weird cheese-thing (meh). Of everything I tasted my CRAB BOMB and risotto were definitely the best! There is some other thing you can order where they set it on fire for you right in front of your table. Its a little fun to watch, but when they do it a rush of scalding hot air envelops the tables around it. This happened 3 times around our table and the burning air was somewhat unpleasant for the skin on my face and my eyes. I can imagine if they accidently dropped the plate or something or held it too close to someones face they could cause real damage. Watch out! As for atmosphere, the decor was cool, but I found the bar area to be a little cramped. I think the interior could have been designed a little better to allow for better movement in that area - you literally have to go to the back near the waiter station to have a chance of getting into that space and shove through to get near the bar. I found this annoying. In all, 4 stars because of the CRAB BOMB! This dish was really exciting for me. I definitely had a good time here.
(4)Cheryl T.
I went for brunch - and everything was good, but nothing spectacular. There wasn't anything that would bring me back again. Eggs benedict was what you'd expect. The french toast was good - but tasted more like fried cinnamon bread, then actual french toast. Gyro frittata didn't have a whole lot of flavor.
(3)Benjamin S.
Yeah, this place is legit! I hate the whole concept of tapas in general, but I will tolerate it from Cava. Their food is amazing and the ambiance is great for dates or gathering with friends. Definitely worth checking out!
(5)H. Y.
This is the restaurant version of cava. It's small plates, and you can order to share. They have a really nice patio area in the back.
(5)Rockin' R.
Good food, good digs but a "ROCKS CHARGE" of $1.00 for ice in a cocktail? Really?!? Whether it's 'hand made' or not, seems like gouging (or uninvited A-secks - ugh!). Walked out with a bad taste in my mouth after paying for ice...
(3)Arpita B.
Decided to head to this place on a busy Saturday night. Being new to the area we were not expecting Clarendon avenue to be such a hub of activity. After spending about 30 mins to find street parking, we weren't very optimistic of getting a table for 6 without reservations. We were however pleasantly surprised when we were seated right way. The restaurant itself was bustling with life. I couldn't see much of the decor as the place was very dimly lit...for that matter I could barely read the menu it was that dark. We started out our meal with white wine & red wine sangria. Both were excellent!! I personally preferred the white wine sangria a little better... probably because I enjoy white wine more than red. Being a tapas place,the portions are small,so we ordered several varieties of dishes in multiple numbers. The dishes were brought out relatively quickly which was a big plus. The unanimous best dish amongst the ones we ordered,were the lamb sliders. Describing it as delicious,wont do justice to the dish. It was simply mouthwatering, lip smacking, worth salivating over... I could go on & on... It is also one of the larger portioned dishes. Overall, I'd say its a must try! Another dish worth ordering even if it is just for the show they put up with the flames at the table side, is the Saganaki. This basically melted cheese balls. I liked it. I also enjoyed the mini chicken gyro. It was every flavorful & the meat was succulent... Not at all chewy. Dishes which didn't really hit the mark were the falafel fritters & the roasted cauliflower. The fritters were dry & bland. The cauliflower was well seasoned but nothing to write home about. The dish which was the biggest disappoint of the night for me was the chicken lollipops. I had very high hopes for this dish & was therefore even more let down. It was extremely sweet. I could not taste any other flavors except for the sweetness. Overall despite the dishes being a hit or miss I would definitely return for the dining experience & of course for the lamb sliders!!
(4)Jon D.
Been here quite a few times, and in general love the place. Most of the menu is great. Definitely get the lolipop chicken, as well as a crispy pork belly. I'd give it 5 stars, but there are definitely some dishes that are duds. The friday special of pork belly probably being the worst. I figured since the crispy pork belly was so good, the special had to be great. Unfortunately that's not the case at all. They also got rid of the fried calamari, which was a dish I always got. No matter what you do, save room for dessert and get the french toast. That alone is worth the trip.
(4)Jackie S.
Went to Cava Mezze for brunch today and was disappointed ! Cava mezze in the Capitol area has been my favorite DC restaurant for a while, so I was expecting to be impressed by their penny mimosa and bottomless food deal. The food was okay, but presentation was weak and did not seem like much effort was put into plating. The mimosas tasted unusually sweet, so the table requested extra champagne to balance out the sweetness, to find out, the mimosas were actually made with sparkling wine. Not really mimosas at all, just juice with extra sweetener. Instead of leaving with a buzz and a smile I left bloated with a headache. Would take some real mimosas to get me to go back for seconds.
(2)Linda F.
We went out to dine. Small plates seemed to be a good idea since we would be able to enjoy a little bit of a variety of dishes. What this turned out to be was a fast food experience with plates being delivered to us faster than we could even determine what each plate contained. This type of small plate sharing can be one of the joys of dining out, ours became a horror. Once our waiter took our order, the servers went into action. No one looked to see that plates were stacking up and we had to gulp down food before it got cold. When we told our waiter of the rapid fire food delivery, he said we should have said something -- where was he to tell him? Our reservations were at 7:00 and we were out the door by 7:30. Six of us ate that quickly. When we saw the line at the door waiting for tables, we realized what happened ... they wanted us out. I think the food was good, but I actually didn't have time to taste it, let alone enjoy it. If you go -- tell your waiter you want slow delivery of food and see what you get!!
(1)Therese M.
I'm not in Arlington often so when I got to choose where to go to for our double dinner date there, I immediately picked Cava. This time around, I tried a few new things: --Saganaki- I knew I wanted to try this after watching other tables' cheese being lit on fire. It was good and a popular choice since every table seemed to order this. --Haloumi- this was delicious. I definitely preferred the grilled haloumi to the flaming cheese. --Mac n' Cheese- sounded promising but was everyone's least favorite dish of the night. Neither the presentation nor flavor of the dish did anything for us. --Spicy Lamb Meatballs- looked more like sausage than meatballs.. these were very tasty and also very spicy. I like spicy food but this was a little too much for me. --Pork Belly- prob not the healthiest dish on the menu but worth getting. It was really good and had lots of flavor. The lollipop chicken and scallop risotto were just a delicious as I remembered and still my favorite things here.
(4)Jim H.
This is a tappas style resturant, really nice place to bring a date or few friends. Inside is dimly lit and outs you in a relaxing mood. Food is.good, I reccomend trying the gin cucumber drink, tastes great :-)
(4)Snailman J.
Went for dinner with family! Impressed with everything and wish other restaurants learn from them. Freshly made lemonade with fresh and delicious food on top of excellent service and hospitality made our evening memorable and happy.... The unlimited pita to satisfy the hunger with hot stuff and olive oil made it even better..
(5)Brad P.
As far as I'm concerned, there are only two types of meals that exist: 1. Those that are set on fire before you eat them. 2. Those that are not set on fire before you eat them. Surprisingly, there are very few casual opportunities to try number 1. Fortunately, the Saganaki at Cava Mezze is not only served in the aftermath of a beautiful tableside conflagration, it is also delicious. Yeah, they could have easily flambeed it back in the kitchen, but then you'd miss out on Prometheus' gift. Other big winners include the fried cauliflower and braised chickpeas.
(5)H G.
Just had a few beers here. Pretty chill, dark place to meet up with a friend or date for a drink. Bartender, Shaun (spelling?), was a nice dude. I plan to return!
(5)Clarence J.
I can only speak to the brunch at this point, but I look forward to returning for dinner sometime after the food I had. The menu's a decent size, with good diversity and unique offerings. Everything I tried was full of flavor. Some things I thought were excellent and others I wasn't a fan of, but my complaints about the latter were only based on personal flavor or texture preferences and not the cooking quality. And with the small plates, I could easily pass the rest of the plate to a friend with different taste preferences and move on to something new. Each of the small plates is good for 1-4 people to comfortably taste what's there. (Well, _maybe_ four people -- I'm greedy and thought the portion size started getting small beyond three people.) Cava has a dark, earthy interior, wrapped in brick walls and with weathered woods for the furniture. Behind the restaurant is a wonderful outdoor courtyard (as long as you don't mind occasionally being watched from the condos), and there's a small patio in the front. The staff is friendly and patient.
(3)Mirela T.
This place is always buzzing, and i like that, but it makes it very difficult to hold a conversation. I've been here several times, with girl friends, to catch up and just enjoy each others company over dinner and drinks. The Tapas Style certainly accommodates the sharing in a group setting, but some of the portions are very tiny, so if there is more than 4 of you, your out of luck. I don't want to say that all the serving sizes are small, we didn't order everything on the menu, but the things we ordered were smaller portioned maybe for a reason. Our orders consisted of: Saganaki---Delicious (also very deadly) Cava Fries---Pretty good Cava Mac And Cheese---I've had better Mini Chicken Pita--It was certainly mini, but very nicely put together as a small plate Grilled Meatballs--they were okay, didn't feel like they were that special
(3)Michael C.
awessssome
(5)Serena G.
BRUNCH-- not bottomless. I have been going to Cava for years! Since it first opened in Clarendon and have always loved it. Today I have changed my mind about this place j came for brunch with a friend but we weren't planning on eating a lot so ordered a-la-carte. First off our server was horrible. The bartender came by the apologize that was server was to busy so that was nice. He finally came by and took our order but after that it was so hard to find him. I had to glad him down 3 times, never even asked if everything was OK, and really seemed not to care. The only time he was nice was when the check came. As for the food, it has really gone down in quantity since the begining. For the price its only worth it to come hungry and do bottomless. Overall underwhelmed and disappointed by a place I used to love!
(3)Meg M.
Just to update they now take reservations so I'm loving Cava even more. I have had my last two birthday dinners there and I love their brunch. Definitely one of my fav restaurants in town.
(5)Emma S.
Horrid food, horrible customer service, and worst seating. Sorry but clarendon really dissapointed me with this restaurant.
(2)Frank W.
So first off I have to say, I do not fully understand the whole brunch lifestyle in the DMV. But I have given brunches a try in an attempt to understand this brunch culture, but on this attempt, I am back to square one. For someone who is an avid beer drinker and not one for mimosas and bloody Mary's, there doesn't seem to be a place for me in the brunch world. So read this review with that in the back of your head. Now on to the review: First, realize that this is a "tapas" style place so everything is small. I wish I had known that before I ordered but it was probably my own fault. But note that. Best bet for this place is the 30 dollar all you can eat brunch. There are a lot of options and is much cheaper than ordering individually. But I didn't have time for that and I ordered from the full menu. I did ask about the size of the spaghetti as I was in a mood for pasta and the server said it would be a decent size. I ordered that and the steak and eggs for my friend. The steak and eggs showed up first, don't know why it didn't come at the same time, and it was TINY. A small scoop of lukewarm (at best) potatoes, not even a full egg, and maybe a bite and a half of steak. That's when I realized the portion issue and was informed by the server that's how it worked. Again probably my fault. Then the spaghetti showed up, and it was basically in a slightly larger version of a cereal bowl and maybe 60% filled with spaghetti. Now on to taste. The spaghetti was ordinary. Nothing special at all. I am not a huge food critic, and my standards are pretty low I think, but with the ratio of portion and flavor, I would expect more than a cereal bowl of lackluster spaghetti for 12 dollars. The steak and eggs was ok. I mean I can't expect much from a place that serves this as part of their all you can eat brunch but the meat was tiny and flavorless. I like potatoes in general and the potatoes did have a good flavor to them but were just not warm. I didn't have the egg, but how can you fuck up eggs right? But again flavor to portion ratio, for the 11 or 12 dollars I paid for the puny amount of food, I expect a little bit more food/flavor. Also I had to order two to feel like I had eaten at all. We ended up going to Pete's, a pizza place down the street to have a slice each, still weren't full, but satisfied. I definitely will go back to pete's again though, that is some quality pizza! Again, one last reminder, I am not a picky eater at all, and I haven't really written any reviews on places because I am just too lazy, but I took the time and energy to write this just to inform other people like me about this place. The service was fine and atmosphere was pleasant, but everything comes down to food to me, and this place doesn't cut it for me, and I probably won't be back even for the all you can eat brunch
(1)Michelle S.
I've been to cava for lunch and dinner before and wasn't entirely impressed. However, I came for brunch last weekend, and now I understand the high reviews! Make sure you have a reservation, because the line can get long, but $30 for unlimited tapas and penny mimosas? It's understandable. We sampled nearly everything from the menu, and went back for seconds of the deviled eggs and lamb benedict. Grapefruit mimosas are delicious. I highly recommend this brunch place.
(5)Janet M.
Definitely a favorite spot of mine. Service is always great, the food has yet to disappoint and the atmosphere is fun and trendy but not at all pretentious. It is noisy and a bit dark, but that's about the only somewhat negative thing I can say about Cava. And actually, I sort of enjoy not being able to hear what the couple sitting next to me is saying. I've been just a handful of times so far, but loved all of the food I got. Stand outs were by far the scallops with risotto, the dip sampler & the baklava. But I also had the short rib which was tender and sweet, the grape leaves which were so good, the spanikopita (sp?) which was okay, the zucchini cakes which were delicious, and the brussel sprouts which were so fantastic. The spreads were a favorite, but I definitely loved the taramosalata and crazy feta the most. Also so enjoyed the specialty cocktails. So so yummy. I will come back as often as possible. Love this place!
(5)Ash C.
I love Cava Mezze. I love tapa style Mediterranean plates and this place gets it! I think I have already written a review for Cava but this review is about their brunch. Me and my friend (who does not like the idea of tapas) went in for brunch this past Saturday. I really wanted my friend to like this place because otherwise I wouldn't have heard the end of it lol We were seated immediately (yay), a great feat for brunch but I think the Clarendon branch is much low key or maybe people dont associate cava mezze with great brunch. Well you are missing out! I ordered lollipop chicken and the french toast I have been dying to try. My friend ordered the gyro hash and lamb sliders. I thought this was enough food for us two but seriously we were trying so hard to eat the last bites since we were sooo full! Everything was great and my greatest victory was my friend liking the food (hehe). I did love the french toast and I'm glad it was a small portion because even that was hard to finish. Its a bit too sweet so the tapa size is perfect.
(5)Lena P.
Not to be confused with the chipotle-style Cava Mezze Grill, this place is classy- more suitable for a date or nice meal with friends. Oh and the food for dinner is pretty good too. The pita comes with olives, olive oil, and a red pepper spread and is very delicious. As for small plates, I tried the scallops risotto, saganaki (flaming cheese!), lollipop chicken, and brussel sprouts. All were pretty solid but I particularly enjoyed the saganaki and brussel sprouts. The portions are the size to be expected for tapas and the prices are a bit high but typical for the style. The service was good but nothing to call home about. Overall I wasn't wowed but considering the many mediocre places in Arlington/Clarendon area, this is one of the better ones and I would come back.
(4)Jennifer B.
I agree with many of the others. I have lived next door to this place for four years and the food has always been good. It is very loud. Hard to have a conversation without having to yell at each other. It is also dark. The candles are nice and romantic but that is canceled out with all the yelling. Oh well I'll just have to keep coming for the food.
(3)Hank M.
If it was possible not to give a single star, it would definitely be left blank. I've actually been here a few times. And the few times I have stop by, it was actually a good time. Food was ok. Sangria was pretty good. However. My recent visit left the utmost bitter taste in my mouth. I live in the district, and I was going to meet a friend who was coming from Waldorf. I asked him to meet me at this specific Cava because I had traditionally had a good experience here. Anyhow. We met at this Cava location, ordered drinks and food. Initially, all seemed well. That is until we started to get ignored. My friend and I ordered a few small plates and drinks. But once that was done, we apparently disappeared. No one asked how the food was. I ordered that goddamn steak plate, which was a complete disappointment. It came out in the shape and half the size of a piece of bacon @ $15. And the kitchen had the audacity to send it to me cold. I had to grab a bartender who wasn't even tending to my friend and I, to send it back. Nice gentleman, in comparison to the Asian cat who was originally waiting on us. The 2nd bartender offered to send another steak. But after the extreme disappointment with the size and surface temperature, I declined. All the while, still being ignored by our original bartender, no member of management came by to ask what was wrong with the steak that had then gone to waste. I was finally asked by the Asian guy "if we wanted more drinks", and I politely requested a check. Closed out, and made my way towards the door. A member of management was by the door (with a host at the front, and they weren't even busy) and I greeted him and asked him whether or not he knew about the steak I sent back to the kitchen. He said that he knew, "but wasn't back there". So I gave him a piece of my mind, and informed him I wouldn't be returning since a significant percentage of their staff possesses such cavalier attitudes about each of their guests' experience and food. Perhaps your experience may be better than mine. But that was the last visit for me.
(1)Jen F.
Been here for dinner a couple times. Both times with decent sized groups who all really Enjoyed their meals! Plates are fairly small and meant to be shared - tapas style. It is a little expensive, but the food is prepared excellently! Have really good week day specials like half-priced bottles of wine and such. Unlimited pita bread with olive oil and a spicy, chili paste/dip. Also have great "mule" drinks! In total, things I've tried: -crazy feta: not as good as I thought it would be. Kind of just tasted like normal feta on a plate. -beet salad: really fresh and good if you like beets! -grilled shrimp: I'm not sure what makes this so good, but it's my favorite on the menu! Wish it came on top of something other than puréed chickpeas or whatever it is, but the shrimp itself is cooked to perfection and juicy. -scallops: really good, pretty large in size, cooked well, served on top of risotto. -spaghetti and meatballs: probably the best twist on spaghetti I have ever had! The beef is kind of crumbled and maybe even shredded. Really flavorful! (My 9 year old brother got this and loved it -- I feel like all kids would!) -chicken skewers: nothing too special about them. Just grilled chicken, but my little brothers loved it. -watermelon feta salad: good but kind of odd. Literally just blocks of watermelon with feta blocks on it and some cucumber. -short rib: so tender and flavorful! Fell apart so easily. -roasted vegetables: your typical roasted veggies with some olive oil and salt. Everyone has to try Cava at least once!
(4)Liza K.
This place is pretty dang good! Me and my friend really like "regular Cava", and one of our friends is obsessed with Cava Mezze, so we decided to try it out. It is located in Clarendon, right next to pinkberry. The size of their space is actually quite decieveing, because once you enter, it's a decent size restaurant. Like everyone has said, this is Greek/Med. tapas. The menu has small plates, and you choose 2-3 entrees, depending on how hungry you are. The only thing that is a negative (miniscule) about this place is that the price per person is probably higher than you would think. The waitress was really nice and explained how the restaurant worked (She suggested that if you're not that hungry, 2 items per person would work). We ordered 6 different items, and they were all pretty damn good. We were going to get dessert, but then my friend said she wanted pinkberry, but then apparently they change management, so then I really regretted not getting dessert at cava D; The spanikopita was probably some of the best that i've tried. (Ive been to various places in Greece, and my dad loves Greek food, so i've tried a good amount.) Pork belly- delish, cooked perfectly, sweet glaze was good and unexpected. Mac n Cheese- soo good, get the egg on top!
(5)Jason F.
Cava is one of my top 3 favorite places to have a nice meal in Arlington. It is a great place to take a date or conduct a dinner meeting. The food is consistently delicious (the scallop risotto is amazing) and the wine menu offers tons of great choices. The staff is friendly but not exceptional. The only issue I have with Cava is the fact it is a little too dimly lit and the acoustics aren't very good. All in all this is a very very solid establishment that I would highly recommend.
(4)Phoenix Simone W.
I came here for dinner once and really liked it. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because it's a bit pricey, especially for tapas. They are however, one of the few places in the DMV to carry my all time favorite wine, Dr. Loosen Riesling, so they definitely got points for that. The ambiance was very nice, and we were seated fairly quickly. I got the mac and cheese and it was really good! I didn't try much else as I didn't want to pay for it, but one day I will venture back here and try more from their menu!
(4)Jenni F.
Amazing brunch! It's the most delicious brunch ever! Can't beat it. My only reason I'm not giving 5 stars is because unfortunately our waiter was a jerk. First off, I literally felt awkward ordering because of his odd remarks and questions, you can order whatever you want (all you can eat) there was 6 of us and I think he was annoyed at having to keep taking our orders for more food. That's the whole point of all you can eat brunch! Also, it was my friends birthday at the end we asked him to take a photo for us, he said rudely "I can't right now, I'm very busy!" The way he said it was absolutely mean & rude. It Takes 2 seconds he could have said be could do it in just a moment anything in a nice tone. Totally struck all 6 of us as very rude. I hope we have a nice server next time we come in!
(4)Dave M.
Cava Mezze is great! I came here last evening for a first date, and it couldn't have been better. The service was excellent. Natalie, our waitress, did a great job making sure we were taken care of, without being a nuisance. Plates were cleaned promptly from the table once we had finished, our water was never empty, and our drinks never sat empty. The food was delicious. We enjoyed the hummus as an appetizer. It was very good, and seasoned perfectly. For our main courses, we chose to plates, the Hanger Steak and the Lamb Shank. Both entrees were prepared perfectly and the taste was the same. I preferred the Lamb Shank to the Hanger Steak which is relatively uncharacteristic, as I am a self proclaimed red meat connoisseur. Again, both were delicious, but the lamb steak was just on another level of good. If you are looking for a first date restaurant, Cava Mezze is perfect. With the small plates, it creates an environment that allows interaction and sharing which helps to break the ice! 5-Stars
(5)Annie N.
3.5** As a fan of Cava Mezze Grill (their chipotle style restaurant), I was super excited to finally eat at Cava Mezze. However, I was somewhat disappointed with what I got. I do have to point out that they have DELIRIUM TREMENS on tap, which is one of my favorite beers and almost impossible to find on tap..so i was super excited about that. However, lets move on to their food... My friends and I only ordered 3 tapas, because we were so full from happy hour before. We got the... 1) spicy lamb meatballs, which were really spicy, gamey, and a little dry...but cooking lamb is hard, so i'll let that one slide..kinda... 2) grape leaves - this i liked ! The rice inside the grape leaves weren't hard or too mushy, it was fresh. 3) grilled octopus - I also liked this dish a lot, but it was $15 for a small portion of octopus, but I am not surprised.. I guess I wasn't overly impressed with their tapas or anything to give it a high rating like everyone else. Also, this place is quite hefty, so expect to spend at least $25 here! I do want to go back to this place and give their other tapas a try since everyone raves about it so much, i'm sure there's a reason why.
(3)Diane L.
Yummy! Tapas style food is always a hit or miss with me but Cava does it well! Friends and I split 7 dishes and they were all really good. Our favorites were the scallops risotto and saganaki (flaming cheese!). Kebab meatballs could have used a little more spice. I'm definitely putting Cava Mezze on my list of to-gos in Arlington!
(4)Christine M.
This place is amazing! Get the saganaki and crazy feta to start and you can't go wrong. The spicy lamb sliders and the scallops are great entrees. I recommend going an splitting items so you can try a lot more! The happy hour is also great. It does get very loud in here so I wouldn't recommend it for an intimate dinner.
(4)Liza A.
Cava is one of the neighborhood restaurants I consistently enjoy. I love the lighting and although, I wish the bar space was bigger, perhaps it's what makes it cozy. The bar staff's always pleasant to me and since I'm a hanger steak fan, love that tapa there. Great place to catch up with a friend and just chill.
(4)Jenny T.
Wow I've definitely waited too long to come to this place. Service was excellent, ambience was great--it was still packed when we walked in at 8:30pm on a Sunday night (they close at 9pm on Sundays)...we knew it would be good from the start. Service: Our server was awesome. She was very friendly, recommended things, and helped us hold off on ordering a ton of stuff at the beginning (she was right, we got full off of the Sunday special plate and didn't end up ordering the lamb meatballs--which we will come back for) - Starters: They give a trio of fresh olives, amazing olive oil, and this spicy paste to dip fresh pita bread in. Tonsss of pita bread to go around. - Deep fried Brussel sprouts: pretty good. Very crispy, although I could still taste a little bit of the bitterness at the core because the deep frying didn't get to it. Very interesting with the greek yogurt dressing. - I don't remember what this was called, but it was like pork gyros, and it was a huggeee plate, and it wasn't even that expensive. The pork was super tender and super amazing. The arugula salad on the side was awesome, the tzatziki sauce was amazing.... EXCELLENT dish. - Baby octopus: It's not your typical "whole baby octopus" thing. We asked our server about it, and the manager(?) came out and explained to us that someone a few years ago had the same question. He said that baby octopuses range a certain weight, and they don't HAVE to be that tiny one. Either way IT WAS AMAZING. super tender and marinated very well. They boil and then marinate and then grill for the extra tenderness and flavor. Loved it. - Baklava with pistachio ice ceam: what a deal at $5. We shared it, and it was amazing. It was on the sweet side, but definitely a good end to our meal. Tons of walnuts, pistachios and honey, and the phyllo was flaky and mm mm mmmmm. Definitely will come back. Wish we discovered / tried it earlier ! Now we know.
(5)Nick B.
I went with three friends this past Friday night for dinner. We were seated immediately despite the place looking pretty packed. Our server, Chris, was fantastic and knowledgeable about the menu. His recommendations for food and drinks were solid. I would definitely recommend Cava Mezze for dinner and drinks. As someone who categorically dislikes small plates, the ones at Cava Mezze were bigger than normal for the industry which I appreciated.
(5)William F.
Came here for brunch this past week. The meal went smoothly without any hitches. Waiter provides nice filtered water in a cold bottle at the table for us to dole out at our convenience. You also get complementary pita, olive oil, and spicy tomato/pepper spread (I think it was Harissa, but I wasn't 100% sure). The harissa was INCREDIBLE, kept coming back to it. I wanted to bottle it up and runaway, but my lady friend would've thought ill of me. We got coffee (standard) and a few small plates including smoked salmon with pickled cucumbers and capers, lamb eggs benedict, and zucchini fritters with poached eggs. YUM. All of it was fresh, did exactly what tapas is meant to do: provide bursts of flavor without leaving you feeling too full. We didn't eat a ton, but for two of us, the meal only came to around $30. The dinner menu seemed affordable as well. I look forward to coming back.
(5)Lucy M.
I always use yelp to look up good spots to eat but I rarely write a review. Cava is an exception. I've only been here twice, but both times have been the best two meals of my life. It may have partly due to the fact that I'm all about my finger food and apps, so tapas style is already a plus for me. But OMG this place is phenomenal!! Both times I've had great service; tonight I was helped by Alyson (sp?), who was fast, helpful and sweet. We ordered SO much food, and I knew this, but I don't regret a thing. We started with the "crazy feta" dip, mixed with jalapeños, served with warm pita bread-simple and delicious. We also had the zucchini fritters which were SO yummy, you get 3 shredded zuchini patties fried to perfection with a great tzaziki-like sauce. I started with a cocktail from their list, can't remember the name but it had crushed ice and blood orange, was just the right amount of sweet and strong. Almost forgot to mention, Cava begins your meal with warm pita bread, olive oil, some tasty sundried tomato dip and olives--so yummy. Hard to stop eating it ! Don't remember the exact order of things, my friend and I were in no rush and didn't care what came when (another reason I love tapas !). My friend ordered the hanger steak, which Alyson recommend medium rare, but because my friend is pregnant, she had to have it Close to well done (one of the reasons I never want to get pregnant..WHAT IS THE POINT OF WELL DONE STEAK!?) But I will admit, I tried a piece of it and even at close to well done it was still very flavorful and came with a nice sauce. I can only imagine how good it must taste at medium rare. Everything here has very nice and clean presentation. The friend calamari was the BEST calamari I've ever had. It had a light, crispy, flavorful breading and tasted fresh, with a nice sauce that I can't remember what it was but it paired perfectly. The lamp chops were awesome, flavorful and a perfect medium rare (all for me !! Though my friend got a bite of the end and agrees with me on their awesomeness). They came with some steak like cut fries that were good but I didn't think really paired well with the lamb. Still delicious though! The scallops and risotto was impeccable. The scallops were buttery, melted in your mouth, cooked to perfection, served with a sweet and savory risotto. We tried their Cava Mac n Cheese, served with a very simple greek, feta like cheese with noodles that were bigger than fettuccine, can't think of the name, but I loved their medditerreanian twist on one of my favorite dishes. I then had the Bourbon Julep to drink, a perfect julep. Strong, not too sweet, just the right amount of mint. And now...for my favorite dish of the night and possibly my life...the crispy pork belly. Oh. My. God. Served in 5 or 6 bite sized pieces drizzled with a sweet maple syrup of some sort. The most succulent, flavorful piece of meat I've ever had !!! Best thing on the menu. That combination of sweet and salty was like an orgasm in my mouth. There, I said it. The roasted potatoes were the only thing that was just OK. They were simple roasted potatoes, I guess i was jusr expecting a bit more since everything else was so fantastic. For dessert (I boxed up a few things but ate most of everything--I'm a girl whose not afraid to eat) we had the house made donuts and their french toast served with fresh strawberries. Both were out of this world. So f $&#*ng good. I wish I could have gotten one of everything. One day maybe. Holy shh I can't believe I just wrote that much...that just goes to show you the magical powers of this god like food. 10 stars.
(5)Nikkia G.
3.5 stars I have to address the constant fires in this place. Literally the men kept coming out with a flat dish of food and lighting it on fire. What's the dish?? No clue! I just know it scared me damn near out of my seat when I kept seeing flames and feeling heat every ten minutes! The lamb sliders and calamari were both excellent! The two sliders the give are really enough to fill you up. Both were packed with flavor. The cucumber and jalapeno margarita- meh it was okay. It's really just a jalapeno margarita because you don't taste any cucumber. If you like drinks with spice it's a good option for you. The service- I was there to catch up with my girlfriend but the service really wasn't set up for that. I think it's more for a quick dinner. Why?? Because people were constantly coming to clear a dish but in an overbearing way. My friend finished one chicken pita and the guy comes and removes the aluminum foil from her plate...but she still had food on the plate. Can she finish before you come to clean up?? So the service was off putting and made us feel like we needed to leave asap. Good food-okay drinks- semi annoying service. I'd return because the food is good. I just need to bring my pyro gear to feel comfortable next time because this place is on fire....Literally!
(3)Alice W.
Went with friends. We all found several items to enjoy We split the raw oyster special (Fresh and wonderfully briney). Chicken lollipops were tasty sweet/savory and satisfying. Sangria was not my fave-too sweet. But a Greek red wine (dang if I can recall) worked great. Brussels sprouts roasted worked but not omg as I've had elsewhere. My friend ordered salmon "cooked all the way through" and then thought they were dried out. I love my friend but honestly it was how she ordered them. Still the flavor was good Saw several plates of the flamed cheese meaning "whoosh" and big flame on a plate! Nice warm ambience. Noise level high making talking or rather listening a challenge. Unlike another review we got one waiter for our table not multiple. Not sure where that came from but Cyndy was attentive and did a great job recommending wines for me Solid dining experience. Definitely will return ====== Updated for Nov 2014 and January 2015 Came with a girlfriend in Nov and my hubby in January. Each time this place got better, and I am ordering better. Faves: The salmon is amazing. Chunks with a slight char on the outside, perfectly moist inside. The grilled steak with a chimichurri sauce caused our eyes to roll back, it was that good. Crab cakes were very good with chunks of fresh crab. The shrimp were two HUGE things that were grilled perfectly. We also did the spinach spanikopita (it was fine) and the beef-tomato stew which the crew call the fat boy (beef on top of chunks of potato. Tasty, but our eyes did not roll back. Hubby and I did the red sangria-refreshing and great accompaniment. And my hubby admitted this was the best meal we had while in DC. All the better that it is local to me.
(4)Audra B.
This is my favorite happy hour in Arlington. Glasses of the house red and white wine are only $4 and most of the happy hour appetizers are $3. Drafts are $4 and mojitos are $6. My favorites appetizers are: Cava fries Taramolsalata Harissa Gyro Spicy meatball slider
(5)Sabrina M.
I'd been wanting to try Cava for some time now and we finally went on Friday night. My husband and I are big fans of the Cava Grill restaurants and were very excited to try out Cava Mezze. Honestly, we were not blown away. Our waiter was super friendly. The atmosphere was pleasant--trendy and hip. My first impression was somewhat clouded after receiving the bourbon mint julep. The drink was basically a snow cone with a scant shot of bourbon and a squeeze of lime juice. For $11, I was expecting a more substantial drink. I took 5 sips and it was gone. I was a little peeved, but quickly waved it off and decided to order a beer to sip with my dinner. We tried a couple of small plates: The cauliflower was great--probably the best out of everything we tried. The zucchini fritters were my least favorite. They had a "grassy" taste to them. My husband even had a little trouble getting them down and he eats anything!! Then we tried the mac-n-cheese, which was good. Not really what I'd consider "mac-n-cheese"--more like noodles tossed with a sprinkle of cheese and oil, but good, nonetheless. We also had the chicken lollipops, which were decent tasting, but not very filling. We finished dinner off with french toast for dessert, which was very good. If you order dessert, definitely get it. Overall, I felt Cava was good, but it leaves something to be desired. I understand most items on the menu are small plates and come with smaller sized portions so you can sample a variety of dishes. However, I felt we didn't get what we paid for. I think a lot of the dishes were over priced considering the size of the portions.
(3)Shellie D.
I think the bartender here is in love with me, either that or this place has impeccable service. I am guessing it's the latter. The food here is good, and the customer service is even better. They refilled our drinks quickly and removed any plates we were done with. I have been here for brunch and for Happy Hour (HH). For brunch I had the French toast with a side of Nutella. It was absolutely delicious. For HH, I enjoy the $4 a glass house wine, $3 lamb sliders, $4 grilled chicken and gyros. The HH deals here cannot be beat.
(4)Gina M.
I have ate at the Cava Mezze location on 8th street in DC and gave it 5 star based on food and my dining experience. As for the location in Arlington, I am giving it 3 stars based on the dining experience alone, not the food quality. Food quality is a 10! My fiancee and I ventured out to Clarendon to give this place a shot since and immediately fell in love with the decor and high ceilings of this location. The food itself was 5 stars and so was our waiter.... UNTIL.... we were rushed during our meal and even though we were munching on our pita bread, dip and ordered another round of drinks our waiter was constantly hovering over us asking if our food was ready to be taken. I have to say, I was VERY disappointed by our server by asking us 3 separate times if we were done with our food + bringing out the check right after we ordered our second round of drinks. How did he know we weren't going to order more drinks? Never did I expect this treatment especially considering how welcoming and patient our service was at the 8th street location. Not to mention, they weren't even busy at 4pm on a Saturday. Will I come back to this location? Yes, but I will be sure to stay far away from the server who assisted us yesterday. Thumbs down dude, thumbs down!
(3)Leslie T.
Healthy, fresh, nicely spiced food. Great wine and cocktail selection. I love their Moscow mules made with their own ginger beer. Also, their crazy feta is delicious.
(4)Anastasia P.
The boyfriend and I and another couple came to this place yesterday morning for brunch. We were here for the bottomless small plates. We had a look at ordering a la carte, and it looked like doing it that way would add up fast--their small plates seem to get pricy. Plus, we liked the drink specials that come with the bottomless deal (penny mimosas, $2 sangria, bloodys, and beers). So we went in that direction. I don't get the point of charging a penny for a mimosa, but they do have some fun flavors, so you can deviate from the champagne-and-orange-juice norm. The table was a mix of pescatarians and carnivores. If you are a vegetarian, this bottomless option will be significantly limited for you. I liked the Zucchini fritter, but there wasn't much else (that wasn't sweet) that catered to the non-meat eating sect. There were a few more fish choices for me (smoked salmon, salmon benedict). Everything I had was really, really tasty. The poached eggs were well executed, however, I did feel like the menu's use of poached eggs on just about every single savory dish was excessive. I really did get tired of eggs by the end of the meal--and it wasn't until then that it occurred to me that I should probably just ask for the dish without the egg. I'd try that next time. The sweet options I had (nutella waffle and banana fritters) were delicious. The whipped cream was clearly made in-house (but the waffle was disappointingly soggy. Could've been crisper, but was still tasty. All in all, everything was very, very tasty, well presented, and the "small plate" portion of each dish was more than enough to divide among 4 people. We got full a lot faster than we anticipated! There are two things which knock a star off of this place for me, and they are: 1. The service style. You don't have a dedicated server for your table (this wasn't clear to us at first). There are many servers milling around, and you can catch one and ask them to put in an order for you. After I understood this, it made the small-plate ordering process easier because we could just snag anyone nearby and ask them to put something in for us. However, as we did not understand this in the beginning, we waited ~20 mins for our drinks to come to the table--the first guy who came to our table and took our order for drinks was MIA for the rest of our meal. Not a big deal, but less waiter accountability led to imperfect service. 2. The biggest reason we came here was because the BF is in LOVE with Cava's chain of fast mediterranean food. He's not the biggest fan of brunch (although he found plenty of things to love on the bottomless menu, and was pleased with the quality of the food), so he came here as a compromise (because I, on the other hand, love brunch). He was disappointed, however, to find that most dishes leaned towards traditional brunch fare with only a greek flare. He would've appreciated more meditteranean items--dolmas, falafel, hummus etc. The addition of these items would also make the bottomless spread a lot more vegetarian friendly.
(4)Amanda M.
A great place to take a date. While concrete floors, reclaimed wood abound, it's a warm space with good energy. The pumping music and level of noise made it possible for my date and I to talk comfortably without getting distracted by our (very close) table neighbors' conversations. Although the service was slow to start, our server was attentive, made great recommendations, and noticed, then fixed our wobbly table mid-meal. The food was well-prepared and presented. It felt overpriced -- a problem with many tapas places. The bright, fresh hummus was a highlight. Try: Goat Cheese Fritters, Lamb Sliders Skip: Cava Mac and Cheese
(4)Mel L.
Came here for Easter Brunch. The menu is the usual brunch menu. We had - smoked salmon: fresh - breakfast burrito: flavorful and good size - french toast: sweet and soft. Perfect addition for morning sweetness - zucchini patties: well cooked - orange mimosa: refreshing We were seated right away. Our waiter was friendly and attentive. They brought out the warm bread basket right away and our plates came out quickly. Overall, we had a very pleasant experience and will come back in the future.
(5)Becky B.
So great! All of the small plates were awesome. The service was good, and the noise level was acceptable. Try the zucchini fritters. Really Awesome!
(5)Jamie B.
I actually went to the Eastern Market location for a birthday brunch with the girls. The bottomless mimosas were watered down and not worth it, but the food was incredible! Unfortunately, the service was lacking...we were rarely checked on, some food we ordered never arrived, and they really weren't busy enough to excuse it!!
(3)Tony H.
This place is great for Sunday brunch. They have a huge list of gourmet dishes to eat that are just the right size. When you order the buffet you can get unlimited dishes, and they bring them out as they are prepared so it's staggered and you have something new just as you are finishing with your last dish. Also, the penny mimosas come in different flavors (OJ, grapefruit, peach, and apple cider). Between my girlfriend and I we had peach and apple cider ones, and they were very good. This is a great place for groups too, as the tapas style lends itself to sharing easily.
(5)Hannah H.
About a 2.5: I was really excited to try this place out. My husband and I came here for an early dinner; I made reservations prior as I know this place tends to get packed on the weekends. Our server, Alisa, was extremely peppy, and she went through suggestions from each of the sections when she found out that it was our first time dining here. We started off with the Roasted Eggplant (red pepper, garlic, and herbs; good with the pita bread that was offered in the beginning that came with kalamata olives, olive oil, and a spicy chili sauce; the roasted eggplant was very chunky, slightly underseasoned, and had an interesting flavor to it), Butternut Squash Pie (hand-rolled on the premise with aged barrel feta and phyllo; I thought it would be more of a butternut puree rather than diced butternut inside; the mixture of the feta and the butternut was interesting, and the phyllo exterior was very nice and crispy; I think I got used to the taste after a few more bites); Spicy Lamb Sliders (with arugula, harissa, tzatziki, tomatoes, red onions, all on a toasted brioche; this was not spicy, but the lamb itself had a heavy cilantro flavor to it; I did request no cilantro in any of the dishes and it was stated that the restaurant does not use the herb as an ingredient; however, I found that untrue as the Falafel Fritters contain the herb); Traditional Mini Hand Cut Pork Gyros (hand cut natural pork, spit roasted, tzatziki sauce, tomato, onions, all rolled in a pita; I believe it was one large pita that was cut into 3 pieces; this was actually pretty solid as I didn't know what to expect with the pork version of the gyros; there were some crispy bits that were nice to find!); Crispy Pork Belly (with thyme and honey; this seemed more of like a breakfast dish; I was surprised at how large the pork belly cubes were; very generous in terms of portions; this was actually not that bad as it was more of a sweet dish with the honey than savory); the Lollipop Chicken (3 drumsticks that are fried, with honey, walnuts, and Greek yogurt; the chicken itself looked like the ones at a Brazilian steakhouse so I did like the size; they were crispy on its exterior and very meaty and juicy on the inside; I wasn't if the honey and the Greek yogurt worked with it, though); the Baby Octopus (that were grilled pieces with fennel salad; I wasn't a fan of this as this was more herb-like, and I thought there would be more of a grilled taste to them); and, the Scallops Risotto (U-10 Dry, Hen of the Woods mushrooms, and saffron; the scallops were actually overcooked so they were more rubbery; we both weren't fans; I wasn't a fan of the risotto either as it seemed overcooked and I wasn't a fan of the flavors). I was a little disappointed as they ran out of the lamp chops, as I would have wanted to try them out. We were lucky to find free parking on Clarendon, so that was nice! I am glad I was able to try this place out, but not sure if I'd go back again! +Crispy Pork Belly +underwhelming small plates T___T
(3)Dmitry D.
Good wasn't bad but small portions.the layout of the place pretty nice. There mix grill wad pretty good but done of the meat was a bit dry for my wife
(4)P F.
I can't say anything more than what has already been said.... Everything here is amazing. We ordered 8 dishes and two desserts and everything was phenomenal. Best tapas I have ever had!! Way way way way better than Jaleo or Zaytinya. Just go. And make sure you order the flaming cheese!!!!!!
(5)sara r.
so i know i am late to the party but better late than never, right? i've been meaning to try the place out and finally did last weekend. of course our table (3 of us) decided to eat family style so here's the rundown: crazy feta is as good as everyone says. i want it on bread, cucumbers, in my salad, just by the spoonful, whatever. brussels sprouts were pretty amazing. crisped to perfection with the most delicate yogurt smear. roasted vegetables were good enough. i don't regret getting them but they were somewhat ordinary compared to the rest of the meal. the lollipop chicken was one of things on the table. i'm a big fan of salty and sweet so this was a big winner for me. perfectly fried and not too heavy, with the delicate sweetness of the honey, nutty walnuts, and a lovely yogurt situation to help smooth everything out. the spicy lamb sliders were also tasty. a great spice with the harissa combined with the cool tzatziki was so nice. braised short rib was ok. i wanted to really like them but something about the acid or sour that was i wasn't the biggest fan of but that's totally a subjective thing. for dessert, we ordered the donut holes and what a perfect ending to the meal. fried and just the right amount of sweetness! and if you're drinking, try the cucumber gin. so refreshing.
(5)Megan G.
Went for dinner on a Friday night and it was extremely loud. It's tapas style and we only had a few plates before moving elsewhere but what we had was good. The hummus plate was a good app and they'll bring you more pita if you need. I also had a white wine sangria for the first time. Probably wouldn't do that again just cause I like the traditional red sangria. I think their white had pear in it, it's pretty light. Definitely worth a try if you're interested there use stick with the red.
(4)Crosby R.
Oh my gaaahd I LOVE Cava! I could eat that free harissa and pita bread ALL DAY! They will continue to refill it throughout your meal as well -- so clutch. Their drinks are pretty fantastic too. I loved the chili daisy/smokey daisy but I think they got rid of it? Sad... MUST order the chicken lollipops... They have this amazing honey drizzle over them that makes them awesome. The gyros are also a must. Zucchini balls are good. Saganaki is fun since they light it on fire and it's cheese sooo I will definitely like it. Grilled meatballs --- you should pass. Not bad, but it's like burger sliders, without sauce, or cheese, or bread, or any other toppings.
(5)Ashley K.
Omg loved this place! Authentic greek with a modern twist. Definitely recommend flaming cheese plate, scallops, and cauliflower. Sangria is also pretty good. Good service. Cool atmosphere. Great experience
(5)Alexandra M.
food is always on point. and like Nick B. my boyfriend doesn't typically like "small plates" but we find things to share that are gluten free and he gets an extra glutenous meat dish and leaves full and happy. disappointed that i just found out their falafel has a bit of flour in it when i was told before that it just shares the fryer....boo. also great happy hour. i've been dying to go to their brunch for penny mimosas! tip: you can buy their harissa (red sauce) and hummus at safeway and whole foods and it's just as good! the hummus from them in the stores is the lightest and fluffiest i've ever had.
(5)Natalie C.
Amazing food, amazing service! Even with a large group, the Cava Mezze team was more than accommodating. I recommend getting the Dip Sampler - it's worth it to try all of the dips because they're each so amazing. Other favorites were the Crab Cakes, the Cava Shrimp, the Braised Short Rib, Spanakopita, and Mac 'N' Cheese.
(5)Brian P.
This place is amazing. Try the very affordable lunch specials like a gyro and get 4 star treatment at fast food prices
(5)Jamie D.
I had an amazinggggggg bottomless birthday brunch at Cava. Not only was the food delicious but our waiter was attentive to our every demanding need. I had a table of 12 so we were aggressively ordering new dishes and drinks every time he cam. Can't beat penny mimosas and $2 bloodys! They even have different mimosa flavor to choose from, my fav was the cider. There is a 2.5 time limit on the table which I understand because if not we might have stayed there all day. Def recommend.
(5)C B.
Cava is always a solid choice every time I go! I love bringing out of town guests bc they're always impressed and pleased. Brunch is a pretty sweet deal as well, I highly recommend!
(5)Ev K.
Food: Saganaki - yes, get this, it is delicious. Plus the show of tableside flambe is worth it. Kokkinisto - a beef/tomato stew, also very satisfying. Grilled Octopus - good, but for $13 I don't think the amount that was served makes it worth it. Shishito Peppers - fine but nothing all that memorable. Duck Confit - the worst dish of the group, overdone so that the duck was dry and chewy. Not enjoyable. I would certainly return to try more from the menu! Cons: Service - Too abrupt, dinner was a flurry of various servers dropping off the dishes at the table and then scurrying off to someplace else, or trying to take a dish away while we were still scraping the last bits off goodness of the plate. With the saganaki, I didn't even realize it had arrived, I just felt heat on the back of my neck and turned around to see a guy standing with a flaming pan. I would have at least liked a "good evening, saganaki" for a heads-up. Noise - The website says the restaurant has an 'industrial' setting, which is accurate. Exposed ducting up by the ceiling, for example... the place is loud which can make it hard to even converse with the person across from you. Booths are probably quieter, but we were at a table in a more open area.
(4)D A.
This place may have surprised me more than any other in town, and it keeps on doing so each time I return. I hope that doesn't stop happening in the same positive way. But even when Cava's goodness eventually just becomes routine, I'll be glad it's there and serving such great food.
(4)Casey K.
This was my first time dining at the Cava Mezze chain, however not my first time indulging in the deliciousness that are the middle east version of tapas. We ordered five dishes in total which included: Grape Leaves, Falafel Fritters, Spanakopita, Crisped Meatballs, and Scallop Risotto. Grape Leaves: They were a bit too briny for my taste. I recommend going to Ayse Lounge in Frederick, MD for some amazing Dolmades. Falafel Fritters: Skip if you can, the falafel was not good, a little too lemony and the bed of hummus it sits on just all congeals and is not at all appetizing. I remember going to dip some flatbread in the hummus closer to the end of the dish and it was like play-doh consistency. Spanakopita: The fried phyllo dough the spinach and feta was wrapped in was crisped to perfection, however there was a bit too much feta in the filling, it was all I tasted. Again, I am going to suggest you hit up Ayse Lounge in Frederick, MD for some delicious Spanakopita (swear they're not paying me and that I am in no way affiliated to anyone that works there...hehe). Crisped Meatballs: These were quite possibly the biggest disappointment on the table. Think sliders with the bun removed, cooked to hockey puck hardness and placed atop a pan fired potato slice. The potato slice gets completely smashed as you try to hack through the crispy meatball. I don't really know what I was expecting when we ordered these, but I can assure you, I was not at all pleased. Scallop Risotto: Really really good, the bed of risotto the scallops sit on is creamy and really quite delicious, loved the saffron flavor. The scallops were cooked perfectly and had a wonderful flavor. this was by far my favorite dish of the meal. Just to rewind really quickly, there is a free flatbread bowl that you get served upon being seated. You can dip the flatbread in either olive oil or this hot chili pepper chutney. Kalamata olives are also served with the complimentary oil, spread, and flatbread. Not sure how likely I am to come back to Cava Mezze on my own accord. I could see this being a place that I come for a work get-together or a friend's birthday party.
(2)Brian S.
A review of their all you can eat brunch. It was good, but boqueria still remains the place to beat. Called here the day before to try and make reservations but was told that they don't take them for brunch. Alright, no problem. Luckily I've done the all you can eat game before and we got there at 1057. We were seated and started off with a few things. The nutella waffle and French toast were absolutely delicious. You're definitely best off splitting everything. I really liked the gyro hash as well. Only complaint is that they over did it with poached eggs a little. The porkbelly, steak, hash, 2 types of Benedicts, and one other thing all came with it. I think a few could have just been served as is. Overall everything was really good, and the $.01 mimosas were awesome, but even after 7 in an hour I didn't even get a buzz, which tells me they're a little on the weak side (as expected). All in all a good spot and definitely worth checking out. Share the dishes and enjoy the cheap drinks. Might be back, but boqueria is still my favorite for brunch.
(4)Lauren O.
LOVE. Great location, amazing food, great staff. The service is sometimes slow during brunch, but that's to be expected with how many people flock here for the amazing brunch selections. Great drinks as well.
(5)Gwen B.
One of our favorite tapas places! We have come here for brunch and dinner, both were awesome. Our must get dishes: ~lamb sliders (spicy and yummy) ~French toast (breakfast, dessert, whatever this is amazing) ~lamb kabobs ~lollipop chicken ~scallops ~meatballs We've never had a bad dish here so in not sure you could go wrong but it's a crowd pleaser for sure!
(4)Shawn M.
While on an extended layover in DC this past Monday night I was invited by some good friends to meet them at this restaurant for dinner and drinks....Let me first say I like the Cava Mezze quick serve restaurant in Chinatown part of DC but that location doesn't hold a candle to this restaurant in Arlington. We ordered many various plates and I will briefly describe a few of them but I can openly say that not one plate was bad, and that is said with sincerity. To name a few of the plates we ordered. From the dips portion of the menu we ordered the Crazy Feta which was a whipped cheese deep flavored with Jalapeno which made it a tad spicy but even for someone like me who isn't a big spicy fan the dip was scrumptious! From the vegetable portion of the menu we ordered the Falafel Fritters and Zucchini Fritters. Both of these small plates were served fried with various sauces and glazes and again tasted wonderful. From the cheese portion of the menu we ordered the Saganaki which is 2 squares of cheese they serve at the table after light it on fire and making it flaming hot! We also ordered the Goat Cheese Fritters which we actually ended up ordering another serving of because of the creamy deliciousness that was inside the fritter that was almost toe curling. We then finished our dinner by ordering one seafood item which was the Scallops Risotto and let me just say we actually ended up ordering 3 orders because they were so tasty. The only part of this dish I don't agree with is they only serve it with 2 scallops on each dish and for the price I would have expected 3. For the meat course we ordered the Lamb Sliders and this coming from someone who isn't a big lamb fan, I would definitely order this dish again.
(4)Jenna L.
Came here on a Friday with the promise of a really cheap happy hour. As it turns out, you can only get happy hour at the bar, and the bar was packed, so a friend and I just took a table for a full-priced dinner. Food - the food here was ok. I got hummus and and the mini gyros. The latter was pretty good (and suprisingly filling) but the former was just eh. I think the Sabra hummuous at the supermarket is a lot better, and a whole lot cheaper. Also got a spicy mango cocktail. Interesting.... but I wouldn't say it was good. Worth trying for the novelty factor though. A friend got the fries (which she didn't like - and she loves fries) and the chicken lollipops, which she said were pretty good. Serivce - kind of bad. I felt like the waitress was kind of grouchy. But what bothered me most was how they kept trying to push us out the door. I felt really rushed, so dinner wasn't all that enjoyable. Moral of the story: Ok food, but a little bit overpriced. Kind of crappy service. Might be worth going back for the $3/item happy hour, but not for dinner.
(3)Maggie N.
Came for brunch with mah girl. The banana fritters are so freaking good that I felt guilty eating them haha. Definitely overpriced but still a good place to go.
(4)Laura C.
A friend of mine was in town and because he often goes to the "Chipotle style" Cava Grill (? sorry not sure if this is what its actually called ) he definitely recommended coming here. One of the best decisions ever! First and foremost, it was a little difficult to find a parking space right outside the restaurant, HOWEVER, there is a parking garage located less than 3 minutes away from the restaurant. It was only 5 dollars an hour which beats those $8-10 elsewhere in DC. So after we went inside, the place looked decently packed and we were both concerned about not having made reservations. It turned out there really was no need to worry about it. They seated us right away! Points for that. HEADS UP: If you are starving and will like a huge meal this may not be your number one pick. Most of the dishes are appetizer style/ small portions BUT if you don't mind ordering a million yummy little dishes then you shall be fine. On the the food and drinks! We order the crispy pork belly, the mini chicken pitas, and the scottish salmon along with a cucumber gin (him) and mantaxa-rita (???? for moi) basically an old fashioned. The drinks were great and while I preferred the chicken pitas my friend fell in love with the pork belly. I am not a huge fan of sweet food unless its dessert, but I did enjoy the texture of the pork belly. Nice and crispy but not burned! We were both a little disappointed with the salmon but it was okay because everything else was great. P.S Its also less than a block away from the Clarendon Metro stop so if you dont want to struggle with parking space then you can just use the metro :D
(4)Connie C.
went on a date, enjoyed the experience. though I was still a bit hungry after we left (we had ordered 4 things). though I think the kitchen or server made a mistake and brought out the stuffed grape(?) leaves even though we didn't order them. the flaming cheese plate was a bit too salty for my preference, but everything else was fine. the Cypriot pudding was really good as well :)
(4)James C.
Only knock is it is insanely loud but if your cool with that then it is surely a 5. Great food quality and selection. Good bar scene with good drinks.
(5)Caitlyn l.
Yum yum and more yum. The only time i go here is for brunch and its def the best one around. With it being only $30 to eat unlimited amounts of fresh food who could say no! Also penny mimosas are fabulous
(5)Farris H.
Great tuesday happy hour - drinks are cheap and the food options are great. I had one major issue: I don't know what we ate at this place, but my stomach and the stomach of my dining partner was not normal for almost a week after. We had the Halloumi gnocchi and the big meatball, which was the special that day. I would advise against both of these in the future. I'll be back for the cheap drinks. Discount alcohol, my how you defeat me....
(2)Philip L.
On point and delicious. I've always loved the food when I went there. Atmosphere is nice as well. Great spot for a date or to catch up with old friends.
(5)Maddie B.
Soo my best friend has told me my obsession with Cava is getting out of hand, too bad! I can't help myself! First off, I really like Greek small plates and sharing food so this place had me right off the bat with just the concept. The service is pretty good, they bring things out as they are ready so it's relatively fast. At this point I've tried pretty much everything on the menu (except seafood and pork dishes) and have not had a single bad plate. A few of my favorites are spicy lamb meatballs, asparagus, tzatziki dip and the dip tasting plate. You sort of have to try the saganaki (flaming cheese) here at least once, it's good but the presentation is a crowd pleaser. Then, just when i thought it couldn't get any better... there was $3 happy hour!! Many of the small plates are $3 and house wine is $4. I recommend the gyro and lamb slider, pretty filling for the price. What's even better than $3 small plates? Awesome service. The bar is pretty crowded but they will still serve you the pita with olive oil dip and bring your food out to you like a normal lunch/dinner visit. See you there! I'll be the girl finishing an entire bowl of pita by myself...
(5)Carey M.
The food is delicious particularly the lamb sliders. Our waiter was nice and did a great job of explaining the items on the menu. The place is packed on weekends. The drinks are yummy but the bartender's attitude needs some work, unfortunately I don't remember his name. One of the other bartenders had to step in to take over because he was acting annoyed and being rude.
(4)Jenette M.
Great tapas! The crazy feta is amazing, and the salmon is also a great choice. It's very cozy. The tables for two aren't too big, so it's good for a dinner with a friend (don't have to yell across a table). The servers keep your water full! Awesome place
(4)Bethany H.
This is actually a pretty good date place. Soups are great and unique. I was sick the last time I went and my date ordered the chicken/lemon soup and we shared the lamb burgers.
(3)Darren N.
Spotlight on the food. This place is dark, you can't see nothing! The few lights that are in this place shine directly on the food, and that's why I come here. The first time I was here, I was meeting up with some coworkers after already having a big meal at the Lost Dog Cafe. Big mistake. I get here, and the table keeps filling up with tapas: grilled cheese, lamb sliders, gyros, baby octopus and then some. I was so full, but I couldn't stop trying, wouldn't stop trying. Too good! I follow up this first encounter with a proper stomach. I could truly enjoy what was in front of me. Favorite dish that I tried would have to be the pork belly. It's like bacon, with a layer of fat and a layer of meat touched with the sweetness of honey. Still more to try, can't stop, won't stop!
(4)Trina T.
Great service. Food is okay but way too overpriced. Definitely not full unless you're willing to buy a lot of small dishes.
(2)Luda I.
good wine selection from what been ordered would go back spicy lamb sliders scallop risotto and of course side chilli sauce
(5)Noelle B.
Considering I've spent the past few days telling everyone who would listen how great this place is, I figured I should write a review. I came here for the first time on Sunday for brunch. I love tapas so I was excited to try them in breakfast form. I went ahead and got the bottomless brunch for my son and I. He had the nutella waffle and french toast (which of course, I had to taste test), and I ordered the eggs benedict, grilled cheese, and fritatti. Everything was delicious! Even though we were with a party of seven, our server was really attentive and made several stops at our table to take orders. I definitely want to go back and do dinner!
(4)Jerica D.
I love love love this place and their food options! I usually stray away from being near the DC area due to paying for parking and traffic but I had to meet a friend. Lady Luck was in my side and I end up finding street parking near the restaurant! Parking actually wasn't too bad on the street 1.25 an hour. I could not find the restaurant at first since I parked near Cheesecake Factory, but I called and the host was helpful and directed me to the restaurant! I was immediately seated as I waited for my friend. They brought a neat looking water glass container to my table and poured some refreshing cold water! After my friend arrived I went for the drink menu and ordered such a pretty drink based off the waiters recommendation. I can't seem to remember the name but took a picture! It looked and tasted amazing! I also ordered the cava meat lunch gyro and fries. My wait for my food was not long. My pita bread was soooo soft and the meat and special sauce were wonderful! The resturant was also very cute and in a nice area. The only issue I had wAs when I went to the restroom there was no paper towels to wipe my hands.Other than that the food was amazing and so was my cocktail ! I'll will be back!
(5)David C.
Amazing food, great service, and chill atmosphere. I highly recommend this place, as I only wish that I would have tried this place sooner. My taste buds were shocked with unique and wonderful flavor with each plate. Do not let them take the menu after your initial order, just keep trying new things, you will not be disappointed.
(5)Heather P.
I can't believe I've waited this long to write a review for one of my absolute favorite restaurants in the NoVA area. I was back here recently for my birthday, and got to introduce a new friend to the joys of Cava Mezze's flaming saganaki. :) Some of my fave tapas? - the haloumi sliders (yes, you can still get them, you just have to ask) - the brussels sprouts (nom nom nom!) - zucchini fritters (in case it isn't apparent by now, i'm a vegetarian) They also used to have some lovely burnt butter orzo, but sadly I couldn't find it on the menu this last time I went. Sad Heather is sad. I'll also point out that the tzatziki here is uber delicious, as is the hummus (obvs). The wine sometimes leaves a little to be desired, but I consider myself a bit of a wine snob, and given that the food is generally heavenly, I give them a small pass on the the slightly less than than perfect wine selection. I go as often as I can; hopefully that will be more frequently in the future.
(5)Ananya M.
I've been here for both their Bottomless Brunch and for dinner - both experiences were excellent. Their brunch seems to be one of the best deals in the area - unlimited mimosas for a penny each, and unlimited small plates for a very reasonable price. Between the four of us, we ordered around 20-25 plates of everything from nutella waffles to steak & eggs to spicy lamb benedict. Though some dishes, such as the aforementioned spicy lamb, were standout compared to others (gyro frittata), overall, the food was excellent and I can't wait to brunch there again. The only strange thing was the waiter situation, since there was one waiter who would constantly take our orders and then fail to deliver them to the kitchen, causing to have to repeat our orders to our other waiter. For a light dinner, my friend and I ordered the asparagus, chicken souvlaki, and fried cheese plates. The chicken was very tender and juicy, and the asparagus was also great, but the cheese was a little too rich for our tastes. The little pyrotechnical show you get is fun, but it's not worth it in my opinion.
(5)Chris M.
Whenever I am in Arlington I make sure I always stop into this place for a drink and something to eat. It's a great atmosphere with a big bar and plenty of space. They have outdoor seating as well! Both out front on the street and in a back patio for a little bit more privacy. The food and drink menu is great. They have a wide array of options for all diets. My favorites are the Zucchini Fritters, Lamb Sliders, and Cauliflower. It is all good those are just a few. There menu is also always changing so it never gets repetitive. The drink menu is unique, they have something there for everyone. It doesn't just stop there, the staff is great and make you feel at home during your time there. Everyone is eager to do what they can to make it a great experience. Part of many reasons its a place I go often.
(5)Hayley M.
I'm can't believe I haven't written a review on Cava until now. This is my go-to spot for good food and drinks during the week. I've had many small plates and cocktails here over the years, so here are my highlights: EAT: Salad-Haloumi & Bread, Watermelon/Feta, & Beet. DIPS-I love getting the Dip Tasting platter. Its a good deal for $ and you get a good amount. For 2 people, we rarely ever finish all of the dips and each one is seriously delicious. VEGETABLE-Butternut Squash Pie, Zucchini Fritters, Spanakopita, Brussel Sprouts. MINI SLIDERS-Spicy Lamb. SEAFOOD-Scallops Risotto, Opa Opa Shrimp. DRINK: My go-to is usually the Crazy Dirty Martini because the olives are stuffed with the delicious crazy feta cheese (you have to try their crazy feta dip if you haven't already), but recently I've been loving their Jalapeno Infused cocktail. I also HIGHLY recommend Cava for Brunch. I've only been there a handful of times for Brunch, but they have been memorable. HIGHLIGHTS: French Toast, Nutella Waffle, Gyro Hash, Cava Home Fries and the Banana Fritters.
(4)Melissa A.
A group I'm a member of meets at Cava once a month. I've always looked forward to dining there. Although it is pretty busy, the food is fantastic and the milieu is inviting. My past visit left A LOT to be desired. Not sure if I will return. If I do, I will not be buying any liquor. Let me explain: I ordered my usual whiskey at the bar while we waited for a table. No problem, no surprises. I ordered another round of my usual whiskey as I dined and...I was charged $1.00 for "on the rocks." What?!? Additionally, our server was attentive and speedy, but tried to stick me with a salad that 1) wasn't what I ordered and 2) was priced higher than what I ordered. When I questioned him, he said, "It's almost the same price." A fellow diner at my table ended up paying a lower price for his salad, as he was charged for my salad (our server explained to him, as well - that the salad he was charged for isn't what he ordered, but "almost the same price." Why was I stuck with a mistake that wasn't in my favor?). I was persistent in getting a revised bill. Now I will be persistent in encouraging our group leader to take our business down the street next month.
(2)Eduardo B.
Lamb sliders! Hummus! Pricing is very reasonable, very loud and exciting atmosphere
(4)Jorge A.
This place is one of my watering holes and tapas place. I love this place. It has great food and drinks. The fried cheese is amazing. The staff is great.
(5)Charlotte D.
I came here for Sunday brunch a few weeks ago with my boyfriend. So pleased that we did. The food was absolutely delicious, though do take note that they really mean "small plates" when they say it. We were also able to take advantage of the nicely laid-out back patio to sit outside away from the street. We passed on the all-you-can-eat brunch option (which comes with a fantastic drink deal) and went for ordering coffee and four plates to share. My favorite by far was the French Toast. Absolutely delicious and definitely worth ordering. It was perfectly sweet, topped with fresh cream and berries to round it out. While I usually can't eat an entire entree of French Toast at a restaurant, this plate size left me really wanting just a few more bites. We also split the Nutella Waffle, which was quite tasty. He got the breakfast burrito while I munched on the Zucchini and Egg plate. All in all, this is a great spot to stop in for brunch. I plan on coming back with a larger party to do the all-you-can-eat brunch at some point soon.
(5)Toulaphone C.
Overall good happy hour experience. Had two glasses of $4 red wine and a few tapas. They don't do mussels anymore for their specials but it's still on the menu, so that was a little disappointing, but the eggplant dip and crazy feta dip were good. We also had lamb sliders, meatball sliders and a small gyro. The chicken skewer we got was a bit dry. Expect small portions for their specials (most are $3 each). It might have been better to just order off the regular menu if you go with a few people.
(4)Omair T.
This place is great! The food is always fresh and comes out quickly even when they are busy. I have been here twice over the last month or so once for dinner and lunch and have liked everything I have ordered. I highly recommend the spicy lamb sliders (they aren't that spicy). The complimentary bread and dip they give you is good as well. The calamari was perfectly fried, the fries are also really good but a bit over priced in my opinion. As for the service, I have had a great experience both times, there is someone coming by often to refill water which is always great. I seriously hope I can get myself to try more items from the menu, I normally stick to the same thing once I find something I really like, but it seems like everything on their menu is good. One of my go-to places in the area.
(5)Alexandra E.
I will start off by saying that the service here was some of the best service I have received at a restaurant in the DC area since moving here about 5 weeks ago. Our server was friendly and prompt! We ordered the grape leaves, chicken souvlaki, spanakopita, and the rice and lamb stuffed tomato. The grape leaves were my least favorite only because they were warm and I like my grape leaves cold which probably isn't the authentic way to eat them, but that's how I like them! The chicken souvlaki was very good as was the spanakopita and the rice and lamb stuffed tomato which was the special of the night. Overall a delicious mediterranean option that I would definetly recommend, my only wish was that they had rice pudding on the dessert menu!
(4)Mike G.
Excellent greek food in the heart of Clarendon. If you're a fan of tapas, check this place out. It's a little bit on the pricey side, but worth it if you're trying to enjoy a nice evening out. The wait is usually pretty bad on Weekend nights, so be sure to come early and put your name in if you want to sit down at a reasonable time.
(4)Tonya D.
Let me say, I've never felt compelled to write a review but after last night, I had to. My family took me to Cava Mezza for my birthday and I was blown away. We made reservations for 8pm and we were seated right away. The Clarendon location is a must visit. The food was absolutely amazing. Since Cava Mezza is a tapas style restaurant we were able to try lots of goodies with no complaints at all. Just a few of the dishes we tried; Saganaki Grape Leaves Roasted Mushrooms Cauliflower Brussel Sprouts Mini Gyros Baby Octopus Scallops Risotto Since I don't have time to describe every dish let me just say, everything was amazing and cooked to perfection. We literally enjoyed everything we sampled. The drinks were great and the deserts were heavenly. But what made an already great night even better was the service. We had the best server ever (Natalie). She was so kind and genuine. Her knowledge of the dishes was impressive as she made great recommendations as we were unsure what to try. She was truly a joy. Thanks to Natalie I tried Baby Octopus for the first time and I wasn't disappointed... Additionally, Anthony (manager/partner) stopped by to check on us, he is wonderful. It was a pleasure to meet you both. We all left raving about the food and the service.. We shall return.... Great Job.....
(5)Krystle K.
This place was AMAZING. Service was wonderful, the food came out very quickly even when the place was packed and I cannot say enough good things. The small plates were all delicious and we even ordered the greek yogurt cheesecake for dessert, which was different but so unique and tasty! I highly recommend this restaurant and will be returning in the future!
(5)Jesssie M.
I've been obsessed with Cava Mezze Grille (the assembly line, Chipotle serving-style Mediterranean restaurant) for a while, and last night I finally had the pleasure of meeting its sister restaurant. I was really looking forward to trying it out, and was not disappointed. The restaurant is in the heart of Arlington/Clarendon in the cute "downtown" area. It has indoor and outdoor seating, as well as a large bar. Their happy hour specials are a good deal (I caught the tail-end). You can get $3 mini plates to share, $5 margaritas, and $6 fresh mojitos. The only weird part of the night was when we were seated and our waiter came over, he told us that the bartenders make all of the HH drinks way less strong since they're cheaper. Why would you say that, and is that true?? Sketchy. Food is served tapas style, and with a group of 5 it was easy to share and get a little taste of everything. We started with the dip platter - hummus / tzatziki / roasted eggplant / taramosalata / crazy feta, with some grape leaves on the side, and endless pita wedges to dip. Next, we had the Saganaki a.k.a. FLAMING CHEESE!! The waiter pours a little brandy on your cheese and ignites it into a HUGE flame. End result - crispy on the outside, hot melty cheese on the inside. We also split a plate of watermelon feta salad with mint which was refreshing. Next round we got the chicken lollipops. Those are a MUST HAVE. The chicken is fried, bone in and served on Greek yogurt and honey. The salty crispy skin and yogurt with honey is sheer perfection. Falafel was very tasty and crispy. Last, we tried the grilled Souvlaki shrimp--buttery and delicious! Everything we had was awesome. I would go back in a heartbeat, and I can't wait to try their brunch. Service was good, drinks were tasty, and the atmosphere was fun for a girls night. I LOVE YOU CAVA!
(5)jacky n.
Great place for happy hour or a date. Food was great and since they're tapas style you get to try a lot. I'd recommend getting two tapas per person and a bottle of wine to share--recipe for a good time.
(5)Patricia B.
Tried this restaurant for the first time yesterday. The saganaki and gyros were excellent. A bit pricey. Small portions at premium prices. The music made it difficult to have a conversation and was not consistent with a Greek environment.
(4)Dana S.
I am a straight up lush which is why I love Cava. They have some of the strongest fruitest cocktails in the area! I go here for happy hour to partake in the $4 gyros and $5 dranks. I always leave happy and full **hiccup** I love like this location because it is never crowded.
(5)Dan H.
Delicious and a very cool place! The inside is very trendy with dark woods and high ceilings. Their mood lighting is so dark it borders on being difficult to see. It is also very loud and it is hard to here people across the table. All the mezzes we got were great so I won't list them all except to mention the stand-outs. You definitely need to order the Braised Chickpeas - so tasty! It comes lightly bathed in a tomato and garlic sauce with caramelized onions. I'm definitely going to try and duplicate this at home. Also a fan favorite was the Kokkinisto which is beef braised in burgundy, cinnamon, and tomato & it comes atop some fries sprinkled with cheese. The wait staff instructs you to order 2 per person but that's not required... we ordered less than that and shared and we didn't finish everything.
(4)Laura B.
Cava, Please forgive us as we tried Kapnos last night and it was HORRIBLE! We will never stop coming back to CAVA. They have the best goat fritters, falafel and flaming cheese. You never let us down! Thank you!
(5)Kim H.
Soooo dark and LOUD! Bring night vision goggles and a megaphone if you want to see or talk to your date. Get the scallops risotto and the french toast dessert!
(3)Emily L.
I've been here for dinner a few times now, and have overall had a great experience every time. The food is always tasty, service has always been good, and we've always left happy. Tapas style is great for sharing in groups, but the acoustics in the place make it really loud and hard to hear others at your table (maybe I'm just getting old?!) We ordered the spicy lamb meatballs, falafel fritters (which tasted mostly like flattened falafel), calamari, grape leaves, Brussel sprouts, lollipop chicken and drinks for four of us - was just the right amount of food and was a nice selection. One tapas order is just the right size for four to share. The spicy lamb meatballs were really tender and not too spicy. The grape leaves and Brussel sprouts were my fave and were nice ways to round out some of the heavier plates. Servers were all really nice and they were really nice about us having a longer meal and drinks to catch up w old friends. Was nice not to feel rushed and to still get your water refilled after you've stopped eating! Would definitely recommend this place - hard to go wrong here.
(4)Linne S.
The food was amazing! We had a big group and I was a little concerned because they have strict policies about groups (time limits, commit to head count, etc.) but it was perfect. They were very attentive and welcoming. We were there on a Friday night. They were full and the restaurant was a bit noisy, not the place for an intimate conversation maybe, but great for us. The food came out very quickly so I felt like we could order, eat, order some more, until we were full. Everything I tried was delicious. The 8 hour roasted pork belly melted in my mouth and I loved it, but I suspect if you had an aversion to the mouth-feel of fat, you might not like it as well. The baby octopus was awesome - very tender. The saganaki was fun because it's a fiery display.
(5)Kimberly S.
Yelp friends, it's about to get real in here. There will be absolutely no funny puns or sarcastic comments in this review. Cava Mezze is easily my favorite restaurant in Arlington. They have a friendly staff, a chef who always personally thanks me for coming in whenever I check-in on Twitter, and food that is out-of-this-world. My favorite dishes on the menu are the: zucchini fritters, fried cheese (it tastes like a giant Greek style cheese stick!), lamb gyros, grilled octopus, pork belly, chicken lollipop, lamb chops, shrimp orzo ....ok let's face it I've never had something at Cava Mezze that I didn't like. Everything is superb. I've dined here multiple times with multiple groups -- my hood rat friends, family members, preppy Junior Leaguers, my picky former waitress friends, boyfriend, etc. and everybody has all left the restaurant saying the same thing, "OPA!!!!!!!!!!!" Before I wrap up this review which has not given this restaurant any justice at all here are a few quick notes for you: - Mondays are half price wine bottle night making it the perfect place to catch up with a few good friends - For an authentic experience sip a shot of ice cold ouzo (a Greek apertif) throughout your meal. - Their cucumber mojito and martini are fabulous. - You can pick up their hummus and tzatziki sauce at the Whole Foods across the street to recreate the experience at home.
(5)Chitra P.
This is a neighborhood favorite for me and the hubster. Whenever we decide on eating out in the 'hood we inevitably end up at Cava because you won't be disappointed by the food here. Our go-tos are the saganaki (who doesn't love flaming cheese?!), crazy feta (mmmm love that spicy kick), spanakopita (for the vegetable portion of our meal), the chicken lollipops and the spicy lamb meatballs (both well flavored and cooked to perfection). We also like to try out the occasional seasonal dishes and always enjoy what we get. We even celebrated the hubster's 30th birthday here with our closest family and friends, that's how much we love this place!
(5)L. B. M.
Love!! Been there a handful of times and each time the food is excellent. The drinks are excellent as well. Acoustics inside is poor but the food and service is great.
(4)Stephen M.
Great place but rock concert loud inside for dinner. If its an after-work HH where convo takes a back seat to drinks and the occasional bite, this is the best spot in Clarendon. Wanting to hear your tablemates, on the otherhand, should have you head elsewhere. Will def return.
(4)Emily T.
The brunch wasn't worth $30 and the service wasn't all that great either. We had the grapefruit, apple cider, and orange mimosas and they were very mediocre with hardly any champagne in them. The food is always very good however the service was very slow and it was hard for us to order all of the plates that we wanted. I would definitely recommend this place for dinner rather than bottomless brunch.
(2)Carlos D.
I have been to this spot many times now. Food is always delicious. Waiters are great and very informed about the menu and specials. I recommend highly. I love greek food, this is the spot if you live in the area or are just visiting. Traditional all the way and crispy pork belly so yummy. And yes happy hour is awesome. 5 stars if they improve the drinks and cocktails. They tend to be a bit watery maybe it's me?
(4)Danny V.
Aunt Voula: What do you mean he don't eat no meat? [the entire room stops, in shock] Aunt Voula: Oh, that's okay. I make lamb. (My Big Fat Greek Wedding -2002) Well, well, well it looks like the Greeks can take the Hicksville out of the girl. stepped foot into Cava Mezze and was transported, with starry eyes, into another world. Is this still Arlington? This handsome little devil makes Clarendon look like she's all grown up. This is seriously the best looking restaurant I've been to in a long time. God forbid Ms. Clarendon plans on wearing 2 piece bikini this summer because as the cuisine need only touch your lips before it starts to expand those hips. Oh well, Gold's Gym is around the corner. I thought that a few reviews mentioned something about healthier fare and I did not find much of that here. There was plenty of pomp and circumstance abound, but I wasn't wowed but anything that came across my plate. I shared 4 mezzes with my dinner companion and I passed 85% to the other side of the table and stopped by Whole Foods on the way home. The libations were okay, not spectacular, but they were okay. The cucumber mojito was my first summer drink of the year and I was a little disappointed. I thought that the drink would be fresh and sophisticated but tasted like a fountain drink flavored with mint and the essence of cucumber. (Just a personal opinion- Kimberly V loved them and I think her reviews are top notch.) This place is loud to a fault. Your conversation will reverberate off the concrete floors and expect the noise to escalate a decibel to two with weekend crowds. Despite my 3-star review, I recommend that you give it a try. Sounds there a lot of other crowd pleasing bites on the menu per previous reviewers. I'm not sure I'll be back for dinner, but I'm up for trying brunch sometime.
(3)Samantha G.
It was a 30-min wait on a Wed night at like 8:15pm. But it was worth the wait. The space itself is small and kinda cave like. Modern and simple. It can get quite loud, but still has an intimate feel to it. The cocktails were unimpressive. Some interesting combinations, but they fell flat on execution. The wine list is decent and includes some Greek wines - stick to that. The menu has LOTS of great sounding items. Frankly, I wish we had been more hungry and/or had more people with us so we could've tried more. The service was great. Our server was friendly, attentive, and able to make good recommendations. We ordered the dip sampler (an absolute must). Lots of good dips were included. I think my favorite was the jalapeno one. We also had the mini gyros withe the green harissa. Great plating. Good flavors. Total mouth burn! But quite tasty. Without the green harissa, I don't think they would've been all that interesting. And then we had the saganaki (flaming cheese). It was good, but I've had better. It tasted a little too fried and bleh here. Had we been hungrier, we absolutely would've dived into some of the great sounding pasta dishes (especially the mac 'n' cheese) and some seafood items (the shrimp dishes sounded wonderful). All in all, it was a pleasant and filling experience. We will most definitely be back. I look forward to trying some of the more adventurous items.
(4)Megan M.
1 penny mimosas with all you can eat brunch- how kitchy! But seriously, this brunch is the best. Might I recommend: fried zucchini, sausage, challah french toast, and the banana dish. And the pork belly. Oh, great bacon, too. Basically, I won't need to eat for days.
(5)Aimee B.
Cava has usually been a solid four stars but my experience last Saturday was about a 2-3, mainly for the service. (Food is good but avoid busy times). We were a group of 8 so we had to settle for two tables of four, not a problem. In fact it worked out bc my table wanted to order a la carte while the other table opted for unlimited brunch (the brunch option is only available for the entire table). The dishes rolled out so slowly (it was a good 20 minutes before the first dish arrived) and erratically (the second dish came 15 mins later - each of us was at different stages of their meal).The brunch might be a great new addition but the service needs to focus the same energy and attention to non-brunchers. Trying to pay was also an ordeal- had to flag down 4 people before the check came. Even still, our server held us hostage by stopping by our table several times but refused to take the credit card even when we waved it in his face and said point blank that we needed to leave. I get that they're busy but they need to iron out their service. I miss the time when Saturday afternoon at cava was not such a frenetic dining experience.
(3)Lotta M.
Everything at Cava Mezze was terrific! We ordered so many appetizers and each one was delicious! The organic red wine from Kalavrita was a good deal and very smooth. Loucoumathes were just like grandmother use to make and the French toast was a delightful surprise! The staff couldn't have been more efficient and helpful to make our visit perfect! Definitely recommend Cava Mezze and we will be back soon! Thank you!
(5)Nikki B.
This is a review on bottomless brunch and associated drinks. Do not bother with the penny mimosas unless you want a glass of juice with a splash of bubbly. Not even worth the calories. Food was decent; a few poached eggs undercooked and the pancetta was overcooked, but the lamb and gyro dishes were very tasty. The service was also very good (Thanks, Jack!)
(3)Marina E.
There is good food and then there's pretty food and I thought this joint served pretty food. It didn't wow me in the least but it wasn't whole heartedly bad either. My favorite dish was the chicken lolipops but hell, fried chicken is awesome enough. Drizzle honey on it and you've just created a monster. OH and your portions are way too large to be considered tapas. And for the love of God, if you are going to served super sized tapas, please give us bigger tables. My comfort level was up there with eating on a flight while sitting between Butter Bean and Liza Minelli's freak husband.
(3)Jen F.
Cava, you complete me. I am a hugeee fan of Cava. I typically frequent the takeout version but it's nice to have the sit down experience and try different dishes. The dip platter is a must. Tzitzaki, hummus, salmon dip, grape leaves, crazy feta... just make sure they keep the pita bread a'comin! Next, I always get some type of cheese. The flaming cheese is always a solid choice and so is the baked feta. You really cant go wrong. Drinks. The strawberry mojito is awesome. I need to come here for happy hour sometime. Dessert. Get the baklava. I was stuffed and still ate the whole thing because it was that delicious. Flaky bread, honey goodness, topped with pistachios. Yes yes and yes. The service is great, staff is friendly, and atmosphere is dim/trendy.
(5)Nish K.
Dim lighting, pricey and noisy but good food, fast service and a nice place for a date/special dinner. Went here for dinner on a Saturday and found the place to be decently packed. I was ready for my food after struggling with the Saturday traffic, street cops and parking struggles. As a party of 5, we ordered a round of drinks and about 10 plates. Being a tapas place the portions are not big and depending on your appetite you can find the place a little more pricey than the "$$" sign on yelp. My cucumber Mohito was made perfectly, and I did get to try the white and red Sangria (both of which were pretty good). For the food, we ordered: Spicy Lamb Sliders: Winner!! The lamb was juicy, the spicy sauce was just bout enough to tingle my taste buds and the portion (2 sliders) was good for 2 people. Mini Gyros: I don't know what the meat was inside, but it was good and filling (2 mini gyros nicely packed in foil and presented). Falafel Fritters: I found them to be dry and decently seasoned. Cauliflower: Meh. For the vegetarians on our table :) though it was well received. Lollipop Chicken: Chicken drumstick with a sweet honey sauce. Meat was tender. I was however, not a fan of the sweet sauce - too sweet for me Saganaki: Two pieces of cheese that are flamed using brandy. This dish is worth ordering only for a good show. Over time the cheese became hard and I did not like the taste of it. Our table had mixed reviews about this one. Personally, I would not order this again. Our service was prompt, and our food was brought out as it was prepared. Our server was attentive to clearing plates that were empty keeping out table ready for the next plate. Overall, I found only a few dishes to be good, the ambiance too loud and dimly lit (could not read the menu properly) and the price to be more expensive than that listed.
(3)Jessica O.
Hands down best food, service and vibe in Arlington. This is my go to spot any night I want some good eats and cocktails. Wonderful ambience.
(5)Maggie H.
Great greek tapas. My husband and I got the Hanger Steak, the Lamb Chops, the Scallops and Tzatziki. The Hanger steak was delicious- tender and perfectly seasoned. The Lamp Chops were great as well and the tzatziki was creamy and well seasoned. All in all, a really great meal, and we were stuffed afterwards. If you like happy hour, this place has a great one- we don't drink so we didn't take advantage of that. Our service was slow, which is why I had to take away one star, but other than that no complaints about the food at all.
(4)Payal P.
Was looking for a new place to try for lunch and while walking down the streets of Clarendon we came across Cava Mezze. I have to say we went in thinking we wouldn't be satisfied with the food, but we were so wrong. Absolutely loved this place and even though the plates are VERY small for the price you pay, the taste of all the dishes was amazing and very well worth it! We went in for lunch and between two people we ordered Hummus, Zucchini frittata, Mini Chicken Pita and Spicy Lamb Benedict. All of those dishes were pretty amazing, but I felt that the Chicken Pita needed a little more sauce or flavoring. Other than that everything was great, including service of the waiters. You don't have to order everything at once, you can order as you're eating another dish and the new plate will be out soon. It didn't take long for our orders, so that was definitely a plus especially because the place was packed at lunch time. I highly recommend this place, even to try at least once!
(5)Monica S.
Came here for a bday and this place exceeded my expectations! Their fresh bread is so good (don't fill up on it!) and each dish was so tasty! Their tzaziki sauce is A+! Many options for both vegetarians and meat eaters. My friends swore by the brussel sprouts but they were too heavy for my liking. Service was excellent and food came out quickly! If I remember correctly it took forever to get our bill. But I will definitely come back!
(5)Debi N.
Cava is pretty pricey for the amount of food per cost, but it's just so darn delicious. I have a pretty big appetite and I love trying a variety of dishes, so for two people, ordering 5-6 plates can easily run you $75 not including drinks. Not an everyday dinner option but definitely worth it for a special occasion. All the dishes are unique, delicious and nicely presented. Must tries are the lollipop chicken, opa opa shrimp, scallop risotto. Granted, since it is "tapas" the portions are small which is a let down. There are many different tapas to choose from so get a variety. If you like dirty martini's try the Crazy Dirty. It comes with blue cheese stuffed olives which are so delish! The majority of the times I've dine here I've sat outside in the back patio. Yes, there is a back patio. As well as some outdoor seating right outside the front on the sidewalk if you prefer to people watch. But the back patio is quieter. I've dine inside once and remember it being dark and loud. Service is standard. I don't have any complaints and I don't remember it being phenomenal.
(4)Eric A.
The menu is tapas style Greek food. Every dish had its own variety of flavors and the ser was fast. You pretty much have to get a reservation as the place was full (on a Saturday night). There were several dishes that I would have liked to try in addition to what I had so I'd probably go back.
(4)James D.
So, my first ratings were for dinners only, and all my entree experiences were well met and fair to that point IMO. I went there for brunch recently, and I was still pleased, if not more than pleased with most of their food, but there is one thing that struck me as downright terrible. The bacon. Never order the bacon unless you want to spend $7 on one strip. I am not exaggerating. I've never seen something so sad and depressing as a waiter bringing me a strip of bacon, conveniently cut up in to thirds(SMH), and bringing it well after all the other food was served, including the dessert ones. Maybe they ran out and had to ration.
(3)J M.
My favorite spot for dinner or dates in Clarendon. It is a fun atmosphere and everything on their menu is delicious. I would recommend their scallops rissoto, shrimp slovaki, and the new calamari dish. You MUST save room for the french toast desert. I promise you it will not disappoint.
(5)Mia R.
We eat here a lot because it never disappoints. It's good for a date night or for bringing the whole family. The flaming cheese is impossible to resist, but the shining star is actually the greek yogurt cheesecake. Go for brunch when the weather is warm and you can actually sit outside.
(5)Cheata R.
the french toast broche dessert is heaven in your mouth. Brussels sprouts and shrimp soulavaki are my fave. the pita and the dips they offer to the table are plentiful and delicious
(4)Colin C.
Not usually a fan of tapas places as they claim to be reasonably priced and offer variety, which can only be true if you are a waif of a girl on a diet. The variety part is always true but you have to order 5 dishes as a guy and your bill ends up being $50 for just you. Anyways, this place is different. I wouldn't call it cheap but the tapas are definitely larger and more substantial to go along with the great dips and constant flow of pita bread. Service was excellent and the food came out almost immediately as they were ready, rather than all at once. The atmosphere is a but loud but nice and in a good area of Clarendon. Drinks were amazing, the usual expensive Arlington prices but they actually deliver here and are worth every penny. As for some specifics on the food: -brussels sprouts and cauliflower were both amazing and perfectly cooked with light batterless frying. -spicy lamp sliders were humongous and very delicious. Cooked almost rare in a good way, with excellent sauces on it, one spicy and one taziki/yogurt based. -chicken lollipops had an amazing yogurt and honey sauce and were cooked well. -pork belly was dry and over cooked and missing the requisite fat in my opinion. They were nicely crisped but just not melt in you mouth quality. -saganaki or flaming cheese is delicious and a nice show as they light it on fire. You will see this happening throughout the restaurant and not be able to resist. -eggplant dip was flavorless and looked like dog vomit. -crazy feta dip was delicious with a nice kick. -Zucchini fritters were decent, with the typical taziki sauce with all the dill. Overall, I highly recommend this place for a date night, out with friends, or any other reason. It gets packed so try to arrive before 7 or 7:30. -
(4)Joshua W.
If a fast food Doner/Gyro house gets 0% and 100% goes to a a highly rated greek tapas place in DC, then Cafe Mezza is 50% in food quality at 75% of the price scale. My table of 8 sat outside in the really nice courtyard and at least 15 tapas were passed around the table. This was followed by desserts and some Sambuca. The service was great and the outdoor plaza/patio was charming. The food didn't impress me as the price and portion size implied. The yelp price should be $$$. Lots of hits and misses and no home runs. The watermelon/feta tapa was creative and tasty while brussels sprouts were over-sauced and ill-prepared. The hummus, babaganouch, and other greek staples were mediocre. The flamed cheese was a huge let down. The sliders, gyros, and other meats were just good. Everything was well presented. Most the others guests at the table, notably the non-foodies, were impressed and loved the meal. Even my wife really like it. We agreed to disagree. I have challenged her to compare with Zaytinya one of these data nights. I also have to note the dining room was overwhelmingly loud. I swear the indoor acoustics amplified and echoed every sound and voice to a point where I literally felt dizzy. Were I seated inside I would have left immediately. My wife insists we should try it again next time her family is in town so I'll try to keep an open mind and make sure we get a patio seat!
(2)K K.
This is probably my favorite of all Cavas. Food is great, service is great, it's somewhat convenient to get to (parking garage very close by), and it's got a cool, fun vibe. Five stars all around.
(5)Blanche N.
I went on a double date here for brunch. We had an amazing time. They did not rush us. The food was fast, interesting, and great. There were one cent cider mimosas involved. I highly recommend this place.
(5)Shamik T.
Like everyone else, I was impressed by the Saganaki, though I felt bad for our server, who must have burned himself a few times demonstrating the spectacle. Food overall is good, albeit a bit on the expensive side, considering the portion size. Then again, this is Clarendon, where a place like Cava can easily get away with that. Brussels sprouts were tasty, and not bitter, which I think is an easy pitfall. Watermelon/feta salad was nice, but I should have waited until later in the season to have it. The melon itself was not as sweet as it would be in June or July. Nice drinks, and generous pours. Good staff, though the rear patio made me feel like I was eating in the courtyard of an apartment complex (because that's what it is).
(4)Michelle N.
Despite not loving Cava Mezze Grill, I was opening to coming to Cava Mezze for brunch with some girlfriends. Looking at the menu, there appeared to be lots of yummy options, tapas style! The look and feel of this place is nice. There's exposed brick walls, wood, and iron throughout. Very rustic! My friends and I shared the dip platter which was good, though I probably only liked 2 out of the 5 options. The pita bread was also warm and toasty, although my companions preferred it to be softer. I got the chicken lollipops after reading a few Yelp reviews -- yum! They were sweet and crunchy. I could've used less sweetness but they were definitely delicious and melted in my mouth. I also got the green eggs and ham, which was deviled eggs with pesto and bacon. Everything tasted amazing and was presented well. I'm actually surprised I didn't take any pictures. i guess I just wanted to dive in ASAP! Our server was very nice and accommodating. He gave us our space when we needed it (us gals hadn't seen each other for awhile) and came back to our table whenever we needed him. I'm glad my friend suggested Cava Mezze. I'd definitely return again.
(4)Jac H.
I used to frequent this place often when I worked in the area, and now I go back just because it's so darn tasty. Especially the saganaki (the flaming cheese!) During weekdays I would get the gyro lunch special... and it was always great. Came with fries. Most of the dishes during lunch come with fries. Once i asked for a side salad in replacement of the fries and they charged me as a full salad ($9 + $9). Luckily, they adjusted the price down for me... The service is always consistent, and i love that they sell their sauces/spreads at whole foods! I go to wholefoods for the harissa, roasted eggplant dip, crazy feta, and tzatziki. And the brunch! Bottomless brunch! So good. PS, make sure you don't try to go on lunch on Mondays, I've made that mistake many times... it's closed.
(5)Lulu N.
Stopped in here for lunch! Very good food! I recommend the Cava Mac n cheese, mini pita (gyro) and the scallop risotto! It's small plate style but two dishes filled me up!
(4)Jackie B.
Cava Mezze is awesome. This restaurant is what first started my love for tapas. Yes, it can get pretty loud and the lighting is quite dim, but the overall ambiance is trendy and fun and the food is great! I always enjoy myself here. My Top Picks: Lollipop Chicken - Never thought dipping fried chicken into Greek yogurt and honey would taste so good. Pork Belly - The skin is crispy and the meat is moist and is both sweet and savory. Saganaki - Flaming cheese! They squeeze lemon and pour brandy on the cheese before lighting it on fire - a perfect companion to the flat bread served. Spicy Lamb Sliders - I'm not a huge fan of lamb but these are excellent; it's one of the more substantial tapas dishes that will get you full. Scallops Risotto - The scallops are pan seared and the creamy risotto is full of flavor. I've explored the menu quite a bit but always come back to these. I would give this place 5 stars based only on my favorites, but because there are tapas restaurants like Zengo where everything is amazingly delicious, I will have to keep this at a very respectable 4 stars.
(4)VA W.
(SORRY THIS REVIEW IS FOR CAVA GRILL NOT CAVA MEZZE!) Awesomeness on my plate. As a graduate student $7 for a meal and $14 for two is a steal! I mean cummon! Deplorable non-edible McDonald's value meal is like what $5 to $6 for JUNK! Why not spend a dollar more for edible food? Okay now to discuss my meal. Ah, bliss. I got the mini pitas with falafel! AWAW so good. Paired this with pickled cabbage, feta, mint, cucumber & tomato salad, tomato & onion salad, yogurt dill, squeeze of a lemon & tzatziki sauce! OMGoodiness Heaven. This is a veggieheads ultimate dream! Maybe I am a hippie but for such affordable food I WILL and CAN clean up after myself. Maybe it is the DMV, but why leave your crap for someone else to clean? Dude that is just wrong on so many LEVELS! Okay so my #1 Fav place to eat and I do not have many! Enjoy my lovies! (SORRY THIS REVIEW IS FOR CAVA GRILL NOT CAVA MEZZE!)
(5)Courtney P.
My coworkers and I have decided to come to Cava Mezze every time we're in town! I love the rustic look and lighting--makes for an intimate atmosphere amidst the hustle and bustle of this constantly busy restaurant. The booths are made up of tall wooden planks that make it a bit too stiff to lean on (must be a strategy to make customers sit forward and enjoy the food because it worked on me for sure). My friend suffered a few minor bumps on her head from leaning back too fast, so try not to do that! Anyway, the servers are very attentive and efficient, quickly filling up our water glasses, deftly handling multiple plates at a time, and removing emptied plates from our table. Those are the very things that I like about good customer service! Now for the most important part--the foodddd. Even before the food arrives, I try to stop myself from eating all the (FREE and UNLIMITED) warm and soft pita bread served with olive oil, red pepper paste, and olives--but I always fail. My coworkers love ordering the Crazy Feta, and Tzatziki (sp?) dips to share. It's not a surprise that the Crazy Feta is so popular. How can you resist the bits the jalapeno to complement the delicious bits of feta cheese on pita bread? My go-to dishes are the Chicken Souvlaki and Roasted Eggplant dip. I love the smoky after flavor from the roasted eggplant along with the texture made from the dip. The Chicken Souvlaki is like a chicken kebab with onions and always tastes juicy and perfectly seasoned.
(5)Anjali K.
I still love this place. I went last night with some friends and wanted to recommend the Cava Strawberry and White Peach Cosmo. Fantastic! The lamb slides are my favorite menu item with the zucchini fritters coming in as a close second. I've also enjoyed their dip sampler, which includes a variety of dips accompanied by pita bread. This is a must try restaurant!
(4)Mike C.
I really wanted to like this more, and it is about as real a 3.5 star as I've ever witnessed, but something about it left me wanting. Good food, good service, LOUD, and dark. That's a pretty good summary. I applaud them for a creative drink menu, but both drinks we had (Hemingway and some spicy cucumber thing) seemed watered down and/or a bit off the mark. The food was outstanding. Between the two of us, I think we ordered six plates. Shame on me for not writing this review promptly, but I'll do my best to recollect them: Hummus - Just OK. Flaming Cheese (they'll know what you're talking about) - Awesome presentation and nice tasting. Get it. Zuchinni Fritters - Very good. Lollipop Chicken - Good, but a single order was too much for two. Very rich. Oyster Risotto - A small scoop of risotto thrown onto a dozen or so oysters. I couldn't figure out how to eat this properly. Skip it. Maybe that was it? I swear we had six, but I digress. It was a good experience, but I don't think I'll be back anytime soon. As mentioned, it was lacking a little bit of something. Maybe it's simply the fact that there are so many other great places to eat in the area? In any other location, this would likely be a four star, but it is where it is.
(3)Elle B.
Really enjoy this place, go-to for visiting family/friends, dates, or just a guaranteed good dinner. Positives: various drink choices, well-priced (can leave spending $25-30/person inc. tip/beverages!), great ambiance, large menu (dinner and brunch), good location. My favorite options are Saganoki (sp?), spanicopita (sp?), gyros. Negatives: sometimes long wait and the hostesses can be somewhat rude. Overlook the people taking your name upon your arrival and you should have a great time!
(4)Heather G.
Great experience last night! First of all, the service was fantastic--friendly and very attentive without being over-bearing. The drink menu was fabulous and a great start to an entirely satisfying dining experience. We had fun trying an array of dishes including a delicious Greek yogurt cheesecake finale. If you are looking for a fun and delicious evening, you won't be disappointed!
(4)L K.
I have been here 4 times since January of 2012 and this place is amazing! I love tapas and I love all their food. I especially love the chicken lollipops! so good! The drinks on the other hand needs a little more improvement. I came here for brunch one time and ordered a jalapeno margaritta drink which was not so great. I came here for dinner on another occasion and got the red sangria which tasted like soap. Wasn't a big fan. but i will definetly keep coming back here for their food :)
(5)Stephanie G.
This review is mainly for the restaurant. I hope they consider this opinion when deciding their company policies. I have been to cava mezze about 5 times and I've had a delicious dining experience every time. They have a great wine selection and delicious food. This review is for their customer service. The last time I went to cava mezze was on a Friday evening. We had three people in our party. My father dropped my mother and I off at the restaurant and went to park the car. When we explained that we were a party of 3 to the hostess she refused to seat us. She said that she would only seat us when our whole party was there. I understand why restaurants have this policy but in this particular instance it seemed very unreasonable. There were MANY open tables and we were only missing one person from our party (it wasn't like we were a group of 10 and only 3 of us were there). The hostess refused to budge and eventually she asked us if we wanted to speak with the manager about their policy. Of course we said yes. The manager came over and sat us right away. The whole incident just showed a complete lack of common sense about good customer service on the part of the hostess. Instead of rigidly sticking to your policy, you should accommodate the guest if possible. She should have at least called the manager over earlier to resolve the issue . Instead she kept repeating the company policy and ignoring us and the fact that we were obviously unhappy with the situation. Other than this incident we had a lovely dining experience. Don't let this stop you from coming to Cava Mezze. But if you have issues with the hostess just ask to speak with a manager. The managers obviously know what good customer service is even if they don't pass on this knowledge to the hosts and hostess.
(2)Shahrokh G.
Over priced! Bad service! Not the best quality food! There are much better Mezze places in the area!
(1)Richard J.
This is an interesting restaurant with a large assortment of food, ambience and good service. But don't come here if you are hungry or looking for value. We spent $140 for four people and left hungry. They want you to buy lots of small plates - typically $8 to $12 each - but the emphasis is on small. For example, the fried calamari ($8) was very good but gave barely a taste for four people. The lollipop chicken ($10.00) was made with the three smallest chicken legs we have ever seen. The best dish we had among eight we tried was Pastitsio (a special that night) but this was made with spaghetti (?) and was very light on cinnamon, the characteristic spice of this dish with only a thin layer of Béchamel sauce. We love Greek food but it was hard to find anything on the menu that was remotely authentic. Nothing was bad, the service was good and they have a great selection of beers on tap but this was still very disappointing.
(2)Poppy B.
Good times at Cava Mezze in Clarendon! The raspberry monitors are awesome. My friends had the cucumber jalapeño margaritas - although not for me- they loved them and had a few rounds. Good fun energetic service- matching the restaurant. All the food was good. One of my friends is vegetarian so we always wind up with a lot of variety - and everything was good, fresh, still hot. Will return!
(4)Rachel S.
Wow....wow....wow. I have to say first, that Tapas/Mezze style is my favorite way to eat. I love being able to try a bunch of different foods, rather than eat a whole entree of something. Cava Mezze has a huge and wonderful menu, with tons of options, is vegetarian friendly, and everything we got was delicious. A quick note, though on a couple of small drawbacks...it IS really dark in here....my in-laws used their cell phones to see the menu, and it's also on the louder side (at least it was on a Saturday night). So, not a place for a quiet meal and be prepared to have a bit of a hard time reading the menu....a cell phone seems to do the trick though, if you have a hard time reading in low light. We also had a hard time finding street parking, again, because it was Saturday night...and the lot was ended up in was pretty expensive ($20 for the three hours we were there). But we're not terribly familiar with the area, so there may be a trick to finding street parking around there on a Saturday night? About the FOOD.....First off, I have to recommend the raspberry mint lemonade....as someone who can't drink, it was refreshing and the fresh, muddled mint really made it into something special. For those able to imbibe, the wine and beer list will also not disappoint. We started with the dip tasting....and thankfully no one else at the table wanted the Taramosalata, because I got it all to myself...and it was AMAZING. For those of you who like the jarred stuff, you must try this...it's fresh and yummy!!! The other dips were really good as well. My husband and I, being spicy food fans, particularly enjoyed the crazy feta. They also kept the fresh, warm pita coming...which was great as well. Oh, and their harissa is also really phenomenal....not over the top spicy...but a nice kick. For those not into spicy, the other dips such as the ktipiti, hummus and tzatziki were really tasty. All really fresh. We then ordered the roasted beet tartare....if you're a beet fan...this is definitely a must. The grape leaves were good, not amazing, but definitely a solid pick. The halloumi cheese was really great, with a nice hint of mint, along with that grilled flavor that made it really tasty. We also ordered the spanakopita, and it was good...again not something to write home about, but quite satisfactory. My father-in-law and I shared the mini-gyros....I definitely recommend sharing this with someone if you plan on trying a bunch of other things, because by itself is pretty much entree sized, and you won't be able to eat anything else! It was really, really great...if you like gyros...you'll love this. There are these pickled onions on there that really make it pop. I did end up using more tzatziki from our dip tasting on them, though...kinda wish it came with a little more on there. But the mini gyros are definitely on my recommended list. We also shared the grilled meatballs, which were tasty...not amazing but good. If you're not bursting by this point....I definitely recommend the donut dessert, and the baklava. My in-laws enjoyed their poached pears as well, but the donuts and baklava were a home run. All in all, Cava Mezze was a great, great meal...I definitely want to go back, soon.
(5)S P.
went there for brunch recently. The food was all amazing. It was snowing, so it was the perfect place to have lunch on a sunday and some drinks while watching football. we started with a mimosa and bloody mary. (the mimosa was a little too much orange juice for my taste and too sweet, bloody mary was amazing-- the sip I had from my friend. For brunch, we shared the crazy jalepeno (great as always), lamb sliders (so flavorful and some of the best lamb sliders I've had. moist. I'm dreaming of them right now.) lamb benedict (this was okay. the other lamb dishes on the menu are better like the lamb meatballs), and scallops with risotto (delicious and creamy. one of my favorites!) and for dessert we finished with the French toast and berries with whip creamed made with challah bread (perfect little crisp squares. crispy and sweet on the outside. Perfect ending for brunch. Service was great as usual at this place. My favorite place in clarendon so far.
(5)Kim C.
Delish! They don't take reservations on Saturday night but we were seated within 20 minutes. The food was delicious and we enjoyed everything we ordered. Will definitely be back!
(4)Tiffany W.
Came here for a work lunch on a Friday and was impressed all around . It just opened, so it wasn't that busy around noon, and because we were a larger group (8 people) one of the owners offered us complimentary dessert....what a great start! So the decor is pretty neat here - lots of medium colored wood (wood is raw though it is finished) and exposed brick. It gave it a very modern and chic feel. Also the music playing was lounge-esque (they even played Thievery Corporation, one of my favorite lounge music groups). So we order. I had the lamb souvlaki (see picture) and it was delicious! It looks small, but the pita (which is so soft and wonderful) helped to fill me up. Didn't hurt that I snagged some of someone else's fries...they were really yummy...thin and crispy with the skin on and seat salt....yum! For our complimentary dessert, our server brought out 5 different plates so we could sample some of each. Side note, we actually thought the owner forgot about his offer and we had even made it outside to leave, but he remembered and insisted that we come back in to get dessert. And I'm glad we did! We had 2 types of baklava - one with pistachio ice cream on top, and one with a warm cream in the middle, a chocolate/coffee dish, a greek yogurt dish, and a french toast-like dish with cream and fresh fruit. I tried all except the greek yogurt, and loved them all except the chocolate/coffee (I'm not a huge coffee flavor person). Only negative is they don't take reservations....not sure what's up with that. But, since I was so impressed with this lunch visit, I plan to return for drinks. Kudos to the owners for adding a little variety to Clarendon!
(5)Elisa V.
A great atmosphere for meeting with a group and having a good time (make a reservation). The lighting and noise level is perfect for a late dinner or grabbing a drink with friends. The food is tapas-style, several plates to share (dessert is a must-try). The food also came out when it was done, so at random times which was different but allowed us to sample things at a different pace. Our server was amazing at recommending both drinks as well as the food and quick w/ my indecisive group. We gave him freedom to select our dessert-he chose perfect for us. My first real Greek food experience and I loved it.
(4)Phil J.
Giving it four stars, cause the food was good and it was pretty inside. The waiters were almost too enthusiastic, felt like every time i leaned over to talk to my friend the waiter was jumping in pushing me aside to place a plate down. Not really their fault i guess, but annoying enough to mention. Tapas places like this will always make you pay more than you expect though. Hey, here is an appetizer plate that we charge only a buck or 2 less than an entree, and we call it tapas!
(4)Ju L.
Pros: Nice decor & ambiance, but horrible acoustics. Excellent service, but mediocre food & drinks. Cons: N/A
(3)Shannon G.
A little pricey for me (college student) but the food is amazing. Would be perfect for a night out or date night. Dark ambiance. Great service -- Koula S. and Anthony K. always take great care of me whether at a table or at the bar. Going here is a treat for me!! The Crazy Feta is a go-to!
(5)Sarah W.
Went back to the Clarendon location for Happy Hour a few Friday nights ago. It was very busy in the bar and had to stand for the first drink until somebody left. My main reason for going was to get a bite to eat, not for the drinks, really. I think I just had a beer instead of a cocktail. Most of their Happy Hour menu was sliders, which I was not in the mood for. Fortunately they had the Crazy Feta on their HH menu, so I got that. I would have liked for a larger selection of food on their Happy Hour menu.
(4)Lauren K.
I've dined at both this location as well as the one in Eastern Market and both were great. As a vegan, the menu is a little bit of a minefield but they are more than willing to ditch the dairy where possible. The falafel is mildly spiced and perfectly cooked. Both the green beans and the white beans were perfect. I've purchased their hummus at Whole Foods for quite some time now but it was even better at the restaurant. The biggest star is the stuffed grape leaves. I don't usually like these but the ones at Cava Mezze are the best I've ever had. I like that the food comes out so quickly but it can be a little awkward if you aren't sharing and all of one person's food comes out first. That being said, this is a good place to bring a mixed group of omnis and veggies for a great meal that will please everyone!
(4)Elisha C.
This place has an amazing atmosphere! We dined here with friends before heading out for the night. We were able to share pretty much everything we ordered, the flaming cheese is a must! We thought the prices were very reasonable, especially since you can share most things. Definitely a hot spot in Arlington for any occasion.
(4)Joe K.
Lollipop Chicken, Crazy Feta, Lamb Sliders! Great food. Get there early for a reservation.
(5)Ali S.
The food here is good but pricey. Its a really great place for Happy Hour and group events b/c its LOUD LOUD LOUD and you can yell without any guilt. Although the decor is very nice, all the surfaces are flat and rigid and sound echos. It is not a place you want to go for a date b/c you'll be leaning over and yelling.
(3)Krissy R.
Food is good but the prices are a little high for the portions you get. This is to be expected in Clarendon, though. I visited Cava Mezze the first week it was in business so there was a little bit of confusion about basic things, but this was also to be expected so I completely overlooked it. I ordered the hummus which had a strong garlic flavor (this is a good thing to me) and had a chicken dish - and the chicken was very tender and delicious. The server was attentive and everyone who was at the restaurant with me enjoyed their food. I will go back! The location is great too.
(4)Jay R.
Another one of Arlington's finest! It's a Greek Tapas style restaurant and you should go for brunch, lunch, dinner - great for any occasion. It's tough to find a dish you don't like at this place. Flaming cheese, spicy lamb sliders, fried zucchini, tzatziki... it's all so good. They make some great drinks as well! Go with a couple friends and share a couple of plates, and ask for Beka - she is awesome!
(5)Ivan B.
Food is above average. Good enough that I come here all the time. Wait staff is pretty nice and service is very quick. I'm hoping that the following will help change a strange policy (unlikely, but worth a try). Normally they seat you faster than expected, but tonight (friday) two large groups ahead of our group of 2 decided to grow in size from 4 and 5 to 8 and 9 respectively. Basically what this did was bump us even farther down the list because all of the open 2-tops were saved for 20-45 min each in order to accommodate the newly requested big tables. Logically if someone decides to double their party size after I'm already on the list, they would have to be moved to the bottom of the list - its not different then if 4 new people showed up, right???. Just a thought. minor annoyance, but maybe my logic is wrong here. In the end Cava is a solid place, and is great for dates!
(4)Annette R.
I was not a fan of the food here. When you first walk into the restaurant, there is a strong smell, so that was the first bad sign. The inside was also extremely loud, so we asked to be seated on the patio. We ordered brussel sprouts, didn't like the yogurt sauce, hanger steak, a bit tough and not that flavorful, falafel balls which were probably my favorite dish, and spciy lamb meatballs, too spicy and very strong lamb flavor. I thought I'd try something new, it didn't work out, won't be going back.
(2)Ali B.
Great place! The food is very good, the atmosphere is fun and lively, and I love the tapas-style of dining. I recommend this for groups of 4 or so, so you can try a good number of dishes. I recommend!
(4)Kristine W.
Came here on a Friday night for a table of 3 and we were seated promptly. Cannot recall the name of the dishes that we ordered. I just remember this fancy cheese dish that they bring to your table and light on fire. But of what we ordered, everything was delicious. Our waiter Alex who should be employee of the month for recommending the mango mojitos which were bomb and the awesome french toast/funnel cake type dessert!! We had two servings of it. Will be a returning customer!
(4)Tim W.
Sooooo.... My first experience at Cava Mezze (CM) was an interesting one. I was supposed to meet my date at 7:45p for drinks and dinner, however, she never showed up (she said she tried call, whatever). This left me only two options: Stay and have a few drinks at the bar OR leave and go home. I decided to stay, which was one the better decisions I have made in LONGGG time. And here is why... First, the environment inside CM is calm, cool and collected. The dimmed lighting intertwined with a pseudo-elegant atmosphere is extremely inviting. It seemed as if everyone was enjoying their Tuesday evening in their own awesome way. Second, the staff is fantastic! From the friendly hostess, the on-point bartenders to the down-to-earth owner. Even though I was just 'stood-up' by my date, I got the feeling that my Tuesday night at CM was going to be a good one. Third, the food is outstanding. Their selection of popular Greek cuisine is everything you should expect and a little more. You need to start with the Hummus app. Yum! Finally, I met a hot, "cougar-ish" blonde at the bar and ended up chatting and laughing with her the next few hours... BTW- she said the girl that never showed was a complete bitch (I happen to agree) ;)
(4)Samantha B.
Great place and great food for the price. I came here on a whim because I wanted some Greek/Mediterranean food and I heard great things about the other locations. This location is close to the metro and has outdoor seating. I was a little worried because I thought the portions would be too small (I was advised to order at least 2 or 3 small plates) and that I would end up spending a fortune! It was a little pricey for the amount of food you got, but TOTALLY worth it and reasonably priced for DC. I had the orzo pasta salad with feta cheese and arugula. So good! There was some bitterness to the dressing they put on the arugula which balanced the amount of feta cheese and the taste of tomato (I am not a big tomato eater, so this helped me anyways). The presentation was also fantastic. It was a decent size, probably at least a cup of pasta and a whole lot of feta going on. My second small plate was the chicken souvlaki on skewers. If you want the souvlaki wrapped in a warm pita, go with the Cava Mezze minis. I got about 6-7 pieces of chicken per skewer. They were seasoned well with olive oil and mediterranean spices. The chicken was very moist and not dry which is hard to achieve when it is grilled. I also stole some of my friends Spanakopita (spinach, leeks, feta and phyllo dough), It was hot which was great! I will definitely get these next time. My only complaint about this place is the seating. We were crammed in the front dining area where all of the tables are smashed together. I was elbowed by people beside me and there was not a lot of personal space. Also, my waitress was a little slow at times. Friendly staff overall and I will definitely eat here again.
(4)Dave L.
Went here for lunch and it was great. We had flaming cheese not sure what it was called on the menu, zucchini fritters, lollipop chicken, scallop risotto and pork belly. Everything was awesome. It wasn't crowded at all and dishes came out really fast. Great service all around. There's a Pinkberry next door if you want that for dessert. Parking garage around the corner. I'll be back many more times.
(5)Catherine K.
I had a wonderful dining experience with my friend here last night. I ordered the cauliflower and the salmon dishes. My friend and I also shared the pork belly dish. The cauliflower was cooked well and the greek yogurt dressing was a nice touch. I never thought to pair the two together but it turned out great. The salmon was also cooked well and tasted fresh. The pork belly was unlike anything I've ever tasted before. It had a sweet glaze on it which I liked, but the fat in it made me feel unhealthy. I probably won't get that again for that reason. The service was also great-our waiter checked on us throughout our meal and made sure our water cups were never empty. The dishes are pretty small for the prices, but I still recommend this place for those who wish to eat somewhere nice.
(4)Evonne L.
4 stars - lollipop chicken. honey+greek yogurt+fried chicken deliciousness. 4 stars-shrimp and grits. creamy grits and good sized shrimp. 3 stars-cauliflower. good for a veggie dish. 3 stars-braised pork. tasty. 2 stars-ratatouille. not too tasty and nothing special. 1 star-chicken soulvaki. dry and bland. i'm embarrased for them after getting this. no dish should be this terribly dry. total-$66.17 fed: 4 girls cute date place: check! its really dark but has a really chill and fun vibe.
(4)Layla L.
3.5 ..Pretty good, but doesn't stand out in my head as somewhere I will always remember. It's worth checking out if your in the area.
(3)Hudson L.
This is a place where I think the atmosphere is half the value of what you pay. The food was just OK when I was there, but it's a high energy place where everybody's having a lot of fun. Flaming cheese is usually seen every 5 minutes or so which adds to the energy. I definitely recommend the mojitos! Not as strong as the cocktails across the street at Circa, but they're made fresh and not too sweet.
(4)Tu H.
Stupid good. The scallops with risotto is baaaad ass. If you are in Clarendon, don't miss this place. Service is excellent.
(5)Beatriz B.
This place was great! The drinks were pretty good and the food was amazing for the price. My husband and I had pork and lamb kebabs, but the star of the night was the Saganaki! We ordered it because it's pretty cool when they light it on fire, but the taste was spectacular, I highly recommend! The service was absolutely spectacular. The waiter forgot to put in the order for the Saganaki, and when we reminded him he gave it to us on the house. The pita bread they serve is sooooo good! I would definitely come here again.
(4)Brian S.
I've been to Cava several times and have always been impressed with the food. The staff are always very personable, but agree with previous reviewers that the level of attentiveness varies (although this is said for any restaurant during peak hours). However, the quality and flavors of the tapas dishes are the combination that allows this place to quickly become one of the better restaurants in Clarendon. Personal favorites: French toast (can be ordered as a dessert tapas even if it's past breakfast hours), mini gyros, and mango mojito.
(4)Leese H.
I came here in two separate occasions, brunch and dinner, and both times weren't very good. For dinner, I shared several tapas -mini chicken gyros, flaming greek cheese, chicken kebobs- all of which were either very bland or absurdly salty. There was no core balance of flavors. The waiter was very sweet and he kept on asking us for our opinion, but we finally admitted that the food wasn't very good. The only memorable thing were the mixed mojitos. As for brunch, I wouldn't really recommend any of the egg benedict tapas. The waiter forewarned that most breakfast tapas came in paltry portions. He was right. My egg benedict was measly served, and the hollandaise sauce was awful. The only savior was spread tasting -scoops of hummus, tzatziki, eggplant, feta, etc. There were great flavors served with warm pita. Anyway, the cava waffle is probably worth getting- my friend said it was delicious.
(3)Andy T.
Trendy place in Arlington where you can have small plates and chat away with your significant other or friends. Be aware that it is rather loud inside overall and dark. The bar is long and tight so be prepared if you are on a wait. Also some of the 2 seat tables were kinda close to one another (so I felt that people could hear our conversation). Best dish there was the scallops/risotto. Also liked the Saganaki (they light it on fire in front of you and you can see it everywhere around the restaurant). Would definitely return to this place.
(4)Valarie G.
A lovely little spot in Clarendon. Lots of tapas-style dishes and fun drinks. Despite how busy the place was, we were seated right away and the food was delicious and came out quickly. The bill was a bit higher than expected, but not bad. Unfortunately, the bathrooms were disgusting - quite possibly the worst I've seen at any establishment in quite a while.
(3)Kathie R.
Food was really great... but it was a little too dark for my taste.. I couldn't see the menu. I went with my sister for a sisterly dinner. I don't even know what I ate. hahahah! I asked for suggestions, I know there was a great Pork number and and amazing braised meat with pasta. All I know, it was great to share everything and get a good taste of multiple dishes. The crowd was stylish and bustling. The servers were almost invisible (in a good way). Filled glasses and a nicely orchestrated delivery of food will have me returning. Thanks Cava!
(4)Kelly G.
Positives: - Food- everything I have ordered is delicious! The pita and olives/oils spread you get is a nice touch and very tasty to munch on between plates. - Atmosphere- trendy, indoor seating and there is also a pretty, garden courtyard in the back where you can sit when the weather permits Negative: - Service- sometimes the service can be a little slow. Multiple times I have ordered my first course and it is brought out before my drinks/water and pita bread have arrived Experience: I have been here five times and have had a great meal every time. As your items are brought out as they are finished in the kitchen, I recommend keeping the menu with you and ordering one thing at a time in the order in which you want to receive them. I always order the scallops risotto, I personally think it is the best thing on the menu! Also, the saganaki is not to be missed. This is the traditional greek flaming cheese that they light at your table. It's delicious and a fun little show.
(4)Lorenzo S.
Fantastic They don't take reservations. The wait was long but so worth it. It was Thursday at 8pm and the place was packed and now I know why. We were a party of ten so the wait was understandable. I got to taste a lot of food. So here it goes: Village salad was yummy with massive chunks of cucumbers. Then I had some cheese in a cute frying pan that our waiter set ablaze with 3 foot flames. Don't try this at home. I had the baby octopus and spicy mussels. Both were decent, nothing to write home to mom about. The octopus was perfectly tender and had a great grill flavor to it, but I found it a little tasteless. It was just one of those dinners where everybody else's food was better than mine. My super hot girlfriend had the lamb sliders. Bursting with flavor! I highly recommend the mini gyros. They are the best gyros I've had outside of New York and they come out like three cute foil wrapped tacos with the fries already in the wrap. They were so juicy and fresh. I am going back just for those. Also To-Die-For: lamb chops ($14.95 pricey for two), lamb meatballs, scallop risotto, ribs, New York Strip was so also delicious ($16.95 pricey for a few quarter size slices). Overall though prices were reasonable. Dessert: I had some French toast with whip cream, powdered sugar, fresh strawberries, raspberries and black berries. TO DIE FOR! And I'm not a dessert person. But breakfast for dessert--the truth! Service was stellar! It was a rye whisky night for me and the bartender was fast and knew his products. That always impresses me. Our waiter was even better--great personality, waters around were immediate, drink orders immediate and came fast, he knew the food and he was attentive to our table all night. We were ten hungry intoxicated industry people and he was Buddha patient with each one of us. We tipped him 10% over the 20% auto grat. Well earned my friend. Even the hostesses and manager were super nice even after our constant nagging from our 40 minute wait. Nice touch: a massive amount of all you can eat pita bread with a three tray dip. Plus, a warm cozy atmosphere. See what all the fuss is about and go there! Trust me.
(5)Paige M.
such a great place to come with a big group of friends! The different spreads were all SO delicious, and we loved the scallops, the flaming cheese, and the brussel sprouts. The only reason its 4 starts instead of 5 is because I've been here for lunch on a separate occasion and it was only ok...
(4)Mike B.
LOVE IT! Cava is one of my favorite restaurants! You simply can't go wrong here! Food is amazing!
(5)Kenneth K.
Went for brunch saturday and the food was amazing. The only drawback is the mimosa and bloody Mary are a little pricy for local market and not the greatest, Go for the food and go elsewhere for the drinks.
(4)Mitzi G.
"But I NEED to have Crazy Feta, we HAVE TO go to Cava!" Yes, there is always a reason Cava is the ONLY option for dinner some nights, err...like maybe at least once a week. And yes, I do resort to childish tantrums if anyone suggests another restaurant. The food is OUTSTANDING. As a girl with some Greek heritage, I have had my fair share of lamb, tatziki, tryopita... and my Yia Yia would approve! Cava has taken a very chic approach to such classic old world fare! The ambiance is upbeat, loud, and swanky. Note: Take out of town guests, order the Saganaki
(5)D M.
GOOD : Food is excellently seasoned-mostly. The grape leaves are mediocre. BAD: The loud atmosphere is annoying. It is not good for first daters. Not to mention the lighting is extremely dim - for what? I can't hear the person across from me and I don't know what i'm eating until I taste it because it's so dark in here! UGLY: THE SERVICE STINKS. It is laughably bad. Our absentee waitress was preoccupied by important things like chit chat amongst co-workers and (shocker) her cell phone. I had to call over a host (because we were close to the front door) to get the table next to us THEIR check. The host gets another waiter to bring their check and then 3 seconds behind that waiter is our section's waitress asking, "Oh. You want your check?" And, NO, she didn't bother to check on my table in the process. I had to get out of my seat again to request a side of sauce for our delicious LAMB MEATBALLS. This is a place that has outstanding cuisine mixed with a bad/LOUD environment, multiplied by a horrendous wait staff. Order takeout. Don't bother sitting down here.
(2)Jaime M.
Love this place!! The best atmosphere. The best food. The BEST SERVICE! Since they have opened in Clarendon I forgot about all of the other places we would venture to. this is a great place for a happy hour, dinner, and brunch. we never think about going somewhere else. The grilled meatballs are delicious and the new cauliflower dish is yum!!
(5)Elise L.
Quite possible the worst take out I have ever gotten. Each dinner we ordered was the size of an appetizer, and overly expensive. I don't mind spending money on food if it is good, but quite frankly we threw most of it out. The lamb chops weren't edible... They were greasy, chewy and poorly seasoned. The other dinners were over cooked just lacked any flavor. We ordered several entrees, sides and an app and not one thing we got was even average. I was very embarrassed because we had guests over and I had to scramble to put something on the table that we could eat. Won't be going back!
(1)Ann B.
I've been to Cava twice now. Both times we really enjoyed all of the food. This last time we had, in order from most favorite to still awesome.... 1. baklava 2. spanikopita 3. mini gyros 4. flaming cheese 5. dip sampler It seemed like every table got the flaming cheese dish. It's quite a fireball.
(4)Capt K.
I'm with Joshua on the dining room acoustics. It's unbearable in there. We made it through dinner, food was great, service good but we could barely hear each other at the same small table. I actually left with a headache after. We all did. And it wasn't even that crowded. I live in Arlington and would love to make it a regular stop, but tried 2 other times and had to leave because it was overwhelmingly loud. PLEASE take a advice from Le Diplomate if not from me. We'd love to come back. See their announcement on yelp. Announcement You couldn't hear, but we heard you. Soundproofing is complete at Le Diplomate. Now you can enjoy some good conversation with your baguette
(2)Kate A.
My favorite restaurant hands down. I eat here WAY too much! Things you must eat when you are here: -trio mini gyro's -lollipop chicken -opa opa shrimp -spicy harisa -the dish they set on fire (can't remember the name) They also have AWESOME sangria.
(5)Haley M.
This is by far my favorite restaurant in Arlington! My best friend took me there for the first time in August and I wanted to keep coming back every day that week. Not only is the food AMAZING, the staff and atmosphere is awesome! Starting off, the fresh flatbread that they bring out melts in your mouth. Pair it with the hummus plate or a side of Tzatziki and it just gets better. Main plates just get better. The Mini Gyros are delicious along with the Chicken Gyros and the Spicy Lamb Sliders are to die for. I have nibbled on other plates from my friends and everything is delicious. I recently got into Mediterranean food and this restaurant exceeds all my expectations. When dining here, you have to finish off with the French Toast dessert. IT'S AMAZING!! I love this restaurant so much I had my birthday dinner here with all my friends and would totally recommend this restaurant to anyone!!
(5)Bonnie P.
4 stars for the food. We shared the halloumi sliders, scallop risotto, one of the lamb dishes and cava mac and cheese. The first two were delicious, and I wish we'd ordered another round of each. The lamb was pretty good, but there was much more rice than lamb. The mac and cheese was so salty it was nearly inedible. I know that both feta and halloumi are salty cheeses, but there was nothing done to counteract the salt. We left more than half of that on the plate. 0 stars for the noise level: it is untenable. I was hoarse when I exited the restaurant, having had to yell, along with my dinner partner, so we could hear each other. Multiply that times 50 other yellers and you get an idea of how loud it really is. It's actually louder than Rustico Ballston. The Cava Mezze space is all cement and brick and glass, so there's nowhere for the noise to go. Install some ceiling buffers and that will improve things a lot. If it wasn't so noisy, I'd actually give the place 4 stars for ambience. Low light, chill-music in the background, good bar with some interesting drafts, fairly boring wines by the glass and a pretty good selection of hard liquor. $10 for a gin and tonic seems to be the going rate in Clarendon for a mixed drink, and that was with Hendricks gin. It was tasty. I won't go back until they do something about the noise level.
(4)Kate D.
Had a nice dinner with a friend here. The atmosphere is great, very intimate, and the service was wonderful. We did the special, a stewed lamb dish, prepared by the chef for his Grandmother who was visiting DC (why isn't this on the menu every time? It was that good). We also did a few vegetable dishes, and the grilled Haloumi cheese. Everything was totally fantastic. Four dishes was perfect for two to share. We topped the meal off with a few glasses of sangria that was perfect. They have a great cocktail list too, though we stuck with wine. Also of note - they have gluten-free menu options clearly marked! They seemed like they could handle any dietary issue you threw at them, so that's nice, too.
(5)Amber H.
the dip platter, spicy lamb meatballs, and lollipop chicken were all AMAZING. seriously to die for, it was so delicious. service was a little slower than my liking but food more than made up for it! highly recommend. also note this is different than their "fast" version at tysons. the clarendon sit-down restaurant is more expensive, but totally worth it in my opinion.
(5)Jennifer S.
Cute place in Clarendon with a good happy hour - $4 Greek wine...not bad!
(4)John G.
Really enjoyed eating here. Great atmosphere that balanced energy and fun with enough quietness to be intimate and enjoyable for a date. We tried 4 dishes between the two of us an found that more than enough to fill us up, so pretty good value for your money. We had the steak, gyros, spanikopita and dip platter and none of them disappointed. Can't wait to go back and try more.
(5)Tu-van L.
I don't need to say much about the food here since as with the other locations, everything here is absolutely excellent. What sets this place apart from the others is the fact that the space was beautiful and seemed more spacious than the others. No matter where you are in the DMV, if you bump into Cava, go! You won't be disappointed. Especially if you have the lamb burgers, the lamb pork chops, the spanikopita and the.....
(5)Renita W.
I had a really great experience at Cava Mezze in Clarendon. The waiter gave awesome menu recommendations to include the Spicy Lamb Sliders and Lollipop Chicken. I was there with my family... So although the bar area made the restaurant noisy... I didnt mind because no one noticed my toddler's sometimes loud excitement. Since the bar was packed... I plan to go back sans kiddos to check out the drinks.
(4)Tom N.
Dimly lit, thumping music, dark woodblock furniture, all so comforting to me. I've probably tried everything on the menu here. If you like cheese mezze, you'll have to order the saganaki, sheep's milk cheese which is breaded, fried, then flambéed table-side. It's mildly salty, slightly sweet, probably bad for you, but definitely worth it. The Cava mac n cheese kinda paled in comparison. The Cava Grill dish is a big sampler of five different meats (of which the spicy village sausage is best,) but you'd better appreciate just one order of the perfect lamb shank. The kokkinisto braised beef was super tender and savory and recommended. Best item by far is the sous vide short rib... a must-have if you're ever near Clarendon; words would do these fine short ribs no justice. I question why common ribeye steak is so popular when such a fine cut of beef like this exists! Just stop in, order some cheese or fries, a glass of wine, and the sous vide short rib. Great service every time, and the staff is super accommodating.
(5)Tracy L.
So much better and hipper than Zaytinya in my opinion. The bar area is a meat market for yuppies, but don't let that fool you - the food is fabulous. Here are some of my favorite small plates - I'm a meat lover as you might be able to tell from my picks: Dip Tasting (6 different dips!) Spicy Lamb Meatballs The Cava Grill (a sampler of lamb chops, chicken souvlaki and meatballs) Spicy Lamb Sliders Your choice of cheese mezze If you're not sure what to get, ask for your server's suggestions. One more thing, try come with more than 1 person because you'll be able to taste more mezze!
(4)Matt W.
Yes!!!! FINALLY a restaurant in Clarendon that understands that service is critical and that it is a team effort! Been three times now and have consistently experienced excellent service. No 'oh, I'm not your waiter.' No 10 minute waits for drink orders. No incompetence! Nope, the waiters, servers and busboys all bust ass and make sure you are never left hanging. For that alone I give Cava HUGE love in relation to most other Clarendon restaurants. The food is above average mezze. Portions are all mezze appropriate other than the souvlaki which are the equivalent of a mezze and a half. Haven't disliked anything on the menu yet. The grilled haloumi cheese is my personal favorite. While the fried cheese fire show is a novelty once, the fire-plosions going off over and over during dinner is a little distracting. The restaurant is a little dark, a little crowded and a little loud. But I embrace those things. Given the service, the food and the drinks this is currently a favorite restaurant. And that is saying something special about a Clarendon restaurant!
(4)Karen E.
Attention anyone that was born and raised in the Mediterranean area, and/or truly understands REAL Med food: this place is not for you. I don't mean to insult, but seriously this place is for anyone who has never visited that region, and thinks this is "yummy, fresh and authentic!" My taste buds were highly insulted. Now, if you want to take it for what it is, an American place disguised as Mediterranean with "oh-so-clever wooden tables" with a yuppie twist : then fine, you might even enjoy it, but I hate it when places are being marketed for something they are not. If you like fresh herbs, fresh flavors, dishes that make your tongue dance, bites that almost make you cry because they taste so fresh and delicious where your mouth can feel every ingredient that was used: don't come here. Flavors are blend, hummus is a joke, the "spicy" is barely even mild, and their "staple" food that supposed to be authentic is not great at all. I don't need more places in Arlington with blend food, we have enough Irish bars already.
(2)Peter D.
My entire family is Greek, so I've been eating homemade Greek food my entire life, and this is not only one of the best Greek restaurants I've been to, but one of the best restaurants of any kind, period. They have a nice mix of traditional Greek dishes, most of which are done very well, and some more adventurous, non-traditional dishes that put an interesting spin on combining ingredients from typical Greek cuisine in new and inventive ways (see: Lollipop Chicken). I could start listing all of the dishes I enjoy rotating through, or everything I think they do very well, but I'd wind up recreating most of the menu in my review. There's a reason why they're consistently rated as one of the best restaurants in DC. There are a few misses on the menu, but they are few and far between. Not only is the food absolutely delicious, with plenty of choices for even the pickiest of eaters, but, by and large, the service is also very good, and the delivery of food to the table is more often than not timed well - no small feat in a small-plates restaurant with a full house. If you get a glass or two of wine each, you're probably not getting out for less than $100, but the food is so good, I'd say it still feels like you're getting a good deal. I can't recommend Cava enough - if you love Greek food, it's an absolute must and, even if you don't, I can almost guarantee you'll find several things that make you want to return again and again.
(5)Cameron B.
Fun atmosphere and great service. This is not a good place for a first date since it is LOUD. My friend and I got a little rowdy with the people at the table next to us and someone from across the room had the audacity to come over to tell us to be quiet. Our waiter, who was cool and hung out with us for a bit went over to tell them that was really not cool! He was a rockstar. The food is good too. No complaints there. The flaming cheese was a blast and it was pretty good, maybe just a little too salty. Lamb slidders were yummy and the scallops in the risotto were cooked properly which is always something I complain about when I eat out.
(5)Matt D.
Great atmosphere and the food was very tasty. Service was quick and everyone was pleasant.
(5)Desiree C.
I've been to Cava 3 times in the past month... The first time was for happy hour, and we only had drinks and apps - the crazy feta was delicious! I normally don't eat jalapenos, but man was it good! So I had to go back for a full fledged dinner experience. Everything we ordered was so yummy!!! The scallops and risotto were the best I've ever had, and the flaming cheese (i cant remember the name!) was excellent too. Desserts were so yummy- i had a crepe with chocolate and strawberries inside, my friend had the chocolate truffles. I would give it 4.5 or maybe 5 stars, but it is a little noisy and a little too dark - but also we had to wait a lot longer for a table than they told us. The staff is super friendly - apparently everyone who works there is either related to or friends with one of the three owners.... I will keep coming back!!
(4)Joe G.
Two words: Flaming Cheese. If you go to Cava Mezze you have to order the Saganaki. Cheese + Fire = awesome. Moving beyond flaming cheese, we've tried several different dishes on their menu and they were all really good. The last time I went the pork belly was slightly over cooked but that was the only complaint. Our favorites so far are the crisped meatballs, lollipop chicken, felafel fritters and white bean ragout. During our first visit the waiter recommended 2-3 dishes per person which, depending on the heartiness of your appetite, may be too much food. The meat plates are fairly large - we actually split one the last time we went. Service was generally prompt and attentive, although drink orders were a bit slow in coming once the restaurant and bar started to fill up.
(4)Vladimir G.
Oh, this place is so great! Everything is full of rich Mediterranean flavors. The staff is very friendly and helpful in choosing something I wanted to try. It's a tapas place so 3 dishes is minimum. Don't forget their desert too! French toast is to die for!!! My new favorite place around DC area!
(5)Rahul J.
Restaurants spawn in Clarendon like fungus, and most of them seem to serve a variety thereof - and try to make up by charging a fortune for it. This place, alongside a couple others, is a pure exception. Good bar to start with - not a lot of space at the counter, and plenty around it while you wait for a table. The waiters seem to know the menu quite well, and I was rather impressed with the recommendations. The only resistance I had to offer was on the wine - they've got this one from Santorini, and though the fellow was profusely swearing by it, I recommend you stay a safe distance away (unless you belong to the brown flipfloped Arlington bourgeoisie that loves to shell out 40 bucks for a bottle of horsepiss). It's tapas/mezze, very reasonably priced, creative with the menu but pleasantly conventional with the ingredients. Things that really stood out: lamb sausage, shrimp bombs (I think), the hummus, this crab meat baked in a pepper, and the spanakopita. Definitely going back there.
(4)Truly I.
Just had dinner there and loved, loved, loved the food. (I docked it one star because we really could not hear anyone speak. OSHA should look into the sound levels - can't be healthy for those servers. My ears still hurt one hour later.) The food, though, was stellar. The service is also excellent. We started with the assorted dips: htipiti, tzatziki, taramosalata, eggplant dip, crazy feta, hummus - all delicious Then: - braised greens (pretty good) - short ribs (stellar) - grilled octopus (very good) - lamb meatballs (pretty good) - scallop risotto (stellar) - shrimp souvlaki (stellar) - lentil soup (stellar) - baklava (quite cloyingly sweet but good pistachios) - choc truffles (very dense and delicious) - strawberry crepe (nice) - greek yogurt (stellar) If they could fix the noise, I'd be a regular. I think I'll try it again at different times of day (this review was for Saturday night after 7 pm).
(4)Gwumpykid D.
The server never checked on us from the moment we had our appetizer until we asked for the check. We never had a refill, never had the dippings, never had any decent service. He was just walking around. I am not gonna bother eating there again. He deserved a Zero tip for his zero service.
(2)Windi L.
Having had eaten at the DC location, I was excited to try their new addition in Arlington. I waited a few months to let them work out their kinks (if they had any) to allow for optimum dining awesomeness. Either my pallet has changed or this is a different chef but I was not as impressed with this location as I was with their DC counterpart. The grilled octopus was very bland and the mussels risotto lacked, um, risotto. It was very odd. Don't get me wrong, I liked the mussels but I was jonzin' for some carbs. Overall, not a bad experience -- it's just not knock your socks off worthy nor it is worth a trip back. I enjoyed some of the dishes I had but it just didn't dazzle as I had hoped. Sangria is good.
(3)John K.
This place is a fine go-to restaurant if you're not in the mood for something more substantial. Solid tapas, but can get loud. If you know what to order here your meal will be very good. However, the menu is so large it will take a while to get a feel for everything. Have to get the Saganaki as people have mentioned. not b/c of the gimmicky at-the-table flambee, but b/c it is just really delicious. Best items I've had: Saganaki Lollipop Chicken Lamb Kapama Solid items include: zucchini fritters ratatouille hummus plate I recommend going when they have sweet deals. i think Tuesday is half off bottles of wine. That's a can't miss deal.
(3)Donis M.
Best Greek Tapas. Happy 2012 everyone.
(5)Mileska R.
Bah! I went last weekend for the first time to Cava Mezze and I have to say it was pretty awesome to be in such a lively place in Clarendon on a Friday night! The interior is dark and loud, there are a lot of people in the joint and everyone looked to be having a great time. Our hostess and server were very nice and helpful. My friends have been here before so I let them handle the process of ordering. We started with Hummus and Tzatziki (I should spell-check that), they bring you warm pita bread with a spicy red pepper smear, kalamata olive, and olive oil to dip while you wait. Order Cava's Hard Lemonade and it was good, two fingers in I could feel my scalp come alive! I had three that night and it was one of the best times to be had in Clarendon! We ordered the flaming cheese which was very good, a bit salty but great nonetheless. New York Strip steak they serve it medium so for you carnivores that like their meat charred, stay away for those like it bloodish then do it! It was very good and tender! Rawr! We ordered shrimp and grits and that was surprisingly very good. The grits were big grain but creamy and the onions and shrimp were perfectly cooked. The serving was very generous considering it's supposed to be a "tapa". The place is awesome, the food is awesome, service is awesome, and the drinks are awesome! I was surprised to see babies and kids here because the noise level is high but whatever they aren't my kids! OH!! Try the French Toast it is to die for and stay away from the crepe...you may die if you try it! IMO the crepe is an EPIC FAIL!
(5)Paul H.
They should change North Arlington's slogan to "if it ain't new, it's through." In the past five years, tons of new shops and restaurants have cropped up; some good, some bad. It's sad to see established places being pushed out of the neighborhood, though AHEM DR. DREMOS. OK so Cava Mezza. Went here with a few friends about a month ago. I showed up first so I hit the bar for a gin & tonic. Solid, but not worth $9. My people rolled up a few minutes later so we sat down and started in with some greek red wine. Never had red wine from the folks who brought you Ouzo, but I was impressed. I think if they marketed this right austerity would be a thing of the past. We then ordered the saganaki, or fried cheese. Doesn't get much better than that for me. We also sampled the pork belly, tyropita and the lamb souvlaki. All delicious. The small plates do add up quickly, but 2-3 plates would be enough to sate me. All in all, service was quick and outstanding. I'm curious who their insurance carrier is because the tableside flambé for the fried cheese must scare the shit out of the neighbors.
(4)Mallory F.
It's a restaurant people, of course it's going to be a little noisy unless you expect everyone to eat dinner in silence. The ambience in this place is beautiful! The patio out back made me feel like I was at home in my own backyard, it's such an intimate atmosphere. Don't understand how neighbors above complain when they chose to live in that area where,clearly, there was going to be some people shopping and dining. The fact is, they're just bitter a successful restaurant is taking over their neighborhood :) On to the food- I've tried many things on the menu from lamb chops to zucchini fritters. Everything is melt-in-your-mouth delicious! If there's something you wouldn't normally try at any other place, try it here because it's always so amazing! The staff is always on their game...very timely and friendly! If I lived in the area I'd be at cava all the time. If you haven't been it's a must! You won't regret it.
(5)Amy N.
Hard to say enough good about Cava. Have loved every dish I've tried there, when often times tapas/mezze places always have those handfuls of dishes that are just meh in comparison to their big sellers/standouts. From start to finish, you will not be disappointed: fresh pita & harissa, rocket salad, village salad, spanikopita, saganaki, grilled octopus, mini gyros, souvlaki, disco fries, challah french toast, cocktails (ahem, spiced pear tree), 1/2 price wine bottles Mondays... Take a date, take your parents, take your girls - always enjoyable. I'd knock off a star for the acoustics (all hard surfaces = nothing to absorb the din), and I can't say I've been overly wowed by the servers, though the bartenders are usually nice/chill (and very politely chatted with my parents!).
(4)Derek K.
It's safe to go back. Four of us had dinner there on Friday night and Anthony was the MC of our experience for the evening We got a whole bunch of stuff this time - here's how it went down: * Cava Fries - very good & crispy * Lamb chops - perfectly done and not salty like last time * Pork belly - MUCH better than last time, not over charred. A little too much fat vs. meat, but, it's a tough dish * Scallops - really good flavor, perfect texture * Lollipop chicken - the nights best, meaty, and the mix of honey and yogurt is a nice contrast * Pork pita - you get 3 good and tasty ones - 2 man bites, or 3 woman bites per pita Anthony spaced out the orders so that the tapas came out timed right where we always had new something on the table and eat while babbling away. I hate it when tapas either all come out at once, or when there's a lag time between dishes - I don't think you should ever NOT have anything on the table to eat. Anthony and crew got the flow right like a perfectly timed conveyor belt. At the end of the dinner he'd asked how everything was with regards to food, service and ambiance and also noted how Cava is well aware of Yelp's reviews and some of the negative feedback they'd gotten when they first opened. He assured that Cava is working on the sound issue where they will be installing sound dampening material under the tables and on front and rear walls. From what I could tell they've already taken care of the blips in service which is now running like a well oiled machine. Cava's here y'all. I recommend.
(5)Miceala P.
What a wonderful addition to the neighborhood! Most wonderful Greek Family staff ever! The trout is deelish as were the various other mezze. Beautiful space. Highly recommend for date night! Best wishes Mikey, Dmitri, Kula and Anthony!
(4)Paul M.
I'm not being precious here, because I enjoy being surrounded by people having fun, but the interior design of this new joint is amateurishly loud, caused by poor acoustical design. This isn't an aspect of restaurant planning which is optional or deluxe, just due diligence -- and at Cava Mezze in Clarendon, they took zero effort to manage the noise environment with elementary design elements. You will be screaming across your table. Servers generally "hit it off" by introducing the fact that you need to buy lots and lots of the little plates, and their recommendations magically seem to correspond with the prices on the menu. One thing you can order -- I don't care to know which -- results in a liability-insured duo bringing out a platter and lighting up a circus-like bonfire flare. Cute. But, better suited for a strip mall Mongolian barbeque in Reston. Incidentally, this carny act scared the living daylights out of the person opposite me, who couldn't see it coming behind her. The entire staff wear black T-shirts with a gigantic Cava Mezze logo. Classy. The starter, a makaronia mezze, was merely a tiny tray of limp pasta with tomato base and plain chicken, topped with what they call (rather comically) "Greek cheese." The pork souvlaki, an entree of sorts with absolutely no garnish of any sort, was undercooked and pink to the extent that the texture varied from dry to gooey. Not a good move for pork. Finally, the crab cakes were decent. We stopped while we were ahead. But, for dessert, we had something called baklava by name, yet it was actually drenched by a tiny ball of pistachio ice cream on top, and overall soggy. Why make a dessert plate out of baklava if it loses its fundamental virtue, of croissant-like flakiness and chewy (not soggy) base texture? As I write this review, I realize (too late) that for as long as Cava Mezze makes a boatload of money from its overpriced menu -- I haven't even mentioned their alcohol mark-ups -- they will pretty much ignore feedback anyway. Clarendon is a booming restaurant market for the strolling upper middle suburban class with their wide-open wallets and largely indiscriminate standards, so Cava Mezze can impress us for one thing above all: right place, right time.
(1)Elina T.
Have previously been to both the Eastern Market and the Rockville locations and was excited to see one open in Clarendon. Came here for dinner on Saturday night. The place has an urban vibe with a bit of a cavernous feel with dim lights and candles all around. I had a cucumber mojito to start, which was refreshing and excellent on a hot day. The saganaki cheese, soaked with rum, is a hit all around -- the servers light it up in front of you. In addition to being a spectacle, it is also quite good. My other favorite were the spicy lamb sliders. The order comes with two, but they're much bigger than your average slider, the lamb is tender, and the combination of the spicy harissa-based sauce and the tzaziki is excellent. We also had the feta fries, the asparagus, the roasted mussels, and the octopus salad -- all tasty and interesting interpretations of traditional Greek food. Our Greek friends who came with us LOVE this place. Enough said.
(5)Robert E.
Awesome in all aspects. Had the Lollipop Chicken it was superb. Also, had various tapas from bar menu, great way to try out new items. The drinks were over the top. Cucumber Gin was excellent. Staff was top notch!
(5)Ha N.
Awesome atmosphere! I came here on Friday - at the tail end of HH. The bartenders were great. They were so friendly and took really good care of me. I met some friends for dinner and our food came out very quickly. Our waiter was very attentive along with the guys that came to bus out our used plates. Definately would come again! Food: We had the pork belly that everyone suggested. It was very yummy . A definate must! The scallop risotto had 3 BIG scallops in it and it was very good as well. Gyro was ON POINT!! The popular braised beef was a little bit too well done for our table. Dessert: Baklava and Crepe. Just get both!
(4)Ryan R.
This place is awesome! Based on Greek cuisine and the small plate tapas concept, Cava brings a flare to Clarendon! This place is only 2 weeks old and has sister restaurants in DC and Rockville. The interior is an urban, open-warehouse vibe which is the one downside. If you are wanting a place to be able to meet with friends, socialize and knock back a few beers or a few of their vast assortment of specialty drinks or wine ... this is the place to come! Well, maybe minus the socialize part because it's hard to even hear yourself think. The acoustics are pretty bad and you wind up having to scream across the 2-foot table to let your friends know the Tzatziki sauce is amazing! The food was amazing, service excellent and you can't beat the price for small dishes. I will definitely be back ... sometime this week :)
(4)Jasmine S.
I thought it was time to write a proper review of Cava, since after almost two years of living in Arlington, it continues to be my favorite restaurant in the DC area. The food is awesome. Even though they've gotten rid of some of our favorites (mussels risotto, sauteed calamari, and half smoke) the dishes they still have are amazing and they are constantly updating the menu. And though the food is unbeatable, it's really the service that stands out. Even if it has been 6 weeks between visits, every time I walk into Cava, they make me feel like I've been there every day for the last month. Everyone is super friendly and the dishes come out quickly. The owner, Andreas, should consult other restaurants on how great service is done. My fiance loves their harissa so much, the last time we were there, they gave us a goody bag with some of their crazy feta, harissa and warm pita to go! I swear, every time we leave this place stuffed with outstanding food and great drinks, we want to go right back in for another round. LOVE this place. One tip - even though it's worth the wait (just grab a drink at the bar and wait for their text message letting you know your table is ready), we've always been seated right away if we get there after 9:45.
(5)Theresa S.
Service: great. Tom was very attentive and repeatedly told us his name. Gave a few recommendations and was courteous. Atmosphere: I like the dark wooden tables and dim lighting. It is loud as heck here, though. I felt like I had to yell as I was catching up with a friend. Geez. Food: Great! Tzaziki was fresh, but I could use more herbs. The chickpeas three ways was surprisingly good! The texture of the fried chickpea balls was chunky and interesting to chew. Had the grilled octopus, and that was good. DIdn't have any room for dessert (we had our eye on pinkberry next door). The basil limeade was overpowered by the presence of strawberry. A plain basil limeade could probably do just as well, if not better.
(3)Anne S.
Get the lamb sliders and the scallops and risotto. Two best dishes. Grilled octopus was tasty too. Cheese pastry puff (not sure of the name was heavenly.
(4)Bren P.
Had no idea it opened, but I'm happy it did! I've been waiting for this place to open ever since construction started. It's only open for dinner service now, but I'm sure it'll open it's doors for the lunch crowd soon! (btw.. they're working on the construction of Pinkberry next door! This will be a killer combo for dinner/dessert) I ordered carry out since I knew this place would be super busy on a Saturday night and sure enough it was! This place was really bustling! The only complaint was that it took a few calls for someone to pick up and take my order. I'll let it slide because my food was ready to pick up in 20 minutes. =) We ordered the Crazy Feta, Pork Belly, Chicken Souvlaki and extra pita bread. Everything was delicious!! They even packed us olive oil, tapenade and olives in little containers. The Crazy Feta was infused with jalapenos, which had a nice touch of heat but nothing overwhelming. Although the dish was a little too much for just two ppl. It would be a great dish to share amongst 4. The Pork Belly was flavorful, wasn't too fatty and cooked perfectly. The chicken souvlaki tasted great as well! Esp with lemon juice sprinkled over the chicken. I'm so happy this is just a few seconds away from my place! More than likely I'll be back here again to try the other dishes. (I'll keep updating with the other dishes i try!)
(4)Joye P.
Snooty if the bar's crowded and you ask if you can sit at-table for drinks and appetizers. The Capitol Hill cousin would be displeased! Not a good start.
(1)Liz H.
Can't go wrong at Cava! I dined with 3 of my girlfriends for dinner and we will definitely be back - and already have plans to bring others there too! Most importantly, the food is OUTSTANDING. The small plates make it very easy to share and try a lot of different things. I opened Yelp on my phone to see what folks were recommending, and boy, I am glad I did. DO get the pork belly, chicken lollipops, and the saganaki cheese (watch your eyebrows on this one, it is lit on fire at the table!). But, ALSO get the sous vide short ribs, the brian eggplant & zucchini, baklava, and the dessert doughnuts. Every single item we ordered was delicious, but the sous vide short ribs were the overall favorite by far. The servers actually answer your questions about the menu without blindly recommending the most expensive items - this is so refreshing. The drink prices are a little high, but the Greek wine is a unique selection, and quite tasty. The ambiance is the only thing I would echo from other reviews. It's pretty dark and VERY loud in there. I still think it would be a great place for a date or night out with friends, but maybe not an intimate conversation. I really hope Cava doesn't go the way of other Clarendon restaurants, it is a refreshing stand out in the area!
(5)Tamara Y. W.
Celebrated my 40th Birthday Brunch here. CAVA was able to accommodate almost 30 women with 5-star service and FABULOUS brunch food! For a crowd that large, the service was if there were only 2 of us! The brunch menu items are just great! The food was FRESH, HOT and FAST. The food was seasoned PERFECTLY, the service was SUPER friendly and attentive and the location is darn near PERFECT. GREAT brunch spot in Arlington.
(5)Daniel K.
A 4.5 honestly, delicious food, reasonably priced, nice seating, fun pleasant wait staff. Parking right around the corner, just a nice experience. I loved the chicken lollipops, calamari and saganaki.
(4)Janet H.
I LOVE HH at Cava! They have a great HH menu at the bar with delicious bar food, great drinks and prices! All I need is my glass of wine, chicken gyro and hummus with pita bread re-fills! I left happy and I didn't even break the bank. I didn't try but I hear their mojitos are pretty good too. The staffs there are very nice and attentive. I am looking forward to another HH at Cava. I would recommend this place if you have one nearby. Mmm Mmm :D
(4)Kathy H.
Went here for dinner on Monday and had an okay experience. We ordered the famous flaming cheese dish, lollipop chicken, cauliflower and mini-gyros to share. I thought while they were really tasty that everything was way overpriced. The service was great and the atmosphere is dark, trendy and candle-lit. The only reason I'm giving it a 3 starts instead of 4 is the prices. I don't think the flaming cheese is worth the $10 price tag. If you don't care about the prices then go for it. The food was delicious.
(3)Jael H.
Solid dining experience. It wasn't too busy when we came in, but for some reason we were seated directly next to another table full of people in a cramped area. Probably because of where we were seated, it seemed very loud. I couldn't hear almost anything our waiter said - my husband had to repeat everything for me. This is the reason I'm giving 4 stars instead of 5, because everything else was great. Started with a beer and a cucumber mojito. I thought the mojito tasted fine, but if it's billed as a cucumber mojito, I'd like it to actually have some cucumber taste to it, which it really didn't. The pita and starter plate instantly won me over. For the first round of food we got tyropita (goat cheese pastry) and dolmadas (stuffed grape leaves). Both were excellent. Our second round of food was the lamb hash and lollipop chicken. The hash was okay, but the lollipop chicken was delicious. I loved the combination of the yogurt and honey on the chicken. I was surprised how full I was from such small portions of food, but I left more than satisfied. Finished the night with the cucumber jalapeno margarita. It's definitely strong on the jalapeno! I loved it, but it is not for the faint of heart. Finally, our service was superb. Ordering multiple rounds of both food and drinks like we did leaves a lot of room for service to suffer, but everything came out quickly and our waiter was informative and attentive. Neither drinks nor bread ever ran empty.
(4)Chich S.
Delicious food and great atmosphere!
(4)Chad O.
Ate here the other week. Been to the DC restaurant before. Bottom-line food is great, but the Clarendon location was very loud. Came with a group of 6. In our own booth, we had trouble hearing from one end of the table to the other. It was a Saturday night, but relatively early, 6pm-ish. Sharing plates is a bit hard when you cannot hear each other. It is Greek tapas done well. Flaming cheese was great, if a bit salty. Lollipop chicken was a standout. I like the variety of cold spreads. Prices are fair, but not cheap. About $30/head including drinks for our group.
(4)Mariel J.
We had dinner at Cava Mezze in Clarendon on a Tuesday night - it has pretty good Greek tapas. I think my favorite dish was the brian (pronounced bree-on), which is veggies in a tomato-based sauce. The Greek mac and cheese was also pretty good, as was the chickpeas three ways. The atmosphere was nice and relaxed - it was a good place for catching up with friends!
(4)Natasha Z.
I love Cava Mezze Grill which is like Chipotle, but Greek style. Since I love it so much, I really wanted to try Cava Mezze, because why would I not fall in love?! My boyfriend and I walked in and were not able to sit in a booth (away from people!) because the hostess said they were expecting it to be packed. Completely opposite of our request, she sat us at a table right next to someone. The waiter was pretty attentive, refilled our waters and came back multiple times while we were deciding on our order. We got plenty of warm pita bread with olives, olive oil, and a spicy dip (not sure what it was) We ordered the dip tasting, cauliflower (wanted the white bean ragout, but it was made with chicken stock) and the lollipop chicken. Dip Tasting: This dish came with 5 dips and grape leaves. My favorite dips were the crazy feta and the tzatziki, while my boyfriend loved the eggplant dip. The grape leaves were not as good as the ones I've had in past- they just didn't pack enough flavor. This was great dish for sampling everything and I would get it again. Cauliflower: This was fried and came with a yogurt dipping sauce (whenever I see that a dish comes with yogurt, I get super excited!). The cauliflower was fried well and it was a typical yogurt sauce. It was a pretty big dish (I eat like a bird..so maybe I'm not the best judge!) However, the cauliflower had absolutely no flavor. It didn't seem to well spiced at all. I did not finish my dish. Lollipop Chicken: This dish came with 3 pieces of chicken and my boyfriend loved it when he ate the first piece! He did not like that the chicken had bone in it. However, halfway through the dish, he wasn't very into it. This place was decent, but we would not come back. I will continue to go to cava grille because it is delicious! After experiencing Greek tapas at much better places, it does not seem worth another trip.
(3)Kati R.
Great place to go with a group; make a reservation. Also very fun for HH. Their drinks are fantastic! I forgot what the name of the tapa is we always get, but if you ask for "flaming cheese" it will come out on fire! It's quite good. Also, order a side of tzatziki for the bread. This is a place I bring any out-of-towners :)
(4)Leslie S.
I went here with five girlfriends for a ladies night out dinner. I loved it! Greek tapas style restaurant? Sign me up!! The feta dip was delicious, my gyros were very yummy although I could do without the fries in them. We went on 1/2 price bottle night so we enjoyed two bottles of a delicious Pinot Gris that was recommended by our server. We also tried several of the desserts. I believe we got their french toast which the server recommended several times. It was good, but very sweet. I'm not a sweet person. We also got some ice cream with a frozen pear that was very good. I definitely recommend this place. Its great to be able to share food with your friends and try multiple things. My only complaint was our party of 6 was sat a very awkward shaped table that made it hard to all converse with eye contact.
(5)Kimberly M.
Came in here on a Wednesday evening after work, around 5:30. We were seated near the back, and it was quiet when we came in. As more people came in, it did get loud, and I can definitely see where a full restaurant would have made it too loud, as other reviewers noted. Also, know that you WILL periodically be surprised by blasts of sudden heat! That's just the flaming cheese... My date and I ordered off the drink menu, which had a pretty good variety of cocktails, some wines, and some of the less common beers (including a cider ale - YAY!) but not a huge number of beer options. The food was pretty good, overall. There were pitas brought to our table with a trio of dips (oil, a slightly-spicy red relish, and olives), and we ordered four items to share between us: -- Mini gyros - If you're looking to keep it cheap and just get one thing for yourself, this is probably your best option. You get 3 gyros in half-pitas, which would have been enough for me. Be aware that the fries will be IN the pita, which was funny to me. -- Fried calamari - Probably my least favorite. I haven't had calamari before, so I'm sure I'm not a good judge, but it seemed tough. The sauce beneath it (tzaiki, I believe) ended up going well with other things, though... -- Spicy lamb meatballs - Good and spicy enough for me. Could have been a little more moist, but I just used a little of the sauce from the calamari to cool the heat and moisten them. -- Chicken souvlaki - Not overly flavorful. Again, I used that sauce. This was a good amount of chicken, but if you ordered it alone, know you're just getting 2 skewers of chicken. In all, the bill came to $73 for the four dishes and five beers. Not horrible...but more than I thought we should be paying for dinner. We did end up full and had a great time with the tapas-style meal, though. So I guess just know that there are a few things (like the gyros) that you can get as a stand-alone meal and choose wisely...or be aware that you're probably going to be getting a little "spendy." (But certainly no worse than the nearby La Tasca.) I guess this style is just pricey... One more note: You can only get the happy hour specials at the bar, so if you want to get off cheap, be aware of that as well.
(4)Nicholas M.
Mediocre at best, with exorbitant prices. If you want authentic Greek food in the DC area, go to "Taverna Kretekou" in Old Town Alexandria.
(2)Dan C.
Excellent place for dinner dates. Healthy food, dime light.
(4)Gio D.
Cool trendy place. I've had a wide variety of the dishes the few times I've been to include: rocket salad, hummus, omelett, roasted eggplant, grape leaves, orzo, lamb chops, pork and chicken souvlaki, braised meatballs, mousakka, rockfish and a few shrimp dishes. Pretty much all were good, some better than others with the hummus being the only dish I didn't like. All in all, nothing was bad (except for maybe the hummus), but nothing was great either. This is a good casual type place to go if you're in the mood for sharing a lot of small dishes.
(3)David K.
Been wanting to go here for a while so a friend and I tried it out on a Friday night....it was packed. We left our name with the hostess (they don't take reservations on fri or sat evenings), then we hustled next door to Fuego for a drink and appetizer for the hour wait - Cavat texts you via SMS when your table is ready. Pretty cool. After some tasty bites at Fuego and some Pinot Noir, we went back to Cave and were seated at a 2 top after a few minutes at the bar. Service was quick and attentive most of the night and the food was delicious. This is tapas style with a large menu, and ordering 4-6 plates will satiate most hungry couples. This place is LOUD. What that means is you and your friend/date can sit right next to another 2 top and they can't hear your convo nor you theirs. It also means you can barely hear yourself think, but we liked it for the time we were there...I hate loud places but I hate people listening in on my conversation more. (It always seems to be some couple who is married or has been together forever and have nothing left to talk about and thrive on the conversations of the table next to them?) The flaming cheese. So we were sitting there, enjoying our food and then a fireball of white light, blue flame and searing heat exploded above and to the left of my head. Girls checked their hair, cats screamed, I thought my collar was singed. This display is apparently the signature appetizer of this place and when it happened I realized it was the guy sitting next to me on a first date trying to do something his girl would notice. Kudos to him, it was the first one I saw and thus it was the first one that was set ablaze since they sat after us. The issue I had is that once this guy opened the door - every other dude in the place (it's a date place on the weekends) followed his lead. For the next hour, every 5 to ten minutes, cheese was set ablaze with the fierceness of a village being napalmed, to my left, to my right, to my rear to my front. Single blasts, double blasts, cheese being immolated all around. I love fire as much as the next man, but this was annoying. I propose a burnt cheese limit of no more than 25 cheese fires per hour if the management happens to read this review. (In reality, the cheese fires belong at Fuego doen the street, they must feel gipped.) Anyway, I loved this place and am going to go back for the brunch, which I hear is good....
(4)Lisa R.
Absolutely DELICIOUS! We visited from NJ and came here for dinner last week while staying in the area. I love Mediterranean food and this place was excellent. The hummus is very low calorie (info for fellow dieters!) and yummy. The pita and dipping choices (oil, olives and some sort of spicy pepper dip) were plentiful and incredible. The restaurant was kind of dark, but my boyfriend and I were too busy enjoying our food to care!
(5)L. K.
How have I not written a review for this place yet! Delicious and amazing. The only downside is the inside can get pretty loud and crowded, so I'd recommend sitting outside on their back patio when it's nice out. The flaming cheese dish and the lollipop chicken are to die for. I could also eat several servings of the tzatziki sauce to myself. There are great vegetarian options too for those who don't eat meat, but if you do, I'd highly recommend the lamb chops. They also have a large drink menu (including a wide selection of mojitos yummm). Overall, the whole concept and atmosphere are really cool. Not the cheapest dinner ever, but one of my favorites in Arlington. I just wish this location would start taking opentable reservations!
(5)Margaux H.
Overall, Cava was solid, especially for Clarendon. Highs were the service (our waiter Devon gave us just the right amount of attention without being annoying) and the wine selection (surprisingly good). Food-wise, Cava was overall unoffensive, with a food good notes, some blahs and some blechs. The olive oil and sun-dried tomatoes to accompany tableside pita were a waste of calories. I *cook* with more flavorful olive oil than they served for dipping, and the tomatoes were way too spicy and kind of pizza-y tasting. The mezze were somewhat better. Grilled haloumi was fantastic. Of course, it's hard to screw up a dish where all you do is unwrap the cheese and throw it on a grill, but still, yum! We also ordered some sort of melange of eggplant, zucchini, onions, and tomatoes. This was not bad, but neither here nor there really. Stewed lamb was incredibly tender and flavorful, but the accompanying risotto was too grainy and like something Uncle Ben's would make for the microwave. If this was in DC, I definitely wouldn't return. But, compared with some other restos in the area, Cava is a reasonable option for a Clarendon dinner. Given that we had 3 glasses of wine between us and 3 sizable dishes, the bill was also quite reasonable! (portions x-posted to my blog)
(3)Mariel G.
ok- I'm gonna keep this simple and to the point.... The NY Strip was nice and tender- but most importantly, order the French Toast!!!! Not only was it the best french toast i've ever had, but the best sweet thing I've ever tasted... No joke!!!! GO now!!!
(4)Becky S.
Yummy pupusas
(4)Amit P.
4.5 stars I've been here several times, and each time I go, I'm always impressed with the food. This place is very popular (and does not take reservations), so if you on a weekend, be prepared to wait. Also, since it's really popular, it gets really loud to the point you have to talk loudly just to have a conversation. The servers there are very knowledgable, and are very friendly. The food comes out a little too quickly, and sometimes you feel rushed during your meal, but still the food more than makes it worth it. Here are a few recommendations: - Crazy Feta - Zucchini Fritters - Lollipop Chicken - Scallops Risotto - Sous Vide Short Rib Also, a great beer selection, and the bartenders make some good drinks - The gf tried the cucumber jalapeno margarita, and she loved it.
(5)Chris W.
Stopped in for dinner on a Sunday evening. Ordered the Crazy Feta, Lamb Sausage, Braised Meatballs, and Chicken Souvlaki. All were good, the Lamb sausage was the best. Still working out some kinks with the service as our feta came out by itself, without any pita bread or the dipping plate(olive oil, olives, tapenade). Within a few minutes, we had two dipping plates to make up for the inconvenience. Beer and wine are $1 more than anywhere else around Clarendon.
(4)Regina F.
Any restaurant that serves you cheese on fire is worthy of an automatic 5 stars.
(5)Rachel I.
I read all the Yelp reviews before going to Cava last night so I knew what to expect. The food WAS pretty good...especially the chicken lollipops, cheese sliders, and chickpeas three ways. The place WAS loud. You don't realize it at first, but gradually the noise of other people trying to make themselves heard over the din does get to you. We felt bad for the waitresses who kept having to make us repeat everything we said...working in such a loud place would probably be frustrating. Two tapas per person are plenty for a typical lady, although dudes might want to consider a third. The drinks were a little overpriced in my opinion. About 45 minutes into our meal, they killed the lights. It was pretty dark, probably the darkest I've ever seen in a restaurant. The exit signs were really the only source of light in the whole place. I guess they're trying to make the flaming dishes seem more dramatic, but I think it's a kind of overkill. I think it would be very difficult to read a menu in that kind of lighting. Although in general I think the pricing was a bit steep, if you order right you can get out of there at about $15-$18/person. I might go back using this strategy, otherwise I'll probably look elsewhere, particularly for dinner with a group of friends. At the same time, I don't really think yelling at my date over the table would be particularly romantic, either. Regardless, I think the place has established a following in the area so I'm pretty sure it will be around for some time.
(3)Marie V.
Great service and good food! The chicken lollipop was delicious along with their cucumber sauce and their cheese that they light on fire before it is served. Great place for girls night out and love how it is small portions so you can share with each other n try a variety of food. I had to give it a 3 because I put my name down on the list as there was a wait. The hostess told me to let her know when the whole party was there and so I did when my friends arrived. Later on I got a text because that's how they page you in regards to your wait And the text asked if my whole party had arrived. I talked to the hostess asking why I got the text since I informed her that we were all there a while ago and she said she had skipped over us previously because I didn't inform her when I actually had. Basically we waited much longer than we should have and I should have noticed that something was wrong when I saw others getting seated after we had arrived. Just irritating because she had blamed me for not informing her when my whole party arrived when I actually did.
(3)Mick A.
I'm on an island here, I get that. I also know that I wanted to like this place very much, with its great interior and exceptional service. But the food was blah, no flavor, and we tried everything - from the octopus to the meatballs to the porkbelly. It just didn't do it for me. And now I'm sad (oh well, back to Yechon! I'm going to start getting my mail delivered there, just to save time)
(2)Kelly M.
Besides the long wait (to be expected on a Friday night) and the lighting (a bit too dark for my taste) - this place was great! We went with a couple who had been there a few times. They mentioned we probably only needed 4-5 plates (for 4 people). Based off my experience with small plates, I did not this this would be enough. We got 6 and it was PLENTY. You HAVE to get the gyros. The crazy feta was a good starter. The pitas we warm and fresh! All in all I will definitely come back here! The staff was nice and assertive. I might recommend ordering plates in rounds, as they do come out quickly. I would definitely come here with at least 4 people so you can taste a variety of options. Yum!
(4)Sirisha R.
I went to this restaurant with a lot of expectations based the reviews... Expected it to be somewhat like Zaytinya in DC, but it was far below expectations. The food portions even for tapas are really small and highly overpriced. Chicken lollipops were too oily/ buttery lamp chops were sub par and quantity for the price was ridiculous!!!
(2)Lindsay E.
Great ambience, good food, maybe a little overpriced. And a little too noisy.. they need to figure out something with the noise situation! Probably will not go back for dinner, just because it's kinda pricey and pretty crowded. Not the best option for a dinner out. BUT I would highly recommend their happy hour! Much better prices, and since you're beating the rush it's not as noisy. I think because it's such an awesome happy hour though, sometimes the bar area gets completely full and then you either have to leave (sad) or bite the bullet and get a table and pay full price. Also, the guys behind the bar are always super friendly and helpful. p.s. you can buy their hummus, tzaziki, and other goodies at Whole Foods down the street!!
(4)Francisco M.
Everything I tried here was very tasty. The dip sampler, the braised pork over rice, and the braised beef over fries were all delicious. The 'Happy Hour" arrangement is ridiculous - there is an imaginary line between the bar and the tables and the Happy Hour specials don't apply at the tables. Our waiter also told us we'd be frowned upon if we went to the bar, ordered our drinks and later sat down for food. I thought he was kidding, but he was serious. He offered to have his cousin explain the arrangement to use; we declined, since the arrangement is perfectly clear, it just strikes us as remarkably stupid. Not sure I've ever been to an establishment with the Inception version of Happy Hour (a happy hour within a happy hour) that only applied in certain parts of the restaurant. I will probably come here again for the food, but I'll go to the bar to minimize my interaction with the waiting staff.
(3)Rosemary C.
Everything we tried was served hot and was flavorful. I especially liked the spanikopita! Everyone should try the french fries with killer feta cheese at least once. I thought their Greek house red was quite palatable. Another person in our party really liked the beer "Bitchin Brew". Wheelchair accessible except the bar; needed to request special accommodations to have Happy Hour menu in the regular dining room since the bar is not wheelchair accessible. This took a few minutes
(4)L. H.
Love the vibe and love the food. Everything is simple, yet tastes fantastic. My only complaint is that the prices are high for the portion size. I have no problem spending good money on great food, but the pricing structure is a little bit higher than most. Order lots of dishes, share, and enjoy. Service is fairly good as well. And don't even get me started on brunch - yum!
(5)Nitin B.
Ate here on a Saturday night around 9:30ish. No wait for two which was great because I had heard about their long waits. The service is top-notch. Our waiter was absolutely excellent and attentive. Didn't have a wine that I ordered but he replaced it with another of the same region, type, price and it was really good. The food was all excellent and arrived in quick succession unlike a lot of tapas places that make you wait forever between orders. We ordered the dip sampler, the cypriot potato and egg fritata, and a salad. The eggplant and crazy feta are amazing, full of flavor, and creamy. Finally a non-generic, non-Americana restaurant in Clarendon that's good. Will return for the meat dishes. The only thing we didn't like is the lighting makes it incredible hard to read the menu and its pretty dark on the inside. Great contemporary designs on the inside and wood paneling and booths otherwise.
(4)Amanda G.
OMG we love it here. The atmosphere is amazing. We love trying different things on the menu. Our favorites are the crazy feta and the saganaki. With the saganaki they set it on fire table side. Great for the entertainment and delcious too! You can't go wrong with this place, very intimate and delicious.
(5)Nicholas K.
Came by this establishment based on a friend's suggestion and I have to say everything was good -- the vibe of the venue, the food, the service, the price point. I cannot wait to go back again. The jalepeño and cucumber margarita so refreshing. There are not enough good things to say about the restaurant. Alex our waiter, was courteous, patient and easy on the eyes (but everyone there was). If I had to point out a negative, the restaurant was so busy during happy hour that I was to enjoy the regular dinner menu with my friend and unable to take advantage of the happy hour specials.
(4)a a.
best restaurant in Clarendon by a mile. went with my sister and her two friends, they have never been there, they could not stop talking about how good the food was. the ambiance was great, the design was beautiful. the service was quite attentive without being overbearing.
(5)Anna P.
All of the greek food at mezze is VERY good, I especially love the saganaki and the grilled meatballs which are delicious. For me, the biggest issue with this place is really the wait time. And they DONT take reservations. Went this past Friday and was told the wait time would be 20-40 minutes, instead we were seated after an hour and a half wait. Given the ridiculous wait time, I will stick to coming on weekday nights.
(3)Pratibha G.
I thought I had died and gone to heaven when I read their drink list. Cucumber jalapeño margaritas? Spiced pear martinis? Not to mention that they make their own sour mix, and Hangar 1 vodka is my favorite. ( Organically distilled, yada yada...delicious.) Nope, it was when I tried their harissa, on their complimentary platter. I just uttered an " oh my god, " and immediately asked the bartender what that was. I think my roommate and I cleaned out about 2 platters before I caved in and ordered my own bowl of it. This spicy, north african, crack paste. Literally, crack. I thought I was gonna put sriracha on everything...no. This. Cloud 9 continued, when I received my lamb sliders...which also, conveniently had a little bit of harissa in it. Along with arugula, onions, tahini, and succulent lamb. If I got trapped in this restaurant for days, no one would hear a peep from me...no complaints, ever. Other people in our party ordered the chicken souvlaki, the cauliflower and the ratatouille. Souvlaki was amazing, ratatouille was a fresh taste, and the cauliflower was good too...( could've maybe been a bit crispier, but to be fair...they instructed us to order the zucchini frittes, and we didn't listen.) but the sliders and harissa out performed the rest. And then we got to dessert. This divine, challah french toast; complete with ice cream, fruit, and fresh creme. If I had a last meal on earth, that one could definitely compete. I am definitely going back...over. And over. And over. GO already.
(5)Cyndy K.
Enjoyed Cava Mezze and having the option of sitting at the bar, at the back patio or in front of the restaurant sitting near the window. Enjoyed the Greek wine and liked the Gavala white wine which was well rounded and a great wine for the summer. The service is unpredictable. It is hit or miss and it is the reason for three stars instead of four. Our first visit was excellent with Chris as our server. The second visit - I was putting empty plates on the next table because it was not being picked up. You had to ask for everything - the server was not on it. The mezze plates are nice to have when you want to have a variety of foods. Food we ordered: 1. The grilled baby octopus was delicious. It was soft and not chewy. 2. The lamb gyros were very good...great presentation, well packaged with the right amount of items - not overstuffed. The flavor was amazing and the pickled turnips add to the taste. 3. The grape leaves were not good...can you believe..you would think it would be a no brainer. The filling was bland - the rice was not cooked well and without any real flavor. It was plated like it was a sushi but not with anything good or tasty in it. Don't order it you will be disappointed. 4. Lamb chop was good - cooked well. 5. Cava carbornara - think about this...Italian/greek pasta...I should have known better but I got lured because I love carbonara and had the best carbonara of my life while in Rome therefore everytime I see carbonara I think of the taste of carbonara from Rome. Now back to reality why would anyone think about eating carbonara in a Greek restaurant? Only me! I ordered it with an open mind because it was made with Greek yogurt which I love. It arrived and I dived in so excited. It was actually good but required a some freshly ground cracked pepper which I requested. The pancetta was not cooked enough..it shoud have been cooked crispy. The pasta was al dente which was good but all together it was not good enough for me. But I enjoyed the entertainment! 6. Cava crab bomb - it is a bomb. Overpriced and not well executed. Not recommended. 7. Spanakopita was delicious - lightly browned on the outside and the filling was delicious. All in all I like the small plate variety, the atmosphere and the wine.
(3)Juliet K.
some of the food is alright, but the service at the front hostess stand is AWFUL and the food is really over priced. they dont take reservations so we tried to get there early and at least get a table. but they wouldnt even seat us until the entire party was there, OR even give us a buzzer until the whole party was there when we would have gladly sat and ordered drinks. but instead we had to squish near the bar and then i didnt even want to drink. rude. the waiter was pretty good except he kept trying to push us to buy drinks. which i thought was super annoying. and its so loud in the restaurant, you cant really talk to anyone at your table while you are eating, unless you want to scream and lose your voice. while we were waiting, i read all the yelp reviews to figure out what i wanted to order. we ordered 2 of the top 6 things that were rated highly on yelp. 1 stars - cava mac n'cheese. if you like feta cheese, then maybe you will like this, but this was too feta-y to me and not enough flavor in the noodles. very disappointing. 3 stars - mini gyros. this was really tasty, and pretty filling. so if you want to order something and not spend too much money, this is probably worth the best bang for your buck. the pita bread is super soft and i loved the fries inside. ask for the spicy sauce. so yummy. but watch out - its really spicy. 3 stars - lamb chop. pretty tasty. one annoying thing is that their knife doesnt quite cut through the meat. but i guess you could just be barbaric and pick it up and chew it off the bone. 4 stars - lollipop chicken. by far my fav that we ordered. super juicy chicken with a bit of honey and greek yogurt. loved the combination. this surprised me the most because i didnt expect to like it so much. 2 stars -baby octopus. i thought the octopus was a little over cooked. but they did a good job of getting the fishy/seafood flavor out of it. over ok. would i order it again, prob not. 1 stars - scallop risotto. while the risotto was super good, the scallops were SOOOOOO overcooked it was like eating a sponge. nasty. just nasty. overall, they SUCK at cooking seafood because they overcook everything, the waiter kept trying to push us to buy alcohol (annoying), the food was really overpriced, its SUPER loud inside the restaurants, and the hostesses were rude. i'd much rather go to Zaytinya if i want to same kind of tapas style greek food. at almost the same price that place is much classier AND tastes a million times better.
(2)Gregg B.
LOUD. 1st -- food was very, very good - well prepared, each of the choices in the dip appetizer were tasty, and just the right amount. It would have been good to know what they were as they were served but.... This is the loudest restaurant I've ever been in. The noise was deafening. If I worked here I would sue for hearing loss. You would win. The waiters have to bend down to get the order. The waiter we had was great. Typically at a tapas restaurant we order 4 or 5 plates. He told us 3, maybe 4 & he was right. We ordered 3 and were full. The drinks were very good and were priced appropriately. The food would have been 4 stars, the noise was really a one. The room had concrete floors, concrete pillars, concrete walls, and no sound suppression on the ceiling. And I think there was even music, but I couldn't be sure. If they do something about the noise, we'll be back -- I'll keep checking YELP to see. Good news is there are plenty of other places to go as good and you can carry on a conversation.
(3)Daniel D.
This place is great! It is normally packed but that is for a good reason - the food is great!
(5)Tiffany C.
My husband and I stopped by this place before we saw a show in the city. We never really eat in the Arlington/DC area since it's not that close to where we live and work. We pretty much just yelped a place and found Cava Mezze to have really good reviews. It's located right in Clarendon - great place to walk around before/after you eat. I was impressed with their friendly/personable staff - quick service - overall environment - and the quality of food. It's a loud place, so if you're looking for something intimate, you might want to consider a different place to eat. We ordered the Scallops Risotto, Mini Gyros, Pork Belly, and the Crisped Meatballs. All tasted really good. The only reason I'm giving this place a 4 star instead of 5 is because we think that the Pork Belly made my husband sick that night. We ate the same thing the entire day - except that dish. He did comment, however, that it did taste good (crispy) and sweet (with honey). Overall, I'd recommend this place.
(4)Kelly L.
I anxiously awaited Cava's opening for weeks. In a sea of restaurants that are all very similar - Cava stands out in Clarendon. I have visited on 3 occasions and decided it was time to write a review. I do agree with some of the reviews here about the noise level, however, as my friends and I can get a little loud ourselves, it really was a non issue. Since I have now been several times, I can say say that the service is quick and very friendly. One of the owners even came over and talked to us during one of our visits. Since we typically go in a group, we order several items and share. It is the best way to sample and decide on your favorites. Although servings are small plate/tapas style, the portions are a little larger than a typical tapas restaurant - and for a group of guys, no complaints here! First - start off with the Saganaki Cheese. It truly is amazing. I have had several variations of the flaming cheese a restaurants over the years, and this is one of the best. For wine - you can't go wrong with the Big Fire Pinot Grigio or Pinot Noir.. I was so impressed with this Oregon wine, that I am now buying it at Wegmans. Order a bottle, you will love it. I also recommend the roasted beet tartare. It is a personal favorite. The village salad is also fresh and perfect for the summertime. My favorite dish is the KokkInisto/Braised Beef. It has the perfect flavor and is the perfect portion. It is a great twist on traditional short ribs. I also prefer the grilled meatballs over the tomato braised meatballs. Both are good, but the grilled have an incredible flavor and the tomato braised were a little too "italian" meatball for me. There are so many good dishes here - you cant go wrong.. also try the chicken souvlaki, and pork belly. The pork belly doesnt have too much fat and the sauce compliments it perfectly. And if you still have room - try the homemade baklava.. the best I've had. I am ready to go back!
(5)Tony T.
The acoustic are terrible especially in the back. Not only loud but high frequency. Also don't order all you want in the beginning. If you do, it will all show up at essentially the same time.
(2)Jelli F.
Very good food and excellent service. This is a place that is easy to drive past, but trust me: don't.
(4)Jon M.
One of my favorite restaurants in Arlington. If you love Greek cuisine this place is a must. Scallops, lamb chops are a must!
(5)Eric D.
GREAT food! Pretty good service. Conveniently located off the Metro! I would go back again in a second!
(4)T. A.
The food/drinks are good, although some of the dishes were hit or miss (hence 4 not 5 stars). But the french toast dessert is to die for!!! I will definitely be going back!
(4)Michael H.
The service was *very* attentive and fast, which is always a plus. But when your food comes out less than five minutes after you order it, maybe that's just too fast. Indeed, the chicken was pink, and we sent it back. The gyro was okay, the fries were badly limp (cooked just once, most likely), and the free appetizer of pita, oil, and sun-dried chili powder tomatoes was uninspired. To Cava's credit, they took the chicken sandwich off the bill, and they added a French Toast dessert. Who knew french toast could be so good? That seriously made everything much better. We'll go back, yes; we just won't get the chicken.
(3)Steph B.
The concept of this place is great, but overall experience = meh.
(3)Eric D.
This place is completely over rated. My meat was clearly overlooked and dry, likely cooked earlier and put on a heater for some time. Trendy and a cool hangout, but food is terrible.
(2)John S.
We had eaten at the Cave Mezze in Rockville, MD before and loved it. The Clarendon location was another winner. Our server was knowledgeable about the menu and friendly. The food was amazing. This location is a lot bigger than the Rockville location with outdoor seating in the front and back. Having said this, sound carries in the spacious indoor setting here so if there is a loud, happy hour crowd by the bar, nearby diners will be affected.
(5)Trevor B.
French Toast...yummmmm This place is a little pricey for brunch (especially with mimosas and bloody mary's) but everything we tried was really good. The french toast is probably once of the best I've had in the DC area (on par with Carlyle)...do not pass it up if you're there.
(4)Chris K.
This place got roughly everything wrong. Paging customers when their table is ready is an annoyance. The constant eruptions of fire from the cheese/lemon dip: also really annoying (and probably dangerous). The hummus was really cold and didn't taste good. The eggplant dip was also bad. We had the lollipop chicken, which was just fried chicken. It was fine--the highlight of the meal, in fact--but it's not something I'd order again. Skewered chicken--dry and low on flavor. Short ribs were on the lower side of ordinary. We had a good mojito and three really bad ones. Bill for two = north of $120, and neither of us would have wanted to go back at half the price.
(1)Chris M.
Fun place, the "flaming cheese presentation is quite cool. Food was pretty tasty, had the flashy cheese dish, scallops risotto(the best of the bunch), some lamb and the cava crab, which having had an amazing crab cake in DC for lunch, was a little disappointing. This is a quality place and I believe that if I went there enough and found my go-to dishes, I would bump it up a star, but for now, A-OK is about as much as I can honestly go on this place.
(3)Ngoc L.
I won't comment on the food since there are X's reviews on it. Food is solid good to Oh it's really good. I am impress with the service both times I've been here. First visit, our waiter brought out their french toast dessert and crepes for us to try. I think he wanted to sober us up since we probably drank more than eat. It's a fun place to grab dinner and it is loud, fun loud imo. I talk loud so I fit right in.
(4)Ross M.
Good place for dinner in Clarendon. You better get there around 5 or 6pm, or expect a long wait. People will pour in and this place will be stuffed to the rafters. Service is great and so is the food. I recommend the lollipop chicken, spanikoptia , grilled octopus and lamb chops. The spicy lamb meatballs are more spicy than I expected and have a very strong lamb flavor! The zucchini fritters are okay, I'd get the spanikopita instead. I'm sure some of the other stuff is great too. I'l try next time. You know how Spanish tapas are all kind of...bleh...and sucks. This place takes tapas to the next level. Highly recommended. Remember, get there early.
(4)Amer H.
On spot with everything!
(5)Jen T.
Really fantastic Mediterranean-inspired food! There is some outdoor seating, but it's very limited. The decor inside is nice, although a bit loud and very dark. I didn't order it, but there's a cheese plate (saganaki) that they bring out and then light the brandy on fire- resulting in an amazing blazing momentary fire with an entire plateful of fire shooting up towars the ceiling and throwing off noticeable heat if you're at the adjoining table! The spicy lamb sliders, ratatouille (nicely spiced), and challah french toast + berries were all really good.
(5)Paul W.
Salty, salty, salty!
(3)Jennifer I.
Went here today for lunch and the food was awesome! I had the gyro with fries and it definitely hit the spot--just maybe get it without onions. They piled those suckers on there and when I walked out the door I felt like I had to stay a safe distance from people until I could get home and brush my teeth, despite the complimentary mints at the door! I tried a glass of Shiraz and it was pretty good although $10/glass at lunchtime feels sort of wrong...but right at the same time. It's also my birthday tomorrow and my friends requested the french toast dessert to come out with a candle (of course it was a surprise!) and the waiter didn't charge us for it, which I thought was pretty awesome of him. It took us a while to get our check but other than that I thought this was a great place, good for a group of 5 and the food was tasty and casual (the dessert was absolutely delicious too!). I've gone to the one in DC but I think for some reason I like this one better.
(4)Wendy C.
Yum! Not much to say that hasn't been said yet in prior reviews. I have to deduct one star for the noise level inside. I love eating outside during warmer months. My fave dishes are the saganaki (cheese w/lemon and brandy), braised pork and braised lamb shank.
(4)David T.
Excellent excellent food! Recommendations inclu saganaki, crazy feta, village salad and chicken/shrimp slvaki. It's one of my favorite restaurants! Unfortunately they dont do call ahead or reserv so be prepared to wait 1+ hr on friday/saturday.
(5)Ron G.
One of my favorite places in the DC area. Superb service, delicious food, and the best Mojitos around. Sample many of the different foods including the Crazy Feta and Lollipop Chicken. The back patio is also great in the warm weather!
(5)Jeff B.
Cava is a welcome addition to Arlington and the DC area. Aesthetically, the interior of the restaurant is very attractive. In addition to being incredibly spacious, the dark, wooden interior is very inviting and comfortable. The service was incredibly friendly and accommodating, and the restaurant is lively with a high volume of traffic. As far as the food is concerned, almost everything we ordered was outstanding. The mezze dishes were excellent from top to bottom, and we sampled from several of the different categories that the menu offered. This is a great place to go with good friends, or to take a date that you want to impress.
(5)Jon K.
Did lunch here and thought everyone's meals were good but nothing I would run back quickly for. I like the rustic feel but from the money they saved on not putting much into the furniture should be spent on a top chef.
(3)Taylor G.
The feta jalapeno spread is SO GOOD! We also had the swordfish, which was yummy. The chicken pita sliders were just okay. Service was very prompt and I enjoyed the atmosphere. It's only about 5 blocks from my apartment so I will definitely be back.
(4)Greg H.
Great experience here the other night. Showed up just before 7 pm on a Friday night and were seated immediately. Despite the lack of a wait, the atmosphere was lively and fun. The server gave great recommendations. Every dish we ordered (tzatziki, green harissa, lamb and orzo, scallop risotto, cauliflower) was phenomenal. My wife and I left stuffed and split a $40 bottle of wine, and the bill was less than $100 before tip. The only complaint was that we ran out of water once and had to pour our own wine. Overall, small issues for such an enjoyable dinner.
(5)Lori F.
The friendliest, most welcoming and accommodating restaurant in Clarendon, if not in all of Arlington and DC. Regardless of what kind of food you want, it is worth choosing Cava over other styles because of their customer service [especially recommend sitting at the bar for drinks as well as meal] and because the menu will never disappoint. On top of that, they have a great drink menu, and their Cucumber Jalapeno Margarita is a "go to" favorite for me now. Whatever their philosophy is in running their business, Cava should spread the word because it is unique and it shows.
(5)Justin H.
When the food is done well it is amazing, but often there is something lacking. Mixed with poor patron management and no sound absorption to reduce crowd noise it is too loud and crowded even for an extreme extrovert like myself.
(3)