Evening Standard
Josh Barrie welcomed a “fabulous taverna” from “endearing” Nick Molyviatis (of Singburi fame) that brings Greek “passion, élan and whimsy” to serious London.
Among its many hit dishes, prawn saganaki is “a dangerous concoction of medium-sized chaps resting on a bed of spiced tomato, yoghurt and tahini; it’s balanced, moreish and the prawns are cooked to a rapturous level”.
Chicken and pork souvlaki are “masterfully done”, glistening with fat and not even a little dry – and at £13.50 and £15.50 per tray with a portion of fries they make “a bloody good lunch in a pocket of London mostly devoid of them”.
Josh Barrie - 2026-06-14The Guardian
Grace Dent was transported from the streets of central London to an age-old family-run Kefalonian taverna – “up a cobbled back street, with a beleaguered 98-year-old yiayia doing the dishes [and] a one-eared dog on the step waiting for lamb titbits” – at this new spot from chef Nick Molyviatis (ex-Kiln and Singburi) and hospitality veteran Barry Karacostas.
“Zylia is not trying to reimagine Greek-Cypriot cuisine, or deconstructing it, or serving it with smears and foams”. Instead, Grace said, everything feels and tastes unshowily authentic, from a family recipe for taramosalata that is “as light as air and pungent with vivid citrus notes” via sharing dishes of good-quality (and therefore pricey) lamb chops to a single dessert that is well worth ordering – “softly chewy, faintly bitter, very good kaimaki ice-cream made with mastic from Chios and wild orchid root salep, with a thick, dark, intensely tart sour cherry preserve.”
“Zylia is new, fun, noisy and good for the soul. It’s not perfect yet (it opened only a few weeks ago, after all), but its bones are solid”.
Grace Dent - 2026-06-28
