Tavel Bristol-Joseph is an acclaimed pastry chef and restaurateur, co-owner of the Emmer and Rye Hospitality Group. He is recognized for his innovative dessert creations and his commitment to mentoring and supporting...
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Highlights
Insights are still being generated for this restaurant. In the meantime, check the latest reviews below.
I would rate this place six stars if I could. From the moment I walked us the service was attentive and friendly. The menu has options for every course and everything sounded so appealing. To get a great experience of the menu we opted for the chef's choice option. They pick items from the menu for you keeping in line with any dietary restrictions you have. There are so many outstanding items on the menu such as spicy feta. Why I never thought to season all the feta I have eaten is beyond me but its such a great idea. This was so addicting and with the fresh pita bread its heavenly. The butternut spread is very tasty too but I am a cheese head so the feta was my favorite. I also really enjoy the lamb dumplings. These little orbs of delicious lamb in a yogurt sauce that also pairs with everything. The braised leeks were tender but flavorful. Tis dish might throw you off texturally but i am glad I tried it. The sweet potatoes with the tahini sauce was a wonderful surprise of flavors. All this and we hadn't even gotten to the entrees yet. We had a pork souvalki and chicken skewer. Both were so tender and seasoned perfectly. They were melt in your mouth good. Lastly was a chocolate pudding that was the perfect balance of sweet and bitter. I was so stuffed at the end but I had to power through to finish that pudding. No pudding left behind. Our waiter Richard gave us wonderful recommendations and his enthusiasm was infectious. It was a wonderful experience for my birthday and I really thank the staff for their stellar performance. I don't know who the chef is but they deserve a raise.
Best meal of my weekend in San Antonio and I wished I had time to go back before leaving.
The pita with dip and saffron chicken were great but the roasted sweet potato and turkish chocolate pudding with orange marmalade were on another level. Both dishes were an absolute explosion of flavor from the first bite, still dreaming about them!
Only thing was the server had a bit of an attitude but I was too busy enjoying the food to let it bother me. Ladino is a must-visit!
5
In town on a work trip. A colleague suggested we go to Ladino. I’m not hugely familiar with Mediterranean food but thought why not.
We sat out on the patio. It was heated so took the chill off on a cool night.
Our server was wonderful. Attentive and a great personality. We did the Tables of Joy and there’s a reason they call it that. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal. It was plenty of food. Our server suggested some combinations when we were going through a couple courses.
It was probably one of the best meals I’ve had and truly a unique experience.
For the food and experience I felt it was very good value for the money.
Definitely recommend a visit and splurge on the Table of Joy.
5
My husband made our dinner reservation six weeks ago, for a post-graduation family celebration, and he chose perfectly! Our twelve guests ranged in age from 14-79 years, and everyone had a wonderful experience. We began with waters for the table, soft drinks, and cocktails/mocktails (Man Walks into a Bar, Amba No. 5, Don Alberto, Green Shug Collins).
Due to our large party, we had booked a chef’s tasting experience, which was spectacular. The appetizers were plentiful, flavorful, and unique. Our server, Anissa, did a wonderful job of explaining each dish— its components, highlights, even suggesting that after finishing the beef dumplings, we stir the oil and yogurt together for an amazing pita dipping sauce.
Our meal included four meats— actually five, considering an off menu chef’s creation for our pescatarian guest. It was such an immersive experience, I never took out my phone to capture photos of the food (or our group, sadly).
Three desserts topped off the evening. When (not if) we return, we’ll certainly request Anissa again. She made the evening a complete delight, even bringing out celebratory candles for our honored guests.
3
We came in w/ a reservation for 6, and were instructed that the dishes were all meant to share family-style, so we expected the portions to reflect that. But realistically, it's better split between 3 people max. And we would've ordered more food but the service was incredibly slow. There were moments where the dinner just seemed to linger on bc we'd have to wait a long time in between dishes, so the flow was off. There also didn't seem to be enough wait staff that afternoon despite there being multiple large parties, so that could have contributed to the slow service experience.
Now for the food:
The dips were all great, you can't go wrong in choosing any of those.
For the hot meze, we had the dumplings and the sweet potato. The dumplings were amazing. While the sweet potato was good, it was two thin slices of a whole sweet potato for $15 and we were told it was a perfect dish to share. The price for that portion seemed outrageous in our context.
We had the pork, chicken, and steak from the mangal. The portions were a lot better here but definitely wouldn't recommend sharing each with more than 3 people. All 3 dishes were great, but the potato in the steak dish was hard and salty. That dish should be modified since the potato also just seems useless in that plate and added nothing to the plate other than a tooth hazard.
Dessert: we had the olive oil cake, ice cream sandwich, and supangle. The supangle was a delightful surprise, so that's by far the standout. The rest were just okay.
Overall, we came from Austin having already been fans of Aba, so this restaurant just didn't compare for us.
**edit: the comment to my review made by the service manager made me want to go back and change my scoring of service. I really appreciate the thoughtful nature of the reply and consideration into improving in the areas where I brought critique. With a service manager like this, Ladino is sure to do great things in the future.
