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Boubouki
Categories: Restaurants Greek Restaurants Food Stands Greek, Food Stands [Edit]
120 Essex St(between Delancey St & Rivington St)
Manhattan, NY 10002
Neighbourhood: Lower East Side
(718) 344-4202
- Nearest Transit:
-
Delancey St (F)
Essex St (J, M, Z)
2 Av (F)
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dessert, Lunch
- Alcohol:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
32 reviews for Boubouki
Review Highlights
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"I tried the spinach pie was super fresh and tasty." In 6 reviews -
"And I've had my fair share of spanakopita." In 4 reviews -
"...a spot to stop at when you're in Essex Street Market." In 7 reviews
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32 reviews in English
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Review from Daniel W.
Glen Ellyn, IL
4/25/2012 1 Check-in Here
Great place to go to! I was waiting to eat at Shopsin's and decided to go right around the corner to Boubouki's. I had to get the Spinakopita because I ate it so frequently at my neighborh's home as a child. The spinakopita brought me back to my childhood....awesome flavor and nice and flaky crust!
The owner and her mother were VERY kind as well!
Will return when I go back to NY sometime -
Review from Valery C.
4/15/2012
Like many of the gems opened in the Essex Street Market, this diminutive booth is well worth a stop. Boubouki offers a bit of Greek home-cooking, courtesy of Rona Economou's grandmother's recipes.
The small menu varies, a mix of savory and sweet baked goods, and salads. The must-have item is the spanakopita, or spinach pie. The acclaim for it is deserved. That triangular slice of pie is blissful, thin layers of flaky, crisp phyllo topping a melded filling of fresh spinach and cheese, savory and perfect. I've had the privilege of eating Greek homemade spanakopita; this is every bit as good, albeit a different style. A flatbread topped with feta, tomato, olive oil, and herbs was also well-made, but less impressive. Quite tempted to try a pear cake; another reason to return.
Prices are a bit expensive, but I consider this slice of Greek home-cooking a business worth patronizing, and the prices worth paying. -
Review from Judd L.
3/19/2012 3 photos
OVERWHELMING REVIEWS AND HIGH EXPECTATIONS
Located inside the Essex Street Market is this unassuming Greek fast food take out place near the left corner of this indoors street market. By the time we isolated the location, we were staring at the last three pieces in the deep dish pan. That didn't stop us from ordering the much touted Spanakopita "spinach pie". Wrapped in aluminum foil I shared one piece with my wife. Upon finishing, we both looked at each other and said "what did we miss here ?" Hmmm ?
Perhaps it was the end of of the day for Boubouki or the last pieces or even the price of $4 for the rather small piece of "spinach pie". Maybe I was more focused and craving for one those mini baguette sandwiches that I was seeing all over the place. Sorry Boubouki, your "spinach pie" just didn't have the smacking love I had read about from all your admirers. -
Review from Eddy B.
3/2/2012 1 Check-in Here
I must say that this tiny, literal hole in a wall, is extremely adorable. It looks like a rich person moved into a tenement and got fancy appliances for the kitchen. Do tenements even have kitchens? No matter.
Anyway, I only had the spinach pie ($4) which I felt was necessary after reading about it multiple times but ignoring it once at Essex Market. It is a small triangle. A flaky pastry. I prepared myself for greatness one can only find serendipitously or with the help of Yelp. Sadly, I found an almost lackluster, room temperature pie. Though I could tell that the ingredients were good, it was fresh, and that it was made well, the taste did not wow me at all. For $4 I would expect better. I'll give the pleasant woman who runs the joint another chance. -
Review from Risa P.
KNICKERBOCKER, NY
5/15/2012
i'm a regular here and pretty much get the Pear Cake every week. it's made with olive oil and has pieces of pear in it, dusted with confectioners sugar. it's amazing!
i've also had the carrot cake, the almond cookies, the chocolate chip cookies, and they're all amazing. much love, Rona! -
Review from Kenny C.
New York, NY
3/4/2012
Agree with everything else said.
the spinach pie is extremely flavorful- most other places use bland spinach filling, but Boubouki's is rich and creamy, but also has some texture because she doesn't shred the spinach- she leaves the spinach leaves whole.
The baklava is also the best I've had in NY -
Review from S K.
Brooklyn, NY
3/6/2012
3.5 stars!
I had the Spanakopita and chickpea salad. The spinach pie was very small for $4, a little burnt but tasty. The chickpea salad was a small tub with oil and feta - equally tasty. The lady who runs this small place is super nice and informative as noted in other reviews. In short, quite tasty if a wee bit over-priced. If anything, the over-hyped reviews on here left me feeling a little underwhelmed :-/ -
Review from Victoria F.
New York, NY
2/6/2012
I went for the spinach pie, but around 1pm on a Saturday, she was all out. However, I did try the Baklava, and it was outstanding. The woman who runs Boubouki is probably the nicest, sweetest person I've ever met and I only spent about 5 minutes talking to her. She makes you feel right at home and is so amazing that you WANT to just to buy everything.
Definitely stop by and meet this woman and try her amazing Greek food. -
Review from Vartges S.
Rego Park, NY
4/14/2012
This was the best spanakopita (spinach pie) I have had in recent memory. Tasted like only fresh spinach, moist but not too moist, and flaky phyllo. It was so good I don't even remember what else I had. My wife is Greek and admitted that her mom doesn't make it nearly as well. It is a bit overpriced for a spanakopita, but worth it for the quality ingredients.
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Review from Moira C.
PECK SLIP, NY
2/27/2012 1 Check-in Here
Had the baklava - it was fantastic. Nothing beats a Sunday morning stop at Essex Market, a piece of baklava and maybe a chai latte from Porto Rico.
The woman who runs Boubouki is super nice and clearly puts her heart into the food she makes. I definitely recommend. -
Review from Jessica Y.
Manhattan, NY
1/15/2012 1 Check-in Here
Spanikopita. Crumbly, crispy, buttery, flaky and delicious. The spinach is perfectly cooked and entwined with salty feta for an out-of this world bite.
Dear Boubouki, I don't think you understand how dangerous it is that you're only a block from me. I have no choice but to visit everyday for a slice of heaven.
PS: PEAR CAKE. That is all. -
Review from Eric B.
Bethesda, MD
2/6/2012 1 Check-in Here
Spanikopita was great. Filling was just perfect and filo was just right. Not dry, not greasy. There's no aesthetic wow factor, but flavor makes up for it by a long shot.
The place is in the Essex Street Market, btw. The lady was very friendly too. The stuff is pricey, but I can't argue.
The traditional powdered almond crescent cookies... possibly the best I've had. -
Review from Eric Q.
Manhattan, NY
12/18/2011
I want to visit Greece, but first, I have to know if it's worth the time and effort. How? Through Boubouki. And what I've got? The spinach pies. Never thought of spinach in a pie, and this tasty? Incredible. The crust is perfect and it is so light. You can eat much and still have a light stomach. It is my favorite but I also spend some to taste the carrot cake. What I can say is that everything in that cake is perfect.
Gotta try other recipe on my next visit but never missed the spinach pie.
Now I decided, I will visit Greece and expecting to taste more of these there, hopefully even better. -
Review from Candice A.
Brooklyn, NY
11/22/2011
I love this woman's carrot cake. You dont need frosting on it and has a good amount of spice and walnuts. Its crumbly but moist. Not too heavy and not too sweet. (though I will admit, It wouldnt hurt to add a touch of cream cheese frosting. Just a touch. Like a loving peck in the cheek really.)
I'm on the borderline of sending a letter to congress to legalize marriage to objects. But I guess this marriage wouldnt last long. I dont think it can even last until engagement. Not to mention the first date.
I would really like to try the rest of her food but for some reason, I cant get past that carrot cake.
Also, I came by here at 9:10 in the morning and I catch her making everything on the spot. It felt like catching your mom in the kitchen making that something special in the holidays.Listed in: Diabetes
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Review from Kate F.
PECK SLIP, NY
4/30/2012
This place was absolutely fabulous. I highly recommend both the carrot cake and the pear cake which were both flavorful and moist. The owner is such a lovely, sweet woman. Definitely worth the trip! I cannot wait to go back!! (Cash only, I believe)
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Review from R L.
New York, NY
3/5/2012
**Contact me for full post and pics**
Essex Street Market is one of my favorite places in the Lower Eastside. It's a closed air market with all sorts of mom and pop vendors. This is something that you do not really find in Manhattan, it's very unique and reminds me of something you might find in Asia or Europe.
There are several vendors here such as Shopsin's (restaurant), Roni Sue's (chocolate shop) and Saxeby Cheesemongers (cheese shop) that serve great product and I plan on writing about all of them over time. However, my first post is going to be on Boubouki, which is probably my favorite vendor in Essex Street Market.
Boubouki is a tiny stall that is basically just a kitchen that is probably 10x10 at biggest. The owner is the only employee and she specializes in various Greek pastries. She is very nice and you can tell how much care is put into all of her wares and everything is baked fresh daily.
Here's what I've tried:
- Spanakopita: This was a savory pastry made of phyllo dough filled with chopped spinach and feta cheese. The phyllo dough was nicely crispy and the filling was great, the combo of spinach and feta went really well together. I got it reasonably fresh and I'd imagine this would be really amazing straight out of the over. Overall, while this was a simple pastry it was really good. 8.5/10
- Pear Cake: I really like pear desserts, so this was something I knew I was going to like. It's a simple cake with pears baked into the bottom of it and powdered sugar on top. I thought the cake would be dense, but instead had a wonderful spongy consistency that was very moist and slightly crispy on the outside. It was sweet, but not overly sweet and the pear and powdered sugar paired perfectly. This was one of the better pastries I've had in a long time. 8.75/10
- Baklava: While I like baklava, it often ends up being a very sweet, sticky and heavy mess (maybe I just don't know where to buy it). However, the version here is different. While it is sweet from the honey, it's not too sweet and the honey is nicely liquid-y and not a sticky mess. The phyllo dough was so good; it was light, flaky and delicious and the ground nut mixture was delicious as well. This was probably the best baklava I've ever tried. 8.75/10
- Almond Cookie: The cookie was nicely crunchy, the chopped almonds complemented it well and the powdered sugar was the perfect complement to the cookie. While it was very simple, it was quite good. 8/10
- Carrot Cake: This was not your normal American carrot cake. It was more like banana bread except with carrots. It had a spiced flavor similar to normal carrot cake, but it was lighter and not as dense. I thought this was excellent. 8.5/10
Overall, I really like this place and I'm looking forward to trying more of her pastries. -
Review from Susan s.
10/17/2011 1 Check-in Here
Every time I do my grocery shopping at Essex Market I always get lured in to Boubouki for their incredibly delicious spinach pies. The flaky crust is baked to perfection. Never feels heavy or overload in my stomach. A triangle piece is a great snack for browsing the aisles of the marketplace.
I love Greek food, and tried many spinach pies, this by far takes the pie. -
Review from Asuka N.
12/13/2011 2 Check-ins Here
After eating at Brooklyn Taco, we swung back here because my girlfriend had heard good things about the spinach pie. Well, it has great flavor - I've never really thought of spinach as much more than a side dish to a main meal, but it's very well-sauteed in the pie, and the dough is very light - in contrast to a lot of Greek food I've had in the past. The cheese is delicious as well, but there's just a light sprinkling in keeping with the general lightness of the dish. So freakin' good! We also checked out the chocolate chip cookies, which were much different than I've had elsewhere but were tasty nonetheless...very cake-y in texture and a twist of orange flavor, but incredibly delicious and very unlike the other chocolate chips I've run across. The pear pie was also extremely good. Very light like the rest of the food, with a layer of pear embedded inside the cake, which was powdered lightly with sugar.
Essex St. Market was the real find this past weekend, and this was the highlight of the places I saw there. Everything was amazing, and I'm impressed that Rona is able to run the whole place and still make amazing food across the board. I'll definitely be back when I'm in LES. -
Review from Snoop D.
Brooklyn, NY
4/1/2012
I've had only her Pear cake and I loved it. I prefer my desserts not be too sweet (lower quality desserts mask their low flavor with sugar) and the cake is perfect. It was also very light and airy.
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Review from JP B.
3/20/2011
You've heard the term "incubator kitchen"? This is what I imagine it to mean, at its best. A tiny shop run by one person on what seems like a shoestring budget that puts out top quality eats. Clearly a dream being realized in a modest fashion, for the benefit of all who are clever enough to shop at the Essex Street Market.
I'd been seduced by the scent wafting from Boubouki's tiny stall many times, but hadn't gotten around to trying anything until now. My wife had raved about the spanakopita, but she's a baker, so I generally don't have to buy baked goods. Yesterday we were entertaining out of town guests and had no sweets on hand. A quick stop at Boubouki fixed that, and in high style. A buttery pear cake was sublime - not too sweet, with rich nuanced flavor. Crumbly almond cookies were equally good. I'm really spoiled by my wife's baking, and rarely find baked goods as good as hers. But here they are, in the Essex Street Market.
How wonderful! -
Review from Audrey L.
Brooklyn, NY
6/10/2011
I have a physical job that requires me to have at least a nibble to eat every 2 hrs. Ok fine, I just love food. Today I was serendipitously in Essex Market a few hours before I was due at the wine store I work at. I wanted to get something to munch on when my stomach starts rumbling halfway through my shift, so I figured I could get something here. I started reading the NYT article on Boubouki taped to the wall and knew that I'd found my mid-shift snack. A quick dash to the ATM (B of A is on Ludlow and Houston) later, I came back and asked the owner when the spinach pie would be ready. Unfortunately I couldn't wait for it so I bought a piece of the tomato feta flatbread.
A few hours later, I got stressed and ate the whole thing ahead of my usual nibbling schedule. But the funny thing was, I wasn't hungry at all when I closed up shop - I was still elated at the memory of chewing on those salty knobs of feta and the lacy edges of the bread. I think this is what the owner was striving for, although I'm not sure what her grandmother would think of a girl chowing down on Greek comfort food behind a register. I will be back for the spinach pie, and tell my boss I'll be late when I do. -
Review from D H.
New York, NY
3/31/2011
I'm Greek so I know real Greek food. And I've had my fair share of spanakopita.
This will be a really easy review for me to right - I HAVE NEVER HAD MORE DELICIOUS, MORE PERFECT SPANAKOPITA IN MY LIFE.
There. That's it. That's really all I have to say.
Delish. -
Review from Phoebe J.
New York, NY
2/6/2011 1 photo
Do not miss this pretty little nook at Essex Street Market! Their spinach pie is certainly the best I've had in New York. Baked right in the stand, the owner delivers fresh baked (STILL WARM!) Greek pastries- both sweet and savory. The phyllo dough is a buttery, thin layer of perfect crisp- sandwiching a hearty layer of rich feta and spinach.. with a zest of (is it?) lemon! I can totally imaging bringing some home for dinner - paired with a fresh greek salad composed from produce from the market.. and cheese from Anne Saxelby!
Opa! -
Review from Sean S.
10/21/2010
This tiny little stall at Essex Street Market packs a serious punch.
I tried the spinach pie was super fresh and tasty. I have middle eastern and greek food often, and this was probably the best I've ever tasted. To top it off I had a small piece of the baklava. Amazing.
I'll definitely be back. -
Review from David M.
Los Angeles, CA
11/15/2011 1 Check-in Here
This place was great. I found it on Yelp and decided to take a walk and find this place. I opted for the spinach pie and chickpea salad. Both were amazing, but the spinach pie was outstanding. It was light, flakey and ha amazing flavor. I promise to be back here every time I am in NY.
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Review from bob j.
Mt Laurel, NJ
12/12/2011
If you were thinking of travelling to the Greek Isles but find yourself a little short of cash, travel instead to Boubouki at the Essex Street Market . One taste of their spinach pie and you will be instantly transported to the shores of the Agean. Don't forget one of the delicious desserts or you risk feeling like Hawkeye when he forgot the coleslaw from Adam's Ribs.
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Review from Christian L.
New York, NY
10/19/2010 1 Check-in Here
Tasty Greek pastry nook.
Amazing spanakopita.
Very nice owner who is great to talk to.
Definitely a spot to stop at when you're in Essex Street Market. -
Review from Andrea C.
New York, NY
6/9/2011
This is hands-down the best Greek food I can get when I'm walking around downtown NYC. Everything tastes fresh, quality is absolutely superb, consistent flavors and it's served up with a smile. Everything is to-go, and after you buy your goodies, find a sweet little spot to sit and enjoy your Greek deliciousness. If you are craving salt or sweets, they have both and although it's not a Greek dish (at least that would be my guess) - the chocolate chip cookies are THE BEST I have ever had!!!
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Review from andre p.
New York, NY
10/26/2010 3 photos
I sometimes stop at the Essex Street market on account of Jeffrey's Meat Market being one of the few places with a "real" butcher and quality meats.. So was intrigued one day as I saw this new oufit. Nothing flashy but the small image of the chef/ owner's parents clicked in my head and I gave the spinach pie a try after a confirmatory talk with the owner - seemed like good vibes. I was not disappointed, tasted great and had that 'real' touch. Definitely on my circuit now whenever I'm in the area.
Looking it up I see she's been written in the New York Times and some blogs, see the photos http://www.nytimes.com... -
Review from V J.
New York, NY
6/27/2011
* For a second, just forget about the greek financial meltdown (no matter what aftershocks it created) & enjoy the delicious $4 Spinach pie + $3 Baklava. You can sense a warm earthy homely feeling & the care and effort put into making the pie when the lady serves it.
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Review from Aris S.
New York, NY
12/1/2010
Boubouki is a smart concept and its implementation is excellent. It brings exquisite Greek delicacies to the LES that you would only be able to taste at a sit-down expensive Greek restaurant at a much higher price. The spanakopita is tasty and filling, the alevropita has an addicting flavor of feta cheese and olive oil and the desserts are of the highest standards and taste completely home-made. The space is small but looks like a home kitchen. But that's why the prices are so fair, so the value is excellent. Rona is a sweet girl and very polite too.
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Review from Blessthismess R.
Manhattan, NY
4/10/2011
I'll start off by saying I can never get enough greek food and I eat a lot of it. Stopped by Essex today after reading all the great reviews about this place. The pear olive oil cake was incredible, not too sweet, very moist and unlike any other cake I've tried. The owner was super sweet and the prices are reasonable, especially for quick, homemade and good Greek food in the city. Will definitely be going back!
