Villa Komoda

After visiting Komoda many times over the years, we came back for the first time in six years and it felt natural again. The welcome was warm, the service didn't feel forced or arrogant, and the menu was simpler, more affordable, and easier to understand. There's a great range of fine wines and cocktails. Worth a detour 🥇

The food was generally okay, but the rest of the evening made it hard to enjoy. There were flies all over the dining room and around the table while we ate and drank. A fly even floated in the champagne flute as it was poured, and we had to get up and prompt the server for drinks because our glasses were empty. The service was polite but very basic, with little knowledge from the greeting through to the wine and food descriptions or recommendations. We came in with high expectations, so dinner was really disappointing. If other guests are spending an hour or less in a fine dining restaurant, that doesn't seem like a good sign. This place clearly needs good leadership and management.

The hotel itself is small and cozy, though nothing special. My rating is really for the restaurant, which used to feel unique and had an amazing chef. We'd been several times for both tasting menus and a la carte meals, and the food blew us away. I was genuinely rooting for them when Michelin was visiting. On our latest visit, we were seriously disappointed by the menu presentation, food, service, and fairly extreme prices. Chef Martynas seems to have left. We paid 150 EUR for two, left hungry and sad. "Toda" is still the only place in Palanga I can truly recommend.

The bed was comfortable, and the bathroom had both a bath and a shower. Breakfast was absolutely delicious, the location was good, and the staff were lovely and caring. I also liked the hotel fragrance and the brownie on arrival. A few things could be better: there's a socket on only one side of the bed, and the soap dispenser looks cheap next to the high end interior. There's no mini bar or fridge either. They leave nice natural cider in the room, but without a fridge it's room temperature and doesn't taste right.