2011 was a hard year to peg for "top food memories" for me. Sadly we didn't do anything overly remarkable outside of our trip to Europe, and I think that's reflected a bit in my choices. Aside from the 6 items from that trip that are listed, I had at least 5 others that were maybes that just missed the cut. I may add pictures of the dishes later, but right now I haven't prepared that. So in random order, here are my top 10 food memories from 2011!
Tzitzikas Salad from Tzitzikas kai Mermigas
This salad was part of our first full meal in Greece, and it was such a fresh and delicious salad. So much of our trip stands out with regards to food we ate, but this was the start of our adventure, and it also was really healthy and really tasty.
Mushroom Pie from Ariston
A rich, buttery, flaky crust on both sides surrounding garlic and butter sauteed mushrooms. If the thought of that doesn't make your mouth water, you probably shouldn't read this blog anymore. No, I'm serious, just leave now. Ariston is a well known bakery in Athens, and of all of the pies we tried, this was my favorite. The crust was similar with most of the pies that they offered, but the mushroom filling was just amazing. A little buttery, a little garlicky, and unbelievably moist.
Mercimek Kofte from Antalia
It's not a stretch to say that M and I order in a lot. M orders more than I do due to her work schedule, but we both do order from time to time. One thing that we both fell in love with was the Mercimek Kofte from Antalia. It's a kofte made out of red lentils, and it is unbelievable. The first time M ordered it, she used all of her will power to not finish eating it all and actually save me some. Since that time, she has never saved a single bite for me, but we've ordered it together so that I've been able to eat it more.
Fish from Kounelas
We've had a lot of fresh fish, but this was something different. It was a simple preparation of being grilled over a wood-fire grill seasoned with salt, pepper, olive oil, and lemon. It was such a fresh and tasty preparation, and the fish was excellent. It was our last meal in Mykonos, and it was the perfect end to that leg of our trip.
Stuffed Vegetables from Lefteris
Lefteris is a restaurant in the small village of Apiranthos on the island of Naxos. You need to rent a car to get there, and it's a long and winding mountain drive to get there. But it's totally worth it. The food is extremely fresh since it's all grown in the garden just downstairs from the actual restaurant. The stuffed vegetables were literally picked that morning, and you could taste the freshness. While I doubt we'd ever make that drive again, we're so glad we did it this time to have that great meal.
Chicken and Tomatoes in Balsamic sauce from Homemade
This may not have been the greatest dish ever cooked, but it was special to me. I made this at home, and it was a tasty dish in my opinion. This was the first dish that we made out of the cookbooks we received from our wedding, and we were very excited about it.
Loucoumades from Regina Rose Amat
Loucoumades are Greek pastries that are made of fried dough and soaked in honey and cinnamon. They're round balls, but they're not like little donut holes like you'd fine here in the US. They're light and chewy with a good bite to them. I've had loucoumades before here in the states, but this little store in Halki specialized in them. They tasted incredible. They had the perfect texture, the honey was layered perfectly, and they were a great snack on our drive to Apiranthos. What made this even better was that we ate these while relaxing in the shade of a quaint little street in the middle of a small town. The atmosphere was fantastic, and it just felt so relaxing.
Pappardelle Bolognese from Babbo
M and I fell in love with pasta bolognese after our trip to Amsterdam in 2010. We had one of our many "versary" dinners at Babbo, and this was one of the dishes that we got as part of the pasta tasting menu. It was a rich meat sauce with veal, pancetta, and proscuitto. The tomato sauce was balanced and really absorbed a lot of the flavor from the meat.
Crab Toast from abc kitchen
This dish was part of our wedding anniversary dinner so it already had a special place in our hearts. The crab toast is something that is highly recommended at abc kitchen so we had to try it. It's loaded with sweet, succulent crab, and it has just the right amount of citrus from the dollop of lemon aioli on top. What made this meal even more amazing was that, in the middle of it, Chef Jean-George Vongerichten came in for a meal with his family, and his table was right next to ours.
Naxian Potato Salad from Meze Meze
Naxos is known for growing some of the best potatoes in the world. At our first meal at Meze Meze, we ordered way too much food as usual. However, one of the highlights of this meal was the Naxian Potato Salad. Loaded with onions, tomatoes, green peppers, cucumbers, a local cheese called xinomizithra, and obviously boiled potatoes. The salad was loaded with flavor and freshness, and it had just the right amount of creaminess and saltiness from the cheese. It was a great dish, and it stood out even though we ordered 3 or 4 potato dishes and had to roll ourselves home.
Showing posts with label Athens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Athens. Show all posts
Saturday, December 31, 2011
M's Favorite Food Memories of 2011
Another year in the books, another year of good eats. It's always hard to narrow down all the good food we had over the past year to 10 memories but I think in the end I'm usually happy with my choices (see last year's favorite food memories here). After making some difficult cuts, I came up with the following 10. Looking over the list for some overall trends, some things were not a surprise (not many desserts or sweet items on the list) but some things were a surprise (not much from food fairs or food trucks). So, here's my 10 (in no particular order):
1. Crab toast from ABC Kitchen
We went to ABC Kitchen for our anniversary dinner this year (wedding anniversary, not the other 4 we celebrate). We got the crab toast with lemon aioli and it was fantastic. The toast was crunchy, but not too hard to bite. The crab was light and flaky, and full of flavor. The lemon aioli tied it all together with a nice light creaminess. We would definitely get this again. I know we didn't blog about it, but ABC Kitchen is a fantastic restaurant committed to local and organic ingredients and we highly recommend a visit (or more than one).
2. Santorini salad from Anemomilos
In May, we went on our (delayed) honeymoon to Greece and had a fantastic time. On our last day in Santorini, we were seeking a long leisurely lunch before heading to the airport, so we went to Anemomilos, a hotel just down the block from where we were staying, and ate at their outdoor restaurant. It was fantastic, a little cheaper than the touristy places in the heart of Oia and it had really delicious food.
We went for a "greatest hits of Santorini" sampling at lunch, getting the Santorini salad, fava spread, dolmades and tomatokeftedes (fried tomato balls). The salad was incredible. Santorini is known for their cherry tomatoes, and this salad consisted of tons of cherry tomatoes along with cucumbers, green peppers, red onions, capers, and a local Santorini cheese. The salad was light, refreshing, fresh and fantastic. It's been over 6 months since our trip but I still can't stop talking about how good it was.
3. Mushroom pie from Ariston
We previously blogged about our love for the pies at Ariston, a small but popular bakery in the heart of Athens. While the signature cheese pies were great and all of the vegetable pies we tried were also tasty, the mushroom pie stands out for its buttery crust and rich mushroom inside. I think any visit we make to Athens will include a trip to this excellent bakery.
4. Aushak from Ariana Afghan Kebab Restaurant
This year wasn't the first time we have had the aushak from Ariana, but this particular time is such a vivid memory. Aushak is an Afghan dish of boiled dumplings filled with leeks and spices, topped with yogurt and a spicy meat sauce. It's always tasty when we get it but this time was special. It was a Friday night and I had just been released from the hospital about an hour earlier, having been there since Tuesday morning when I was admitted with an extremely high fever and severe allergic reaction to antibiotics. I had survived for a week on mostly mediocre hospital food and had very little appetite (rare for me, even when I'm sick). I decided I wanted something small when A ordered dinner and got the appetizer size of the aushak. It was amazing. I loved the intensity and diversity of the flavor and the spices, and I felt like a real person eating real food again. I also felt like my sense of taste was more sensitive after so many days of no flavor food that I noticed every nuance in the complex flavors, and I felt more aware of what I was eating than I had for a long time. I will always remember this meal for being the first moment when I knew that I was on the road to recovery.
5. Bulgogi slider by Danji from Taste of Korea truck
We still haven't been to Danji (always crowded). But in the spring, the Taste of Korea truck spent a few weeks on the road giving out food from Korean restaurants in the city. I went on the first day when they were serving Danji's slider (despite just having a piece of my eyelid cut out and barely being able to see; the sacrifices I will make for good food). Danji's bulgogi beef slider (also on their regular menu) consists of the bulgogi, spicy pickled cucumber, and scallion salsa on a buttery slider bun. It was so good. I really hope we can try to get to the restaurant this year.
The slider from Danji is also representative of one of my favorite general food memories of the year - free stuff! I love all the opportunities for free food in the city, especially since sometimes it introduces you to things you've never had before, but might love (like the Danji slider). Over the past year, I've gotten for free (and clearly have not blogged about them all): sliders, cupcakes, hot dogs, ice cream, whoopie pies, dumplings, iced tea, Asian rice bowls, Turkish tacos, Korean tacos, pizza, a panini, energy drinks and a French sampler platter. One huge trend this year has been discounts and deals (with the proliferation of Groupon, LivingSocial, Scoutmob, Gilt City, Google Offers, etc), and what discount is better than free?
6. The Haribo section at Edeka
I wasn't looking forward to the end of our honeymoon, but I was definitely looking forward to the Munich airport, which we planned to explore during our layover. We had an excellent meal at Airbrau, the beer garden in the airport, and we also took part in one of my favorite activities in other countries - visiting the grocery store. Since we were in Germany, I was hoping there would be lots of Haribo candy, since, as I mentioned last year with the Smurfs, I love Haribo. I was not disappointed in our visit to Edeka, and in fact, there was more Haribo candy than I could have ever imagined. (I had not yet seen the video of the factory store in Bonn.) I was able to get a tub of smurfs, sour mangoes, juice-filled gold bears, all variations of gold bears, jelly beans and so much more. I completely lit up when I saw the giant Fruchtgummi sign and row after row of my Haribo favorites.
7. Stuffed vegetables from Cafe Lefteris
Our favorite place on our Greek trip was the island of Naxos. A little quieter and less touristy than the other places we visited, we really felt like we got more of a sense of the island, its culture and its people. (I put this list in no particular order, but Naxos comes up a lot in this second half.) One day we drove all over the island and visited the town of Apiranthos, thought by many to be one of the most beautiful towns on the island. We had also heard about a great place to eat called Cafe Lefteris. Once we finally found it, we stopped in for an early dinner filled with delicious fresh vegetables. Naxos is one of the most fertile islands in the Cyclades, and you could tell how fresh the vegetables were. One thing we love about Greek food is taking something that is really simple and just making it so well. This was the case with these stuffed vegetables, the special of the day. Fresh vegetables stuffed with rice, simple but incredible.
8. Loucoumades from Regina Rose Amat
On our way to Apiranthos, we stopped at two other small towns, Halki and Filoti. In Halki, we ventured into the town square and got a snack from Regina Rose Amat - loucoumades. Loucoumades are Greek donut balls with honey, cinnamon and sugar. These were sweet, delicious and the perfect snack.
9. Mercimek kofte from Antalia
Earlier this year, a new Turkish place opened near my office called Antalia. The second time I ordered from them, I decided to get mercimek kofte (red lentil patties). I thought they would be fried patties, but instead they were a cold appetizer of mashed lentils. The lentils are mixed with scallions, parsley and pepper salsa, and served with lettuce, tomato and cucumber. The combination was so good that I have gotten it every time I've ordered from Antalia since then. It's an addiction.
10. Naxian potato salad from Meze Meze
Another thing Naxos is known for is its potatoes. I'm not really sure what makes a potato a "good" potato, but there was just something about the potatoes we ate in Naxos at Meze Meze, a restaurant near the harbor in Naxos Town/Chora, that was just better. At our first dinner at Meze Meze, there were potatoes everywhere. We got fresh Naxian fried potatoes with kefalotiri local cheese, the octopus special which also came with fries and a Naxian potato salad. The Naxian potato salad consisted of boiled potato, tomato, pepper, onion, caper, olives, oregano, and xinomizithra local cheese. It was incredibly tasty and, as I said, something about the potatoes in Naxos was just better than other ordinary potatoes.
It's probably obvious that the majority of my choices came from our honeymoon, but the food we had was incredible and made such an impression on me. I can't wait to see what 2012 will bring!
1. Crab toast from ABC Kitchen
We went to ABC Kitchen for our anniversary dinner this year (wedding anniversary, not the other 4 we celebrate). We got the crab toast with lemon aioli and it was fantastic. The toast was crunchy, but not too hard to bite. The crab was light and flaky, and full of flavor. The lemon aioli tied it all together with a nice light creaminess. We would definitely get this again. I know we didn't blog about it, but ABC Kitchen is a fantastic restaurant committed to local and organic ingredients and we highly recommend a visit (or more than one).
2. Santorini salad from Anemomilos
In May, we went on our (delayed) honeymoon to Greece and had a fantastic time. On our last day in Santorini, we were seeking a long leisurely lunch before heading to the airport, so we went to Anemomilos, a hotel just down the block from where we were staying, and ate at their outdoor restaurant. It was fantastic, a little cheaper than the touristy places in the heart of Oia and it had really delicious food.
We went for a "greatest hits of Santorini" sampling at lunch, getting the Santorini salad, fava spread, dolmades and tomatokeftedes (fried tomato balls). The salad was incredible. Santorini is known for their cherry tomatoes, and this salad consisted of tons of cherry tomatoes along with cucumbers, green peppers, red onions, capers, and a local Santorini cheese. The salad was light, refreshing, fresh and fantastic. It's been over 6 months since our trip but I still can't stop talking about how good it was.
3. Mushroom pie from Ariston
We previously blogged about our love for the pies at Ariston, a small but popular bakery in the heart of Athens. While the signature cheese pies were great and all of the vegetable pies we tried were also tasty, the mushroom pie stands out for its buttery crust and rich mushroom inside. I think any visit we make to Athens will include a trip to this excellent bakery.
4. Aushak from Ariana Afghan Kebab Restaurant
This year wasn't the first time we have had the aushak from Ariana, but this particular time is such a vivid memory. Aushak is an Afghan dish of boiled dumplings filled with leeks and spices, topped with yogurt and a spicy meat sauce. It's always tasty when we get it but this time was special. It was a Friday night and I had just been released from the hospital about an hour earlier, having been there since Tuesday morning when I was admitted with an extremely high fever and severe allergic reaction to antibiotics. I had survived for a week on mostly mediocre hospital food and had very little appetite (rare for me, even when I'm sick). I decided I wanted something small when A ordered dinner and got the appetizer size of the aushak. It was amazing. I loved the intensity and diversity of the flavor and the spices, and I felt like a real person eating real food again. I also felt like my sense of taste was more sensitive after so many days of no flavor food that I noticed every nuance in the complex flavors, and I felt more aware of what I was eating than I had for a long time. I will always remember this meal for being the first moment when I knew that I was on the road to recovery.
5. Bulgogi slider by Danji from Taste of Korea truck
We still haven't been to Danji (always crowded). But in the spring, the Taste of Korea truck spent a few weeks on the road giving out food from Korean restaurants in the city. I went on the first day when they were serving Danji's slider (despite just having a piece of my eyelid cut out and barely being able to see; the sacrifices I will make for good food). Danji's bulgogi beef slider (also on their regular menu) consists of the bulgogi, spicy pickled cucumber, and scallion salsa on a buttery slider bun. It was so good. I really hope we can try to get to the restaurant this year.
The slider from Danji is also representative of one of my favorite general food memories of the year - free stuff! I love all the opportunities for free food in the city, especially since sometimes it introduces you to things you've never had before, but might love (like the Danji slider). Over the past year, I've gotten for free (and clearly have not blogged about them all): sliders, cupcakes, hot dogs, ice cream, whoopie pies, dumplings, iced tea, Asian rice bowls, Turkish tacos, Korean tacos, pizza, a panini, energy drinks and a French sampler platter. One huge trend this year has been discounts and deals (with the proliferation of Groupon, LivingSocial, Scoutmob, Gilt City, Google Offers, etc), and what discount is better than free?
6. The Haribo section at Edeka
I wasn't looking forward to the end of our honeymoon, but I was definitely looking forward to the Munich airport, which we planned to explore during our layover. We had an excellent meal at Airbrau, the beer garden in the airport, and we also took part in one of my favorite activities in other countries - visiting the grocery store. Since we were in Germany, I was hoping there would be lots of Haribo candy, since, as I mentioned last year with the Smurfs, I love Haribo. I was not disappointed in our visit to Edeka, and in fact, there was more Haribo candy than I could have ever imagined. (I had not yet seen the video of the factory store in Bonn.) I was able to get a tub of smurfs, sour mangoes, juice-filled gold bears, all variations of gold bears, jelly beans and so much more. I completely lit up when I saw the giant Fruchtgummi sign and row after row of my Haribo favorites.
7. Stuffed vegetables from Cafe Lefteris
Our favorite place on our Greek trip was the island of Naxos. A little quieter and less touristy than the other places we visited, we really felt like we got more of a sense of the island, its culture and its people. (I put this list in no particular order, but Naxos comes up a lot in this second half.) One day we drove all over the island and visited the town of Apiranthos, thought by many to be one of the most beautiful towns on the island. We had also heard about a great place to eat called Cafe Lefteris. Once we finally found it, we stopped in for an early dinner filled with delicious fresh vegetables. Naxos is one of the most fertile islands in the Cyclades, and you could tell how fresh the vegetables were. One thing we love about Greek food is taking something that is really simple and just making it so well. This was the case with these stuffed vegetables, the special of the day. Fresh vegetables stuffed with rice, simple but incredible.
8. Loucoumades from Regina Rose Amat
On our way to Apiranthos, we stopped at two other small towns, Halki and Filoti. In Halki, we ventured into the town square and got a snack from Regina Rose Amat - loucoumades. Loucoumades are Greek donut balls with honey, cinnamon and sugar. These were sweet, delicious and the perfect snack.
9. Mercimek kofte from Antalia
Earlier this year, a new Turkish place opened near my office called Antalia. The second time I ordered from them, I decided to get mercimek kofte (red lentil patties). I thought they would be fried patties, but instead they were a cold appetizer of mashed lentils. The lentils are mixed with scallions, parsley and pepper salsa, and served with lettuce, tomato and cucumber. The combination was so good that I have gotten it every time I've ordered from Antalia since then. It's an addiction.
10. Naxian potato salad from Meze Meze
Another thing Naxos is known for is its potatoes. I'm not really sure what makes a potato a "good" potato, but there was just something about the potatoes we ate in Naxos at Meze Meze, a restaurant near the harbor in Naxos Town/Chora, that was just better. At our first dinner at Meze Meze, there were potatoes everywhere. We got fresh Naxian fried potatoes with kefalotiri local cheese, the octopus special which also came with fries and a Naxian potato salad. The Naxian potato salad consisted of boiled potato, tomato, pepper, onion, caper, olives, oregano, and xinomizithra local cheese. It was incredibly tasty and, as I said, something about the potatoes in Naxos was just better than other ordinary potatoes.
It's probably obvious that the majority of my choices came from our honeymoon, but the food we had was incredible and made such an impression on me. I can't wait to see what 2012 will bring!
Monday, November 21, 2011
Tzitzikas kai Mermigas
Our first dinner in Athens (and our first real honeymoon dinner) at Tzitzikas kai Mermigas was great. As we mentioned in the last post, we went out for an assortment of mezedes (small plates). There were so many options on the menu that it was tough to narrow our order down to a few. We ended up getting 5 dishes, which was probably 1 too many, but it was a delicious meal.
To start off the meal, they gave us two small shot glasses filled with a clear alcohol. We thought at first it was ouzo but then we heard some other people talking and they said it was an alcohol that was stronger than ouzo. Maybe tsipouro? It was strong and smooth, but we unfortunately don't remember much else about it.
One thing we noticed about restaurants in Greece is that they often drop off things on the table that would seem complimentary (for example, bread) that you actually get charged for in the end. I'm not sure if we were charged for the alcohol or the bread, but, whichever it was, it was a nominal amount.
To start off the meal, they gave us two small shot glasses filled with a clear alcohol. We thought at first it was ouzo but then we heard some other people talking and they said it was an alcohol that was stronger than ouzo. Maybe tsipouro? It was strong and smooth, but we unfortunately don't remember much else about it.
One thing we noticed about restaurants in Greece is that they often drop off things on the table that would seem complimentary (for example, bread) that you actually get charged for in the end. I'm not sure if we were charged for the alcohol or the bread, but, whichever it was, it was a nominal amount.
I believe the olives were free. Not being a huge fan of olives, I think I had only one, but don't remember too much about it. A remembers the green olives weren't pickled, so they were harder and more bitter than he's used to, but the kalamatas tasted good and salty.
We also got a loaf of bread, which I barely remember, but I think was good. It was a nice accompaniment for several of our dishes.
We also ordered a Mythos. When in Greece, drink Greek beer. Mythos is a crisp and refreshing beer that is light but still full of flavor.
The first dish we ordered was the Tzitzikas salad (ten different freshly cut vegetables, Anthotiro and Manouri cheeses, mustard dressing).
This salad was so good. There were salad greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, red peppers and a bunch of other vegetables. Everything tasted so fresh and, other than the cheese, the salad tasted incredibly light and healthy. The cheese was amazing. Both were soft Greek cheeses (I forget which one was the slightly harder one) and it was our first time having them. We absolutely loved them and thought they were perfect for salad.
We also got a loaf of bread, which I barely remember, but I think was good. It was a nice accompaniment for several of our dishes.
We also ordered a Mythos. When in Greece, drink Greek beer. Mythos is a crisp and refreshing beer that is light but still full of flavor.
The first dish we ordered was the Tzitzikas salad (ten different freshly cut vegetables, Anthotiro and Manouri cheeses, mustard dressing).
This salad was so good. There were salad greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, red peppers and a bunch of other vegetables. Everything tasted so fresh and, other than the cheese, the salad tasted incredibly light and healthy. The cheese was amazing. Both were soft Greek cheeses (I forget which one was the slightly harder one) and it was our first time having them. We absolutely loved them and thought they were perfect for salad.
We love dolmades (grape leaves) so we ordered the Filiani dolmades (spring onions stuffed with spinach, cheese, bacon and aromatic herbs).
We weren't sure what to expect from these dolmades. The description sure didn't sound like the grape leaves that we often get (usually stuffed with rice and sometimes pine nuts), but I don't think either of us expected them to be as creamy as they were. They were really rich and soft, and very cheesy. (The blocks of cheese below are from the salad, not the dolmades.) Cheesy spinach stuffed onions.
The pita "berze-berze" (minced meat flavored with oriental soutzouki in grilled pita) was also really good. It consisted of a crispy pita on the bottom, topped with ground meat, lots of onions and tomatoes, some yogurt and lots of spices. Such a simple combination but so delicious. The pita was crisped on the outside and chewy on the inside. The yogurt also added a nice coolness and tartness that acted like a much healthier sour cream.
We also tried the saganaki (4 cheeses cooked in olive oil and boucovo (red pepper flakes)). The saganaki we usually get at home is a block of griddled cheese in olive oil which is flambeed and then put out with lemon juice. The saganaki we had in Greece was nothing like that. Most were like this one, consisting of little blocks of cheese melted together in olive oil. This one also had a lot of tomatoes and red pepper flakes. It was smokey and tasted like there was bacon in it even though we knew there was none.
Lastly, we also ordered the meatballs (made with fresh mint and served with homemade fries). The meatballs weren't bad, but this was our least favorite dish. The meatballs did have a nice flavoring from the mint, but they were a little on the drier side. Also, the meatballs and fries just didn't seem so exciting compared with the other dishes on our table. If we were to drop any of the dishes from our meal, and we should have based on how much we ended up eating, it would have been this one.
We were so full on savory mezedes so we didn't even consider ordering dessert. With a good meal filling our bellies, we wandered around the stores near the restaurant for a bit before heading back to our hotel and resting for our early morning trip to Piraeus!
We weren't sure what to expect from these dolmades. The description sure didn't sound like the grape leaves that we often get (usually stuffed with rice and sometimes pine nuts), but I don't think either of us expected them to be as creamy as they were. They were really rich and soft, and very cheesy. (The blocks of cheese below are from the salad, not the dolmades.) Cheesy spinach stuffed onions.
The pita "berze-berze" (minced meat flavored with oriental soutzouki in grilled pita) was also really good. It consisted of a crispy pita on the bottom, topped with ground meat, lots of onions and tomatoes, some yogurt and lots of spices. Such a simple combination but so delicious. The pita was crisped on the outside and chewy on the inside. The yogurt also added a nice coolness and tartness that acted like a much healthier sour cream.
We also tried the saganaki (4 cheeses cooked in olive oil and boucovo (red pepper flakes)). The saganaki we usually get at home is a block of griddled cheese in olive oil which is flambeed and then put out with lemon juice. The saganaki we had in Greece was nothing like that. Most were like this one, consisting of little blocks of cheese melted together in olive oil. This one also had a lot of tomatoes and red pepper flakes. It was smokey and tasted like there was bacon in it even though we knew there was none.
Lastly, we also ordered the meatballs (made with fresh mint and served with homemade fries). The meatballs weren't bad, but this was our least favorite dish. The meatballs did have a nice flavoring from the mint, but they were a little on the drier side. Also, the meatballs and fries just didn't seem so exciting compared with the other dishes on our table. If we were to drop any of the dishes from our meal, and we should have based on how much we ended up eating, it would have been this one.
We were so full on savory mezedes so we didn't even consider ordering dessert. With a good meal filling our bellies, we wandered around the stores near the restaurant for a bit before heading back to our hotel and resting for our early morning trip to Piraeus!
Our First Athens Restaurant
It's been over 6 months since we were in Greece and sadly our memories are starting to fade. Before we forget everything, time to get back to our honeymoon recaps!
We had left off on our first day in Athens (yes, there is still a LOT to write about) with a visit to the awesome Ariston bakery for a late lunch. Later that day, we went for our first dinner at a restaurant called Tzitzikas kai Mermigas. They're known for small plates (mezedes) with a spin on traditional Greek food and we thought that sounded perfect.
Before we get to the food, let's set the scene and tell you about the restaurant itself. Tzitzikas kai Mermigas is centrally located on Mitropoleos Street near Syntagma Square and looked really inviting:
Many people in Athens eat dinner on the later side, so it was relatively easy for us to get a table. We were there before it got dark since we had to catch an early ferry the next day and didn't want to be out too late.
When we sat down, one thing we noticed is that the tables had no silverware pre-set:
Instead, on one side of the table there was a small drawer:
The drawer contained napkins and silverware. This was a nice and efficient method of service as you would never need to bother someone if you needed extra silverware or napkins.
Instead of being dark or candlelit like many places at home, this restaurant was open, inviting, casual and friendly. The menus were fun (love the kid on the front) and contained page after page of affordable options that sounded delicious:
Parts of the design were also creative and I loved what they used for the sinks in the bathroom:
By the time we left Tzitzikas it was dark out, and the place was still really busy. At one point there were musicians who stopped by and played on the sidewalk (no photos).
We enjoyed our time there and if we spent more time in Athens, would definitely think about a return visit. In our next post we'll tell you all about the delicious food!
We had left off on our first day in Athens (yes, there is still a LOT to write about) with a visit to the awesome Ariston bakery for a late lunch. Later that day, we went for our first dinner at a restaurant called Tzitzikas kai Mermigas. They're known for small plates (mezedes) with a spin on traditional Greek food and we thought that sounded perfect.
Before we get to the food, let's set the scene and tell you about the restaurant itself. Tzitzikas kai Mermigas is centrally located on Mitropoleos Street near Syntagma Square and looked really inviting:
Many people in Athens eat dinner on the later side, so it was relatively easy for us to get a table. We were there before it got dark since we had to catch an early ferry the next day and didn't want to be out too late.
When we sat down, one thing we noticed is that the tables had no silverware pre-set:
Instead, on one side of the table there was a small drawer:
The drawer contained napkins and silverware. This was a nice and efficient method of service as you would never need to bother someone if you needed extra silverware or napkins.
Instead of being dark or candlelit like many places at home, this restaurant was open, inviting, casual and friendly. The menus were fun (love the kid on the front) and contained page after page of affordable options that sounded delicious:
Parts of the design were also creative and I loved what they used for the sinks in the bathroom:
By the time we left Tzitzikas it was dark out, and the place was still really busy. At one point there were musicians who stopped by and played on the sidewalk (no photos).
We enjoyed our time there and if we spent more time in Athens, would definitely think about a return visit. In our next post we'll tell you all about the delicious food!
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Pies, Pies and More Pies
Before going to Athens, we did a bit of internet research to see which restaurants people raved about, and one of the universally recommended venues was Ariston bakery. It's a take-out shop with all sorts of savory and sweet pies and we planned to visit for lunch on our first full day in Athens.
Ariston is a small shop located on a narrow street (Voulis) lined with parked cars and filled with motorcycles. If you hang out on the street (as we did while eating), you see lots of people walking into Ariston and leaving with paper or plastic bags full of pies just like we did. Many of them didn't even wait until leaving the bakery before starting on their pies.
The window display gave us a hint of what was to come - homemade pies with fresh ingredients:
Many people left Ariston eating one of these cheese pies called "kourou." We had read about them as a specialty of the bakery and knew we had to try one:
Kourou on display
Kourou ready to eat
Not sure what type of cheese this was but this pie was delicious. The outside was a little crispy and bready, but once you made your way to the center of the pie, it was a mixture of the crispy exterior and soft tasty cheese inside. We would highly recommend trying one of these if you're in Athens. It's the perfect snack.
Since we were there for lunch, we also got a few more pies. The non-kourou pies were basically square or rectangular slices from a pie that was made in a big pie/cake pan. They had a layer of buttery and flaky crust with filling inside:
Mushroom pie
Spinach and feta pie
The pies were delicious. The mushroom pie might have been one of the best pies we have ever eaten. We immediately wanted more, but knew we couldn't if we were going to eat dinner and/or not go home 100 lbs heavier. So good.
Ariston is a small shop located on a narrow street (Voulis) lined with parked cars and filled with motorcycles. If you hang out on the street (as we did while eating), you see lots of people walking into Ariston and leaving with paper or plastic bags full of pies just like we did. Many of them didn't even wait until leaving the bakery before starting on their pies.
The window display gave us a hint of what was to come - homemade pies with fresh ingredients:
Many people left Ariston eating one of these cheese pies called "kourou." We had read about them as a specialty of the bakery and knew we had to try one:
Not sure what type of cheese this was but this pie was delicious. The outside was a little crispy and bready, but once you made your way to the center of the pie, it was a mixture of the crispy exterior and soft tasty cheese inside. We would highly recommend trying one of these if you're in Athens. It's the perfect snack.
Since we were there for lunch, we also got a few more pies. The non-kourou pies were basically square or rectangular slices from a pie that was made in a big pie/cake pan. They had a layer of buttery and flaky crust with filling inside:
The pies were delicious. The mushroom pie might have been one of the best pies we have ever eaten. We immediately wanted more, but knew we couldn't if we were going to eat dinner and/or not go home 100 lbs heavier. So good.
Monastiraki Starbucks
After a long day climbing the Acropolis, we stopped by Starbucks. We weren't originally intending to visit Starbucks in Greece, but we saw the frappuccino sign outside (I love signs for food in other languages...) and I was really curious to see if they had anything different. We wanted a quick break and decided it would be a good time for a drink.
Many of the snacks in the display case were similar to the pastries and desserts that we have:
Do we have all of these in the States? The cake pops reminded me of the cheesecake lollipop tree I tried at david burke & donatella (now named something else). And those cupcakes look really good.
In the display cases, there were also plenty of snacks that I'm pretty sure we don't have here at home:
Veggie pies and cheese pies? They looked pretty good. But since we were planning on a lunch of Greek pies, we thought it would be better to save our stomach space for what was supposed to be the best pie place in Athens (spoiler: it was amazing) instead of using it up on Starbucks pies (even though they were probably good).
We ended up getting one venti-sized drink to share:
The drink was a mango passion fruit frappuccino. It was sweet and tasty, and very refreshing after a hot day on the Acropolis. It was our only visit to Starbucks (for drinks) during the trip, and we were quite satisfied!
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Parthenon Hotel Breakfast
M and I woke up on our first full day in Greece full of excitement. We had an aggressive day planned full of sightseeing and a whole lot of hiking/walking. To prepare, we knew we needed a hearty breakfast to provide the initial burst of energy to power us through the day.
Luckily most hotels we chose for this trip offered a free continental breakfast. We both figured it might be something similar to an American hotel offering since that's what the hotel website seemed to describe. We were both pleasantly surprised when we finally dragged ourselves out of bed and wandered downstairs to the dining room.
Along with the standard oatmeal, cereals, eggs, bacon, and pastries was a bounty of Greek treats. Greek salad, dolmades, and Greek yogurt with fruit, honey, and nuts. They even had a simple olive oil poached hot dog dish that we both loved.
M's first plate of food
Each of our first plates was similar. We loaded up on the sliced hot dogs, dolmades, and Greek salad. M got a multigrain roll as well. Other plates were all slight variations on this plate with varying levels of hot dogs, dolmades, and salad.
My first bowl of Greek yogurt smothered in honey
I love Greek yogurt with honey. Coming to Greece M and I were sure of exactly 1 thing. I would eat as much yogurt and honey as I physically could. This was only the beginning of my yogurt and honey gluttony.
M's first bowl of yogurt with fruit
M doesn't like Greek yogurt as much as I do, and she doesn't like honey like I do either. This was her first bowl of yogurt on the trip. She loves piling on chopped fruit.
Walnut cake
The last thing we ate was this walnut cake. At first we thought it was chocolate cake, but when we bit into it we knew for a fact that it was not. That's not to say it was bad, but it was definitely a different flavor than what we expected. It was very moist and delicious, though, and I liked it more than M. Added to this meal was a lot of fresh squeezed orange juice for both of us and lots of coffee for me.
Overall, we were very pleased with our first meal in Greece, and we were ready to push through the day and wander around Athens.
Luckily most hotels we chose for this trip offered a free continental breakfast. We both figured it might be something similar to an American hotel offering since that's what the hotel website seemed to describe. We were both pleasantly surprised when we finally dragged ourselves out of bed and wandered downstairs to the dining room.
Along with the standard oatmeal, cereals, eggs, bacon, and pastries was a bounty of Greek treats. Greek salad, dolmades, and Greek yogurt with fruit, honey, and nuts. They even had a simple olive oil poached hot dog dish that we both loved.
Each of our first plates was similar. We loaded up on the sliced hot dogs, dolmades, and Greek salad. M got a multigrain roll as well. Other plates were all slight variations on this plate with varying levels of hot dogs, dolmades, and salad.
I love Greek yogurt with honey. Coming to Greece M and I were sure of exactly 1 thing. I would eat as much yogurt and honey as I physically could. This was only the beginning of my yogurt and honey gluttony.
M doesn't like Greek yogurt as much as I do, and she doesn't like honey like I do either. This was her first bowl of yogurt on the trip. She loves piling on chopped fruit.
The last thing we ate was this walnut cake. At first we thought it was chocolate cake, but when we bit into it we knew for a fact that it was not. That's not to say it was bad, but it was definitely a different flavor than what we expected. It was very moist and delicious, though, and I liked it more than M. Added to this meal was a lot of fresh squeezed orange juice for both of us and lots of coffee for me.
Overall, we were very pleased with our first meal in Greece, and we were ready to push through the day and wander around Athens.
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