A Report from Athens and Aegina

[small_h]

To limit the likelihood of anyone I know seeing me rolling over into another decade, medium H and I went to Greece. Which has the added attraction of being the birthplace of democracy! A little inspiration / shred of hope.

Obviously we did stuff like clomp around the Acropolis, but we also did some eating. To whit.

There is nothing I love more than a big ol’ meat & fish market, and there was one right near where we stayed for the first couple of nights - Varvakios Market. From a place called “fish to go” (we stayed), I snagged some beautiful fried sardines. These were the first sardines H has ever liked; a sardine monster has been created.

Wandering around, we noticed a perpetual line at a place called Καραμανλίδικα. It’s mostly a deli, but the menu is pretty broad. Somehow we managed to get a table, despite not having a reservation - we must have hit it at an opportune time. H got super-thinly-sliced pastrami and eggs, and I ordered wrong. Okay, the taramasalata was definitely right, but I meant to order a hot bulgur dish with mushrooms and cheese, and accidentally ordered a bulgur salad. Not that it wasn’t good, but it was a bulgur salad. I can make that at home.

We also got a free yogurt dessert, which was so good I will be haunted by it in perpetuity.

The next morning, we tried to get into the popular breakfast place and were spurned. So we went to the less popular one, and I had this classic kagiana - eggs, feta, tomatoes. Nothing not to like about this. Note the presence of spinach. Spinach came up an awful lot.

Did I allude to it being my birthday? I’ll say it outright. We went for our fancymeal at a Michelin-starred place on the waterfront in Piraeus called Varoulko and had lovely food and mixed service (on balance, it was fine). The theme was “pour liquid over the dry stuff.” I have a really pretty video of a seafood broth being tipped over some dolmades constructed from sorrel and fish paste, but does Hungry Onion support video? It does not. Picture it in your head.

Here’s what you can see - an amuse bouche of very fancy fish roe in pastry, bread service with amazing olive oil (it is Greece, after all), a crab and green apple composed dish, red mullet in a fine dining style, and a poached pear dessert. And wine! All the wine I had was amazing, and also dirt cheap. I would go back just for the wine.

[ZivBnd (Ziv)]

They all look great! I google saved Karamanlidika, it is near my part of the city.

[small_h]

The next day, we did get into the popular breakfast place! Why is it so popular? Who knows. It’s called Frogs. I had avocado toast (with spinach - keep your eyes on that leafy green).

Then we lit out for Aegina, famous for its pistachios (they are indeed excellent). My #1 goal was lunch at the Fish Taverna and Agora, a restaurant attached to - you will not be surprised to learn - a fish market. There was a fish on the menu called gopes, of which I had never heard, so obviously I ordered it. Kind of like a giant sardine!

I also ordered boiled wild greens, and I’m not sure what they were - dandelion? broccoli rabe? - but they may have bee the bitterest thing I have ever eaten in my life, and I’ve had unicum. I think they probably cured me of a number of ailments and perhaps extended my life. They were also really hard to eat.

Aegina is one of those islands that has a row of seaside restaurants that look pretty indistinguishable from one another, but I thought I had picked out a special one. I had our AirBnB host make us a reservation, and he was impressed that I had found this jewel. It was fine. Probably identical to the other seaside restaurants. I did have Tsipouro, a drink that was new to me, so that was cool.

And shrimp with barley turned out to be shrimp with orzo - I hate when that happens.

The eggplant salad was terrific, though, and redeemed the place for me.

[small_h]

I think you will love it. The proprietor was so sweet to us. I would’ve gone back if we’d had more time - there was a lot on that menu that called to me.

[small_h]

Breakfast the next day was obviously a cheese pie by the sea.

And lunch was obviously a Greek salad at the Benaki Museum, a real treasure.

It happens that I have a friend who visits Greece at least once a year and knows a number of people who own restaurants. That’s always a roll of the dice, but we took the chance, and it paid off. Our last dinner was at Ella, an “urban Greek” restaurant. I started with this lovely plate of yellow split peas with roasted tomatoes and lentils - addictive! In the background is the beet and orange salad, fries and grilled pita.

This grilled sea bass with fish broth was perfect. Served with carrots and - you guessed it! - spinach.

I kind of forget what this dessert was, but it definitely involved something cheesecake-esque, and also caramel-y. Did I mention my fondness for the cheap wine?

I then insisted, over the objections of my companion, that we hit the bar next door, which had a Muhammad Ali theme and some aggressively composed drinks. This one was called “The Rashomon Effect.” It involved apple basil sorbet, gin, and enormous ice cube, and a lot of other stuff. And now I can say I had it!

Don’t let anyone tell you that Greece is not a great dining destination.

[linguafood (Natascha)]

Spinach is to Greece what broccoli is to India

[Steve (from DC)]

I was underwhelmed ordering a cold plate at Karamandlika, though apparently @JenKalb had great success with a few cooked dishes.

There is another deli about a block away run by an Armenian guy who has sliced camel on offer… it looks like a small shop with one communal table.

[GretchenS]

Excellent report, thank you! And happy birthday!

[ZivBnd (Ziv)]

I had that greens dish in Heraklion. It was an eye opener.

[small_h]

Thanks!

[small_h]

Bracing, right?

[Presunto (--> Back in Athens - Goat's/Sheep's Yoghurt every day ... [Fleeced Taxpayer :@)) :@)) ])]

@small_h

I also ordered boiled wild greens, and I’m not sure what they were - dandelion? broccoli rabe? - but they may have bee the bitterest thing I have ever eaten in my life

Usually (wild) dandelion greens. But sometimes also amaranth, mustard and chicory. Green grocers at the central market have piles of them on display right now. I already saw lots back in March. When in season I eat these boiled greens more than village salad. In Greece dandelion greens are cooked with the roots attached, at least at the lowly taverns where regular Greeks and I go to.

Dandelion greens in Greece are a nicely bitter. The bitterest I had was in Sicily. My god! Borderline poison?! And I have extremely high tolerance for bitter foods. Put me in my place! Would happily eat them again in Sicily. Vegetables at home have been modified too damn much there’s almost no more bitterness left in them so I enjoy bitter vegetables whenever I come across them anywhere.

Love visiting Greece. Just went there 3 times in less than a year and looks like I might be able to squeeze in another trip in August.

[linguafood (Natascha)]

Called horta, usually, ne?

[medgirl]

Happy birthday! Your photos and descriptions are enticing. Spinach popping up everywhere…lol

[tomatotomato (Denise)]

Happy birthday! You celebrated beautifully indeed.

For some reason I can’t explain, getting myself to Greece has never been on my radar. Your report changes that.

[small_h]

Thanks! This was a “we finally made it” trip. The first attempt was derailed by the pandemic, the second by my hip replacement. So it really felt like a victory.

[ninkat]

I think the first time I had a fresh sardine was in a little hole-in-the-wall fish restaurant I love in Barcelona; the owner encouraged me in this for an early breakfast just after I landed. Served with some kind of mulled/warm red wine concoction as I ate among a group of men at a communal table who were clearly on their way to work. Sardines were memorably accompanied by a thick slice of white toast slathered in aioli. Like your H, I was an immediate convert! Happy, happy birthday, h!

[small_h]

Thank you! If we’d had more time, I would have converted him on anchovies as well.

[Phoenikia]

There are also at least half a dozen other Greek wild greens that are used. What is used keeps changing as the seasons progress.

Curly endive, escarole, other endives, beet greens, turnip greens, Rapini, and other cultivated greens are also used for boiled Horta. It’s often a surprise to see what a restaurant serves.

Horta was served at most meals when my mom and her siblings were growing up, at dinner. Around a cup of cooked greens per person each meal. A lot of wild dandelion greens, spinach, arugula (Roka in Greek), some other edible weeds.

Our family recipe for spanakopita includes spinach, curly endive, green onion, onion, parsley and dill. I’ve had a few versions that include more wild greens. I have been using more arugula, leek and escarole in our spanakopita lately.

It might be possible to buy seeds for some or the wild greens in Greece, if anyone is interested in that

Here is info on one Cretan green.

Stamnagathi wild greens in Crete part of the Mediterranean diet