Day 5

The Lass O'Gowrie

Aug 5

4 min read

Updated: Aug 31

Greece

Neither of us had been to Greece on holiday before arriving in Kosovo, so to discover that it was just a five-hour drive south from Pristina was quite the revelation. Both of us grew up with relatives in the south of England, so longer car journeys were not unusual, but it would also involve driving through two land borders; something else to experience for the first time.

Over the years, Thessaloniki and Khalkidhiki in Northern Greece became our weekend escape and we ventured all the way down to Athens on one occasion. Greece was the closest accessible EU country and the easiest access to the ocean. The fresh sea breeze was a welcome relief from the landlocked heat of Kosovo summer and some much-needed milder air during the depths of Kosovo winter.

As an expat, you quickly developed a shortlist of favourite hotels, pools, beaches and restaurants and when booking direct on first name terms with the owners, you could usually pick up a room for a few euros, even in the summertime, although the slightly more luxurious facilities and a heavily discounted UN staff rate at the Hyatt in Thessaloniki were usually irresistible.

We think that we saw Greece at its best: before the financial crisis of 2010, before Brexit, before Covid. The food was notably excellent of course. We often ate at a restaurant on the outskirts of Thessaloniki that was right on the shore. We watched the boats land on the pier across the road and a basket of seafood was brought in the door and emptied into a giant tank of seawater. Enthusiastic restaurant owners fiercely endorsed their own specific tzatziki, claiming it was the best in the region and from a family recipe handed down over hundreds of years. Usually, by the time our table was on it’s tenth ouzo the standard of the tzatziki was of lesser importance, but we certainly had our fair share of amazing meals in that wonderful country.

We were struck by the authentic food heritage that was shared with us as tourists. Sometimes Greek food is seen as a cliché in holiday resorts and some UK tourists just want to seek out the nearest British Pub for a full English; but the pride the Greeks take in producing fresh food is quite astonishing. Multiple generations involved in the family restaurant business, centuries of food tradition, olive trees older than anyone still alive, whitewashed walls, tiny village churches, bright purple bougainvillea and, of course, street cats with every meal!

During our 2006 trip to Athens, we managed to bag a table at “Spondi”, which had earned Greece’s first ever Michelin star in 2002. We booked in for the “degustation tasting menu” with matching wines and settled in for a nine course culinary extravaganza over four hours. The standard of service was exquisite. At any point, if a customer moved through the restaurant, all the staff turned and bowed, which made going to the loo relatively entertaining.

Three starter courses, three main courses and three desserts with palate cleansers in-between. A wine for each course and by the time we reached the dessert part of the evening we were quite delirious; either with sheer excitement from the calibre of food or being on the verge of some sort of food coma. At one point, Ali took a wrong turn on the way to the loo and ended up in the see-through glass wine cellar in the middle of the restaurant feeling her way around like Han Solo in carbonite. Thankfully, because all the staff had bowed to her on her way there, they were quick to rescue her and guide her delicately to where she needed to be.

One of the dessert courses was a blackberry ravioli. A see-through, glistening sheet of blackberry gel fashioned into a ravioli pocket with a sphere of mint and lemon coulis inside that burst as you ate it. The second dessert was served in a bowl that was surrounded by dry ice billowing out as it was placed in front of you. The final dessert wine rendered us beaten and we had to take a seat outside in the fresh air to gather ourselves before settling the outrageously underpriced bill by today’s standards and barrelling down the hill to our hotel.

To see both sides of Greek food and hospitality was such an eye-opener. From the oldest tavernas boasting heritage and family tradition to the cutting-edge techniques in Spondi, Greece has a very special place in our food memories.

It opened us to the idea that restaurants and cafes really are family affairs and relaxed dining was the way to go. Lunch was something to be celebrated, enjoyed and taken in large groups before the siesta. Dinner is much later in the evening, usually because it’s slightly cooler, and children stay up far beyond what would be considered bedtime in the UK.

Sunday brunch is a phenomenon at the Hyatt in Thessaloniki and Easter weekend is a huge affair; to our eyes the largest holiday celebration of the year based on special events, shop closures and family gatherings. The regular year-round Sunday brunch is an amazing affair for just €30 but if you timed it right and visited for the one at Easter, you were lucky to get a table. They served a dish of slow roasted lamb on a bed of orzo with herbs and tomatoes and if you paid your €30 and just ate that, you would feel like you’d won the lottery.

One day we will return. Just to check that the tzatziki is as good as it used to be. And it will be. Because they will tell us so.

This is Day Five in our series sharing 31 Food Memories for the 31 Days of August.