Greek Cuisine

OK, let's talk food.
As you may or may not know, Greek cuisine consists of alot of cheese, meat, olive oil, tomatoes and fries (potatoes). Yes, fish too but aside from cod and shrimp, it's a little expensive for me (30 euros).

The feta is fantastic - not as smelly or what I would call, "stout" as we're accustomed to in the states. The Greek salad is served like a meal in itself - humongous! I think I already mentioned this before. They also attempt their version of Italian food. I had one good experience, and one not so good. Souvlaki is great! This dish resembles shish kabob but the meat is grilled and has great juicy flavor. I was also introduced to Saganaki by some English women I met at the hostel in Athens. This is fried cheese. It's pretty good actually - tasty!

The gyros are fantastic! In Fira here on Santorini island, there is a small "to-go" type place that, as I found out one morning (or late night - take your pick) is open until 7 a.m. for those crazies that stay out all night - freaks if you ask me! Anyway, the gyros there were The best for sure. Juicy, tangy with loads of zest and they serve them with, yes, fries. Everything comes with fries.

I had my first Mousaka and was not a fan although most people like it. Surprised to find out that the bottom layer (similar contruction to lasagna) was none other, fries.

I ordered a pizza here in Parrisa beach and requested pepperoni which was indicated on the menu. Yay, I thought- I'm tired of ham. Unfortunately, it was not what I expected - how silly of me. It looked and tasted more like sliced hot dog. Oh well.

I had the greatest iced coffee in all the land a few days ago in Oia. Fantastic and put Starbucks to shame. Simple but super tasty w/o all the fancy flavors - except chocolate, of course. It was so good but a mere 5 euros. Worth every penny of it if you consider the views (terrace was on the edge of the caldera) and the music (nice housey lounge music). The other favorite coffe is is Nescafe! Strange, I thought. But they serve it shaken, cold and with milk and ice - it's not bad.

Oh, most dinner meals are finished by serving the bill with a shot of Ouzo. So I'm wondering, which country do I need to go to get my meal served with Jager? Germany?

No Greek meal would be complete without a dog and/or cat making eyes with you! Although I do not consort to these themes at home, I did provide as much food as I could to them and so did many others. Strays are everywhere here - even on the islands. How do they not get hit by a car - correction, one got hit last night near the internet cafe I was pounding on. I think he was ok. I am more used to this experience now having seen it in Peru. At least there are no starving kids here! It is sad to see my "friends" in such need but they are used to it. Sleep during the day and then venture out at night for the big meals. They know how it works. Hard not to be affected by it. I promise i won't bring any home.

Service is, well, different. Seems to be consistently slow. That's normal. But seems unusual to me though is the Greeks WANT you to stay seated. They don't want you to leave the table. They welcome you to stay as long as you like. This is very different to the UK and America for that matter - they charge you extra to eat in AND want you to leave asap. The Greeks give this nice, welcoming feeling I think - they wait until you ask for the bill and give a funny look if you eat and then just leave. Nice change, I think. I don't like the UK manner for this - I can understand in busy times but when it's slow, I think it looks more attractive for a potential customer to see other people dining and not an empty restaurant.