Living in the Thiseio area, I often walk by the Museum of Islamic Art – but of course I never go in. Something about not noticing what’s in front of your face… The Islamic Art Museum is part of the Benaki Museum complex, and is located at 22 Ag. Asomaton Street, very near the Kerameikos archaeological site. I wandered in the other day with an ‘I really should go in…’ attitude, unsure of what to expect. I was very pleasantly surprised at what I found.

This is a collection of daily items from different countries and vastly different time periods – showcasing the variety and range of Islamic arts and artifacts. And this is why I liked it (and in fact, why I have liked the Benaki Museum ‘concept’): the everyday nature of the museum’s collections gives a real feeling that we are viewing history as it was – rather than the monumental/religious/political history of other types of museums. Don't get me wrong – I like the monumental – but Benaki is a more subtle experience.

The site itself comprises two beautifully restored neoclassical homes – one of which is built upon an (untouched!) section of the ancient city wall of Athens…

When I came home, I looked up the Benaki museum online and found that it is in fact a huge collection across numerous buildings, stretched really across the entire city. The locations range from the gorgeous main building on Vasilissis Sofias Street, to the modern complex at 138 Pireos Street, the Mentis textile workshop museum on Polyfemou Street, the historical archives collection at Delta House in Kifisia and the Hadjikyriakos-Ghika Gallery on Kriezotou Street.  And that’s not the entire list!

My best friend Mr. Google also tells me that, thanks to the support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, the Benaki museum will offer FREE entry every Thursday from March 5 2015, for one year (free entry to the main building, Pireos building, the Islamic art building and the Hadjikyriakos-Ghika gallery).

The Benaki Museum is a city unto itself, and offers a rare glimpse into the life of the past – from Greece and beyond. Take advantage of this great opportunity to check out these important collections.

Benaki Museum of Islamic Art
22 Ag. Asomaton
www.benaki.gr
Regular adult entry: 7€

Until next week,

Jack

In this weekly space, keep up with ‘Jack’ as he navigates daily life in Athens… Anecdotes, stories, hits & misses, the good, the bad and, well, the rest…

According to Sotiris Hatzakis, National Theater director, the ground floor stage, the largest one, will be used for musicals, a genre that is slowly developing and gaining an audience in Greece. The director plans to launch the “Phantom of the Opera,” a renowned international production that will promote the National Theater’s initiative.

Hatzakis also wishes that the theater will now only operate as a theater, since it has doubled as a music stage until now. Moreover, the building’s interior will be refurbished in order to be fully accessible to people with disabilities.

To read more, please visit greekreporter.com

By Ioanna Zikakou

There is no legal age in Greece and some suggest this is why most children learn to drink moderately. Clubs and retail stores sell alcoholic drinks to those overf 16 and lately driving laws and regulations have become stricter to avoid alcohol-related car accidents.

Tsipouro

Tsipouro is a Greek traditional distillation product from the pomace of grapes (the residue of the wine press) particularly brewed in Thessaly (Tsipouro Tyrnavou,) Epirus, Macedonia, Mani Peninsula and the island of Crete, where Cretans call it tsikoudia. Tsipouro is a strong distilled spirit containing approximately 45 percent alcohol. Other areas of Greece use the name raki.

According to tradition, the first production of tsipouro was the work of Greek Orthodox monks. This occurred during the 14th Century on Mount Athos in Macedonia. The idea of using the pomace left over from the wine-making process produce a distilled spirit was passed to viticulturists in poorer regions across the country.

Depending on the time of year, tsipouro is used either as refreshment or as a hot beverage, and depending on the time of day, it replaces for many the drinking of coffee or wine. It is usually served in shot glasses, with ice, often with delicious meze including feta, ham, olives, tomatoes, halva or other desserts in restaurants.

Ouzo

This anise-flavored aperitif is a symbol of Greek culture and has many scores of thousands of enthusiasts in Greece and Cyprus. Deriving from the anise flavored version of tsipouro, modern ouzo distillation largely took off in the beginning of the 19th Century following the Greek independence fight, with production blooming mainly on the island of Lesbos, which claims to be the originator of the drink and remains a major producer. In the early 20th Century when absinthe was gradually abandoned, ouzo rose as the new substitute.

In 1932, ouzo producers developed a method of distillation using copper stills that is now the standard method of production. One of the largest producers of ouzo today is Varvayiannis, located in the town of Plomari in the southeast portion of Lesbos, while in the same town Pitsiladi, a variety of high quality ouzo is also distilled.

Ouzo is traditionally mixed with water, becoming cloudy white, and served with ice cubes in a small glass. Ouzo can also be drunk straight from a shot glass. Served with a small plate of a variety of appetizers called mezes, usually small fresh fish, fries, olives and feta cheese, ouzo has a smooth yet distinctly sweetened taste that can bring light-headedness in only a few shots.

Ouzito

Ouzito, as you may have imagined is a coctail with ouzo. The Greek answer to mojito – as many call it- is a mix of mint, lemon, soda water, sugar and ouzo. Making the coctail you can also use Coke instead of soda water in case you want it to be more sweet and have a less liquerish taste. Ouzito is moreof an after food drink, rather than a drink to accompany your food.

Retsina

Retsina has been something like the national beverage for Greeks since the 1960′s. Produced from Greek white (or rosé) resinated wine, the beverage has been made for at least 2000 years. Its unique flavor is said to have originated from the practice of sealing wine vessels, particularly amphorae, with Aleppo Pine resin in ancient times.

Popular legend has it that the evolution of retsina stems from the Roman conquest of Greece. Stories claim that the Romans plundered the wines of Greece, angering the citizens who turned to pine resin as a way of extending their store of wine and as a deterrent to their thirsty conquerors. The harsh flavor was said to put off the Romans, who refused to drink the bitter ferment.

In Greece, local retsina is produced throughout the country with widely popular brands being Malamatina, Tsantali, Kourtaki and Georgiadis. Major production centers around Attica, Boeotia and Euboea. Retsina should be served extremely cold, and in wide, open glasses along with delicious savory, spicy meze.

Wine

Greece is one of the oldest wine-producing regions in the world dating back some 6,500 years. In ancient Greece, wine was produced in households or communities and soon became a main product of trading between the Mediterranean people. The geographical anatomy of the country and its climate serve the brewing of some 300 elegant indigenous wine varieties in the best possible way, such as in Assyrtiko (Santorini island,) Aghiorgitiko (Peloponnese,) Malagousia (Macedonia,.) Robola (Kephalonia,) Mavrodaphne (Peloponnese and Ionian islands,) Amorgiano (Rhodes and Crete) and many others.

The vast quantity and flavors of Greek wines make it imperative for everyone to taste a glass of God Dionysus’ liquor with their food. When in a restaurant remember to share your wine from the karafe or bottle because that’s common when eating with Greeks.

To read more, please visit greekreporter.com

By Stella Tsolakidou

Archeon Gefsis serves dishes based on original ancient recipes proved by studies to have high nutritional value and healing powers.

So, if you order black olives with cream cheese as a starterm you have an ally in the battle against respiratory infections, while if you ask for the popular creokakkabos (pieces of meat with sweet sauce made of honey, thyme and vinegar served with chickpea puree) you enhance your lucidity with a dish that has antimicrobiotic and antibiotic powers!

Traditional Greek cuisine has been scientifically acknowledged to be the best model of nutrition in the world. Even better was ancient Greek cuisine, since it was rich in cereal and dairy products, vegetables, fruit and oil. In particular, ancient Greek cuisine features the usage of honey, which people would often mix with cereals and eat in the form of oatmeal, fruit and vegetables, olive oil, watered down wine, meat, cobs, wine pairing appetizers, legumes such as lentils and chickpeas, barley rusks, desserts like syrup desserts and honey pies, salads, souvlaki and so on. Food was usually either roasted or boiled and often spiced. And let us not forget that food is what ancient Greeks would offer to their gods (meat, fruit, honey pies, etc.).

Being rich in antioxidotic and natural anti-inflammatory elements such as vitamins A, C and E, Greek cuisine provides protection not only against cancer but also against arteriosclerosis.

Finally, a major part of Greek cuisine is from dairy products which provide protection against osteoporosis and supply the body with nutritional ingredients. A good example of this is Feta cheese which tastes delicious and is, at the same time, low in fat.

WHERE:

Address: Agion Anargiron 6, Psirri 10554
Phone: 210 5239 661 & 6974777766
Hours: 7 pm-1 am
Website: www.archeongefsis.gr

They are divided into three categories: Red (classic tomato sauce and mozzarella) , white or bianca (no tomato sauce) and sweet pizza (with chocolate, Oreo cookie and wild cherry, pear, cookies, almond biscuit and more.

Address: Iroon Polytechniou Square, Nea Penteli

Tel: 210 8100 040

To read more, please visit athinorama.gr

Having trained at the legendary “El Bulli” in Spain (the tiny restaurant famed for producing the planet’s most audacious “haute cuisine”), we guessed that Funky Gourmet’s founding chefs Georgianna Hiliadeki and Nikos Roussos must know their way pretty well around a kitchen (and a science lab or two!)

But sadly, with one of the scariest waiting lists in town, we’d been confined to drooling over friends’ glowing Facebook and Instagram posts. Until last weekend. When we finally joined the exalted few lucky enough to snare a prime table for two on a Friday night.

So, does Funky Gourmet live up to its hype?

A resounding yes. And for reasons that are not just about the food (which we’ll get to soon, we promise!). Like any much-loved recipe, there isn’t just one winning ingredient that contributes to the success of the Funky Gourmet Experience.

The sense of adventure starts before you even walk in the door. The restaurant is located in a gritty pocket of Keramikos, well off the main tourist drag, where the neighboring buildings look so uncherished, you fear you must be in the wrong place. Until you spot the lone neo-classical beauty that has been exquisitely restored on the corner (there’s no sign to give the game away) and are ushered inside by a friendly Funky Gourmet greeter.

Inside, the actual dining space upstairs is fairly compact, lending a clubby and inviting ambience that’s offset nicely by the striking avant-garde décor and bold, sensual artwork (a hint of flavors to come!). We were dining unfashionably early for most Greeks. When we sat down at 9pm, the restaurant was mostly empty; by 11pm, it was heaving. But by being early birds, we got the best seat in the house, right against the picture window, with a once-majestic moonlit mansion serving as our romantic backdrop.

My husband and I decided to totally surrender ourselves to the Funky Gourmet Odyssey by opting for one of their Degustation Menus where each course is thoughtfully matched with a different wine (which was included in the price).

We went for Menu Number 2 (at a price of €100 a head - or €150 when paired with wine). Fifteen micro-courses of what one might loosely classify: “Molecular gastronomy with a Mediterranean twist.” (Or Taverna-on-acid, as one reviewer put it!)

Enough friends had prepared us so that we knew what to expect. A procession of dainty bite-sized morsels, each one prettier (or more surreal) than the last – and most no bigger than a golf-ball! Food as intellectual art with a sense of humor on the side. And all served up to you with flourish and theatricality by the restaurant’s super-hospitable and well-trained waiting staff.

Happily, you don’t need to pack a muesli bar in your handbag just in case you’re still hungry afterwards. Even my strapping husband declared himself “simply stuffed” by the time the first of the two dessert courses (chocolate soup!) arrived.

So what were the highlights?

For me, the pastitsio appetizer, which came as the last in a series of 4 starters, was the star of the show with its dreamy creamy flavour combinations that left you wanting more. So much more. (Especially when accompanied with a dazzling Tselepos Estate Brut Sparkling wine.)

I also loved the fun and lightness of the “Kakavia Fish Soup” course where you got to poach delicate raw furls of Shabu fish yourself in the warm broth before eating. 

And while it doesn’t look as “purdy” as some of the other dishes, I am still days later marveling about the Greek salad course where they miraculously infuse all the main flavours of a “horiatiki” into an innocuous-looking ball of intense-tasting white sorbet (the cucumber absolutely pops!)

My husband, on the other hand, adored the earthy richness of the snails, served sautéed in a baby cassoulet, surrounded by fragrant lentils and garnished with wild greens.

His other favourite was the two-part Silence of the Lambs course: (Act One being a boldly-seasoned portion of lamb’s brain served on a tiny pitta in a nod to Greece’s most popular street food; and Act Two, a refreshingly rustic rack of lamb trio that comes at just the right moment in the taste parade.)

The crowd pleaser of the evening was the dessert finale, the Orange Explosion. It comes to your table as two small gold-wrapped balls on a bed of exotic leaves partially obscured by dramatic swirls of liquid nitrogen (like something out of an Indiana Jones banquet). When the “smoke clears” and you bite into the delicate chocolate sphere, a geyser of chilled orange juice explodes in your mouth. Lots of fun.

No, it’s not a cheap night out. But this kind of clever-crazy cuisine is not something you could indulge in every day, even if you wanted to. Funky Gourmet is an Event. A magical mystery tour that’s provocative, playful and unconventional – and with unerringly fantastic service that left us both feeling pampered and valued.

The menu we chose was not without its flaws. There were some weaker links in the chain; a couple of plates that to me, were overly-salted. Or just too successively rich for my palette. But it seems churlish to name names when everything else at this restaurant is done with such grace and class. And most of all, joyousness.

I think my husband put it best, when still in the grip of a full-scale food swoon in the taxi home afterwards, he declared. “Wow! It’s funky. AND gourmet!”

As for me, I’ll never look at a Greek salad the same way again!

Funky Gourmet, 13 Paramythias St and Salaminos, Keramikos, 10435.

Visit: www.funkygourmet.com

Review by Amanda Dardanis

Do you have a recommendation or recipe to share? Send it to us at ideas@xpatathens.com!