(Visited in April 2010)
We were taking a walk along the Apostolou Pavlou in a very warm Holy Saturday afternoon. I was vaguely heading for Filistron, but it was closed due to Easter vacation. So we settled at this mezedopoleio just next to it.
We were afraid it might be a tourist trap, but the attaction of eating in the sunlight was so great that we did not resist much. Besides, as the price looked reasonable, we thought, even if it were a trap, it should not be a big loss. Anticipating the conclusion, our thought proved to be more or less right.
As it was during the holy week they had a (semi-)fasting menu. We weren't fasting strictly, but did not order meat, although there were many grilled meat dishes on offer.
These are tzatziki (€3)and oven baked feta cheese in spicy tomato sauce (€4.50). The Tzatziki was stale and getting slightly babbly. The oven baked feta was all right, if it was slightly too waterly than it should be. I observed that the sauce used for garidomakalonada (spaghetti with prawns) on the table next to us looked suspiciously similar to the sauce of feta bake. This is a big No-No of restaurant business to me, as it shows that the restaurant manager does not give a damn for those who order both of the dishes.
Assorted boiled vegetable (€5.50).
Quality and freshness of the ingredients (for example, the broccoli was turning yellow) aside, I thought it is a good idea to offer boiled vegetables in this way.
Nistissimo (i.e. Orthodox fasting friendly) classic, deep fried squid (€6.50).
Not bad, but not good either.
We had also a bottle of beer and a plate of fried potato and the bill came to €26.40. Cheap, but the quality was corresponding to the price.
Even so, we enjoyed our meal because of the beautiful environment and friendly service. On the Apostolou Pavlou avenue, you cannot buy everything for this price, can we?
BRAHAKIA
Otirineon 1 (on Apostolou Pavlou)
Thissio, Athens
Tel. 210-3466783
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