Athens, a city of rich ancient culture and the ancient capital of Europe is diversified and has an appeal to all classes of people. This city has a story to offer in its every nook and corner. The story I’m going to tell you is one of food. This series will give you an idea of my gastronomical experience in Athens and few other cities in Greece.
Athens-Dinner in the Sky
In the recent years I have observed that many a times I’m deducing my travel experiences and the bliss it has bought being directly proportional to my experiences with that country’s local cuisine
Boy oh boy!! was I in for a treat. Single handedly the dinner in the sky crew put a massive smile on my face and made my evening as one of the most memorable one and mind you I have loads of them. Forbes magazine called it one of the world’s ten most unusual restaurants. The thrill of dining 150 feet in the air is high by itself and I was all prepared to be a bit disappointed with my food (vegetarian food in a foreign country) but little did I know that it was going to be nothing less than stellar and the service would be unparalleled.
For a chef to be successful above all he/she needs to be a culinary expert to satisfy the palate of people from varied ethnicity and I must say that Magda Gkogkoura has it in the bag. It’s a simple 5 course meal that’s well planned and executed by a chef who will travel with you along with the owners Alexandros Papadopoulos and Stathis Spinos who are in charge of keeping your entire experience upbeat and peppy.
The delectable meal starts of with Soup Trilogy.
– Santorini cherry tomato gaspacho, saffron & mastic flavored goat cheese
– beetroot coulis, lime, peppermint and black ink roe mousse
– yellow bell pepper soup, fresh marjoram & feta-cheese croutons
It’s basically a soup made of raw vegetables and you get experiment with 3 different flavor tones. The tomato gaspacho was refreshing with the right spice tones and the goat cheese gave the much needed twist in flavor. However the flavor of uncooked Beet was tad bit strong for me and this was my least fav dish.
Next we were served a vegetarian version of Shrimp Saganaki with ouzo, olive oil, tomato & cheese. Our was without the shrimp and alcohol and with lots of local vegetables. It had a dash of Indian spices and was the perfect dish after the Soup trilogy keeping your palate awakened and ready for the next course.
The next course was a salad of asparagus, raisins, sunflower seeds, organic lettuce with rose-water dressing. If I could whip a salad something close to this I definitely would be 20 pounds lighter. The rose water dressing was spot on and the rose jam was something I tasted for the first time. It was light and sublime with the perfect balance of flavor and scent without overpowering our senses with the strong fragrance.
For the main we had Stuffed Aubergine with graviera cheese served with black garlic mashed potatoes and briam & macedonian pomegranate glaze. Now Briam is an excellent example of how Greeks were able to transform humble vegetables and simple ingredients into a finger licking dish. It was a super dish full of fiber, good fats and antioxidants. It was not very heavy and you still have enough appetite left for enjoying the scrumptious desserts that followed.
Dessert Trilogy:
Ekmek with pistachio & blackcurrant coulis
Lemon crème with masticha meringue crumble
Chocolate delice with demerata preserved kumquat from Corfu
Of the three, Lemon creme and Chocolate delice won our hearts. After watching 8 seasons of Masterchef Australia I was so excited to taste the meringue crumble and it certainly was everything that Gary said it should be. The sourness of the Lemon creme with the sweetness of the meringue was a match made in heaven. You are almost at an end of a elevated high and the best way to wrap up the party was being submerged in the soft and fluffy chocolate delice.
All in all a perfect place for a team building activity or a romantic evening or just go there to submerge your senses visually with the majestic view of the acropolis and let the food satisfy your soul.
MsSuSays 