ottawa foodies

The Greekfest starts next Wednesday, August 15 at Noon and continues through to August 26. www.ottawagreekfest.com/

I usually have the soulaki pita and then share a Greek Salad with the family, as well as tatziki and warm pita. They like to get a pile of the lamb from the whole lambs done on the spit. I rarely have room for dessert but try to squeeze in a baklava.

This is our 27th year attending.

Anybody else with menu favourites?

you have to have a gyro, loukaniko (sausage), and the honey balls for dessert.

Ah. THAT'S why I'm looking after my friend's house while he and his family are on vacation for the next two weeks. His house backs onto the Greek Orthodox church on Prince of Wales. He says that the noise makes them mental every single year.

Girlfriend and I went to greekfest on Wednesday Night.

Had a Gyro, pork souvlaki platter and some greek fried cheese called Saganaki. "Father Alex's Saganaki to be exact".

Just a recomendation, the platters kind of suck, they only come with rice and meat (no lettuce, tomato etc.). The rice is meh.

It's better bang for your buck and tastier to get a wrap of each... gyro, chicken, and pork. Then after your done with that, get some fried cheese, lamb sausages and baklava for desert :-)

The beef gyro was clearly the best for me.

Check out the Orthodox church too, it's super cool inside!

Pictured is the Saganaki.

Went yesterday afternoon and was kind of disappointed. I got a chicken skewer (maybe 2oz of meat) that had no char and was quite pale. Also got a salad and the dressing was akin to Kraft- xanthan-gum-ish texture and oddly....blended. No discernible herbs or real vinegar flavor. Dolmades were fine. Bread was shockingly stale :(

We go with Greek friends who dance up a storm, but most of the afternoon they just had the radio tuned to non-Greek music.

Meh all around.

We went today and had a few things - the pikilia platter, loukaniko and chicken souvlaki with rice. Dolmades were excellent, spanakopita and tiropites a little disappointing (too much pastry and too dry), taramasalata and tzatsiki fine without being anything special. Loukaniko was really good, souvlaki was well cooked and the rice surprisingly light, fluffy and flavoursome. Overall we were quite pleased with it all.

I find most of what's there kind of bland and overpriced compared to what's offered at a good Greek takeaway (like Cozmo's on Greenbank). I had the Moussaka and Pikilia platter which were tasty and good value.