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One of the less obvious perks of going to the Greek islands is discovering local food specialities that make a welcome change from the mainland staples. Much as we love stuffed eggplant and fava beans, after three weeks diversity is a godsend. Crete in particular had some interesting dishes that were unlike anything we came across elsewhere in Greece.
My favourite was dakos, a round, twice-baked brown bread that has a texture halfway between bread and a biscuit. It’s served with local feta, tomato, black olives and olive oil and makes a delicious lunch.
Another vegetarian favourite was boureki, a baked pie with layers of cheese, potatoes and zucchini. This varied slightly according to the restaurant - the first time it came as a pie, with a flaky pastry top layer. The second time it was served more gratin style, without any pastry. Andy liked the second version best.
We also found more variation in the mezze selection in Crete, including dishes that were grilled, baked or steamed and served with a squeeze of fresh lemon, rather than baked in oil. I don’t think these were indigenous to Crete, but perhaps they had fallen off the typical Greek tourist menu on the mainland.
A quick favourite was grilled mushrooms, served with a squeeze of lemon. These came straight off the BBQ and were a simple but beautifully flavoured dish.
In Hania we tried “wild greens” with lime. These were a single, quite bitter vegetable. Not my favourite dish, but they improved with lime and my body was grateful for a healthy serve of green vegetables. Most restaurants in Crete offer local dishes, but a good place to get started is Grabenon street in Iraklio. This had 3 - 4 good restaurants, away from the tourist strip. We ate at Taverna Deykaliona, at the top end of the street away from the water and recommend the mushrooms and dakos! Mezzes were 2.50 - 5 euros. Vegetarian in Greece: More posts on Greek veggie food
Comments:
5 Comments posted on "Cretan Food - not food for Cretins"
The TriniGourmet on July 30th, 2007 at 11:42 am #
mmmm feed me
James on July 31st, 2007 at 9:23 pm #
This reminds me of Epimenides paradox All Cretans are liars hahaha
vegetablej on August 3rd, 2007 at 10:45 am #
Hi K: I have added you to my tag list for the meme” 8 Random Things About Myself”. I understand if you are too busy with travelling, etc. If you feel like participating, though, I’m sure it will be interesting. You can see the rules here, which are just write 8 things about yourself in a post and then try to persuade some other people to do the same thing. http://vegetablejapan.blogspot.com/2007/08/my-first-meme-8-random-things-about.html In any case I’m tuned in to the food journey. Thanks.:)
kpounder on August 3rd, 2007 at 10:40 pm #
Cheers Sarina. I’m still getting dakos cravings. Thanks James - I love a good logic puzzle! It is probably a good thing for Greek-Australian relations that Andy and I heard about the Epimenides Paradox after we left Crete, as we had enough trouble stopping ourselves making bad “cretin” jokes (see heading)… if we also had “all cretins are liars” in our repetoires there may have been an international incident! Hi vegetablej - Thanks for tagging me with the “8 random things about me” meme. I will definitely have a go at it in the next couple of days while I have good wireless access!
Anna on August 4th, 2007 at 11:15 am #
Hi Kate!!! Sounds like you guys are having a blast. It’s great to read over all your meals so keep in touch. Post a comment
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