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While you can enjoy elegant and nouvelle dining in some of the finer restaurants of the Peloponnese's beauty spots, such as Nafplion and Monemvasia, one of the great pleasures of traveling in this region is enjoying a meal on a square or seaside terrace in a simple village. In fact, villages here were the source of such internat
While you can enjoy elegant and nouvelle dining in some of the finer restaurants of the Peloponnese's beauty spots, such as Nafplion and Monemvasia, one of the great pleasures of traveling in this region is enjoying a meal on a square or seaside terrace in a simple vill
While you can enjoy elegant and nouvelle dining in some of the finer restaurants of the Peloponnese's beauty spots, such
While you can enjoy elegant and nouvelle dining in some of the finer restaurants of the Peloponnese's beauty spots, such as Nafplion and Monemvasia, one of the great pleasures of traveling in this region is enjoying a meal on a square or seaside terrace in a simple village. In fact, villages here were the source of such international favorites as avgolemono soup and lamb fricassee. There are several other local specialties to watch for: in the mountain villages near Tripoli, order stifado (beef with pearl onions), arni psito (lamb on the spit), kokoretsi (entrails on the spit), and thick, creamy yogurt. In Sparta, look for bardouniotiko (a local dish of chicken stuffed with cheese, olives, and walnuts), and, around Pylos, order fresh ocean fish (priced by the kilo). In the rest of Laconia, try loukaniko horiatiko (village sausage), and in the Mani ask for ham.
Vegetables are almost always locally grown and fresh in this region famous for its olives and olive oil as wells as figs, tomatoes, and other produce. Seafood is plentiful, though sometimes frozen—menus will usually indicate what's frozen and what's fresh (and frozen usually hails from beyond Greece). A fresh catch is usually available at seaside tavernas, and an octopus or two will usually be drying out front. Inland, many tavernas serve grilled pork from local farms, as well as chicken and roosters plucked that morning. As for wine, beyond those varelisio (from the barrel), there are great reds from the region around Nemea and a top light white from Mantinea. After dinner, try mavrodaphne, a heavy dessert wine, or dendoura, a clove liqueur, as a digestive. Dress is casual and reservations unnecessary, although you might be asked to wait for a table if you're dining with hoi polloi (the masses) at 9 pm or later.
The late Mrs. Lela, once housekeeper for author Patrick Leigh Fermor, was famous for her simple, old-fashioned cooking using fragrant homemade olive oil and exceedingly fresh tomatoes and herbs. Her namesake taverna is an institution in these parts, and dinner beneath the trees on the seaside terrace of an oleander-covered stone house is a high point of a visit to the Mani. Chicken with rosemary, light moussaka, and fish soup are among Lela's dishes that her son Giorgos and his staff now prepare. Upstairs are simple but comfortable rooms with fine sea views looking out over the coast.
This old-school café is a hit among locals, who come for the homemade karydopita (a deliciously syrupy local walnut cake). This is best washed down with a cup of traditional Greek coffee and preceded by a delicious zucchini pie.
For a lot of travelers a perfect day in Kardamyli includes lunch beneath the olive trees in the Elies garden, which stands directly across from the beach. The setting is memorable at night, too, and at any time a meal includes tasty daily preparations of lamb, chicken, and fish, infused with herbs and prepared with local olive oil. For those who find it hard to leave, ten handsome apartments are tucked away in a cluster of stone cottages.
Kardamyli Beach, Kardamyli, Peloponnese, 24022, Greece
The friendly welcome of owner Petros is just the appetizer for a traditional Greek taverna where much of the produce served comes from the owner's personal farm. Gaze out from the pretty terrace over olive and lemon groves to the coast below as great juicy hunks of pork and fine stews arrive with thick wedges of potato, crispy at the tips. A post-prandial wander among its serene grounds is well advised.
A change in ownership and a pivot away from its old wine-bar vibe to become simply a restaurant with an excellent wine list puts Tikla ahead of many of its more polished rivals along the seafront. The terrace overlooking the water is the perfect spot to indulge in feta croquettes, fresh seabass tartare, and a slew of accomplished pastas and grilled meats.
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