DESTINATIONS FOOD GREECE & CYPRUS


SAMPLE PRODUCT


A week’s half board in a deluxe seaview room at Daios Cove Luxury Resorts & Villa in Crete costs from £1,219 per person including transfers and flights on May 11, 2019. travel2.com


Seven nights’ half board at the Liotopi Hotel with Sunvil costs from £801 per person including a cooking demonstration, return flights and transfers. sunvil.co.uk


◗ LOUKOUMADES Cyprus knows how to do sweet, and among its most iconic delicacies are loukoumades – fried, doughnut-like balls traditionally smothered in honey syrup, cinnamon and walnuts and served at roadside stalls across the island. For clients looking to try them at their most inventive, suggest Honey Tokens in Nicosia, where toppings include Nutella and ice cream, or LoukouMan in Limassol, which throws marmalade and strawberry cream into the mix.


◗ SOUTZOUKOS Heard of this one? Possibly not. Translated as “grape juice rolls”, these chewy Cypriot sweets are especially popular around the wine villages thanks to an abundance of grapes. They’re made from almonds or walnuts sewn onto a cotton thread, which is then dipped in


moustos – grape extract heated and flavoured with rosewater (the process can take


several days, with each


layer having to dry before another can be added). You’ll find them in villages around Paphos and Limassol.


◗ SOUVLAKI Greek food wouldn’t quite be what it is without souvlaki, grilled meat skewers served in pitta and sold on the street with a dollop of cooling, minty tzatziki. “It’s the most famous Greek street food and is packed with flavours,” says Chatzopoulos George, executive chef at Aldemar Resorts, whose properties in Crete, Rhodes and Olympia offer guests the chance to make it themselves with cooking classes for every level.


◗ DOLMADES Middle Eastern influences are everywhere you look in Greek cuisine thanks to centuries of movement between the two. Among the most famous dishes from the region are dolmades – stuffed vine leaves with rice, lamb, mint and lemon juice. You’ll find them all over, but for some of the best suggest Athens,


where traditional taverna


Myrtia serves them up with a sharp kick.


◗ GRILLED OCTOPUS Greece excels on the seafood front and grilled octopus done well is up there with some of the very best. Sunvil recommends the Liotopi Hotel in Halkidiki for clients wanting to make it themselves (free for guests) in the company of welcoming owner Loulou, who guides you through it step by step and serves it with dried figs and honey. “Everyone loves this dish, which is inspired by the Ancient Stagira,” she says.


◗ MOUSSAKA No list would be complete without mentioning moussaka, whose hearty combination of lamb, potatoes, fried aubergine and wobbly béchamel sauce is at the heart of traditional Greek cuisine. Simply Luxury by Travel 2 recommends Daios Cove Luxury Resorts & Villa in Crete for those wanting to try it; guests can have a go at cooking it themselves in a workshop, or sample


it at the Taverna, which serves local specialities with a side of opal blue ocean.


Other foodie experiences


n Columbia Beach Resort in Pissouri, Cyprus, offers free culinary demonstrations with a Michelin-trained chef, who teaches guests all about the resort’s dishes and inspirations. n Urban Adventures offers an Extreme Bites food tour in Athens, where adventurous types can sample the likes of Cretan snails, patsas (tripe soup) and atherina (small fried fish) served in a cone. n Trafalgar features a Greek dinner on a family-run olive


and wine farm in Olympia as part of its seven-night Best of Greece trip, complete with traditional dancing and other entertainment.


64travelweekly.co.uk3 January 2019


PICTURES: SHUTTERSTOCK; URBAN ADVENTURES


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