There are lots of great foods to enjoy in Greece, from the perfect frappe coffee to flaky phyllo pies to unsuspecting dry rusks, simply drizzled with a perfect olive oil. I'd say there's so much good food in Greece, that it's hard to commit to just one or two things for a meal.
Enter the meze collection: little dishes of bits of everything, meant to be shared by the whole table with a bottle of wine our ouzo.
There are the dips, like melitzanosalata, a smokey grilled eggplant spread, or tyrokafteri, feta cheese mixed with spicy peppers (and you can eat both of these on bread or straight off the fork—nobody will judge you). You can throw in some salads, like Greece's horiatiki (village salad), patzarosalata, a yogurty beet salad, or even horta, cooked greens soaked in extra virgin olive oil and plenty of freshly squeezed lemon juice. Then there are the meat/fish dishes, which can include fried meatballs called keftedes and grilled octopus. Small marinated anchovies with a sprinkle of white vinegar, garlic and olive oil is always a high note. If savoury pies are more your thing, you can fill up a couple plates with flaky pockets of spinach or cheese.
And speaking of cheese, meze can include saganaki, a fried graviera cheese that often comes to your table engulfed in actual flames, or go simple and just put out a couple blocks of feta sprinkled with oregano and olive oil. And, of course, make sure to top it all off with lots of ouzo or a delightful chilled white wine.
It’s the perfect way to enjoy a meal by the sea, on a sunny terrace or on a picnic blanket with your friends and family.
