The overall rating of a review is different from a simple average of all individual ratings.
Advantages:
unique plates, Ancient Greek recipies, classy environment, very well trained staff, AMAZING wine&honey drink (said to resemble ancient ambrosia)
Disadvantages:
have to eat using a spoon or . . your hands . . . Ancients did not have forks ! ! ! ! (only Poseidon had one ! )
"Archaion Gefsis" is exactly what its name indicates: "flavours of Ancient Greece" . It is a small chain of high standard restaurants, serving extraordinary plates with recipies that have their roots in Ancient Greece.
LOCATIONS There are 4 branches of "Archaion Gefsis" at the moment: Two in Athens area, one in Myconos island and one in Germany (I think in Frankfurt, but I am not absolutely sure about the city) If you decide one of the Athenian restaurants, I recommend the one which is in "Mikrolimano", as it has very nice views of the Saronic Gulf, and during the summer you can enjoy your meal on its large terrace overlooking the sea.
MENU As already mentioned the menu (as well as the whole environment of the restaurant) is totally influenced by Ancient Greeks. There are no potatoes, no tomatos! These are foods that were discovered much later. The menu comprises lots of vegetables, sea food and of course meat, all specially cooked with spices like pine seeds and honey. As a side order, "pligouri" is the most common, a type of wheat couche-couche cooked in water with a bit of olive oil added in the end. My favourite plate is the roasted lamp leg for two, but it has to be ordered in advance (i order it when i make the reservation), as it takes more than 3 hours to be cooked. It is absolutely delicious, it is roasted with honey and i don't know what else, but there's something making it one of the best plates I've ever tried. Another plate I love is the cuttlefish with pines. I always hated cuttlefish.. however this plate is unforgetable!
WINE A great variety of wines is offered in the wine menu. Nevertheless, I always order the ancient wine coctail wine, which is wine warmed up with some honey. It is said that this drink has its roots in Ancient Dionysous' feasts. Whatever it is, it is very tasty!!!
SPOONS PLEASE! As already mentioned, the restaurant has no forks at all. You have to eat using spoons and knives, or even your hands but there is no fork! Ancient Greeks did not use forks, therefore it is a policy of the restaurant not to have any available
ATMOSPHERE Using your hands to eat doesn't mean at all that "Archaion gefseis" is a second class restaurant!!! In fact it is exactly the opposite. The design is very classy, with quite minimal decor and some ancient Greek architectural details. In the back ground you can hear soft instrumental music having also its origins in Ancient Greece, which makes the environment even more unique.
STAFF The staff is professionally trained, very helpful and friendly, without being arrogant or slick. When you sit on the table and you are given the menu, the waiter makes an introduction on the concept of restaurant, explaining the dishes, as well as the ways that these recipies have been discovered from various ancient scripts.
PRICES Archaion gefseis is considered a rather expensive restaurant (always comparing to greek standards), but it is worth as it is offers an extraordinary experience. It costs about 45-50 euros per person (with wine&deserts).
OVERALL IMPRESSION What else could I say? Now that I remembered all these plates, I started feeling really hungry! Next time I will try to learn some of the recipies, so that I can cook them myself!!!
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
sounds a nice place to visit, especially if the staff are ok too, I went into a restaurant last week, and walked straight back out as they were really rude. The dishes sound very nice, and this is a good review, dempsey x
newty1977 11.05.2006 01:41
Interesting choices....
silverstreak 15.04.2006 11:16
That lamb sounds delicious. What an interesting concept and what a pity there isn't a branch over here!
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