Greece Is the Word...
Went to visit my ol' friend Margot on Long Island this weekend and she helped me take a trip down memory lane. (No, not all the way to Heidelberg or anything!)
Even though the temperature was frigid, the two of us paid a trip to the town of Huntington, which was a favorite jaunt of mine when I was a girl. Unexpectedly, only a few chain stores had edged their way in-between the town's idiosyncratic boutiques and quirky stores. But, the greatest surprise of all was the survival of one of my favorite childhood restaurants - the Mediterranean Snack Bar. And, not only had it survived, but every last picture, seat and fixture was still entact the way I remembered.
Margot and I had no choice. We immediately grabbed a table. Sitting at one of their high tables, looking at faded pictures of the Aegean, I prayed that they hadn't changed the food either.
One look at the well-worn menu and the equally well-worn waitress and I had a feeling we were in luck. I ordered a small Greek Salad and the Veal Souvlaki Sandwich and crossed my fingers. It wasn't necessary. It was exactly as I had remembered.
The Greek Salad was shredded with just the right amount of salty feta sprinkled on top, lightly tossed in the restaurant's delicious red wine and oregano dressing. The Souvlaki was just as I had recalled too, juicy, tender and full of flavor, stuffed in a grilled pita along with lettuce tomato, a mound of thinly sliced onion and the Greek's famous yogurt-cucumber Tsatziki sauce. They also offered a small cup of stewed onions and tomatoes, if the Tsatziki wasn't to my liking. Frankly, they both were.
As we left, I was so overjoyed at reliving one of my childhood culinary favorites that I felt the overwhelming need to tell the waitress. She let us know that the owner hasn't changed a thing since he opened in 1974 and has no plans to change a thing in the future. And, as an added bonus, we were informed that the owner was still willing to sell jars of their red wine and oregano dressing.
Needless to say, Margot and I left with two jars, two full stomachs and two wide smiles.