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| - My brother, Marcus, my fiancé, Ruben, and I secured a lunch reservation at noon to try the well-known $20.13 (last year they started with $20.12 for 2012, you get the theme) lunch menu. I heard much about their signature dishes, plus, Ruben and I stalked the menu for our selections the previous evening, so we knew exactly what we wanted.
The restaurant is beautiful. Right as the doors opened and we walked In, I exclaimed, "Wow." The dining area is open, inviting, and modern. I loved the fresh produce and fish displayed near the kitchen! The patio seating looked beautiful with a nice view of the strip (I really wanted to sit out there!). The music was light and appropriate. Definitey a great ambiance.
You begin with crunchy, chewy charred/grilled sourdough bread with extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), made in-house I believe, that was delicious, fruity, and went perfectly with the bread. We had a couple baskets, hehe.
We all ordered from the prie fixe lunch menu and from the a la carte menu as well. Since there were three of us, there were many dishes to try!
For our appetizers, we shared the following:
CALAMARI (off the a la carte menu): I couldn't walk away from a restaurant that receives fresh seafood from Greece and the Mediterranean without trying their fried calamari. This particular creature probably didn't come from either of those exotic areas (since the menu would have indicated), but nonetheless, it was delicious! Lightly fried with lemon and seasoned perfectly. The tartness and fruitiness from the lemon during its cooking process definitely set it apart from other calamari dishes.
GREEK MEZE PLATE: A trio of Greek dips (tarama, htipati, and tzatziki) served with fresh pita bread, manouri cheese (crumbly texture similar to feta, but much milder and creamier), cherry tomatoes, and kalamata olives. The htipati had a sort of cream cheese consistency and flavor; it is a Greek feta cheese spread. The tzatziki was creamy and full-bodied; delicious. The tarama was my least favorite - it initially reminded me of a fresh mustard (I understand that traditional tarama is made other cured and salted roe); didn't care for it alone, but it went well with the other dips.
TOMATO SALAD: Feta cheese, seasoned with Greek herbs, and EVOO. Pretty standard salad that we identify as "Greek." It was light, the dressing wasn't overbearing, and the feta cheese was nice and mild.
GRILLED OCTOPUS ($10 supplementary): Sashimi-grade Mediterranean octopus that was char-broiled, then served with olive oil, capers, onions, and herbs. AMAZING! The octopus was flavorful, fresh, and just so fabulous. Ruben doesn't even care for seafood, however, fell in LOVE with this dish!
Main courses:
LAVRAKI: Our server informed us that this was one of their signature dishes. Fresh Mediterranean sea bass grilled lightly and served with a simple coating in EVOO, fresh lemon to squeeze, and herbs. Very light and surprisingly flavorful. Sea bass is definitely not my kind of fish, so it was not my favorite dish.
HONJAKE SALMON: Honjake is a process of raising salmon in the most natural way possible. Thus, it yields tastier results for obvious reasons. It was lightly grilled and served with fresh lemon and broccoli. The salmon was really nice with a slight crunch on the outside. The "steamed vegetable" on the side was disappointing; there was barely any crunch to the broccoli (one of my food preparation peeves).
NOVA SCOTIA DEEP SEA LOBSTER PASTA ($15 supplementary): Generous amounts of lobster tail and claw meat with a perfectly al dente linguine in a light tomato sauce. Holy moly, this was phenomenal. The sauce was perfect - it had the right spices and it was flavorful. The lobster was incredible too. YUM!
For desserts, we tried the WALNUT PIE WITH KAIMAKI ICE CREAM: The "pie" (consistency was more like cake) was cinnamon-y and light, a bit sweet, but not overwhelmingly so. The ice cream was..interesting. We found out it has some sort of pine residue or something, but it's a traditional Greek ice cream. I didn't like it and I told my brother that it may just be an acquired taste. I also tried the YOGURT MARTINI: Greek yogurt with some sort of raspberry compote (I can't think of what it was right now!). It was good, but pretty simple. The raspberry was a little tart for me (I'm not a fan of sour/tart), but the yogurt was creamy and of really nice quality.
I would definitely go back for the octopus, calamari, and that scrumptious lobster pasta during lunch! Highly, highly recommended!
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