Honeymoon in Greece - Santorini Eats

Oh Santorini... it's been at the top of my travel list forever. So why not go for our honeymoon. It really is a beautiful place. You can't walk 2 steps without snapping a picture...at least I couldn't. It made our "15 min" walk from Imerovigli (where we stayed) to Fira more like 45 minutes. hahaha.

There was certainly an abundance of food. But it was so hot during the day, I didn't really have much of an appetite. So we usually just ate a big breakfast, snacked throughout the day, then have a light/normal dinner. This is one of the first times where the trip is not all about the food. :P

Most of the places we ate at were recommended by our hotel manager. I have a separate post about our hotel, which is basically paradise. It deserves it's own post.

Aegeon Restaurant - Imerovigli. This was a short walk from our hotel. Imerovigli is a small town between Oia and Fira. We liked it a lot. It was less crowded and much quieter.
Fresh Tagliatelle (from cuttlefish ink with grouper fillet) 19,80E~ Very good but was overshadowed by my salmon. hehe. I love me some squid ink pasta tho!

Grilled Salmon (with steamed vegetables, quinoa, and hollandaise sauce) 18,50E~ One of the best salmon I've ever had. Beautifully presented too. The salmon was cooked to perfection and was crispy on the outside. The entire bottom of the fish was crispy!

 

Lemon Meringue Tart. This was very good. Again, plating is nice. The crust wasn't super hard to cut into as I've experienced a lot with lemon tarts. It was quite large too. 

Cappuccino 4,00E~

These were given to us with the check. Complimentary.

Raki - an unsweetened, anise-flavored distilled spirit. I've become a super duper lightweight since before the wedding since alcohol made me break out, so I could barely handle 2 sips of this. My husband drank it all. He really enjoyed it. haha.
Mosaiko - homemade chocolate/biscuit cake. First time having this. Sooooo good. But they don't sell it. It's homemade. So I had to look up the recipe when we got back to the states. Gotta make it sometime!


Fira:
Gelato. We went to this place twice during our trip. They had some interesting flavors. And also really yummy looking desserts. We didn't try any of those tho.

 

 

 

 

 

#FoodBar. This was snack one day. A cute little shop. The chairs were swings!
Pork Skewer 1,50E~ Basically pork belly on a stick. With a little salt. Deeeelish!

 

Pita with Pork Gyros 2,50E~ Pretty tasty!

Crepe House
Loopino (mix of milk and white chocolate, fresh banana, caramel syrup) 6,00E~ It was ok. The crepe was well made, but needed ice cream for sure!

Oia. We were headed to Ammoudi Bay for some fresh seafood, as recommended by our hotel manager. It's at the farthest end of Oia. So we got there a little earlier to check out the town. It's nice, but sooo packed. Everyone was there waiting to see the famous sunset.
We came by the Crazy Donkey - cute little cafe on the way to Ammoudi Bay. Someone had recommended it to me through FB so we went in to check it out. My husband wanted to get something refreshing to drink anyways. It's hot in Santorini. Very hot!
Watermelon Juice. As fresh as can be. My husband loved it on a hot day. 

Brownie. All their desserts looked amazing. I started perusing the display case when he was looking at the menu and I HAD to get something. Even if I was to take one bite. haha. I've noticed they like to bake their brownies like a round cake and cut slices out of it. I saw it at several bakeries. It was dark, and yummy. 

We also got Kataifi to go since we had the ice cream flavor in Athens. And we've never had it. Were not fans of it...haha. Too much of the hair stuff and needed more filling. The inside is like the inside of a baklava.

Ammoudi Bay. To get to this place, you have to climb down over 200+ steps. And be careful of the donkey doo-doo! People can pay to ride donkey's up the steps. So yay for those of us on foot! Watch your step! Thank goodness it was still light when we climbed down. The way back up however.... eeeeks! hahaha.
Ammoudi Fish Tavern. There was a whole bunch of restaurants along the water serving up fresh seafood. But this is the one our hotel manager recommended and had made a reservation for us.
Agioritiki Eggplant Salad (baked local flasks or white aubergines with garlic, onion, parsley, and extra virgin olive oil) 5,80E~ For someone that doesn't like eggplant, I sure love Greek eggplants. haha. We had it several times in Greece and all of them have been fantastic. This isn't much to look at, but it was so good. 

Sun-dried Octopus (grilled) 14,50E~ Gotta have octopus! Again, delicious!!

Seafood Quartetto (salmon, shrimp, clams, white fish) 25,00E~ This was ok. I loved the white fish and the cream sauce, but the clams were super gritty. The view was nice though.

Lolita's Gelato. Cuz we can never have too much ice cream. This was on the way to the bus stop to head back to our hotel.

We rented an ATV one day and drove down to the Red Beach and Black Beach. It was cheaper than taking a cab or renting a car and more flexible than waiting around for buses. It was an interesting but still fun experience. hehe. My first time on an ATV!
The red beach was first. Beautiful, but super rocky. You have to take a short hike to get to the actual beach. And up close the water was quite dirty. Not a great place to hang out for a long time, so we only stayed for about an hour or so.

Headed to Perissa - Black Beach for some lunch!
Tranquilo - recommended by our hotel manager. HUGE salads for cheap she says.. She wasn't joking!

XL Caesar Salad (fresh green salad, grilled chicken, parmesan, corn, croutons, special Caesar sauce) 11,00E~ This thing is bigger than my head. We made it through 2/3rds and couldn't finish it. Cheapest meal yet! And they seem to put corn in their Caesar salads here, I can dig it. :P Sorry for the photo quality...

 

The black beach is totally my kind of place. A long row of restaurants and bars on one side, the beach and lounge chairs on the other. We parked ourselves in front of one of the restaurants. The waiters come to you on the beach, while you relax and lounge. That's the life!

Pistachio Milkshake

Waffle (butterscotch ice cream, caramel sauce)

We stuck around til dinner time and grabbed some food before heading back.
Pergola Restaurant - we just looked at their menu and walked in. The food prices in Perissa were significantly cheaper than Fira/Oia. The portions were bigger too and just as delicious!
Fried Calamari (with fish roe dip) 6,90E~ One of the best calamaris I've ever had. No breading but crispy and tender and so much flavor. 

Caramelized Octopus (with fresh mashed eggplants) 8,50E~ The octopus was super tender. However, the caramelization made it quite sweet.. other than that it was good.

Sunset Sail with Spiridakos Sailing Cruises:
Our hotel also highly recommended doing a sail. It was a bit pricey but why not! We're in Greece! And I'm so glad we did it, it was a great experience. They provide everything, from transportation to and from hotel, give you towels, tour around the island, visit the caldera, and even cook you a feast! The meal was magnificent and I'm so impressed it was all cooked on a catamaran!
Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce, Grilled Chicken, Grilled Shrimp, Greek Salad, Crispy Fried Shrimp, Bread, and Dips. So delicious and so much food. I was stuffed!

 

 

 

Last day in Fira:
We went souvenir shopping and got some snacks. Randomly walked by this little cafe...and had to stop by their dessert display...

 

 

We had one night in Athens before flying out early the next morning, so we stayed in the airport hotel, Sofitel. Went to one of their restaurants, Mesoghaia, for dinner.
The bread was free here, so we ate ALL of it. hahaha

Traditional Moussaka (slices of potatoes, eggplant, zucchini, and minced beef; finalized with a "mornay" sauce) 16,00E~ I realized I haven't had a single moussaka since I've been here. And it's one of my favorite Greek dishes so I had to get it. It was beautiful. The prettiest presentation of moussaka I've ever seen, and I think one of the tastiest too! So glad I got it. 

Crispy Cod (tempura style garnished with local greens, homemade mashed potato, and aioli sauce with saffron from Kozani) 16,00E~ This was another story... left a lot to be desired. Portion was pretty small too. Luckily the moussaka was huge so I shared.

I think it was a pretty good food overall. But believe me when I say the food wasn't the best part. Everyone should experience Santorini sometime. And splurge to get the nice hotels on the side of the cliff, with the cave like architecture. It's amazing!

~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~

Casa Rubia

This past Friday, I was invited by a friend to a gathering of foodies at Casa Rubia in Trinity Groves. She told me it was going to be a group of foodies, friends, and friends of friends, and I could bring some people. So I asked 3 of my friends to join me, who I'd thought would enjoy the food. :) They specialize in Spanish cuisine. I have always wanted to go to Casa Rubia. Out of all the places in Trinity Groves, that was the main one I wanted to try. So, yay!

Casa Rubia
3011 Gulden Ln.
Dallas, TX 75212
(469) 513-6349
www.casarubiadallas.com
Price: $$$-$$$$

The reservation was at 8pm. My friends and I arrived about 15 minutes early so we just hung out at the bar. They all ordered drinks. Sangria, some sort of Blueberry fizz drink, Sparkling Sangria. None of them were my thing, but they all enjoyed them.

The restaurant is fairly small. But they have a big patio dining area. I saw that 2 long tables in front of the kitchen were empty. I figured one of those was for our group. A few people were running late so we just hung out at the bar a little longer. We later realized that half the other group was already there. So we made our introductions. The restaurant never once pressured us to get everyone there to seat us, so I thought that was pretty cool. Finally, we sat around 8:30pm. We had a total of 11 people. Everyone seemed to be getting along just peachy, considering it was 3 different groups of friends. :) Food always brings friends together.

We decided to do family style for the entire table, which is what they recommend anyways since it's tapas style. The guy that made the reservation took charge and ordered for everyone.

Quesos:
Manchego, Mahon, Cana de Cabra, San Simon, Idiazabal, Valdeon
Tasting Queso Plate $24~

Embutidos:
Fermin Jamon Iberico de Bellota, Lomo Embuchado, Chorizo Picante, Lardo Iberico de Bellota, Jamon Serrano, Mousse de Higado con Macetilla Vinaigre, Fermin Salchichon de Bellota
Tasting Embutido Plate $33~

We got the tasting plate for both the cheese and meat. It came on this hefty wood board, looked super impressive. It also came with some bread. I sat in the middle of the long table so I got a good look at everything! :P Everyone just dug in! There were so many different things and none of us knew what was what. haha. I got to try several different types of cheeses and meats. Honestly, I can't tell you what anything is. But my favorite was this pepper wrapped in some sort of fatty meat... I'd guess it was the Jamon Serrano.

 

Bread with Tomato and Garlic. 

This wasn't on the menu but was requested by one of the ladies in the group. She was Colombian and was speaking Spanish with the waiter. He said they can totally do this. There was a name for it... starts with "M"? But I can't remember for the life of me. This was sooooo good. The bread was soft but had a really nice crunchy crust. The tomatoes and garlic spread had so much flavor. I'm gonna have to keep this picture to show the restaurant when I go back next time!

We got 2 of each of the hot dishes since we had so many people. The portions of each is not super big but was just the perfect amount for everyone to share.

Alcachofas (crispy artichokes, meyer lemon, fresno chile, mojama, saffron aioli) $12~

Baby artichokes are so cute! Each one is bite sized. So yummy. Not at all tough like artichokes can sometimes be. Great flavors from the chile and aioli as well.

Pulpo a la Plancha (Spanish octopus, duck fat potatoes, pickled onions, smoked tomato-Jerez vinaigrette) $16~ 

This was the one thing I really wanted to try. Not only did it not disappoint, it totally exceeded expectations. The octopus was cooked perfectly... sooo tender. And the dish was just exploding with flavors between the char on the octopus, the duck fat potatos, and the sauce. Best dish of the night, but only by a little since everything else was also delicious. Definitely a must order!

Rossejat (toasted fideos, chistorra, gulf shrimp, crispy calamari, charred citrus aioli) $15~ 

I also wanted to try this one. I saw a preparation for fideos on the Travel Channel once and have wanted to try it since then. It's like short pieces of pasta that's been sauteed and crisped up in the dish. Very interesting. The shrimp and calamari on top paired well with the fideos and sauce. Another winner.

Paella del Dia (market price) 

 

Only available for 4 guests or more. We knew we wanted to get this. It comes in this gigantic pan. The waiter told us it takes 35-40 minutes to make this. So it was going to be our last dish. Initially we were contemplating getting 2, but my friend who's been there said it's A LOT and quite heavy. I'm so glad we only got one. They plated it out for us since our group was so big. That entire pot made 12 plates! And each portion was actually quite big. 

It was soooo awesome looking! It was topped with a bunch of (I think) kale, peas, mussels, clams, shrimp and an entire chicken. I haven't had much paella in my life but this was great. I had heard some no so great reviews on it, but for us, it was delicious. The rice was perfectly cooked. I've had previous ones where the rice was too mushy or undercooked. This had good texture. The chicken was the star for me. Super tender and lots of flavor. If you have a group of 4 or more, don't skip this. Plus, it certainly makes for an impressive photo! :P It capped the night off just perfectly. Everyone was content, and I was surprisingly not exploding like I normally am. hehe.

We decided to go to the Cake Bar to get dessert, but one guy wanted to get something here. Pan Calatrava (vanilla bean flan, texas blueberry, almond bread pudding, ginger ice cream, sea salt caramel) $8.50~ 

 

Everyone got to take a few bites... some more than others.. *ahem*me*ahem* haha. It was another winner. The portion was bigger than I expected. And it was excellent. The bread pudding had the most amazing crust and caramelization on top. The flan was creamy and contrasted the bread pudding texture well. The waiter poured the caramel on top. I always like tableside presentation. Loved it! I'm glad he spoke up and got a dessert when no one else did. hehe.

It was a fantastic meal. And we made some new friends. :) Thanks to the guy that ordered for the group, it was just the perfect amount and guess what... it came out to be $32 a person. What?!?! Yea... and that's including all the booze too. Wow. Ah-MAH-Zing!!! I will definitely be back. In fact, I already have a reservation for next weekend. hehe.

Quality of Food: 4.5
Service: 4
Ambiance: 4
Value: 4.5
Overall Experience: 4

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Oh yea... here's some of the cakes we got at Cake Bar. All super moist and delicious. You can get a slice a la mode (vanilla or chocolate ice cream). The Chocolate cake was the best. 

Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake 

Key Lime Cake (a la mode)

Chocolate Cake (a la mode)

~~ CHOMP CHOMP ~~