Zeus Street Greek, Drummoyne, Sydney

Zeus Street Greek is a newish eatery opened in Drummoyne offering diners delicious greek food. The restaurant is casual albeit small but with a very relaxed setting. There’s a no reservation policy so come early if you want to beat the dinner rush. The restaurant was packed when we arrived just after 7pm and after a good 35 minute wait (there were 6 of us) we were finally seated and quickly ordered our food as we were famished.

The menu is quite simple – souvla pitas, nude pitas, salad, dips and sides and everything sounded delicious. There is also a kids menu which is just as good.

We started with some house-made pita (2) (AUD 3.0) and two serving of tzatziki – greek yogurt, cucumber, roasted garlic and dill (AUD6.5) – my favourite. The tzatziki was fresh, refreshing and incredibly delicious that I wanted to lick the bowl. I love the house-made pita – it was so soft and fluffy that even Dragon couldn’t help but eat half on her own (maybe more)!

The lightly fried calamari and preserved lemon mayo (AUD12.50) was also a hit. The calamari was lightly coated, giving it a nice crunch and the lemon mayo was a wonderful addition.

From the souvla – pitas, we ordered the zeus – lamb – signature slow cooked lamb with Aegan slaw, smoked eggplant, onion and parsley. I am not a huge fan of lamb but both my parents really enjoyed it. Generous amount of lamb meat which was tender and the Aegan slaw a wonderful complement.

The papou niko – char-grilled pork from the souvla with Aegan slaw, caramelised onion, preserved lemon mayo and parsley was a favourite. The pork was tender, and who can say no to caramelised onion and lemon mayo?

Uncle ‘Tzimmy’ classic – choice of lamb, pork, or chicken with tomato, tzatziki, onion, paprika and chips was a hit. My brother, F, ordered the lamb and he absolutely loved it!

For Dragon, chicken and chips with lemon mayo wrapped in pita. The chicken was tender but she didn’t quite particularly like the lemon mayo. She absolutely loved the chips though.

We noticed everyone had a serve of the feta and oregano chips (AUD6.50) – this was good. Fries with feta – definitely a winner for everyone.

Unfortunately we were all very full for dessert but I did like the sound of the greek doughnuts! Service was quick and efficient, it does get busy so come early or later in the evening. Food was delicious and would be more than happy to go back for more of the house-made pita breads. YUM!

GA’s ratings: 7.5 / 10

Zeus Street Greek

187-189 Lyons Road

Drummoyne 2047

Ph: +61 2 9181 4646

Souvla Greek Restaurant, Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong

Souvla is a newish contemporary Greek restaurant opened in the heart of Lan Kwai Fong which is part of the Concept Creations group who is also behind Tapeo, Frites and Chica. From memory, the British gastropub Harringtons used to be here.

I haven’t eaten a lot of Greek food and in Hong Kong, the options are very limited. I was here for lunch with a couple of girlfriends, and for lunch, Souvla offers diners a lunch buffet with mainly vegetarian starters and desserts. You can also add main courses such as chicken, fish, pork or rib-eye for an extra cost pending of your choice.

The ladies all opt for the buffet, and the salad looked absolutely wonderful.

I wouldn’t be able to tell you all the different types of salads but doesn’t this plate look colourful? Everything on the plate was excellent – beetroot, the carrots, the greek salad and the beans. I am pretty sure I went back for some more.

I wanted some protein also in the diet, so ordered chicken which was nicely grilled, and served with tzatziki which I loved.

J ordered the sea bass which was the fish of the day which was served with avocado and she thoroughly enjoyed it.

We couldn’t help but order some pita bread and it was fluffy and light.

Dessert for those who are allergic to nuts were limited, but still there were four to choose from, the bread and butter pudding – yum! The donut I loved but then again I am a huge fan of donuts, and baklava which was a little on the sweet side for me but still good.

It was a wonderful lunch amongst girl friends, our main topic of conversation was sleep training our child! Oh dear! What has my world become? Deliciously full and satisfied, I waddled back to work hoping for a nap but alas, no.

Service was polite and friendly. Really enjoyed lunch, had a quick look at the a la carte menu and everything sounded wonderful. No doubt we will be back to try the dinner menu.

GA’s ratings: 7.5 / 10

Souvla

1/F, Ho Lee Comm Building

40 D’aguilar Street

Central, Hong Kong

Ph: +852 2522 1823

Greek food at Medusa, Sydney

I have heard great things about Medusa – some claims that it is the best Greek restaurant in Sydney. Now I am no expert in Greek food, I may have had it once or twice. I have been to the Press Club many years ago and really enjoyed it. I was catching up with the lovely N and she recommended this place.

Opened in 2007, Medusa is located on the corner of Kent and Market Street. I have walked past this restaurant many times but have never tried until that evening. I love the decor, its modern and the floor to ceiling photographs of Cyclades, and the tiles running up the bar. It’s all very funky!

N and I thought we would share the tzatziki ($8) – yogurt, cucumber and garlic served with warm pita bread. The pita bread was deliciously soft and fluffy and dipped in the cool, refreshing but yet creamy yogurt, it was delightful.

It was hard not to stuff myself with pita bread.

N had the medusa’s arni sto fourno ($29.50) – whole slow baked traditional side of lamb, lemon potatoes and roasted vegetables. Wow – it was a generous serving of lamb! I am not sure if it’s my photo but the lamb glistened. It was extremely tender and extremely lamb-y for my liking. It was good though, I loved the lemon potatoes and roasted vegetables. N definitely enjoyed it.

I couldn’t go past the daily specials – hirini pancetta me glyko marathon, crisp skin pork belly on a moschato wine, caramelised carrots and fennel with chat potatoes ($30.50). Unfortunately, the pork meat was not as tender as I had hoped; it was dry, tough and partly chewy. The crackle however, however was exceptionally good! Gooey, chewy, and oh so very crispy. I loved the caramelised carrots and fennel, it was sweet, and complemented the pork well. It was a shame that the meat was a little dry.

We thought we would share the dessert – baklava ($10), walnut filled filo in cinnamon syrup with honey yogurt. It was already halved for us and was just too pretty to eat. It was rich, but delicious good, the sweet pastry filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup and honey yogurt. It went down with my tea, but I don’t think I could have finished a whole one.

The service fantastic, our waiter was extremely attentive and friendly. The menu is extensive with different choices of meat! Head Chef Gregori Akridas ‘uses only the freshest produce available and where possible the finest ingredients sourced directly from Greece’. It’s a great place to go for birthdays or any sort of celebration, it’s fun, vibrant and although my pork belly was a dry, the lamb, tzatziki and baklava were sensational!

 GA’s ratings: 7 / 10

Medusa Greek Taverna

2 Market Street

Sydney 2000

Ph: +61 2 9267 0799