December 22, 2024

Opinion: Greek Fest serves up tasty dishes

Cassie Helmboldt shares her first food experience at Greek Fest. The festival ran from Sept. 26-28. Traditional Greek dishes were presented including baklava, souvlaki and gyros.

souvlaki
An assortment of greek goodies from the festival. Jessica Carr/ TNJN
An assortment of greek goodies from the festival.
Jessica Carr/ TNJN

If you’re a foodie like me, the words “Greek Fest” can only mean one thing, amazing food. That was exactly what was in store for me after I attended the festival representing many different aspects of the Greek culture including authentic dishes.

Of course there were well known Greek cuisine such as baklava and gyros, but there were also some lesser known treats.

One of my absolute favorites was something that I can only describe as a bale of hay that tasted heavenly. The correct term for this delicious dessert is Kataifi, shredded filo dough with nuts and a honey syrup drizzle.

Perhaps that is too exotic for you, in which case I would highly suggest Koulourakia, a simple butter cookie that when dipped in coffee will send your taste buds on a frenzy.

Of course, this would not be a Greek Fest food experience without mentioning baklava. Everyone around me in the dessert line got at least one of these sweet and nutty pastries, and who could blame them? They’re delicious.

Some more savory options at the festival included souvlaki. A marinated pork tenderloin was sliced and placed in a fresh piece of pita bread and topped with tzatziki sauce. It was similar to a gyro, but presented a different dimension of flavors.

Overall, Greek Fest was an amazing food experience. The countdown to Greek Fest 2015 has officially begun.

Edited by Jessica Carr