Greek Goodness

BY ISLA MARTIN, IZZY BAE, ELLE BRIONES, AND LUCIE LIPPENS

The restaurant Greek Corner was recommended to us by many people, as it is located near our school (at 2366 Massachusetts Ave in Cambridge, to be exact). The food at this restaurant is very delicious and authentic for a great price. We tried some of their best selling dishes, according to their staff, as well as two of their desserts.

Other Things To Note

Has vegetarian options. Has a children’s menu. Family friendly. Has public restrooms. They gave us pita bread with our sampler plate. With most meals they give you an option to have it with fries or rice. They do catering.

THE SERVICE: As soon as we walked in the door, the cashier at the front desk quickly assisted us, and patiently answered our questions. All other employees that we encountered were friendly and courteous. We were assisted immediately as we were seated. We ordered our food, and as we waited for it to arrive, we admired the restaurant’s beautiful decorative murals of Greece that hung on the walls. After a quick wait of just five minutes, our first course was delivered.

GREEK SALAD: We got the Greek salad. It was topped with parsley olives, feta, red onions, red cabbage, and bell pepper. The feta had a silky texture that crumbles apart in your mouth. The peppers were crisp, and the olives were a bit shriveled making them appear less fresh. The raw lettuce created a perfect mellow base for the busy salad. Topping it all off was the dressing, which was slightly tangy and tasted of olive oil and a bit of vinegar. Our waitress stated, “The dressing is olive oil, vinegar and garlic. We make it here.”

SAMPLER PLATE: The sampler plate was a combination platter that came with many varieties of foods, including pita, dolma, tomatoes, and unique sauces and dips. The taramasalata, a rich, thick sauce, with a beautiful pink color tone, was more on the sweet side, with hints of savor. The hummus came topped with olives and had a natural, thick texture, and a faint olive flavor infused throughout. In the middle of the plate was tsatziki. It had a creamy texture, with a mellow but delicious tart flavor and fresh vegetables such as cucumbers and herbs. To the side of the platter was a basket of pita. The pita was folded delicately, layers and layers of delicious, perfectly thin bread. There were two small slices of spanakopita, which consists of spinach, onions, feta cheese, and herbs carefully layered in between flaky filo dough.

CHICKEN KEBAB: This simple but delicious dish is an amazing take on a basic grilled chicken. It was very well done, even a little parched. Most of the flavor came from the perfectly charred, grilled outside, giving the chicken its pleasant taste, almost a little too unseasoned for our taste, but great for most kids. To pair with the chicken, we ordered the slightly fiery rice, which matched perfectly, creating an enjoyable bite of Greek culture. Giving off the look of a very spicy rice,we expected it to be overpowering, but it was absolutely delectable.

This was a beautiful combination of flavor and spice, which pulled the whole dish together.

GRAPE LEAVES PLATE: The stuffed grape leaves dish (sometimes called “dolma”) was one of Greek Corner’s vegetarian platters. This dish consisted of dolma, a small side salad, and french fries or rice. The dolma was buttery, the grape leaves were perfectly wilted, and the filling was slightly salty and tasted earthy. The inside was made from onions, rice, herbs, pine nuts, and spices combined into a thick, tart sauce and wrapped in grape leaves. The small side salad was just a miniature version of the Greek salad, with the same base, but fewer toppings. We partnered french fries to go with this. We were mildly disappointed by the french fries we found that they were slightly soggy and lacked flavor.

CUSTARD: The delectable custard had a light, flaky outside, like on many traditional pastries. The inside was spongy, and had a thick texture, and tasted of honey and egg. Cinnamon was hinted throughout the pastry, with a thin layer sprinkled on top.

BAKLAVA: This was a flaky, thin top and with chewy honey coated layers in the middle. A perfectly candied combination of pecan and walnut caked onto the sides and into the middle was draped in honey. The honey was fresh with a sweet flavor and a smooth texture.

TOTAL PRICE: The meal’s total price came out to $73.02 with tax and a tip of 20%. It was quite cheap for the amount of food we ordered, which at other restaurants could have been around $100. Overall, our meal at Greek Corner was a wonderful experience, and represented Greek culture and origin perfectly. c