Boston is home to one of Greece’s oldest and most vibrant communities. Fotios Stamos joins Odyssey to chart just some of the city’s ‘Greek’ institutions, from the corner diner to the magnificent Greek galleries at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
Community
Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Boston
162 Goddard Avenue, Brookline, MA 02445, tel.: 617 277 4742, boston.goarch.org
The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Boston embraces sixty-three parishes in the New England area, as well as the St Methodios Center, and Philoxenia House which was established in 1986 to offer hospitality to visitors arriving in the city for medical treatment. The Metropolis website is an excellent resource for newcomers or visitors.
Annuniciation Cathedral
Parker & Ruggles streets, tel. 617 731 6633
The historic parish-one of the oldest in the United States- celebrated its centenary in 2003 and remains at the center of community life in Boston. Originally located on Winchester Street, the parish soon outgrew those facilities and in 1916 it was decided to move it to a new church built on its current property; the cathedral, completed in 1924, is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The Annunciation Cathedral is the seat of the Boston diocese, and its prominence is underscored by the number of its clergy who have risen to high office within the church, among them former Archibishop Iakovos.
St John the Baptist
Church 15 Union Park Street, tel.: 617 536 5692, www.saintjohnthebaptist.org
Housed in a former Unitarian church built in the mid-1800s, the St John the Baptist Church was established in 1925. The church is the repository of some relics of St Nektarios and its interior is decorated with paintings commissioned from iconographers George Filipakis and Christopher Kosmas.
Boston Lykeion Ellinidon
P.O. Box 653, Northborough, MA 01532, tel.: 508 393 3563, www.bostonlykeion.org
In Greece, the Lykeion Ellinidon has done a stellar job preserving and passing down Greece’s wealth of folk traditions–especially in dance, music, and crafts. The Boston Lykeion Ellinidon is a valuable resource for Greek folklore, especially dance, and organizes regular dance classes in the area. It’s a great way to learn about folk traditions from regions extending as far as the Black Sea and southern Italy, meet people, and get a bit of exercise.
Restaurants
Ariadne Restaurant
344 Walnut St., Newtonville, tel.: 617 332 4653, www.ariadnerestaurant.com
Delicious food with Mediterranean and Asian influences reflects the diversity of cuisine by Chef Christos Tsardounis, complemented by the exceptional wine list thoughtfully chosen by his wife Kathleen Malloy. The graceful design of the dining room in the warmth of its materials and vaulted ceilings create a comforting yet cosmopolitan space.
Desfina Bar & Grill
201 Third Street, Cambridge, tel.: 617 868 9098, www.desfina.com
Desfina is a favorite eatery of anyone with a hankering for saganaki or skordalia–whose pungency defies New England reserve. It exudes a hominess that’s a wonderful antidote to the more impersonal ambience of the Cambridgeside Galleria nearby. The menu features taverna staples, some in combination plates if you can’t decide between dolmades and spanakopitta, say. Maybe it’s unimaginative, but it’s also wonderfully comforting.
Dolphin Seafood
1105 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, tel. 617 661 2937, www.dolphinseafood.com
Spacious and elegant, this restaurant combines a modern ambience–complete with wood-paneled interiors and a curved bar for pre-dinner cocktails–with a respect for the tradition of fish. Opened in mid-1970s, this family business expanded to second restaurant in Natick set in a renovated industrial building with painted metal beams and cool neon lighting. Dishes like grilled calamari or seafood and pasta, comprise the core of the menu, nicely rounded out by a crisp Greek salad on the side.
Greek Corner
2366 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, tel.: 617 661 5655
Not so much a slice of Greece–at least not to anyone familiar with the country and its dining scene today–Greek Corner is that delightfully hybrid of the taverna and the diner. In typical fashion, what it lacks in style, it makes up for in value and good, hearty food–from the avgolemono soup to the succulent souvlaki.
Ithaki
25 Hammatt Street, Ipswich, tel.: 978 356 0099, www.ithakicuisine.com
Open both lunch and dinner, Ithaki has a breezy Mediterranean-meets-colonial look in its light-filled restaurant in a modern version of the old diner counter. Lunch includes lighter dishes like an open-faced sandwich of roast lamb, whose dinner-time counterpart is lemon-and-oregano flavored roast leg of lamb. There are traditional dishes like chicken kapamas and inventive dishes like ravioli a la polita among the Greek standards.
Kouzina
1649 Beacon St. Waban, tel.: 617 558 7677
This vibrant suburban bistro brings nouveau Greek cuisine in every fascinating dish. Chef Nelson Cognac and his wife Joanna, who is of Greek decent, continue to surprise diners with their culinary creations that hail from Greece.
Mediterraneo
426 Washington St., tel.: 617 728 0088
Located in the city’s business district, this restaurant is a good lunchtime pick when you’re working, shopping, or sightseeing. The menu has a good selection of salads served with pita as well as gyro and other Greek standards, like spinach pie.\
Oleana Restaurant
134 Hampshire St., Cambridge, tel.: 617 661 0505, www.oleanrestaurant.com
This enticing restaurant nestled on Kendall Sq. offers a culture of cuisine from Asia Minor and touches of the Middle East. Chef Ana Sortun, 2005 James Beard Award Winner and the restaurant’s owner, brings traditional and authentic regional Greek and Turkish dishes to a different level. A touch of ‘Smyrneika’ in Boston.
Vlora Restaurant
545 Boylston, Back Bay, tel.: 617 638 9699
Chef and owner Aldo Velaj heads this modern new restaurant proudly situated in the heart of Boston’s Back Bay district. His menu will take you on a journey of creative dishes from Greece, Albania, and Italy. The contemporary furnished dining room sets the ambiance along with modern Greek music playing in the background. A perfect addition to Boston’s rising restaurant stars.
X&O
217 Washington Street, Stoughton, tel.: 781 344 1800, www.xoonline.net
This “European trattoria” is a cross between restaurant and lounge bar, with a Greek and Italian menu with live music on Thursdays from the Greek Music Ensemble. Different menus for lunch, dinner, and in the bar cater to different moods so you can chose to indulge in a light meal or full dinner–or just nosh meze over wine or cocktails.
Zoe’s
1105 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, tel.: 617 495 0055
There are few places you can order blintzes and frappe–and staff will bring both without batting an eye. Established in the early Fifties, Zoe’s has a fresh, slightly hip air–which goes with its all-day breakfast menu that nonetheless includes a variety of subs, gyro, moussaka, macaroni and cheese, and baked lamb.
Nightlife
Caprice
275 Tremont Street, tel.: 617 818 5854
Caprice, a sleek lounge-bar in the city, goes Greek on Fridays and Saturdays with DJ and belly dancer setting the tone for Opa! Fridays and a different set and style on Saturdays.
Studio
33 33 Stanhope Street, tel.: 617 572 3311
There’s a definitely international flavor at this trendy bar-lounge, with mainly Latin downstairs and Greek dance hits upstairs. The club has a restaurant and VIP room, but it’s the bar that draws the lively crowds.
Delis
Athena International Foods
753 Pleasant St., Brockton, tel.: 508 941 0030
The largest market devoted to food products from Greece along with one of the largest sections of Greek wines. Operated by Niko and Samira Giannaros, they have the largest selections of imported feta, olives, olive oils, and many more.
Sophia’s Greek Pantry
265 Belmont St. Belmont, tel.: 617 489 1371, www.sophiasgreekpantry.com
Located on the outskirts of Boston, Sophia’s offers an array of Greek products. You will find a range of feta cheeses, olives, olive oils and Fage
products.
New England Meat Market
60 Walnut St., Peabody, tel.: 978 531 0846, www.nemeat.com
This neighborhood specialty shop offers a wide selection of wines from Greece along with imported feta, olives, and olive oils.
Roslindale Fish Market
38 Poplar St, Roslindale, tel.: 617-327-9487
Husband and wife team offer fresh fish and seafood daily along with Greek food products such as imported feta, olives, olive oils, and many more.
Wine
Ball Square Fine Wines,
716 Broadway St., Somerville, tel.: 617 623 9500, www.ballsquarefinewines.com
Fine wine expert Christos Lianos features over 92 different wines from Greece in his boutique wine shop. He has been recognized by many major publications for his determined efforts to feature the best wines from Greece.
Wine Emporium:
607 Tremont St., South End, tel.: 617- 262-0379; 474 Columbus Ave., South End, tel.: 617 536 5545, www.thewineemporiumboston.com
This fine wine shop with two locations in the ‘Soho’ of Boston’s South End district carries some of the finest selections from Greece.
Kappy’s
175 Andover St. Peabody, tel.: 978 532 2330; 10 Revere Beach Pwy, Medford, tel.: 781 395 8888, www.kappys.com
The largest wine shop chain in Massachusetts has also one of the largest offerings of wines from Greece. Their locations in Peabody and Medford feature over 50 different selections.
Andover Liquors
209 North Main St., Andover, tel.: 978 470 0500, www.andoverliquors.com
Wine director Andrea DiFiore offers some of the best selections from Greece in one of the most affluent suburbs of Massachusetts.
Shopping
Whispers of Spring
20 Tremont St., Brighton, tel.: 617 789 5600, www.whispersofspring.com
The emporium for bridal showers, wedding and baptismal affairs, invitations, corporate arrangements
Greek Art & Favors
479 Market St., Lowell, tel.: 978 937 3899, www.everythinggreek.com
Their motto is “everything Greek” and the range covers gifts, items for weddings and christenings, a good selection of jewelry, food, and more.
Delphi Music & Gift Shop
283 Tremont St., Boston, tel.: 617 426 2111
The place to go for the latest in Greek music as well as books and magazines and newspapers from Greece.
Issue: Jan/Feb 2008