Greek in Orlando

I wasn't really expecting big things on my first visit to Athena Cafe. But then they started bringing out the wealth of Greek cuisine: humus, dolmans, moussaka, spanakopita. As I sampled my way from one dish to the next, I decided that in the next life, I'm going to ask to come back as a Greek. It really was that good.

Although my revelation at Athena was partly due to the vibrance and depth of Greek cuisine as a whole, it's mostly a tribute to the culinary skills of the Said (Sah-eed) family, who emigrated from the region to America 12 years ago, bringing along their favorite recipes.

Everything was delicious on the day I visited, but especially the dolmades ($3.50), which, translated from the Arabic, means "something stuffed." Marinated grape leaves were wrapped around fillings of rice, lean beef and onions. The deep green leaves were glassy and translucent, firm enough to bind yet giving easily to the bite. They were best when swished through the accompanying tzatziki sauce, a stiff mixture of sour cream, cucumber, garlic and parsley.

Hummus ($3.25) was almost enough for a meal. A warm, nutty spread of pureed chickpeas was smoothed across a small plate, moistened with olive oil and dusted with spices. On the side was a basket of pita bread, sliced into wedges. These you folded into halves, tucking them with dollops of hummus, diced tomatoes and onions.

Among the house specialties, moussaka ($3.75) was a full-flavored casserole that could almost be likened to lasagna. Layers of eggplant and sliced potatoes were baked with lean beef, feta cheese, onions and garlic. On top was creamy béchamel sauce, which had become firm from the baking.

Spanakopita ($3.75), more commonly known as spinach pie, was a hearty pastry, sliced into a generous rectangle and served warm. Dozens of layers of phyllo dough were stacked and baked in a batter of eggs, spinach, onions and feta cheese.

Warm, spicy and honey-sweet, the traditional baklava ($1.50) was worthy of a dining excursion in itself. Sheets of phyllo were stacked, soaked with butter and syrup, then layered with nuts and baked.

Athena Cafe isn't open for dinner, but its modest atmosphere is perfect for a casual breakfast or lunch. Popular for its breakfast gyros and Greek omelets in the $3 to $4 price range, this is a busy stop in the morning hours.

College students and cheap, ethnic eateries seem to go hand in hand. Where there's a school of higher learning, you'll usually find a stable of offbeat, funky restaurants where the young and impoverished can chart untried culinary territory.

For sure, the University of Central Florida area needs more of these type of restaurants. But for the last nine years, while the surrounding area exploded with cookie-cutter subdivisions and food chains, the low-key Falafel Cafe has been dishing out a taste of the Middle East to students and others hooked on the culture's culinary favors.

Falafel Cafe is quite small, with less than two dozen tables. There's no view to speak of, but an enormous painting dominates the entrance, capturing a scene from the Beirut waterfront. Back in the 1970s, that's where chef Hind Dajani perfected her recipes as a mother of four. Piped-in Middle Eastern music enhances the cuisine. And while service isn't always fast, it's usually friendly.

Descriptions of each dish make the menu reader-friendly. And if you can't commit to any one item, skip the entrees and fill up on tapas-style appetizers, which are in the $2 to $5 range.

Vegetarian dishes are a Middle Eastern strength, and Dajani is particularly deft with the namesake falafels ($3.99) – fried croquettes made with crushed garbanzo and fava beans, onions and a mixed bag of seasonings. They're delicious by themselves or dipped in the accompanying tahini sauce, a thick paste of ground sesame seeds. Kibbe balls ($4.99) are similar, except they're made with bulghur wheat and seasoned ground beef.

Falafel Cafe's hummus ($2.49) is creamy and tempting, made with pureed garbanzo beans, sesame sauce, olive oil and garlic. A splash of lemon brings out the naturally nutty flavors. Baba ghanoush ($2.49) gets a similar treatment, made of eggplant mashed to a pulp and mixed with yogurt. Use it as a dip for pita bread, or better yet, ask for the garlic bread pita ($1.99), which is brushed with butter and minced garlic.

The success of the simple "cedar salad" ($7.99) is in the fresh ingredients. Bright greens are topped with herb-crusted chicken kababs, olives and peppers. Pickled turnips add hot-pink color.

When you're in the mood for warm, hearty Middle Eastern cooking, you'll find it here.

At one time it was home to corporate pizzas, as bland and predictable as the building they were made in. Today the shell of this former Pizza Hut still stands, but inside you will no longer find God-awful garlic bread served by minimum-wage slaves. Instead, at Greek Flame Taverna you'll find warm homemade pitas and other Greek treats served with pride by the Chrisan-thidis family.

They've tried to exorcise all the old deep-dish demons. The restaurant is painted classic blue and white. It's clean and decorated with pieces of Greek culture. There are Greek murals on the wall, classic statue replicas, traditional clothes on display and a map of Greece on the place mats.

The Greek Flame is far from fancy, but it's a nice alternative to fast food, especially if you're taking the kids out. The staff went out of its way to remind me how cute my son is. They also had a bunch of toys to keep him out of trouble while I read the laminated menu.

We sampled two appetizers. I found the saganaki ($4.95), a flaming cheese, to be an appropriate start. Just like the lighting of the Olympic torch, the cheese is set on fire and carried to the table. The fire is put out with lemon, which adds to the flavor. It tasted even better when wrapped inside a warm pita. I also enjoyed the spanakopita ($4.50), a light dish of spinach in a flaky phyllo dough.

I'm a relatively large man, so I ordered the "Hercules platter" ($9.95), which features large samples of four dishes. The gyro meat, a combination of beef and lamb, was served in thin shavings. It was tender and appropriately seasoned. The dolmades – grape leaves stuffed with ground meat and rice – were fine. I enjoyed the mousaka, layers of eggplant, ground beef and potato topped with béchamel sauce. Also delicious was the pistichio, a lasagna of ground beef and noodle, also topped with béchamel.

While Hercules and I were celebrating the thrill of victory, another member of our party was tasting the agony of defeat. She ordered a shrimp-and-garlic special ($10.95). While the shrimp was fresh and tasty, a couple of the jumbos were served without being properly cleaned (oops!).

After the shrimp slip-up, our table bounced back quickly with dessert. The Greek coffee ($1.25) gave us a lift somewhere between espresso and Cuban coffee. The baklava ($1.95) was obviously homemade, as was the galaktobouriko ($2.25), a Greek custard with phyllo dough.

Overall I was satisfied. The food is fine, and when it's time to pay the bill, you won't have to groan. A family of four can get their fill for about 40 bucks.

The Greek island of Mykonos is located in the Aegean Sea. Its curving streets -- designed to confuse attacking pirates in the 16th century -- are today lined with restaurants that helped define it as a vacation mecca. Now a slice of Mykonos has come to us in the form of Mayerion Mykonos, a small, pumped-up bistro in Longwood, owned and operated by Dimitrios Salivaras. The menu offers generations of family recipes from the old country.

We were greeted at the door by a chipper gentleman who told us in a thick Mediterranean accent that his name was Nick, and that he was born in Greece in 1924 -- all before offering us complimentary glasses of dry, red wine while we waited for a table. Waits are typical here; the restaurant seats just 65. But the narrow space has been creatively transformed with high, beamed ceilings and stunning Mediterranean art. The bustling, open-air kitchen -- the "mayerion" -- adds excitement. Just about everyone gets to watch and listen as chefs whip up a fast-paced production of flavors, aromas and textures.

We started with melitzanosalata ($4.95), a glistening spread of chunky roasted eggplant blended with red wine and olive oil, and liberally anointed with garlic. While we loved it, we wished there was something to pair it with other than thick-sliced whole-grain bread. Pita wedges would have been more appropriate.

Much more impressive was thallasina skaras ($14.95), a succulent, smoky flavored charbroiled trio of shrimp, octopus and calamari, finished with a crisp lemon vinaigrette.

Although there are plenty of ethnic traditions, such as moussaka, on the menu, it's a good idea to explore the daily specials, sometimes tweaked slightly to accent the freshest available ingredients. "Grouper Mykonos" ($16.95) is not to be missed: The 14-ounce fillet of domestic black grouper was topped with a luscious melange of tomatoes, caramelized onions, celery, white wine and fresh herbs. Feta cheese was crumbled on top, and the fillet was broiled to a golden brown. Another attraction: a thick salmon fillet wrapped in layers of phyllo pastry ($16.95), baked to a delicate crisp and topped by mild sauce of lemon, dill and white wine with a hint of chopped onions.

Our expedition culminated with a complimentary treat: The waiter brought out a plate of fresh apple wedges drizzled with honey and cinnamon. It was surprising that something so simple could be so elegant and delicious -- the key was in the sun-ripened apples. In comparison, it was an off night for the soggy baklava ($1.50).

Throughout dinner, there was total attention and concern from the wait staff. Everything we ordered came in such generous portions that our to-go boxes quickly stacked up. But not to worry. This food did not go to waste.

Theo's Kitchen may be gone from this familiar location, but the space is being kept Greek by Mediterranean Blue, who also did us the favor of sprucing the joint up a bit, stocking eco-friendly wares, and adding a little flair to the menu (read: more cheese for everyone!). 

Said menu is deceptively simple, populated with just a handful of sandwiches and salads, but nearly everything is a winner. The Provence sandwich with ham, brie, herbes de Provence-infused butter and Dijon mustard ($6.50, comes with a side) may be just a Greek Cuban, but it's a delicious trip across the salty-savory spectrum. The more traditional falafel ($6.50 with a side) gets extra points for fresh, soft pita and the choice house-made tzatziki sauce. If doing dinner, a side of olive oil and oregano-garnished Greek fries helps fill you, but it'd be a ' what else ' tragedy not to order it smothered with feta cheese for $2. 

When you think of deep-fried squid, the word "beautiful" doesn't usually come to mind. But what we saw at Olympia Restaurant changed our minds. Sitting before us was a simple platter of what the Greek refer to as kalamari: a delicate, undulating tangle of generously carved squid steaks. They were lightly fried with a lacy batter and presented with lemon wedges, fried onions and peppers.

We could almost taste the Greek elements -- sunshine, earth and sea -- that inspired the food which kept coming out of the kitchen on the night we visited. While this restaurant is elegant in a gently worn way, the setting is decidedly humble on Colonial Drive, east of Goldenrod Road. Like a hardy olive tree that's rooted deep, Olympia Restaurant has been serving authentic Greek cuisine since 1979.

Although it's been nearly 40 years since the Vasiliadis family left Greece for America, they make regular pilgrimages back to the islands for culinary inspiration, from the tiniest fishing villages to the streets of Athens. Then they bring their impressions back to Orlando and work them into the menu, which is made up of old family recipes which have been tweaked through the years.

In addition to the kalamari ($6.95), we also had a feta saganaki appetizer ($5.95), which was a satisfying platter of steamy pita wedges arranged around a pot of warm dipping sauce, made of melted feta cheese, olives, pepperoncinis.

The "Hercules platter" ($13.95) is an easy way to sample the menu, featuring roast lamb and gyro meat. There also were dolmathes, marinated grape leaves wrapped around a stuffing of spiced beef, onions and rice, spanakopita, a delicate spinach pastry wrapped in flaky phyllo dough, and tsatsiki, a mild dipping sauce of yogurt, cucumbers and garlic. There also was a taste of moussaka, which my guest ordered as a full entree ($8.95). That's hearty but mild dish built of layers of sliced and fried potatoes on the bottom, fried eggplant and spicy ground beef in the middle, and a light, creamy béchamel sauce on top.

Our waitress was attentive and thorough, yet she gave us our space. This is a pleasant spot for a leisurely dining respite. And on Friday and Saturday nights, the setting includes traditional belly dancing shows at 9 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.