To Gym or not to Gym

Last Friday, on finishing with another day in the office, I found myself contemplating whether I should go to the gym or to have a bite to eat together with a fellow co-worker. The weather was pretty dismal. It had already rained and it looked like it may be raining again. Given that we were going to get to either place by bike, we were concerned about being rained upon, so the option of going home was also on the table.

I insisted that we were 'good' and went for the gym. If we were rained upon it would have been for a good cause. For an unknowing observer, this would have seemed to be the angel on my shoulder pulling the strings and doing the talking. Zoom in however and change point of view by only a few degrees and one would see the masking tape covering the angels mouth, a pair of horns only just visible being it: angel pulling my strings and devil pulling angels! The purpose of course was just to get the option of going home scrapped!

Luckily it worked, and once we were on the bike I casually suggested just passing by 'Chez Lucien', a lovely little French restaurant that I have heard so many good things about and still haven't had the opportunity to go! We went by, but this time round my luck betrayed me: to my disappointment it was closed. On the flip side however, the amazing smells coming out of the kitchen (fully visible from the street) from the preparations that were under way flipped some sort of hunger switch and my friend insisted that we ditch the gym and go to Colibri. I wasn't going to argue.

I've visited Colibri again and again, but the important thing about this visit to Colibri was that I got a picture of the Rucola Pizza.

Pizza Rucola

For me, what makes the pizza at Colibri one of the best I've tried is the base. The thing about pizza is that the base has to be cooked well, with a strong crust that can keep a slice from flopping when lifted. On the other hand, the cheese must be just melted with maybe a little bit of colour, definitely not incinerated as is more often than not the case. The way to achieve this is to put the pizza on a very very hot surface in a very hot oven. I'm told, stone ovens in Italy burn at over five hundred degrees Celsius, and a pizza will stay in they for no more than a minute or two before it is ready!

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Coupepe: Perfect if you're in the neighbourhood.

When I was little, my grandfather used to take me to the barber to get my hair cut. I have so many sparse memories of the time. Like pictures, emptied out of a shoebox onto the table. Just there, in no particular order, some out of focus, but definitely there. I remember that the barber wasn't in the neighbourhood, and I imagine that this was because he was in an area where my grandfather had lived earlier in his life, and that the barber was one that he had been going to for a long time.

After my grandfather passed away, my dad took over, taking me to the barber that he had been going to for, as I understand it, all his life. I don't think it's a coincidence that both men had such a long lasting bond with they barbers. Somehow, I believe this stems from the personal nature of a hair cut. Even more so with a shave as would have been more often the case in both their times. I think it was this personal facet that put me off hair cuts both as a child and later on.

Eventually, as I grew older, the time came for me to take the matter of my hair into my own hands. The results of this were devastating both for me and for the people around me. All through university I wouldn't get my hair cut for months on end. This ordeal reached a peak after I had completed my national service when I had left my hair to grow for more than a year (something that I'm honestly not proud of ). Luckily a friend of mine took the matter into her own hands and arranged an appointment with her hairdresser to get my hair cut. I've been going with her ever since.

Friday was one of those days, and after the vile and intrusive grooming business I had to get some comfort food to make it all better. However, to convince my friend to follow through with me I had to promise her a good salad: not really the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of comfort food. Lo and behold, 'Coupepe' to the rescue, with wholesome salads and pizza to die for!

Show Coupepe on larger map

A little bit of background first. Coupepe is located on the main square of Nea Penteli - which is really, more or less, as far out of Athens as you can go and still say you live in Athens (technically of course, it's a suburb - yea, shoot me for not naming my blog 'On Attica'). It basically has a good collection of cold cuts of meat and cheeses which it uses to make salads, sandwiches, crepes and pizzas or just serve plain with drinks. A sort of coffee-drinks-and-simply-food place. Very small but with enough outdoor seating on the square. Same owner I believe as Dadas, and the reason I had such high hopes for it (you can read all about that experience here). And here are some related links: facebook, foursquare, clickatlife.gr, athensmagazine.gr, athensmenu.gr, telegourmet.weebly.com, estiatoria.gr.

Back to the story. We arrived promptly, parked and went to find a seat. Unfortunately inside was packed, and we were lucky to get a place outside. It's always a good sign when a place is full. It's not necessarily a sign of good food or whatnot. It's a sign of a good balance of quality, quantity, service, environment and price.

My plan was to get a pizza, but I had already promised, in the name of healthy eating, a salad each. I had to get her to drop her guard so I decided to start with some Rakomela and a bruschetta to get her appetite going. We decided on two salads, but as soon as she'd got some alcohol in her, I argued for a pizza instead of the salad. She fell for it! Then, as we ordered, I snuck the second salad back in claiming I couldn't decide between the two. Overall I was well happy with myself, and with my trusted camera with me, here goes:

The Rakolemo. I could have sworn there was a hint of orange in this. Strong stuff! Did the job.

The bruschetta. There were five pieces, but as all things served first, it was eaten before my brain switched from  'man eat food. ouga-ouga' to 'maybe I should take a picture for my blog'.

Rocket, lettuce, bacon, parmigiana, cherry tomatoes... yum-yum.

Cabbage (if I member correctly), radicchio, gorgonzola and walnuts... yum-yum-yum. To be honest, both salads were works of art! They were both so fresh and delicious! My only problem was that I didn't toss them (I couldn't bare to spoil the look), and the dressing which was all over the top, never got to the bottom.

And finally the pizza. Or should I say pi-xxx-a, because it was absolute sex. Thin, crispy and soft, not too much cheese, straight out the oven, melting all over the place. Fresh toppings, juicy tomato, crunchy peppers, earthy mushrooms. I dunno, I'm no pizza expert (and I have suffered a disappointment after saying that something is the best of that something - read that here), but as far as I'm concerned this pizza is the reason why pizza delivery - the likes of domino, pizza hut and pizza fun - should be made illegal: either go out and get it fresh or make it yourself!

Verdict: perfect for what it is, and absolutely worth it if you're in the neighbourhood.

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COLIBRI: Round two

Last time I visited Colibri, it was under the pretence of it having the best burger in Athens. Under that context I was disappointed, but the pizza did impress me.

This time round was different - in a positive way of course (otherwise why write about it?). I had assembled with the guys for a trip to a little Mexican place called Rincon Mexicano which we had discovered from the same source that led us to Colibri: Athens Daily Secret.

To make a long story short, we ordered about half the menu, were still starving by the end of it and didn't really care much about trying either another round of the same or the other half of the menu. I am open to the possibility that we may have been victims of our own expectations, so I urge you to try the place and form your own opinion - it wasn't particularly expensive (unless, I guess, if your intent is to relieve thy hunger).

So as we left, with an empty space where our food should have been, one comment led to another and off we were to Colibri. This time round the only expectations were to eat good and satisfying food. This time round our expectations were surpassed!

I contemplated ordering a pizza for myself since I remembered my last visit, but since everyone else was getting a burger and a pizza to share I decided to follow them. We each got chilli burger and shared a large pizza topped with rocket and parmesan shavings.

The pizza was as amazing as I remembered it! Thin based with a proper crust, not too much cheese, fresh tomato sauce and then mounds of fresh and vibrant rocket topped with wafer thin delicate and fully flavoursome parmesan shaving. Wow did that go down well (and that was after having already eaten at the Mexican place)!

And then, the burger arrived. And like I'm sure I said last time, this isn't your coarse ground, fat and hearty American style burger, but damn it, it sure as well did the job! Sauces dripping everywhere on every bite... so juicy and soft and filling. And to finish it off, a hefty swig of Weiss beer - ecstasy in the making!

So.. DAMN IT... GO HAVE YOURSELF A PIZZA AND A BURGER AT COLIBRI!!

And best of all, the owner(s) of Colibri have opened a second shop in Pagrati - so now there's no excuse!

View Colibri 1 & 2 in a larger map

p.s. a few related links
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ebw_5IqYPw
http://www.dailysecret.com/secrets/to-kalutero-burger/
http://www.zoomout.gr/food/colibri.html
http://www.zoomout.gr/food/colibri_2.html
http://foursquare.com/venue/6999057
http://www.onlinedelivery.gr/ShowFlashBook.aspx?CompanyId=820569#/2

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Gazi College: Best of Both Worlds

Today I think it's my turn to write about "Gazi College"...

Once upon a time not so long ago, a youth by the name of George embarked on an exploratory adventure of Athens. With the help of a veteran of the scene and fellow ex army postman, he discovered a sort of club called 'Mad' in an area called Gazi.

Back then there was no metro stop in the area and getting to Gazi was a matter of enduring rush-hour levels of traffic at 1am and wishing upon the god of parking for a cozy parking space to leave thy vehicle. Little did George know that not so far into the future this area would not only be a mainstream place for going out but also a five minute walk from his place of work.

This club that the boys had visited wasn't really George's cup of tea, but for only that it was one of the first steps of what was to be a great adventure, he had always held the club in a special place along with other fond memories. Therefore it was not to his liking when one day on returning home from work, his crossed the spot where the club once stood only to discover that it had been replaced by a coffee-food-maybe-bar style place called "Gazi College".

George was aware that the general area of Gazi was undergoing major changes due to the Keramikos Metro stop that had opened on the main square, and in his mind - affected by the disappointment that the physical link to one of his fondest memories was no more - this new place was just another one of the many new businesses that were popping up like mushrooms.

The story was the same for all of them: shroud businessman in suit and tie has money to invest. Throws money at consultants, financial advisers, interior decorators, cooks, bar men, blady blady bla... everything in a huge melting pot, stirs with an evil laugh, and out comes yet another soulless cafe/ bar/ restaurant.

To that end, George stayed away from this place for a long time after it had opened, until one day, around noon on a Saturday he found himself in Gazi with a friend thirsting for coffee and a snack. For no particular reason they sat at Gazi College.

Needless to say that the George in the story is me, and boy was I wrong about Gazi College. I guess every now and then the hoard of accountants, interior designers etc. get it right!

That first time we had a coffee each and two mini-burgers to share. Looking through a menu I usually get a fairly accurate vibe about a place, and it was really bugging me that I was getting a good vibe about this place. Not a huge menu, and nothing there that seemed to be there just for the sake of being there. One, Two for Four mini burgers, a choice of maybe four pizzas including the Margarita, a few salads, a few sandwiches and probably a few things I cant remember. Point is, spot on Cafe-Lunch material.

The burgers were to die for, small and succulent with tasty sauces, and best of all, served with fresh fries - and you know, when a place makes the effort to serve freshly fried crunch chips they're going to make the effort for allot more other things. Looking around a got a glimpse of the Pizzas: thin based, not too much cheese, straight out the oven. I was dead set on coming back to try them.

After going on and on about the mini-burgers, next time I went was with my burger-connoisseur friend & co. The burgers got the thumbs up - as did the interior of the place that I hadn't really noticed before. Decorated with a college-books-globes-equations-study vibe (unsurprisingly). And the music was definitely there, but at just the right volume and of just the right genre to create a pleasant atmosphere without being overwhelming. We also tried some deserts: a cheese cake and a chestnut caramel cream filled sweat bread. Thumbs up there too.

And finally, the pizza, which I had to wait one more time to try. After a Saturday of working in the office (deadlines - who needs them?!?), I went with a colleague. Two mini burgers, a Caesar salad, and a Margarita pizza all to share. The burgers where, by now, something that one can count on. The pizza, like i said, thin based, tasty sauce, not too much cheese: yum yum yum! The salad, slightly over dressed, but i think i'll give it another try. All and all a very pleasant meal.

There there it is. George on Gazi College. And why you ask the best of both worlds? In a nutshell, Gazi college combine the new with the old. A cozy place in a great area with easy access by car or public transport and good modern menu items on offer. A great place to go for a morning or afternoon coffee, brunch or lunch!

View Gazi College in a larger map

Update: 14/05/2011

The Mini Burgers

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The best burger in the city?

So, a few weeks ago I'm supposed to meet up with friends for to grab some food and maybe a few drinks. But, me being me, I made up some excuse and went home to make my own dinner and relax after a hard days work.

No sooner than I had finished dinner I get a phone call from one of them claiming that they had discovered - in no other words - the "Best burger in the city" and that I had missed out. Now normally I wouldn't have given this preposterous statement much weight, had it not come from the other burger lover (the first being myself) of my friends. I had to try this burger for myself.

The very next day I was on my way to try this so called champ. Accompanying me were my friend who made the claim and another (who obviously hadn't had enough the day before).

The source of this burger was a small establishment in the Mets area of Athens called COLIBRI:


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On arriving, one notices the compactness of the place. Jam packed in an area no bigger than my bedroom, full of clutter creating an enticing, warm and friendly atmosphere.

We ordered a burger each, a pizza and a salad to share.

Now, while waiting for the food, my friend came clean: his overblown statement was but to spite me for not coming to the previous days gathering (and it only took one beer for him to come clean). However I was still quietly anticipating being surprised. And surprised I was! Not by the burger, but by the pizza which was thin and crispy and fresh and everything that the PizzaHut generation has destroyed. Not quite your Italian stone baked pizza, but as good as you can hope to get from a conventional oven. As a matter of fact everything was very nice. The burger was - well not that fat juicy medium done American style patty I had hoped for, but was juicy and pleasantly different from other alternatives in the city.

I imagined myself living in an apartment round the area and grabbing dinner from this gem at least a couple of times a month on my way back from College. Alas, I was reminiscing my University experience and remembering the local take-outs I had lived by all those years ago. This is the sort of place this was: a bit further out of the city for me to want to have to go out of my way for, but just the sort of place I'd like to have down the street from home.

So, the best burger in the city? Well, not quite: but with the closure of Hells Kitchen the hunt is on!

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