Opa! Delish Greek dishes go beyond souvlaki

Enlarge Image

Owner Yvonne Nakoulas-Verogos (left) and chef Abdul Hakimi. (JOE.BRYKSA@FREEPRESS.MB.CA)

Look at lists of local restaurants and you'll find many that are described as Greek. But read their menus and, as often as not, the Greek part amounts only to Greek salad and souvlaki -- on a platter or wrapped in a pita. And sometimes, if you're lucky, baklava. And whatever else they serve, for some mysterious reason, they often offer up some of the town's better burgers.

Kristina's aims higher than most, starting with the decor. Soft lighting and white pillars that run the length of the room create a dreamy, almost serene ambience, which becomes considerably less serene when business becomes brisk, as it has been on my visits. The nicest tables are those along the wall of windows that overlook Corydon; if your visit is to be on a busy night, try to reserve one of those instead of one in the middle of the traffic lanes.

Of course there are burgers on the menu (as well as the usual stuffed pitas and sandwiches), but I can't report on whether or not they too rank among the town's best, since what I'd come for were the Greek specialties. Kristina's aims higher than most in its food, too, and often gets there. It may not break any barriers -- the Greek offerings aren't extensive, and all are familiar -- but most I tried were good. Which probably bodes well for those burgers, too.

One dish I haven't found elsewhere was the uncommonly dramatic shrimp diablo -- flambéed tableside, shooting big flames high enough to draw gasps from nearby tables. They turned out to be plump and firm, bathed in an ouzo-spiked tomato sauce, so delicious we were scooping up every last drop (five for $14).

Our chicken livers were also supposed to be flambéed, but weren't (probably because I had them at lunch instead of dinner) -- still delicious, though, in a savoury brown sauce ($12). Calamari were tiny, crisp and tender but there weren't as many as at first there seemed to be -- the illusion of plenty was created by perching them on a big bed of greens ($12). I had looked forward to the mussels -- a rarity in local Greek restaurants -- but the lovely tomato sauce, augmented by olives, crumbs of feta and a liquorish splash of ouzo, was wasted on mussels that were unpleasantly flabby, and nearing disintegration ($13).

The entrees are priced from $17 to $25, including either soup or salad and garlic toast. There are tender, tasty souvlaki of chicken, lamb or pork. For those who can't make up their minds, Kristina's Meat Platter comprises four of any of the listed meats with all the trimmings at $50 for four. The Greek Platter is a single chicken souvlaki, a chunk of spanakopita and a square of moussaka.

On the other hand the moussaka -- layers of eggplant, potato, zucchini and ground beef, topped by an ethereal pillow of cinnamon-infused béchamel sauce -- is so luscious you'll probably want a full-sized order. You may feel the same way about the flaky, spinach-packed spanakopita, although it's a pricey $11 on its own as an appetizer.

Tiny loin lamb chops were tender and beautifully seasoned, and a fillet of salmon, simply baked in lemon juice and olive oil, was also good, although verging on dryness in parts.

Not all the good choices were Greek, though, as exemplified by a 10-ounce rib-eye steak, which, although slightly but not impossibly chewy, had excellent flavour and came topped by a heap of delicious mushrooms.

The included Greek salad was a perfunctory, under-seasoned affair, skimpily sprinkled with wee shreds of feta and yielding only a single olive. If the hearty and satisfying bean and lentil of one jour was typical soup it might be a better alternative. Also included are either lovely lemony roasted potatoes or so-so rice, and such fresh vegetables as carrots and cauliflower, which may sound boring, but were particularly tasty and easy to finish. And you'll probably eat more than you thought you would of the terrific garlic toast of house-made bread.

There's only one Greek dessert, a fine, syrup-soaked baklava that is dense with fresh-tasting walnuts. But there's another delicious Italian alternative in the zuccotto fiorentina -- a good six-inches-high dome composed of layers of genoise cake, chocolate mousse and chocolate icing ($8 each).

Service was friendly and accommodating, but sometimes harried and sometimes irritatingly slow. There is no printed wine list -- the few available choices are listed on a blackboard behind the bar, and you have to either go over to read them, or depend on your waitress's recital. That said, we had a nice half-litre carafe of Merlot for $16.

Judging by the lineups near the entry of patrons waiting for a table to empty, reservations would seem to be a good idea. Especially on weekends -- at which time, by the way, there's usually loud live music. Not Greek music, alas, but mostly familiar old standards. And it starts early -- about 7:30 the night of my visit -- after which you can forget about conversation.

marion.warhaft@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 4, 2009 D3