Thursday 23 February 2012

Leaving Anthoula's

Taverna Anthoula doesn't look like the kind of taverna which you'd write home about. It's fairly non-descript from the outside, which isn't much of an outside as it's right beside the road just a few metres along the road to Epta Piges from the Kolymbia crossroads. Its menu is limited, although the food all of excellent quality, home made and very traditional. 
  
It often looks like it's closed but, go in through the door at any time of the year and you'll eat, though there may be no-one inside when you enter. Sure enough someone will emerge from the depths of the interior and welcome you. If it's a woman then it's likely to be Kyria Anthoula herself. If it's a bloke then it's probably her husband, whose name escapes me right now, so Mr. Yianniou will have to suffice. It's mainly an indoor place anyway, possessing only a modest outdoor courtyard with no view to speak of. Unless you consider the tarmac a view. On the other side of the road there are pine trees, under which it's usually easy to park, leaving one the short walk of a few metres across the road to enter the taverna itself.

You probably won't find Taverna Anthoula on tripadvisor, but don't worry, if you're hungry then it's a very handy way to remedy that situation when en route down the island from Rhodes Town to the South. We haven't been there all that many times. The last time was with our friend from Pilona, Brenda, following a garden-centre-crawl (talk about on the razzle, eh?) some time back. But it's Brenda who's prompted this post with a rather amusing tale about her most recent visit there with her friend Chris (female).

Having lunched and been well-served by Mr. Yianniou, as usual with their very good traditional Greek cuisine, they'd decided that maybe it was time to hit the road for the remaining thirty minutes or so drive back to the Pilona/Lardos area. Brenda called to the back of the restaurant for the bill from their host. Instead of the bill, however, he approached the ladies with a dish of four fresh oranges, along with a couple of knives to facilitate the job of devouring them. "What a nice thought" agreed our two heroines, who set about the oranges with the knives and a couple of serviettes to mop up the juice whilst confidently expecting Mr. Yianniou to return with the asked-for "logoriasmo" imminently.

As the bill hadn't materialised some 20 minutes later, Brenda called again, whereupon he approached once more, still not bearing the required slip of paper, but rather some "glyko tou koutaliou"...

 Image courtesy: http://argiro.gr/recipes/

If you haven't ever had the experience of being offered this stuff by a Greek host, it's the kind of thing which you would usually expect to spread on your hot toast, but here you're expected to eat it with a small spoon, a "μικρό κουτάλι" and nothing else. "Sweet" isn't an adequate enough description for this stuff; "instant diabetes" would be more accurate. But it's a kind of tradition for guests to be given it and I'm quite convinced (as I wrote somewhere in one of the books, can't remember where now though) that the Greeks only keep it so that they can shove it in front of unsuspecting foreigners, before retiring to safe distance and whipping out their videocams for something to show their mates and have a laugh at later.

Anyway, glyko tou koutalio dispatched down the hatches, Brenda once more ventured to enquire from Mr. Yianniou as to whether there was any fear of getting the bill before "lights out". He assured them that it would be forthcoming and soon emerged, all smiles and compliments, bearing in his hand, not the bill, but this time some crystallized oranges, which are, if anything, even sweeter than the previous offering and once more served in a small glass dish. The was no faulting this man's kindness, just the nagging doubt growing in Brenda's mind that she wouldn't be doing anything else this particular afternoon, as she was almost certainly going to be arriving home at dusk at the earliest.

Checking their watches our game ladies noticed that it was now approaching an hour since they'd asked for the bill, and so, once again, …well, you know what they asked for next of course, with just a trace of irritation in their faces, which were set with resolute smiles nonetheless. Soon their host approached, all apologies, insisting that they take coffee before leaving and deposited a cup of hot dark liquid before each of them, along with the customary separate jug of condensed milk and a couple of sugar lumps to the side.

Exasperated would be a good adjective to describe the feelings of Brenda and Chris by this time, but to their credit, they saw the funny side and agreed that, well, so the lunch would turn out to be three times as long time-wise as they'd planned. What the heck, the Queen wasn't coming to visit, after all. No real pressing need to dash home. Their coffees three-quarters consumed, Mr. Yianniou finally brought the bill, struck up another brief conversation with them about how they came to be living on Rhodes and where they lived etc., whilst also extending his deepest thanks for their custom and his hope that they'd found the meal to their satisfaction, accepted payment and retreated.

Almost in disbelief, Brenda and her friend realized that they were free to go! But leaving Anthoula's had proved to be a lot more difficult than they could ever have imagined. They'd do it again though, as would we, only perhaps on a day when we knew we had no pressing appointments later!

8 comments:

  1. Tell us where, exactly, please John. I am ashamed to say I have never noticed this eatery, tho' we have often driven up this road. Where, in relation to the little fire station on the left, is it?
    Now if you are on holiday this kind of delay is charming but I can see how it would grate a little when you've got the daily 'grind' to get on with!
    Vicki

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    1. It's as I state above Vicki, in the 1st para. Take the Epta Piges road at the Kolymbia cross-road. It's only a hundred metres or so on the right, which is why it's a handy stop-off for people travelling up or down the island. Further away and it wouldn't warrant turning off for. If you click the link above (1st para), you're taken to a fairly rudimentary site, but scroll down to the bottom, where there's an extremely simplified map showing the location.

      Fire Station? What fire station?

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  2. Thanks John, I knew which road you were talking about but have never noticed Anthoulas...............obviously I have been too busy looking at the fire station!! A few hundred yards (sorry metres) after you leave the main road, on the left set back in the trees is a tiny building with a small fire engine parked outside. Often there are firefighters sitting outside enjoying a cigarette (or frappe maybe) If Anthoulas is so close to the main road I must miss it every time because I'm recovering from the nerve-wracking experience of doing a right turn made more complicated by the road works on the junction!
    Vicki

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    1. John. After we left you this morning @ the Table top in Ginnadi , we did indeed have lunch @ Anthoula's
      Thank you for recommending it on your blog
      Very good it was too, even if it did take almost 2 hours.
      Our bill also took some time to arrive complete with the dessert mentioned above

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    2. Glad to hear that the place retains its charm!!

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    3. Of course, I meant LEFT turn !
      Vicki

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  3. Depends which direction you're coming from!! But as you usually stay down south I get it!

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  4. we nearly went in there after walking down to kolymbia from epta piges, but decided we would get something to eat nearer the sea, and had a bus to catch. Certainly looked an interesting place but didn't look very open (nobody about), maybe should have gone in, but maybe another time if on that road

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