Lunch at Characters Taverna

Last weekend here on the Wet Coast was gorgeous weather-wise, and perfect for patio eating.  I went into the city to hang with my SIL for an afternoon, and she really fancied Greek food.  There is a string of Greek places on Davie St. in the Thurlow area.  I'd eaten at one and had a bad experience, but I couldn't remember which place it was (there are two within a couple of doors of each other), so we thought we'd try out a place I knew I hadn't eaten at yet, Characters Taverna, right on the corner of Davie & Thurlow - 1103 Davie St. to be specific.  It had lots of patio space and seemed to have a good menu, so Shan and I found a shady spot and were attended by an older gentleman who was very kind and who, whenever he came to serve us, called us his "beautiful ladies."  We were amused and thought this was rather charming.

Starting off by quenching our thirst with nice iced tea, Shan decided to order a calamari starter.  And it was great!  We really liked the extra thick, extra yogurty tzadziki sauce the dish was accompanied by.  It was a very good starter.

 

We both decided to order the chicken souvlaki lunch, which, for $10 came with Greek rice, lemony roast potato, Greek salad, and pita bread.  OMG, the souvlaki was one of the best I've ever had!  It made me miss chicken, which I haven't been buying much of lately because it's so expensive.  This souvlaki was grilled to juicy perfection, and seasoned with lemon, garlic, and oregano in just the right amounts.  It was amazing!

Although I was full, I did get pulled into desert.  The server recommended Ekmek, which was described as a Greek tiramisu.  The description said it was "vanilla custard over orange soaked wheat biscuits, topped with freshly whipped cream and roasted almonds."  So I caved.  And man was it ever good!  It was light and not too sweet, and yes, did remind me of a tiramisu in a way.  I am definitely going to have to find a way to make this at home!

So, the food at Characters was fantastic, and so was the service.  The prices were very reasonable for lunch and the setting was very lovely.  I would definitely go back again.  Besides, I didn't mind being called "my beautiful ladies" at all! :)

Recent Lunches

My SIL and I ate at The Greek Oven in Castlegar a couple of weeks ago, and it was pretty good. I had eaten there before once, three years previously, and didn't think it was very good. I had had a calamari meal and the coating on the squid was really salty. I decided to give the calamari another try this most recent visit, though, and it was actually decent. Shan had a chicken souvlaki wrap. The lunch menu at The Greek Oven is varied and inexpensive, and I would definitely go again.

I also had yet another great lunch at the Sunshine Cafe last week, along with my brother & SIL.

I had a chicken burger with mushrooms, bacon and Swiss cheese - yum!

My brother had the special, which was a capicolli pannini.

My SIL had a custom wrap full of all kinds of goodies - she said it was delicious.

Lunch at Leo's Taverna

It's so hot here I can barely breath and function, so posting might be a little light until I can get back into the kitchen. Meanwhile, my dad and I went to lunch the other day at a great spot in Nelson called Leo's Taverna. They make Greek & Italian food, the portions are generous, and the price is very reasonable.

We had the Corfu Platter for two. This includes, Greek salad, rice, chicken souvlaki & beef souvlaki, hummus, pita, tzadziki, and dolmades. I don't like Greek salad, so my dad ate that while I had the rice. The souvlakis were amazing & cooked perfectly. I don't care for dolmades, either, but my dad hates olives, so it all worked out. The hummus is chunkier than most hummuses, but very well-balanced in flavour. For dessert there wasn't much on offer. My dad was really looking forward to some baklava and I would have had some tiramisu if they had it, but alas, they were out of both. So, Dad ordered a slice of Black Forest Cake, and I had a couple of bites. There are way better Black Forest Cakes our there, but this did in a pinch.

It was a great lunch and I came away really full!