Why are there so few Greek restaurants in London? Compared to their Mediterranean cousins the French and Italians, Greek restaurants just don’t have the same reputation or popularity. Is it simply that the food isn’t as good? A visit to Opso in Marylebone showed me that Greek cuisine can be unusual and delicious, but also a bit hit and miss.
When we visited Opso it was full of Greeks, always a good sign. We kicked things off at the bar with some cocktails mixed by head barman Giannis Petris. I told him I’m a sucker for anything with lemon and ginger…so it was a refreshing Sunflower for me, a mix of Rakomelo, ginger beer and freshly squeezed limes. Gorgeous. I could feel myself getting tipsy before I’d even finished it. My boyfriend went for the South Negroni, Opso’s signature cocktail – a blend of Mastiha, rosso vermouth and Campari. He was mightily impressed.
The entire cocktail list at Opso was created by Giannis, with more than just a nod at the ouzo cart. He uses traditional Greek liqueurs including Mastiha (resin from the mastiha tree), Rakomelo (blend of anise and honey) and Tsipouro (grape and pomace). The result is delicious with the cocktails being a real highlight of the experience.
We started our meal with some small dishes, to be enjoyed with the fancy Greek cocktails or local wines. Great for a shared starter, we had the fried smoked metsovone cheese with a side of rhubarb jam (£7). This was not your average cheese and honey. The sharp and sweet rhubarb balanced the creamy rich cheese perfectly. Our Taramas egg roe spread with homemade crisp olive bread (£6) was melt in the mouth light and velvety – no fake pink colouring here!! Next to arrive was the feta cheese (£6), which although smooth and flavoursome, came with a miniscule portion of bread! Not even a second basket of bread was enough to get through all that feta cheese. All this was washed down with a large crisp glass of Assyrtiko.
As I started to feel I’d overdosed on cheese and wine, out came the slow cooked lamb shank Giousvesti (£23) in a large terracotta dish. Although the lamb was meltingly tender, I found the tomato and lemongrass orzo accompaniment too overpowering. We also ordered a little Greek classic most commonly known as a gyro, my favourite. For us, the souvlaki slow cooked pork belly in pita bread was the best dish of the night – soft and tender with the perfect amount of spice. Quite a messy dish though…perhaps not for a first date!
By this stage we’d had our fill so were not tempted by dessert, although the crispy puffed dough with thyme honey, walnut and kaimaki ice-cream sounded divine.
Overall, Opso has brilliant cocktails and great nibbles, perfect for a Friday night after work. It has a great vibe with great music to match.
Visit www.opso.co.uk