Saloniki had been on my list of places to try since it opened. The lines this summer were out the door and down the block! So I waited until recently to check it out. I’m kicking myself that I waited so long because just check out what I had been missing out on. The restaurant is owned by Jody Adams, Eric Papachristos and Jonathan Mendez. Born in Boston, Papachristos spent the first 9 years of his life in Thessaloniki, Greece, or as the locals call it, Saloniki. Mendez and Papachristos are old friends, and he would accompany Eric and his brother on their annual summer trips back to visit their family in Greece. And you know Jody from her restaurants Rialto and Trade.

So on a nice day you can grab a seat outside on the patio, otherwise there is ample seating inside. High top tables and long family style tables define the space here. Make sure to check out the amazing photos of Thessaloniki by Jody’s husband. Pictured above is the salad with pomegranate glazed eggplant ($8). Leafy lettuce is topped with red wine vinaigrette, onions, tomatoes, olives and feta cheese. You can add a pita for just a dollar more.

My favorite was “the Herc” ($9). Honey glazed pork shoulder with spicy whipped feta and “Greek fries”, which are basically like adding French fries to your sandwich! (Whhhhaaattt?!?!) While the fillings are delicious, and I could eat them for days, the pitas really make the whole experience over the top. You can watch them pump out pitas onto the flat top grill as your order your food.

And after any meal, I always need a little something sweet, so I tried the baklava crisps ($4) with pistachios, walnuts, honey and sesame. A nice lighter alternative to the traditional baklava! Did I mention that everyone behind the counter is super friendly? Couldn’t have asked for a better experience and can’t wait to go back for more!

Saloniki 

4 Kilmarnock Street, Boston, MA

http://www.salonikigreek.com

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Doretta Taverna is Michael Schlow’s newest restaurant that is in the former Via Matta space. The restaurant is a complete 180 from what Via Matta was, complete with a new entrance!

The restaurant is open and airy – the large bar is the focal point in the center of the restaurant. The fresh fish are put on ice in the back for guests to see (you can kind of see it on the back left). Doretta comes from the Greek word, Doro, meaning gift.

Michael and his wife were in the house the evening that we dined at the restaurant. We had a fantastic server, Alex, who took us on a tour of the space, and he even brought us down to the kitchen to take a look at the chef’s table. I’d love to dine down here one night!

Michael’s wife Adrienne did all the artwork in the restaurant. There is a 60ft hand painted wall on the left side of the restaurant and these figures that were created with paint from a syringe.

Her artwork is visually stunning and makes the restaurant feel very homelike. You can see more of Adrienne’s art on her website. This piece, “Like This” is a 40×60 piece, I loved the bold colors.

The menu is broken down into sections: raw bar, small plates and main dishes. We want to try a little bit of everything. Meredith and I started with the cauliflower spread ($7) that is topped with caviar – I love the saltiness that the caviar brought to this spread. We also tried the roasted eggplant spread ($6) with walnuts and red pepper. Both spreads came with warm flatbreads. This was a great way to start our meal.

Next up, we had the spinach pie ($9) that has a limited availability. The dough is light and flaky – this is one of my favorite dishes!

Of course when you eat Greek food, you have to try the lamb. So we had the lamb meatballs ($12) served with cumin, tomato, yogurt and lemon zest. The dish was lighter that I thought and really not as gamey as I expected.

They have fried calamari on the menu, but we opted for the grilled octopus ($16) that tasted so fresh. It was served with sweet onions, capers and Greek olive oil. This is a great menu option in contrast to the fried calamari.

For our main dinner we HAD to try the 15 hour lamb shoulder ($28 per person). The meat was so tender and flavorful, I highly recommend trying this dish.

We also had the shrimp ($34 per person) that you are supposed to use your hands and suck out the meat, but I just can’t bring myself to do that in public, so I used a knife and fork…

Cauliflower is my thing these days. The roasted cauliflower side dish ($9) comes wth jalapeños and pistachios. This definitely could have been my main meal – I could eat this for days!

Why choose one dessert when you can order 3? We ordered the galaktoboureko, a custard, that is kind of the consistency of a firm bread pudding, with a layer or light flaky filo dough on top. I wasn’t sure I was going to like this after our server described it, but it was one of my favorite desserts of the night. I would come back and just eat dessert at the bar!

The baklava was delicious, topped with honey and pistachios. A family friend used to make this sweet treat for us, so I have a special place in my heart for this dessert!

The almond cake with smoked apple gelato was a close second to the galaktoboureko. I didn’t want this dish to end – I loved the flavor of the cake and the consistency was just right. I highly recommend visiting Doretta Taverna for dinner!

Doretta Taverna

79 Park Plaza, Boston, MA

http://www.dorettaboston.com

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