Jenny and Michalis have the citrus scent etched in their memory. From the bitter orange trees in every sidewalk in Petralona during the winter, the lemon groves in the summer holidays in Nikolaeika Achaia. When it came time to name their tasty venture, ‘lemon blossom’ was the only option.
Literally raised in kitchens and between pots – since their grandmother owned the famous Tsagris Bridge restaurant outside Aegio – the present-day siblings have cooking in their DNA. As they also have the realization that a good dish is made – beyond the recipe – by the good raw material. That’s why whatever you choose here, it has a motherly care, with a lot of love for each guest.
In the neoclassical house that accommodates it, you will feel rich with the minimum; you will be for an evening somewhere between Capri and Amalfi, borrowing from culture from gastronomy and tasty quality. At the evening twilight when the sky is painted pink at the junction of Troos and Kydantides streets; you get a little excited, because those old memory reminders have a strange way of poking and prodding your feelings.
But where you will really get excited is from the menu, curated by the charismatic – and award-winning in Spain – Chef Marios Vekris: from collaboration with fishing boats bringing the fresher catch from Skyros and Aegio, clean meats, fresh vegetables, and their father’s tsipouro brought every week from the village. A good start is with the crispy bruschetta with tarama mousse and mackerel, a work of art, together with the ‘Lemonanthos’ salad, with cherry tomatoes, pine nuts, figs, Corfu coppa pork, parmesan flakes and citrus vinaigrette. Mastelo cheese, fava beans with caramelized onions and Cretan kritamo, grandma’s meatballs, grandpa’s dolma, mushroom risotto, everything needed to crown a round of appetizers an absolute success.
There is also the fish sea bream, red mullet, lobster, which had just come out of the sea. Tested and tasted by a thousand before you, given the certificate of perfection! Everything, to the specifications you want grilled, fried, baked.
It also has a great game in the field (of meat), with the juiciest and most seasonal varieties of meat, with the most precious and delicious beef liver with Cretan sour milk, steaks, handmade burgers, chicken pappardelle with parmesan flakes and truffle oil, the pork with celery or the velvety orzo.
‘Our menu varies every season’, Michalis shares with me. ‘Each season has its fruits, its products, its joys. We want to offer purity and naturalness. We fillet our fish with care, use them in dishes from ceviche to orzo and soup, we are constantly looking for small producers. Every day we also have a dish, depending on the weather and something worthy we found in the market.’ Indeed, here you can smell the passion; you can smell the creativity and the love of the owners, who, together with Efi, make you feel like a member of the family, invited to a friendly meal, with their enthusiastic smile and good mood.
In Lemonanthos, everything is right and wise: the comfortable seat, the tree canopy, the lights, the traditions and their memories, the spacious tables and most of all the staff. Here they are by your side, to guide you and bring you something that maybe you would never choose, but – in the end – how right they were! Be prepared also to save room for their sensational desserts.
Lemonanthos
Troon 34 & Kydantidon, Petralona, tel. +302103453522
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