OPA! MANOS GREEK TAVERNA!

"OPA!" is a traditional Greek greeting.

During my single years (which will be known henceforth as "The Wander Years" in this blogsite =)), I hooked up with friends in Paris. I was supposed to have joined them for the Summer Olympics in Athens, but work sadly got in the way (the completion of a TVC material required me to stay in Manila for an additional week--WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!). When I got to Paris, ze ghels were still quite high over their Grecian adventure.

"Man, Eileen!" Marj and Jean (two of the girls I had met only during the trip) simultaneously shrieked, "You should have been there!"

"Puro sila mga Greek gods!" Jean shared excitedly, " Pati basurero, Greek god! Pumupulot ng basura, mukhang yummy! Parang bawal ang pangit sa lugar na yun."

"OOOOPPPPAAAAA!!!" Marj cried out as she downed a shot of the grappa that they stashed all the way from Athens.

"Ganun?! Talaga?" I replied, laughing. "You're telling me you were surrounded by Greek gods for over a week and you never even talked to one?! Kahit basurero. Kahit kausap lang?!"

"Ay, kase, malaki ang problema nilang dalawa," Ade interjected quite sarcastically, the entire time cackling with a naughty glint in her eye. "Marami din kaseng Greek GODDESSES."

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! 'p

"OOOOOPPPPAAAAA!!!!" shrieked Marj and Jean in agreement, laughing their fool heads off as they each downed another shot of the rapidly disappearing grappa.

I always assumed that because of the Dynamic Duo (which is how Marj and Jean will be known in this blogsite from now on =)), "Opa!" quite literally means "Cheers!". I had no reason to think otherwise. I had after all seen the same scene in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", hahaha! =) Imagine my surprise when I looked it up and found out that "Opa" actually has no specific definition, although it is traditionally exclaimed during Greek dances. The closest definition one could muster for it would be....uh....the ultra-profound, "WASSSSSUUUUPPPPPP???!!!" Hahaha! 'p Go figure. =)

In any case, during our countless trips to Tagaytay, Hubby Sweet and I would inevitably pass by this austere white and blue house by the roadside leading to the Tagaytay rotonda. Even without reading the sign, I had guessed (from all the pics of the Dynamic Duo et al on Hydra Island) that it was Greek-inspired. I would often dismiss it during our countless trips, not really intrigued by the idea of eating Greek food in Tagaytay--despite my inherent love for Mediterranean cuisine. (Besides, naisip ko din na baka naman nag-g-Greek-Greek-an lang yan! Hahaha! It was much later that I found out that it was actually owned by a Filipina and her real-life Greek god husband. Shut up na tuloy ako. Haha. =D) What really turned things around for me though was all the darn great reviews I had read in several magazines, newspapers and blog sites. Refusing to believe that the owners of this unpretentious roadside eatery would be adept at spinning--that's PR for the uninformed--I deemed the consistent raves authentic and true. =)

From the time we set out for our anniversary weekend adventure, therefore, I was already set on having our lunch-before-the-trip-back-to-Manila at this blue-&-white place. It was time to finally put it to the taste! Ay, test pala. Haha! 'p

Consistent with the facade, the interiors of Manos Greek Taverna was simple. It was like stepping through a door that was accidentally left open, only to find oneself in the middle of somebody else's dining room. (My over-active imagination was thinking though just how much more beautiful the place would have been if they had used wooden tables and benches instead of the run-of-the-mill chairs and tables. The wood carvers and furniture makers were, after all, right next door!) Nonetheless, everything seemed pretty authentic. Everything was blue and white. The menu was actually just a clearbook holding color-printed bond papers. Faded posters of Greece hung on the wall. Faded newspaper and magazine clippings of different Manos reviews were also posted, although the manner by which they were put up made everything seem almost like an afterthought. It was as if the owners felt good about having the food praised, but they did not really want to appear like they were making a big deal out of it. =)

Hubby Sweet & I chose a small table by the window. I was adamant about going for the "most Greek" recipe on the menu. First on the block, appetizers! I scanned down the page, but the owners were apparently not big fans of foodstyling so none of the pictures enticed me. I shifted to reading the description instead...DOLMADES. Stuffed grape leaves served with a side-dish of TZATZIKI, pronounced za-ZEE-kee. Apparently, the Greeks' facination with the silent T rivals the Filipino's facination with the silent H. You know, boy as in BHOY. HAHAHAHA!!! I digress. =) Anway! Tzatziki was described as a cucumber sauce made with yoghurt, grated cucumber, olive oil, minced garlic and either fresh mint or dill.

I don't know how the heck it tasted (and if I were to base it on the hazy photo, I did not even know how it's going to look!). All I know was that, after reading in one of the articles posted on the wall that most of the "unique ingredients" used in Manos were flown in from the Greek owner's family's (whew!) vineyard in Crete, I thought the Dolmades merited special attention. "The grape leaves came all the way from Greece!" I remember thinking as a lightbulb went off in my head, "Now, that is authentic Greek cuisine! Haha!

As soon as the plate was set down before us, however, Hubby Sweet and I looked at each other with trepidation. The dish didn't look particularly appetizing. Mukhang suman na basa. HAHAHA! 'P

Being either the more adventurous or the hungrier one between us, Hubby Sweet took one dolmade (not sure if dolmades is plural, hehe), layered it with tzatziki and promptly popped it into his mouth. His expression said it all. His face was soooooooooo crumpled, he looked like he was in the finals of the Datu Puti Mukha-sim Talaga contest. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! 'D Squinting and barely able to keep his eyes open, he finally blurted out what his expression had already made clear, "Tweet, ang aaaaaasimmmmm!!!!!" HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Right there and then, I wanted to just lay off the dolmades, but heck, one year ago, I did promise for better, for worse... O, sya. Kung ito ang isa sa mga "for worse".... =)

I took one piece and halved it, then dipped it in tzatziki before quickly popping one into my mouth. Split-second silence before the experience fully exploded. BLEEEEAAAAAAACCHHH!!!! Waaaaaaahhhh!!!! Gusto ko maiyak. Hahaha! 'p

When I tried to dissect the dish in an effort to isolate where it had gone wrong, I realized that the dolmades itself had no taste. (I at least know now that eating grape leaves stuffed with rice comes pretty close to eating rice with boiled talbos ng kamote--with no flavoring added. Waaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!!! Ang lungkot. =( ) I also found out that it was actually the yoghurt in the tzatziki that gave the entire dish its very strong mukha-sim profile. The other half of my piece and the rest of the remaining dolmades remained uneaten. While I will not take it against the entire Greek population for elevating this dish to delicacy status, it just isn't for me. =( Still, we did not want to offend the Greek chef, haha, so we pretended we were saving room for the main course and promptly had the dolmades, uh, wrapped. =)

The rest of the meal was pretty uneventful. Hubby Sweet went for the LAMB SHOULDER(kamag-anak kaya niya yung lamb sa Lago? Haha..hay...). Being a confessed carnivore, I had so wanted to go for the lamb too, but I stopped myself, deciding on the MOUSAKA instead. I thought I have had too much to eat for the weekend already and it was time to go back to veggies.

Midway through my mousaka, however, I started craving for meat. Since there were no kebabs on the menu (sayang, sana meron), I had to content myself with occasionally taking

from Hubby S's meal. The mousaka was good--the cheese layers wonderfully masking the fact that I was eating nothing but eggplant, haha! The lamb was not as "ma-anggo" as the usual ones served in Manila, and was therefore to Hubby's liking. (I personally like a stronger taste for my lamb though. Otherwise, it would just taste like beef, right? =)).

Still, I suppose the shock that came from eating the dolmades rendered us unable to fully enjoy the meal. I tried to salvage the experience by ordering BAKLAVA for dessert. (Note: it's pronounced as bak-la-VA and not bak-LA-va, OK? The former will get you dessert; the latter might get you a weird look from the waiter and a response, "Hindi sir, straight ako!" Hahaha. Sorry...couldn't resist..hehe. =))

No pictures of the baklava here. I totally forgot to take one. Hubby Sweet and I started digging in as soon as it was set on the table. The Manos version was good with the greater portion being made with buttered ground walnuts and pine nuts instead of filo pastry. It was yummy, but not too rich nor sweet. I am, however, plebian, and have grown accustomed to the baklava that is more filo pastry than nuts. Waaaaaaaaahhhh!!! Hahaha. Wah. Oh, well. I did say this was going to be a blogsite about my adventures and misadventures! =(

Now, "OPA!" is a traditional Greek greeting. I suppose, after this experience, I just have to decide which definition I ought to apply.

Hay! =)

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CAVEAT!!! Do not let this blog discourage you though from visiting this small white & blue house by the roadside leading to the Tagaytay rotonda. To be fair, the mousaka and the lamb were more than decent. The fact that they also only cook with olive oil is likewise well-appreciated. Just remember NOT to order the dolmades! Hahaha! Ngyah. =)