Mr. George Mamouzelos is a great guy. Chef - Restauranteur, who loves good food and great fresh produce, always searching and reinventing himself and has been doing that for the past 30 years. He started from a little taverna in another part of the island of Kalymnos but then moved his business to Pothia (port city of Kalymnos) where it is stationed till now. 

Chefs such as George really impress me because in a way they have something Japanese in their values.  A Japanese sushi chef can and will wash the sushi rice for years and they always do it well, with the same zeal and energy. And most importantly they do it with the same passion and without cutting corners. These same principles characterise George: for years now he continues to value his clients and goes on creating tasty dishes that are just admired by all who come and try them. 

Another wonderful thing about George is that he does not claim to know everything about cooking. He knows what he can do and where his limits are. And this is of great value. 

We have been in many restaurants where the chefs, especially the older ones, trying to copy dishes from other restaurants but do it in the wrong way. Not that they cannot master the techniques, but they cannot get the "aesthetics" of the dish. The history behind it, the restaurant that it will be good for etc. And you can see that in the menu of the restaurant. Certain things stand out like a sore thumb. George does not do that. He has a feel for what it is right, for what works and what doesn't. You may taste some dishes at Mamouzelos that you had in other places but George always they will have his touch and the dish will be on par with the rest of the menu and will work well with the restaurant and it's clients. In this matter he has an ace up his sleeve.

Mr George has a great Sous-Chef in the kitchen. A young, talented chef whose name is Michalis Glynatsos with a depth of knowledge that is really vital for the success of the restaurant. By teaming up with Michalis, George has taken the restaurant to the next level. To be honest it is as good a restaurant as most in Athens or anywhere in the world. A restaurant that it has become a much experience destination in Kalymnos, alongside the wonderful bronze statue in the archaeology museum and also feasting on the wonderful rusks at Talas bakery... 

Now, don't visit the restaurant if you are looking for fancy decor or to pose. Come here if you are looking for fresh, authentic and absolutely delicious food. I love the wood and the colour scheme but that is about it. When weather permits they bring tables out close to the sea and that it really nice. 

I would suggest coming with a group so that you can taste as many dishes as possible. Also base your order from the specials menu because each day the chefs create little jewels with what the sea provides. They smoke their own fish etc so it is worth it to try those little experiments. 

One little suggestion I have for the restaurant. They have some really mouthwatering salads but the portions are humongous and if possible it would have been great to have them in half sizes. Especially if you visit the restaurant and you are only two there is no way you can have the salad plus mains... 

What ever we tried we really loved. The shrimp of the day were exceptional, the smoked octopus carpaccio was to die for, the fresh and warm bread, their cuttle fish risotto with squid ink,  the grouper with the local greens and pumpkin puree is reason enough to come again and again. 

I also have to comment on the good service, the wine list that features some of the best Greek varieties and their attention to detail in general. 

This is the fourth time I have come to the island and I have come to this restaurant time and time again. I have visited other restaurants on the island that I will post about and show you their food. For its size, Kalymnos is full of wonderful places to eat. But I wanted to start with this wonderful restaurant because it is really special for me. 

Once more I will state that I do not get payed to write about the restaurants that I visit. And also I try to visit the same place two or three times before I feel comfortable enough to write about it. Also I only post about the restaurants that I love and not about the ones where I do not like the food. Cheers! 

I hope that one day you will be able to come to Kalymnos and try the wonderful dishes of mr George and Michalis! 

Where should I begin….?

From the beginning I think….

We have two friends, Alex and Albert. I met Alex on a food styling seminar in “Milia” in Crete. I also met Elena, Konstantina and Artemis there but I will write more about them in another post.

As Alex and I were ‘fellow students” we bonded more and started to keep each other company during the course and afterwards.

I met her partner Albert, they met mine and we have all become great pals..

In other words we get together, I talk with Alex about food stuff and the others get bored and talk about other stuff :)

Well it’s not really like that… Alex has a life that resembles a fairy tale..  and has an amazing blog called “Bakergirl” as she loves baking, bread and all things to do with it! Take a look at her site I guarantee you’ll love it!

Even though the couple try to stick to a vegan diet sometimes they told us that they go to a wonderful fish restaurant called Travolta in Peristeri.. It’s very far from where they live, but it’s close to us and we agreed to go there one day together to eat with them.

I had heard a lot about Travolta and the first time we went I was quite hesitant because we (sadly) don’t really eat a lot of fish.. on leaving that night we were spellbound..I could not imagine how I could eat so many tasty things; and if you had asked me, I would have said simply it’s not possible…

So, a few words about the restaurant.. It’s in Peristeri easily accessed from the north-south “national” road that runs along the western side of Athens. From our home it’s about 10 mins by car..unfortunately..:)

It was opened by three people, Vangelis and Spyros Liakos who also run Basegrill in Peristeri and Anesti Lambropoulou, son of the legendary “Travolta” (his father’s nickname) who runs the Ouzeri Pigadi near there. I knew about him because my mother’s brother used to eat there and was a real connoisseur of food. I think he took us to Pigadi when I was a kid.

The restaurant is not a high end style establishment..it looks like an upmarket taverna in style even though the level of the food lends itself to any world metropolis fine dining experience whatever the decor.

That’s good because it makes you feel more relaxed..

Huge selection of Ouzo and Tsipouro (we had the wonderful Apostolaki) and some great wine..which could have been dearer if the decor was even more high end and the food prices were double they are now..therefore it’s fine with us as it is!

As for the food, what can I say..simply go there one lunchtime, drink an Ouzo and order a couple of dishes..The softest light as air Tarama mousse and the baked bogues (or boops)

There is no need to try anything else to realise how wonderful the food is..especially the bogues which are so light and fluffy and so juicy and well cooked you cannot imagine..We asked Mr Liakos how they are prepared as they are so wonderful..Maybe they are cooked sous vide first and then baked? No he said they are this good because the fish is so fresh..especially this type of fish- if they are more than 4-5 hours out of the water they change so much that you would think you are eating a totally different fish…

Wonderful information freely given by people that know and have “studied” all about the food which they present.

All their dishes are wonderful..The raw plated sea beam sashimi and the red mullet tartare, the legendary fried red mullet, the anchovy millefeuille with pureed beetroot salad and so many more..

I should mention the Kondosouvli with calamari, the Spetsofai with sausages made from cuttlefish, the fava from Schinousas, the fries with the Bottarga (salted cured fish roe) and so many more wonderful dishes!

I have been many times and we have taken friends both from overseas and from Athens who know good food and they have been speechless after eating there..Kyriakos from Rozas in Santorini almost cried and said how come he hadn’t been there before, a great Greek Australian chef David Tsirekas who took us to the best seafood place in Australia, St. Peters in Sydney, said Travolta’s food was better- where when we visited the restaurant in Sydney, on that very night they won the award as best new chef in a restaurant in Australia! And plaudits from so many other friends and acquaintances with whom we have shared this little gem of a restaurant.

And finally I should mention their desserts…go past what they offer you and order the Knefeh..it takes 30 mins to be made but is worth the wait!!

So, lets hope that I have convinced you to visit this wonderful restaurant.. We are going on Saturday with some friends who are arriving on Saturday from Australia and they really want to go there..

Maybe we’ll see you there!

N.B. I must mention that the first photograph on this blog is of a loaf of wonderful sourdough bread made by the aforementioned Alex. She brought it on our last visit to Travolta last Sunday and we have devoured it already!

Information :

Address: Arcadias and Aghiou Paulou 33, Peristeri, Western Athens

Tel: 21505719222

Facebook profile 

Opening times: every day for lunch and dinner except Mondays.

Price: 50-60 euros per person (worth every penny)

I would just like to add that I do not receive any money for this article or free meals and we are not personal friends of the owners…

I haven’t a lot to say about this..

It’s not necessary anyway…

Magical recipe…

Simple

The simplest…

Wonderful though…

I would suggest that you serve the sour dough bread with a grater on the table to grate the fresh green almonds on the bread… and then sprinkle some virgin olive oil over them..

And you will entrance your guests…

I guarantee it ..