[vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Finally, Fish and Chips in Faliraki!
Many of you will know I have spent the last seventeen years visiting Faliraki for our family holiday staying at the Cannon Bar with Kathy Dimitris and Vasilis Tokouzis. Every year something new happens and this year we found a Greek fish and chip shop!
Faliraki is nowadays very cosmopolitan (it’s nearly 20 years since the bad press), with a large, multi-ethnic group of holiday makers all in pursuit of pleasure, day and night & in the morning, on the famous beaches with their striped umbrellas, and at night in the narrow streets with all their bars, clubs, cafes, and restaurants.
All along the 4km beaches of Faliraki, visitors can find impressive golden sand, and sparkling deep blue waters.
If you get hungry, you can choose from over 60 restaurants of different types, such as traditional Greek cuisine, Chinese food, international cuisine, or Italian restaurants.
This year I am pleased to say a new cuisine joins the queue to be crowned best in resort. It is the Greek slant on fish and chips, and I went along to chat to the owners and of course try them.
The restaurant is called Opsarion (Greek for fish eater). It is bright airy and very modern. The owner had travelled to the UK and had spent some time in Leeds. He loved the idea of taking fish and chips back to Faliraki but wanted to add a Greek touch. I ordered the cod and chips and waited to try them with a glass of Mamos, a fantastic Greek beer making a comeback on the island!
After a short wait, the food arrived. Dimitris and Michalis (owners) were both in tonight and supervising my order. The fish was cooked in sunflower oil and the chips KTC Chef’s Choice vegetable oil. The chips were made from a Greek variety of potato Spunta, which were boiled first then cooled to room temperature before frying. The fish was FAS from Iceland. The batter was golden and crispy. They use soda in the mix and add beer too. On the side we had a trio of their famous sauces. They had veered away from traditional UK sauces and mushy peas, and instead gone for their own home-made sauces which include an amazing potato and garlic and spicy honey and pepper. The chips were short (their preference) but well-cooked and crisp to touch. Other dishes on the menu included Calamari (my wife’s choice) and Symi shrimps. Overall, it was great to see and taste fish and chips back on the menu on Rhodes, and I can only see this franchise growing and appearing across Greece very soon.
Our daytime retreat was shared between Kathara Beach at the friendly Elpida Pool Bar and another first for 2020 – the glorious Atalanti Boutique Hotel.
The Atalanti Hotel was fully refurbished in 2019 and its surroundings are one of the most beautiful I have ever seen. The panoramic views of the sea, valley and mountains are absolutely breath taking. The hotel is very out of the way but this is exactly the idea, it is peaceful, beautiful and relaxing. The pool area is amazing looking over to the sea with an infinity area. Great chill out music courtesy of Vanilla FM, and a nice bar with reasonable prices for a 4* hotel, expertly looked after by the wonderful Dimitris (common name). The lunchtime meals are only around €4 and all made fresh. The area is spotlessly clean and there were plenty of sunbeds. There are beautiful peacocks wondering around the grounds, and a lovely ginger cat too. The food was delicious, and the staff deserve a huge amount of credit with how hard they work following all of the Covid rules, especially Christina.
Back to our hosts at the Cannon Bar. This such a great place to stay. Whether in a family group or indeed on your own, you will soon find friends. It is such a home from home and in a great place for you to be able to walk to several great restaurants. (I recommend the Desert Rose & Alabama)! The rooms are extremely comfortable, many with kitchen appliances etc and all with a very welcome A/C system.
Special mention to Vasilis who is on hand to make you the most delicious drinks every evening. With many of the ingredients grown within the grounds, he gets off to cut fresh to make the tall drinks even more refreshing. The Cannon Bar has been our retreat for many years. It allows us all to relax in a way no other hotel has allowed. A year ago, Kathy’s husband (and the boy’s father) George sadly passed away.
This year we could feel his presence more than ever. RIP great man.
For more pictures click here to read the magazine
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