Thursday, October 14, 2010

Nichteri

Nichteri was one of my three favorite places to eat on Santorini. Both the manager of my hotel, Vaggelis, and Tripadvisor highly recommended eating at this Kamari Beach restaurant; a great sign when both tourists and locals like a place that is situated on a prime beachfront location.

The number and variety of patrons attested to the popularity of the place and I was happy to find the quality of the food was excellent. Locals regulars were greeted by name and they knew to reserve ahead of time to get one of the tables along the beach (although all tables had a view).

Many came in groups to share appetizers like the white eggplant salad (which is more like a spread), or this saganaki cheese. The cheese is fried and has a slightly salty taste with the consistency of string cheese, not too soft nor firm, but even though it was addictive, the portion was definitely too much for one person.

Their fried tomato balls are fantastic fritters of tomatoes, peppers, onions, and herbs in a crispy light batter that could be a meal in and of itself.

I loved the slight taste of fresh minty basil infused into every bite.

They make the best grilled calamari I had during my entire stay. The calamari itself was about 10 inches long and a good 4 inches wide, tender and perfectly grilled with olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano, and a light drizzle of lemon. Served with a side tower of peppers, zucchini, and eggplant, this is a very filling dish (if you eat it all, which I did).


Although many restaurants advertised grilled sardines, they were one of the few which had them and served them as delightful bites drizzled with a red pepper sauce (not spicy) on a bed of green peppers (also not spicy). I managed to eat most of this dish, but it would have been great to share this as an appetizer.


None of the dishes pictured here cost more than 12 Euros ($15) and some were 5 Euros ($7), wines by the glass were also 5 Euros ($7), so you can see why locals and tourists flock here for the quality of the dishes and the professionalism of the staff. I ate here nearly every other day and barely made a dent through the extensive menu; guess that means I just have to go back with more people next time!

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