Its All Greek to me

March 11, 2020

I love to spend time at a local restaurant in Burry Port named after the famous lighthouse which stands in Carmarthen Bay, The Whitford. Recently the owners did somewhat of a re-model; not to the decor but the menu. Having a Greek owner meant one thing only – a Greek menu. ‘Nik the Greek’ was born. Although open as such for a few weeks now, we hadn’t visited in that time. The standard of cooking and the diversity of choice together with welcoming staff made the ‘old’ Whitford such a beacon enticing us in – a stark contrast to the purpose of the light which give the restaurant its name.

On Saturday last we decided on a very late brunch, more lunch and visited at 1pm. Choosing from the meze menu, we chose a baked feta, dips and breads consisting of home baked fresh warm soft pita with a hummus, taramasalata, tzatziki; together with a classic Greek salad. The food was a mix of contradictions: simple food filled with complex tastes. A myriad of colours and textures. Looking meagre but hearty. Simple choices exquisitely executed.

So for my lastest supper I decided to turn my hand at Greek.

Baked Feta – probably one of the easiest dishes to make, yet one of the easiest to get wrong. I took a portion of feta and placed in an olive oil lined bake dish. A grind of black pepper, a thinly chopped garlic glove and slug of extra virgin olive oil before being placed in a hot oven for approximately 10 minutes.

  • Pita Bread – 250g of wholemeal bread flour, 1tsp brown sugar, 1tsp dried yeast, 1/2tsp salt, handful of poppy seeds, 150ml warm water and 15ml of extra virgin olive oil placed in the breadmaker on the pizza dough or unleavened bread programme (about 30mins). When complete quickly kneaded on a lightly floured surface for a few seconds before dividing the dough into eight equal portions. Next I rolled each piece to thickness of a centimetre max. Placed onto a dusted a tray and drizzled with Olive oil before entering the hot oven (200C) and baked for 7-10 minutes.
  • Hummus – drained a tin of chickpeas, three cloves of garlic, teaspoon cumin, a pinch of salt, and slug of olive oil; blitz everything in a food processor until smooth.
  • Taramasalata – this one is a cheat. Traditional recipes call for salted and cured fish roe. I chose seafood sticks – affordable, convenient and tasty. 4 seafood sticks, a piece of stale bread, a grated red onion and a generous splash of olive oil, and a touch of Balsamic vinegar. Blitzed until well combined.

 

 

Greek Salad – I think the 3 stars of the show are; feta, olives, and olive oil. Starting with a lettuce packing a punch – my go to is rocket. Building up with stripes of bell peppers,baby tomatoes, beetroot, and then black and green olives evenly distributed with a large portion of feta on top.

 

Whitford’s food was outstanding and we will be back to sample more delicacies and to find more inspiration. Niko and his team embody what I look for in an eatery; charming front of house, excellent fayre, and passionate people who love talking about food.

(c) Facebook/Whitfords page

You can find the Whitford on facebook and their website

 

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