A crossroads cuisine between Greece, the Levant and Turkey: wood-fired grills, halloumi, dried herbs and olive oil. You eat by sharing, around a meze that stretches across dozens of small dishes.
Incontournables
A parade of 15 to 30 small dishes (dips, salads, grilled halloumi, souvláki, octopus, sausages...) served one after another. The quintessential Cypriot dining experience, meant to be shared.
A firm-textured sheep's and goat's cheese that grills without melting, crispy outside, soft inside. Often served with mint. The island's iconic product, PGI-protected.
Grilled pork skewers (souvláki) and sheftalia, minced-meat sausages wrapped in caul fat, served in pita with tomato, onion and tzatziki.
Lamb marinated in garlic and lemon, slow-cooked for hours in a sealed clay oven until it falls off the bone. A Sunday feast dish.
A stew of beef (or rabbit) simmered with baby onions, red wine, cinnamon and cloves. Comforting, typical of winter.
Black-eyed peas simmered with chard, dressed with lemon and olive oil. A vegetarian peasant dish for Lent.
Round fried doughnuts, crispy, dipped in syrup or honey and dusted with cinnamon. A traditional street dessert.
Vine leaves stuffed with rice and minced meat, simmered with lemon. Almost always on the meze, but also as a main.
Boissons
Very strong grape brandy (45% and up), traditionally distilled in the villages. Drunk as a digestif, often offered on the house.
An amber sweet wine, one of the oldest named wines in the world. Produced in the Troodos villages from sun-dried grapes.
The local lagers, light and cheap, served ice-cold everywhere on the island.
Strong unfiltered coffee served in a small cup with its grounds, like Greek or Turkish coffee. Ordered sketos (no sugar), metrios or glykys (sweet).
Street food
Vocabulaire
| Langue locale | Francais |
|---|---|
| To logariasmo (the bill) | The bill |
| Yamas | Cheers (toasting) |
| Efharisto | Thank you |
| Psari | Fish |
| Bira | Biere |
| Nero | Eau |
| Kafes | Coffee |
| Meze | Assortment of small dishes to share |
Etiquette
Meze is ordered for the whole table and shared: don't plan an individual dish alongside
Refusing the zivania or fruit offered at the end of a meal can offend; it's a gesture of hospitality
People eat late in the evening in summer, as everywhere in the Mediterranean
Bread is used to scoop up the dips (tahini, taramas, tzatziki); it's expected
Regime
Grilled halloumi, found everywhere, is vegetarian
Many Lenten dishes are vegan (louvi, gigantes, artichokes, chard)
A meze can be ordered vegetarian, rich in dips and vegetables
Cypriot salad (village salad) with halloumi, tomato, cucumber and olives
Budget
3-8 EUR
Stands de rue, marches, vendeurs ambulants
12-22 EUR
Gargottes, cantines, restaurants familiaux
25-50 EUR
Restaurants connus, zones touristiques
Les voyageurs Orizn partagent leurs restaurants et street food preferes sur la carte live. Rejoins la communaute.