Sunday 22 April 2018

Deliciously Vegan at The Real Greek



Arran and I aren't vegan but we do try and eat as carefully and as respectfully as we can so we were both really looking forward to trying the new vegan menu at The Real Greek. We're huge fans of the Greek restaurant, especially since it opened in Southampton so nabbing a date night away from bubba and trying some very delicious food was something we weren't about to turn down. The Greek vegan tradition is centuries old and the new menu brings a mix of traditional and more modern dishes into the spotlight. 




We were greeted with smiles and lead to our table where I ordered an Aperol Spritz, my new fave and Arran ordered a beer before be started perusing the menu. We know what we like when we go to The Real Greek and always order the Filoxenia which is a set menu of eight dishes for two where you can choose from a selection on sixteen dishes but new menu meant new choices so we took our time. 

The vegan menu consists of twenty different dishes, a mix of cold and hot mezes as well as smaller sides, it was much larger menu than I was expecting and I loved that there was so much choice. The only downside is that it's a shame there isn't a Filoxenia offer on the vegan menu like there is on the  standard menu where two can eat for a set price. That didn't stop us and we ordered a variety of dishes to try. 



We ordered each of the following for both of us: 

  • Melitzanosalata - smoked aubergine, garlic, shallots and lemon 
  • Santorini Fava - yellow lentils blended with herbs and spices
  • Chickpea Filo Triangles - filo parcels of chickpeas, cumin, turmeric, sundried tomato & chilli
  • Falafel - with a tahini dip, pickled celery & carrot, tomato & onion salsa 
  • Mousakka - Classic cinnamon taste, with layered potato, courgette, aubergine & jackfruit
  • Grilled Aubergine - chargrilled aubergine with tomato & garlic
  • Chips 

We absolutely loved the Melitzanosalata with flatbread. It had such an indescribable taste, you just need to try it if you get the chance to. We weren't too keen on the Santorini Fava, it was oddly fragrant and just something we personally weren't keen on, we're big fans of the Green Pea Fava and wish we'd stuck to our usual. I really enjoyed the Chickpea Filo Triangles, they had just the right chilli kick to them, I wanted to eat Arran's too. The Grilled Aubergine and Falafel were my favourite dishes with the Mousakka coming in a close third. There is still so much more I want to try on the vegan menu that we're going to have to go back again.



After finishing as much as we could, we admitted defeat but not before taking a look at the dessert menu. We ordered the Baklava which is crisp filo pastry with walnuts as well as the Plum, Almond and Pistachio Cake. The Baklava was delicious as always but I think the cake had just been whipped out of a fridge so it was hard, dry and very cold and I'm assuming this isn't how it's meant to be served. Unfortunately I had two small forkfuls of the cake before giving up, which was such a shame as had it been room temperature it would've been lovely. 

Overall, we really did enjoy the new vegan menu and it just goes to show that vegan food isn't all leaves but full of colour, flavour and imaginative dishes. Now just to book in some more babysitting duties for the grandparents to try the rest of the menu! 

Complimentary meal for the purpose of review - see disclaimer
SHARE:
Blogger Template by pipdig