I always look forward to eating out during our yearly summer Greek islands holiday.
There is something about the mythical Greek islands, the down-to-earth local culture, the constant and consistent warm weather, the soothing blue waters and the relaxed and low-pitched atmosphere of the tavernas. Combine this with Greek food as simple as the famous Greek Salad, and ah, it is just like savouring the taste of pure pleasures and simple heaven.
The Greek Salad always does this to us when we are in the Greek islands. For lunch most of the times. We have in fact lost count of how many times we have eaten Greek Salads in Greece. We have been doing this for years already.
I discovered Elena Taverna online whilst surfing sights such as Tripadvisor, Zoover and local travel guides such as the Lefkas Slow Travel Guide. I like reading before hand as I prefer to have a holiday agenda where I map out all the important places to visit and see, as well as the tavernas to eat at.
The peninsula of Geni, which is a 5-minute drive from Nydri, was where we originally booked our holiday. Unfortunately, our tour operator (Sunweb) emailed us a week before the holiday that the place is fully booked. We settled instead in Nydri which was also a great option.
So on our second day in the island we drove with our rental car to Geni, to check out the accommodation we have missed, as well as the whole place. We really liked the peninsular area as it possess something quite very special. It is totally different from busy, loud and touristy Nydri.
So we settled for lunch here at Elena Taverna with a table just beside the water. Geni has a number of gorgeous traditional Greek tavernas sitting on the water. We loved the whole eating on the water affair that we came to eat here in Geni 3 times! Of course at different tavernas. The whole dining setting here is just special and lovely. Since Geni is a small off-the-beaten track kind of place, it is also quieter here and quite a bit exclusive.
Interestingly, we have noticed a good number of guests arriving at the tavernas in a little boat. These people have either rented the boat or they are staying on one of the many yachts or sailboats. Dutchman and I are definitely not the boat type of people but we would like to try this kind of holiday some time in the near future. At least just for a week to try out, as we are afraid we might become seasick, haha.
We ordered 2 mouthwatering Greek Salads and a plate of hot Spinach Pies. Lunch and dinners in Greece always comes with bread and butter or tapenade. Some chilled watermelon for refreshing dessert from the house sealed our late afternoon lunch.
We enjoyed this lunch immensely. It is so simple yet very fulfilling to the senses. Well, it must have been the lovely ambiance of the taverna! On the water, with views to the sleeping villages and marina of Vlycho and Steno and the mountains behind Nydri.
Check out the rest of the photos below for evidence.
Travel Period: June 2016
Destination: Geni, Ellomenos (Lefkada – Ionian Islands), Greece
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