Food and Travel Kalamazoo (Libby): Plateia Mediterranean Kitchen

Libby Dulski
10/23/16
Restaurant Review: Part Two

Plateia Mediterranean Kitchen

“We have to order saganaki when we get there” my doting grandmother Roberta says as she turns onto Milwaukee Avenue.

“Saganaki? What’s saganaki?” I ask as we drive past Goodis Restaurant and then Wild Pita Mediterranean Grill; these are also both good Greek restaurants (so my grandmother claims.)

We are on our way to lunch at Plateia Mediterranean Kitchen in Glenview, Illinois. Glenview is home to a number of Greek restaurants, Plateia being one of them. If you ever find yourself leaving the shelter or your cramped dorm room and want to escape Kalamazoo, then make your way to Chicago and then go to Glenview (a suburb just thirty minutes outside of Chicago). Once in Glenview, I recommend heading over to Plateia.

Greek gastronomy is a Mediterranean cuisine. Greek cooking uses a wide variety of olive oil, fish, wine, and meat such as poultry, lamb, and pork. There are certain ingredients that are essential in Greek cooking such as olives, cheese, eggplant, lemon juice, vegetables, and yoghurt. Traditional desserts use ingredients such as nuts, honey and fruit.

Plateia states that it wants its guests to experience the hospitality of the Greek culture with the taste of the Mediterranean. It claims to serve the best Non-GMO ingredients the Greek tradition can offer. The head Chef Mario uses the recipe for longevity from his native island of Ikaria, Greece- one of the five Blue Zones in the world where people live longer and healthier lives. Plateia also has traditional Greek-style crepes that use a family recipe from creperies located in Athens and Kalamata. If this description of Platea’s method of serving and preparing food does not convince you to try the restaurant, maybe a description of the actual restaurant and food will.

Inside of Plateia

Plateia is a large white building. It looks just as immaculate on the outside as it does on the inside. The space is huge and could easily hold over 200 people. Before we enter the restaurant, two adult men come out of the double wooden-doors of the restaurants. They are dressed in black suites with different colored ties. They exchange handshakes and get into their respective BMW and Audi. I tug at my decorative scarf hoping it can pass as “fancy.” The double doors lead into an airy room that contains several sub-rooms and a bar. They are separated by pillars that gives a sense of privacy yet still allows for a connected feeling.

The first thing we notice as we slide into our booth is that “Cold Water” by Justin Bieber is playing softly for music throughout the restaurant.

“This is not Greek music” my grandmother says while pushing her reading glasses down towards the edge of her nose while inspecting the black and white menu.

I hear Justin singing “And if you feel you’re sinking, I will jump right over/ Into cold, cold water for you.”

“The music really does not add to the mood does it?” I ask as I spot saganaki on the menu.

Our waitress is helpful and terse. She explains some of the signature dishes and brings us our drinks quickly. The pop is flat, but at least it is cold. The napkins are thick white pieces of cloth with blue stripes. The silverware is heavy; my silverware feels comfortable in my hand as I unravel my napkin.

Saganaki

“This silverware is nicer than the stuff at my house!” my grandmother exclaims as she holds a fork up to the ceiling to expect it. Our waitress gives her a gentle smile as she asks if we are ready to order. Plateia might be playing a hodgepodge of teen music, yet I set down my menu as my stomach grumbles. Hell yes I am ready to order my first ever Greek meal.

Lemon Soup

We are brought a large basket of warm bread. I dip a fluffy piece into yellow-green olive oil. The fresh bread and buttery oil are perfect to prepare my taste buds for the meal. The saganaki arrives first as an appetizer. My grandmother is disappointed that it arrives unlit and not on fire. We question the waitress as to why the dish, which is traditionally served on fire, is flameless. She shrugs and says that in Glenview they are not allowed to light it on fire; however, this is actually not true as Mykonos (another Greek restaurant in Glenview) serves its saganaki on fire. Nevertheless, the pan-seared cheese is delicious. The slight crust of the cooked cheese is complemented by the gooey and bubbly inside. The cheese is followed by a lovely lemon soup. The taste is so subtle and light I almost shed a tear. My grandmother and I agree that the feeling we receive from eating the lemon soup is like eating a beloved mother’s soup.

Wrapped Pita

My much anticipated entrée arrives after I take the final bite of saganaki. The dish I have chosen is called “Wrapped Pita.” It is served on a fluffy piece of warm pita bread. I bite into the warm wrap as Greek yogurt ranch drips out of the wrap onto my cottony napkin. The tomatoes are ripe and juicy and the lettuce has a nice crunch. The wrap has a tangy-sour taste that is complemented nicely with the feta that is sprinkled across my hand-cut French fries. Although French fries (for goodness’ sake they have the word “French” in the description) are not a traditional Greek cuisine, I appreciate the addition of feta to “authenticate” the fries.

Still hungry, I eagerly order dessert. My grandmother and I decide to order two desserts and split them. The dessert menu is overflowing with chocolate. From gooey crepes filled with white chocolate, Nutella, and Oreo to Eclairs filled with layers of Nutella, the

Eclair

dessert menu did not disappoint. The biscotto crepe makes my mouth pucker from the amount of sugar. Nutella drips from my fork as a shovel a large portion of the thin pancake into my mouth. The Éclair is not quite up to my standards, and it is nothing like a traditional French éclair. This éclair is open faced; it more closely resembles a layered cake than a French tube-like eclair pastry. It also has layers of Nutella, along with vanilla custard and biscotto. It has a good contrast between crunchy and smooth as layers of crushed cookies come in contact with smooth Nutella. However, I much prefer the crepe, and my grandmother prefers the éclair.