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It's Tuesday.....that means it's a Tampa Bay Tuesday and I am reviewing "Acropolis Taverna" in Ybor City.
The address for Acropolis in Ybor City is:
1833 E 7th Ave, Tampa, FL 33605
They serve Lunch & Dinner
Hours
Sunday through Thursday - 11:00am - 11:00pm
Friday and Saturday - 11:00am - 1:00am
Website - www.acropolistaverna.com
Phone - 813-242-4545
The Menu is Filled with Healthy Options!
Here are a few LUNCH examples:
CHARBROILED EGGPLANT:
Charbroiled, thick sliced eggplant grilled with crushed red pepper over spring mix with tomatoes, kalamata olives, red onions, halloumi cheese & cucumber. Served with oven toasted pita strips and pomegranate vinaigrette.
Tell your waiter "NO" pita strips! & put the dressing on the side!
KARPATHOS CHICKEN
Seasoned grilled chicken breast, sun-dried tomatoes, red onions, cucumbers, red peppers, dolmades, tomatoes, pepperoncini and halloumi cheese over spring greens. Served with toasted pita strips and ̧Acropolis Greek dressing
Again…..Tell your waiter "NO" pita strips! & put the dressing on the side!
SALMON Grilled Salmon on a bed of spinach with quinoa, grapes, roasted walnuts, red onions and red pepper, topped with carmelized onions. Served with toasted pita strips and mango dressing
One more time…..Tell your waiter "NO" pita strips! & put the dressing on the side!
They have soups, more salad, vegetarian "MOUSAKA" as we say in NY or Mooosakaa in the rest of the U.S.
Delicious Hummus…..They also have What I call …..Babaloo! but is actually called….. Baba Ganouj…..which is Roasted eggplant spread….. topped with extra virgin olive oil.
The menu is Filled with healthy options!
Just Leave the Pita off your plate and chow down on all these healthy vegetables, fish and meats!
Here's what I ordered the night of the review….
I asked for the best item on the menu……and w/o hesitation, I was told to order……
OCTOPUS!!!!! Now…I've had "Calamari" before. That makes me think of the movie "Moon Stuck" where Nicholas Cage's plays "Ronny Cammareri" and the part in the movie, where the lady who works in the bakery says……"Stop it Ronnie, you're scaring me"
In NY…..the Italians say "Cala maaaa" Us NYers barely finish a word.
Regular NYers….who are not Italian….say "Calamari"
Getting back on track…..what's the difference between "Cala Maaa"
AND Octopus?
Calamari is the Italian word for "Squid." Squid has an elongated body with tentacles. The meat is white and firmer than Octopus. When cooked right, it should taste firm but NOT rubbery.
Octopus has a round head and body with tentacles. The meat is sweet and not firm.
You learn a lot when you research things!
Never had Octopus before. I said…..bring OUT the OCTOPUS!
And….I have to tell you….it was the "most TENDER" Octopus I have EVER had!
Grilled octopus marinated in lemon and olive oil vinaigrette with fresh garlic, capers, zucchini and diced tomato .
Delicious!
For dinner…….
I ordered the Grilled FRESH Red Snapper.
Now….this comes out as a "Whole" red snapper …..the entire fish….head, EYES, tail….FISH on a plate! It is marinated in rosemary, garlic, extra virgin olive oil and fresh lemons charbroiled and topped with the house lemon herb marinade. You get a choice of two sides.
I ordered the Roasted Vegetables and Artichoke Quinoa!
I don't particularly like looking at a FISH Head on my plate, and I certainly don't like all the bones, but RED SNAPPER is a nice sized fish, where I was able to eatmost of the body meat, w/o biting into any bones.
The RED SNAPPER was cooked Perfectly! The meat was falling off of the fish. Made it easy to eat & not get any bones.
The Roasted Vegetables were carrots and squash. VERY Good. Seasoned well and tender. The QUINOA was FANTASTIC!
Lot's of YUMMS…..coming out of my mouth!
Overall, the meal was absolutely DELICIOUS!
Acropolis ….of course…..is known for it's Delicious and Authentic Greek food…..but Acropolis….also has…….ENTERTAINMENT!
A Belly Dancer starts the Entertainment!
A beautiful woman dressed for "Belly Dancing" dancing around the entire restaurant, entertaining you while you're eating.
Then……the BIG entertainment begins!
Every Hour there is…….
Bouzouki Plate Breaking!
What the heck is Bouzouki Plate Breaking you ask?
It is a Greek custom of breaking plates during celebratory occasions (weddings)
When the music is played from the Bouzouki…(like a mandolin) The manager or owner of Acropolis starts the clapping and moves towards the barrel or bucket. He picks up a stack of plates and then as fast as he can………he starts flinging the plates into the bucket, breaking the plates, with pure passion….until the stack in his hand is gone! This is like done in around 5-10 seconds! FAST!
Then ……..the crowd reacts to the demonstration with a HUGE "OOPA" if they are satisfied!
OOPA literally translates into "Ooops" but in Greek…..it has taken on the "emotional response" and admiration for Breaking the plates in excellent fashion.
So the owner of Acropolis wants to hear "OPA"
And that's NOT ALL!
The waiters & waitresses line up to do "Zorba Dancing"
For all you Millenials out there….look up the 1964 film…
"Zorba the Greek." In the movie…..Alexis Zorbas (played by the famous Anthony Quinn) dances to not only relieve his stress, but to be the "inspirational force" that guides him to confront and finally ……. Overcome the challenges he was facing in life and work.
Great movie!
It's a moving, uplifting moment at Acropolis!
Patrons are waving napkins and throwing them on the floor as a final gesture of their excitement and admiration for the Bouzouki plate breaker.
Lots of fun and great food at Acropolis!
The food was fresh, and delicious.
The staff were engaging, polite and brought out each dish at the appropriate times.
The manager was seen going from table to table making sure the guests were happy.
The owner, Sam was fantastic!
Not only was a hell of a "plate breaker" I watched him speaking with staff as well as customers, to ensure everyone was having a great evening.
How did Acropolis Rate ……
Acropolis gets a BIG 2 Thumbs up for it's fresh and healthy food choices.
Don't look at or touch the Pita's and you will enjoy your meal at Acropolis.
Acropolis also gets a HUGE 2 thumbs up for it's Entertainment!
Really breaks up the evening and gets everyone in the place involved and uplifted!
Thanks to Sam for providing top notch food and entertainment for the Tampa Bay residents and tourists.
Acropolis has SIX locations
1. Ybor City
2. New Tampa
3. South Tampa
4. St. Petersburg
5. Sarasota
6. Riverview
Check out the website www.Acropolistaverna.com
for more information at each location.
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