{"id":8194,"date":"2016-07-07T21:18:01","date_gmt":"2016-07-08T05:18:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/?p=8194"},"modified":"2017-03-12T13:40:54","modified_gmt":"2017-03-12T21:40:54","slug":"greek-anatoli-summer-dinner-yaletown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pickydiners.com\/www\/greek-anatoli-summer-dinner-yaletown\/","title":{"rendered":"The Greek by Anatoli – A Summer Dinner in Yaletown"},"content":{"rendered":"

I was excited to celebrate\u00a0the summer solstice evening with my friend Dennis. \u00a0Having just come back from his work trip to China, \u00a0he must have tons of stories of living there\u00a0that I wanted to hear. As he got off work a little late, we decided to meet up at Cactus Club Cafe near his office in Richmond. \u00a0Looking at their food menu at Cactus, I muttered to myself…\u00a0The food here\u00a0is just so boring! We just paid for the drinks\u00a0and jumped on the skytrain heading downtown. \u00a0As Dennis wanted to eat something ethnic but not Asian, and I remembered walking by this Greek restaurant in Yaletown not too long ago, we soon found ourselves sitting on the patio at The Greek by Anatoli<\/strong><\/em>. It was such a beautiful evening with so much sunlight still, totally a \u00a0benefit from the longest day of the year. \u00a0This small patio is definitely a nice spot in\u00a0the summer, which you don’t find at a lot of the Greek restaurants in the City.<\/p>\n

We couldn’t resist their Monday drink special, with 40% off on their house wine bottles. Their house red wine, Anatoli Kokkivo<\/strong>\u00a0($40\/bottle) is a Meritage blend produced in\u00a0BC and branded with the restaurant name. While having\u00a0a fuller body with big strong spicy notes, \u00a0which is quite suitable for Greek dishes like lamb roast, it was also pretty drinkable on its own.<\/p>\n

\"Anatoli<\/a>
Anatoli Kokkivo Meritage Red<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We ordered the Calamari<\/strong> ($14) as a starter. The sizeable rings were sweet, tender and meaty, and\u00a0seemed to be\u00a0cut from some \u00a0fresh-from-the-sea giant squid.\u00a0While some\u00a0might think the fried squid could\u00a0be a little crispier with a bit more batter on, I quite liked how light the breading was. The tzatziki was quite tasty as well. \u00a0The\u00a0portion seemed quite generous and impressive but apparently we had not\u00a0seen the size of their main dishes yet<\/p>\n

\"Calamari\"<\/a>
Calamari<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Calamari\"<\/a>
Calamari<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Country Lamb<\/strong> ($28) was easily the most visually stunning dish of all the Greek Restaurants I have been to. The enormous piece of lamb shoulder was served in a roasting pan, cooked to fall-off-the-bone perfection, with some potatoes and other fresh vegetables of different vibrant colours on the side, \u00a0and sitting on top of a bed of pilaf rice. The presentation was rustic but also aesthetically pleasing \u00a0with the little colourful details like\u00a0the \u00a0finely chopped fresh parley\u00a0scattered all over the roasting pan and the bright yellow cheese cloth used for wrapping the lemon. \u00a0 The counting of sensory pleasures continued when I detected an incredible aroma from the lemony\u00a0lamb jus. \u00a0And finally the tender lamb was so succulent and satisfying. \u00a0Although the vegetables could be cooked a little better, but the presentation and the taste of the lamb had already\u00a0killed it for the dish.<\/p>\n

\"Country<\/a>
Country Lamb<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Country<\/a>
Country Lamb<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Country<\/a>
Country Lamb @ The Greek by Anatoli<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Our dinner here at The Greek by Anatoli was a\u00a0great experience. \u00a0Their small\u00a0patio was cute and made a \u00a0pleasant spot for summer evenings. We found the quality of the ingredients quite good in our dishes. The country lamb dish could easily feed 2-3 people and it is quite the deal. And finally, their Monday wine deal is just irresistible.<\/p>\n

Website:<\/span><\/p>\n

http:\/\/thegreekbyanatoli.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Menu:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/thegreekbyanatoli.com\/menu\/<\/a><\/p>\n

More reviews:<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

Location:<\/p>\n