Edible Thessaloniki

"Thessaloniki was never a village." 

This is pretty much the first thing out of Kostis Zafeiraki's mouth. He's our guide for the evening on this culinary tour of Thessaloniki's old neighborhood. It is difficult, and actually ultimately unnecessary, to separate food from history or culture. It is in fact not so much isolated flavors, but the idea of edible culture that draws us here, the culture and history of a place that has always been consummately multi-cultural and deeply cosmopolitan.

Athens may be a metropolis now, but it was just a sleepy village when it was liberated. Thessaloniki, on the other hand, was the midpoint between Rome and Istanbul- pretty much everyone was passing through, staying, and cooking. Older residents reminisce- if you heard seven languages just walking down Venizelou, just imagine what there was to eat. 

His next point? Try as they might, international fast food chains do not thrive, or even survive, here. The authentic street food of Thessaloniki - known all over Greece - proves impossible competition. 

The third factor that strengthens Thessaloniki's cuisine- a history of nightlife, and the late night culinary rituals that go with that, one of which, symbolically, is our central stop on this tour.

We are at the statue of Venizelou, right above Egnatia. The market is below us, the strip of all night fast food everything is to our east in the student quarter around Navarinou, but this is the heart of Thessaloniki's food culture. We're near the Roman Agora, the Ottoman baths, and the city's main churches- the area that was always the bustling center, once rich, then in decline, and now pleasantly rejuvenated without being sanitized and gentrified. There is plenty of history, plenty of texture here.

Now, as then, this is a neighborhood with a rich ethnic mix. Our tour starts not at a cafe, or a patisserie, or a restaurant, but at a small corner grocery store, stocked with beautiful products from Poland, Russia, the Ukraine, Georgia. Most interesting- there is a large enough foreign population here for there to be products like Smetana (a thick, soured cream), made in Greece. Come for teas, pickled vegetables, beers in beautiful bottles, waters from distant shimmering effervescent springs, and chewy flatbread. 

Russian chocolates
with a little fairy tale girl on the wrapper

We turn up Venizelou street, shady, grand, not too wide, the main artery of the old neighborhood, then up the hill to the much loved Bit Bazaar- the neighborhood of often affordable antiques. The streets are shaded, the shops are small, and many of them look closed but the owners are having an ouzo somewhere in sight. Maybe here? But this is a new place- a young guy from Ikaria with his delicious recipes, keeping the neighborhood current and adding to its character. Just up the street is a classic Cretan place, owned by a classic Cretan, for a shot of raki and a snail or two- boubouristou (fried with rosemary and doused with vinegar), and some Manteinades- the Cretan short, clever pieces of verse fthat adhere to a certain rhythm (like a limerick, but usually not as dirty). 

There is no one has not been to our next stop- Zarouchas, which is synonymous with Patsas (accent on the second syllable), which is synonymous with a long night out, probably with Rebetika involved. I think this means that no one has not eaten patsas (except for me), but this is not so - asking around, it seems like a shocking half of us have always ordered the creme caramel, the rice pudding, or a chicken soup.

Patsas, of stomach and intestines- chopped fine or coarse, is perhaps not easy to like. It smells strong and very, very earthy- primal, animal earthy. Mr. Zarouchas speaks of the soup's properties- as a hangover preventative, ideal (think of the Mexican menudo)- the dish is rich in collagen, coating the stomach to protect it from alcohol. In addition, it is excellent for the joints, the bones, and the elasticity of the veins. I am sold. 

I will taste it for the first time-

And possibly the last-

Crushed hot peppers- a classic addition-
do not mask all the taste.

Virtuous, but it is sadly not for me.

We stop off at a Salumeria, at the corner of the Roman Agora, for wine and salumia from Italy. Then on to Folia, a half basement on an unassuming, hidden corner.

On the left, the woman who created Thessaloniki Walking Tours

They have some delicious things for us to taste- all very Greek in their ingredients and mood, yet all very novel.

Inventive dishes with authentic roots at Folia

Our last stop is a favorite of all - the unassuming tiny Dorkada- right next to the Alaja Imaret on Kassandrou. Dorkada, family run for decades, is famous for sheep's milk yogurt with a thick skin of cream, and sheep's milk ice cream. The theme? If it didn't exist in 1957, you don't need it, hence the not at all large selection of perfect classic pastries. The ideal baba au rhum, fluffy cream cakes in white or chocolate, and the main syrup pastries all attest that modernity is overrated, sometimes completely irrelevant- a valuable truth in a city with such a rich, edible past.

Fresh, quality classics in the window display case at Dorkada

Thessaloniki Walking Tours make art (really, really entertaining art) out of history, the history tours every bit as delicious as the food ones. So far, I have been on the Rebetiko tour, the Ottoman history of Thessaloniki, been whipped madly around history and the Thermaikos at the same time on a fabulous sailing tour, and, out of town, the Footsteps of Aristotle in ancient Stagira. From each tour, I've come away knowing things that make single every day a little bit more interesting. I adore them. If you get a chance to go on one, do- it will add depth and dimension to your experience of the city.

Kinda Blue- Searching for the Roots of Rebetiko.