ALONNISOS-BLOG.PONDERCENTRAL.COM: The Flisvos Estiatorio in Patitiri

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The Flisvos Estiatorio in Patitiri

Another favorite restaurant of ours in Patitiri is the Flisvos Estiatorio, which is owned and operated by Christos Papachristou. His son Thanassis (pictured to your right) assists him in serving customers, and another son. Valantes, is in charge of the kitchen.

During the high season his lovely daughter, Eleni, usually visits for at least a fortnight from England (she is pictured below-left between Andrea and I), and also helps out in the restaurant. She is always accompanied by her son, Christos, a very bright little fellow who speaks fluent Greek and English as well despite being less than 10 years old!

In all of our visits to Alonnisos we've never met a more close-knit and friendly Greek family than the Papachristous, nor have we ever encountered any group of Greeks who display more filoxenia (Greek for hospitality) than they do. Truly, whenever Andrea and I walk into the restaurant we are always greeted very warmly, and treated like friends of the family.

Flisvos is a very novel restaurant in Alonnisos because the primary seating area is right on the waterfront under a very sturdy tent (see photo to your right), but the kitchen is actually located in a building about 50 meters away. This arrangement requires Christos and Thannasis to continually dodge traffic as they walk briskly back and forth to retrieve food from the kitchen and deliver it to the tables (in the earlier photo of Christos above, the lighted area behind him and to his right is where the main restaurant entrance is). During high season when the seating area is filled to capacity it’s a rare moment when they aren’t moving back and forth. While this is very hard work, the fact is Christos thrives in this environment because it’s so very obvious that he loves his work, and is very grateful for his customers.

Over the years Christos (pictured to your left) has particularly endeared himself to British visitors, some of whom have a habit of gifting him with new pairs of suspenders (or “braces” in the UK) every year. This closeness with Brits is even more interesting when one considers that he actually speaks just a wee bit of English. In my view the close relationship is in some way based on the joy that he brings to his work, as it serves to put people at ease in his company and inspire them to return again and again. One of our favorite things to experience at Flisvos is listening to Christos sing happily in Greek while serving his customers. If you stay on the island for more than a few days you’ll notice that you start to see a lot of the same faces seated at this restaurant, and that’s confirmation of the quality and value it offers.

The Menu

Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, Flisvos has a very broad menu with numerous types of dishes. Breakfast meals include ham and egg dishes, a variety of omelets, juices, and more. The lunch and dinner menus include hot and cold appetizers and numerous salads as well. While Greece isn’t known for its pizza, in our view the pizzas at Flisvos are every bit as good as some we’ve had in the U.S., and even in Italy for that matter. As for the entrees, you’ll be satisfied with any of the oven-cooked meals they offer because Georgia is one tremendous cook. We particularly like their “Lamb in Clay Bowl,” and they also offer the same dish with goat or beef. Just about every time we eat there we order “horta” or “vlita,” (pictured to your right) which is a spinach-like vegetable served in olive oil.

Atmosphere

Flisvos is located directly on the waterfront in Patitiri. The photo to your left gives you a perspective of the restaurant from harbor side of it. Because Flisvos is directly in front of where the majority of the hydrofoils and day-boats arrive, it is always right in the middle of all the action. This is especially the case at night as both tourists and locals stroll around the waterfront looking for food and/or entertainment for the evening. When you’re in Patitiri be sure to give this restaurant a try; I’m confident you won’t regret it.

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