Dining Out with Friends
Written By Larry J. Mickartz
M
Rustic Zucchini Cakes
Greek Nachos
Seven Dip Sampler
organ Hill's Opa! is the
newest of eight Opa! authentic Greek
restaurants in the Bay Area. We decided
to take J.Chris’ long-time friend Susan
Patereau and her husband Rick to the
new Opa! J.Chris and Susan were high
school friends who, after a few of life’s
inevitable detours, both ended up
in Gilroy.
We arrived on a busy Friday night
and the place was active with the hum
of a packed restaurant. Although Opa!
only takes reservations for parties of
eight or more, the hostess made an
exception for our table of four so that
J. Chris and I could put together this
article for our readers. I guess this job
does have some perks!
The menu confirmed the fact that
this restaurant was “Authentic Greek.”
And the numerous difficult-to-pro-
nounce items and several more in need
of translation…for example a “kefteda-
kia” is a meatball made it undeniable.
As usual we started the evening
with a cocktail. The ladies ordered off
the special drinks menu. J.Chris opted
for the Grand Opa! Sangria (a refresh-
ing treat…fresh fruit soaked in a blend
of white wine, citronage, sprite, and
fresh-squeezed lime and orange juices
topped with a mini bottle of Grand
Marnier). Susan tried the Aphrodite’s
Chariot, aka a Greek Margarita (Don
Julio tequila, apricot preserves, fresh
grapefruit juice, squeezed lime juice,
simple syrup). I enjoyed a tall Gin and
Tonic. Rick, the non-drinker in our
foursome, went for a tonic with a lime.
Our drinks were the first sign that
the Opa! staff, in the back of the house,
are focused on presentation. The drinks
were dramatic, beautiful and, as we saw
throughout our dinner, presention was
not something left to chance.
Opa! has a marvelous selection of
appetizers and each dish could serve as
a meal for most folks. Rick, a very good
cook in his own right, decided to sam-
ple what he thought would be a chal-
lenging appetizer to prepare, the Rustic
Zucchini Cakes (shredded zucchini
cakes blended with fresh herbs served
with a feta & mint yogurt sauce). I
ordered a dish that I felt would be easy
to share, the Greek Nachos (housemade
pita chips, served with a choice of gyro
meat or grilled chicken, topped with
tzatziki, fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, red
onions, kalamata olives, sliced greek
peppers, and a giant scoop of spicy avo-
cado dip). The ladies opted to share the
Seven Dip Sampler: Tzatziki (yogurt,
cucumber and garlic dip), Skordalia
(whipped potato, garlic, olive oil and
vinegar), Fiery Feta Dip (feta cheese,
Seafood Souvlaki
Pasticio
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Grilled Solomos
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
june/july 2019
gmhtoday.com