Food Club Visit: Kokkari
I am now part of a food club that my BFF started. It’s very exclusive as there are only three members. We meet once a month and we take turns picking a restaurant. Last month was my turn and I picked Kokkari, the Greek restaurant in San Francisco. This is the sister restaurant of Evvia in Palo Alto. After my first visit to Evvia, I vowed to try the lamb chops my next visit.
My friends decided to do some sharing of appetizers. Lamb chops were on my mind so I wasn’t exactly participating in the family style eating. But we are close friends so they were generous to allow me to taste their food.
The first thing to come out were the grilled lamb meatballs with spiced tomato sauce and Greek yogurt. These were delish. I was just whetting my appetite for my lamb chops.
The grilled octopus with lemon, oregano, and olive oil was another appetizer ordered. This was good, but didn’t stand out.
Earlier when we were sitting at the bar, we saw someone order the Pan fried Kefalotiri cheese with lemon and oregano. It looked and smelled great, so my friends ordered it. Wow! I’ve never had anything like this and it was wonderful. Definitely something to share as it is a bit rich.
One friend is obsessed with Brussels sprouts so they ordered the wood oven-roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon and lemon. The star of this was the bacon.
My friends each ordered a soup. One got the Avgolemono or traditional egg-lemon soup with chicken and rice. This was the best one I have ever tasted. This was so good it would make anyone sick feel better.
The other soup was a lentil, vegetable soup with braised greens. I actually don’t remember much about this. Probably because I was wanting more Avgolemono.
While my friends were enjoying their soups, my grilled lamb chops with lemon-oregano vinaigrette and potatoes came out. It was a beauty. Of course I let my friends try. They agreed, it was perfection. This has made me a lamb fan.
The dessert we all shared was some type of cheesecake with shredded baklava that was sprinkled with pistachio nuts. The creamy cheesecake was nice, but I didn’t like the texture.
I was curious to taste the Greek coffee. This was stone ground coffee heated over hot sand. I’m glad I tried it, but it was way too strong for me.
Kokkari, like Evvia, is a great restaurant. I would go back in a heartbeat and order the Avgolemono and the lamb chops. That would make a perfect meal.
