Greek cuisine is very light and easy to digest. The food is served rather lukewarm and all at once - starter, main course and dessert. So in no time you have a table full of tempting goodies when you are in a dilemma about where to start. The meal is usually accompanied by wine or beer in addition to chilled water. As an aperitif, the traditional ouzo, a strong drink called souma or metaxa is served. To relax on the beach or by the hotel pool, a frappé - an iced, whipped Nescafé - is perfect.

Lamb and chicken are very popular in Rhodes, usually roasted or grilled. Seafood plays an important role in Greek cuisine. Unfortunately, fishing is weaker in the Rhodes basin, so you should expect rather higher prices. On the other hand... it would be a sin to go to the sea and not taste the local seafood specialties. The menu of Rhodes restaurants offers mainly sea bream, mullet, octopus and prawns. The purely fish restaurant is called psarotaverna. The most famous white wine on the island is Lindos, a refreshing wine with a fruity flavour. Ouzo, the Greek national drink, is drunk as an aperitif. You can also taste the souma drink, which is the Rhodesian form of raki, which is burnt from a wine thresher. And if you'd like a sweet dessert to finish, a typical Rhone delicacy is rizogalo, a cold rice pudding with lemon and cinnamon.

Popular Greek food and drink:
tzaziki - full-fat yoghurt with garlic and grated cucumber
tarama - pureed fish roe
choriatiki - peasant salad of cucumbers, tomatoes, olives and sheep's cheese
fasolada - thick bean soup
gyros - meat roasted on a vertical spit, served in pita bread with delicious sauce, chips and tomatoes
souvlaki - small meat skewers
moussaka - baked potatoes with eggplant and minced meat
gouvesti - beef stew with small noodles
baklava - puff pastry with nuts and honey
ouzo - aniseed liqueur usually served with ice cubes

Do you also want to know your way around the Greek menu and want to know the basic phrases used when dining and shopping? Use our glossary.