Tsipouradika

The traditions of the tsipouradika have a history beginning from the early part of the 20th century in the city of Volos. In later years, this gave rise to the ouzeri and the mezedopolio in wider Greece.

Although I have to say that in Thessaloniki today there are many tsipouradika, ouzeri, mezedopolia and any kind of Greek eating that one can ask for, it is no accident that the northern capital is today considered to be the food bowl of Greece. The Greek refugees from Asia Minor settled in many places in Greece and took the frugal mainland eating habits of the locals to new heights. One of these places was Volos where the famous tsipouradika have their beginning.

They flourished at the port of Volos and in Nea Ionia (Volos) where there was a huge influx of the Greeks from across the sea, and as the name Nea Ionia (The New Ionia) reveals, Greeks from the east were Ionian Greeks all the way back from antiquity and are known by this name to this day in the Middle East and referred to as Unun, Ionian. I watched Ilia Mamalaki's wonderful series on Greek food when I was in Greece this year. And even though his heritage is not the Greeks from Asia Minor, in one episode when he was talking about a particular dish he said, "We owe a lot to the Greeks that came from Asia Minor and we will never be able to repay them."

The evolution of the tsipouradika came about via the working class people of the ports in Volos. At the end of the working day - keeping in mind that it was in the early afternoon, a time of the day that in Greece till this day is considered mesimeri (the middle of the day) - when the men finished at the port, they would gather at the small kafenia (cafes) at the port to drink a tsipouro.

Given Greeks don't drink without food, the tsipouro would be accompanied with small plates of food, meze, something that is still done to this day, and that has became a way of life in Volos. As the company became bigger and bigger, so too did the meze with rich new flavours and a diversity of dishes on offer. But the authentic approach to the way it's eaten, the ritual of it has remained the same. Eventually the tsipouradika of the area became an institution and a meeting place for all the Voliotes, and not only during the day.

The fame of the tsipouradika spread all over Greece and became known outside of Greece as well. Today, tourists, Greeks and non-Greeks will go to visit the tsipouradika and some will become fanatical patrons.

There is no secret to the endurance of these unique eating places. They have kept their authenticity over the years and the food is always fresh and wholesome with modernity interfering only in the availability of a greater variety in the meze and not in its quality or in the way it is presented. The meze is served in stages and every time a new batch comes out it is different. Patrons do not order a particular dish, the small portions of meze come out as each new bottle of tsipouro is ordered in its authentic small bottle that barely takes two shots, the eikosipendaraki.

The variety of the meze is so great that one can not possibly taste everything in one sitting. That in itself is incentive enough to come back and not only for the food but also because the atmosphere in these eating places is unique to Greece. It is said that recipes are never given away as they are passed down to the following generations of the owners of the tsipouradika.

If you find yourself at a tsipouradika, know the ritual. You hold your fingers up and order how many meze - and that equates to how many people are seated at the table. The meze is the job of the waiter and you never interfere. Each time you order another eikosipendaraki (how you order a bottle of tsipouro in Greece), you are brought a new batch of meze, which is different to the previous batch. The little bottles stay at the table till you leave or till you ask the waiter to take them