Reds, Whites and Blues this Fourth Of July

It's July 4th weekend - and what better way to celebrate than to celebrate Old Glory, her colors - and all things red, white and blue? Certainly, being Dallas Best Greek Restaurant - we'll need to keep it to red, white and blue FOODS, but you get the idea!

Red Foods

Reds are typically REAL healthy foods - lots of fruits and veggies are in the red family of foods.
Fruit and sweet vegetables: cherries, cranberries, red raspberries, strawberries, watermelon.
Meat: elk, ostrich, pepperoni, rare beef, salmon, summer sausage.
Vegetables: red beans, red peppers, red radishes, tomatoes.

Wine: red wine of course!

White Foods

Well, we hope you aren't lactose intolerant if you're wanting to celebrate with colored foods this Independence Day.  Most white foods are dairy-related. There are a few ideas for white coloration - here are some of those:
Dairy products: cottage cheese, cream, cream cheese, milk, plain yogurt, sour cream, vanilla ice cream, white cheese (swiss, mozzerella, etc.).
Fruits and sweet vegetables: apples (peeled), bananas (peeled), coconut, lychees, pears (peeled), white nectarines, white peaches.

Meat: catfish, crappie, panfish, scallops.
Vegetables: button mushrooms, cauliflower, great northern beans, rice, white asparagus, white icicle radishes, white onions, white potatoes, white sweet corn.
Wine: white wine!

Blue Foods

There's only a couple of naturally blue foods. We've outlined those for you here too.
Fruits and sweet vegetables: blueberries.
Vegetables: all-blue potatoes (peeled or with skins), blue-skinned potatoes (skin on), blue corn.
Red cabbage starts out sort of purple and white, but when blanched in water with a base (such as baking soda) it turns blue.
Wine: None... :(

We'll work on the blue wine! OPA!

OLIVE You, DAD!

Olives aren't just for martinis! They're the staple of a great meal - and diet. This Father's Day - say "OLIVE YOU, DAD" and treat him to a healthy, rich GREEK meal! OPA!

Why are olives important in the Greek diet? Well, as a cooking medium - olive oil is the most common cooking oil used in kitchens world-wide. Certainly - olives can be eaten whole, or used as a garnish - but they are most common in oil form and in salad dressings. Just like traditional Greek restaurant, Ziziki’s uses olive oil for cooking too. For example- our calamari is lightly sautéed with olive oil, white wine, and lemon. Other Greek dishes and appetizers (or, mezzes) are served with whole kalamata olives.

But where do olives come from? Olive trees typically were abundant throughout history in the Mediterranean area. The trees are super-strong, and live many years. Different types of olives come from different areas: Empeltre, Hojiblanca, Lechin, Picual, Cornicabra, Verdial, Arbequina, Picudo and varieties of each. There are also the most common olives in the United States, which are the black and green olives.  Depending on where it's grown, the soil - there are tons of factors too, that go into how the olive will taste. They all have a unique and distinct flavor on their own.

Don't forget our special Brunch Menu just for Dad this Father's Day. Bring him over and say "OLIVE YOU!"

Father's Day On Mt. Olympus

Father’s Day is Sunday, June 19th.

Give Dad a meal fit for a king this Father's Day - celebrate at Ziziki's with a special brunch menu.  But it's a given he'd love that - what else can you do for Dad on his special day to make him feel like he's floating above Mt. Olympus?

First of all ,you should think about what kind of breakfast he likes, seeing as how breakfast is the most important meal of the day after all - and make him breakfast! In Greece, though, a meal early in the morning isn’t very important because of Greek eating customs (meaning late lunches and dinners).

If you are a Greek who likes to eat, though, a cup of black tea sweetened with honey along with some feta cheese, olives, and bread should make any Greek Father very proud! Remember, though, that presentation counts for a lot!

After tha,t make sure you have some kind of gift – it can be very simple, or elaborate as well - just something that you know he will love and cherish. Maybe it's an activity he enjoys, like a game of backgammon or even a Kompoloi! After you present him with his gift and some time has gone by make sure you’re already preparing for the next meal! OPA!

If you decide to cook at home choose an authentic Greek dish like Moussaka (eggplant casserole), Keftedakia (fried meatballs with oregano and mint), Spetsofai (a stew of country sausage, green mild peppers, onions and wine), or any of the other countless number of great Greek cuisines! Then make sure you finish the meal off with a great home cooked dessert like Baklava (layers of pastry with nuts, sugar, syrup and spices).   Disclaimer - if you are uncomfortable cooking any of these things, might we remind you Costa is - of course - extremely skilled in this arena - as his awards indicate, and we are happy to provide any culinary needs on Dad's special day. Or, you can just make reservations and enjoy our Father's Day brunch menu. Opa!

After this meal is over with, take your dad to do something he always wanted to do or maybe just have a party for him that includes his closest friends and greatest relatives! Plan games, events, and just good fun!

Once all of this is over, it's likely everyone will once again, be very hungry, so you will get to eat again!

Zizki's would like to wish ALL the Father's out there a VERY HAPPY Father's Day! opa!

Zizikis Taverna Is An Addison Reader's Choice Nominee

The time comes once again that our patrons and their obvious satisfaction honor us!A special thank you goes out to our Addison patrons, who have nominated us once again for a great honor! We've been named a nominee for Favorite Mediterranean Food Restaurant in Addison with Addison Magazine Reader's Choice Awards! 

We are thrilled to have received this nomination and we thank our wonderful clients for nominating us.


Want to see Zizikis in first place like we do? Then we need your help to win first place! Please take a moment to vote for Ziziki's Taverna: Best Mediterranean Restaurant.

Now, what really qualifies as “best”? Well, “best” can be defined as most advantageous, suitable, or desirable. If you feel like Zizikis’ food - like our many specialties and hot and cold mezzes – are as desirable as we think they are then please don’t think twice about visiting addisonmagazine.com and picking our name!

The Curiousity Of Woman

At one point in time, there were only gods. This came to be tiresome, however, so Zeus ordered Prometheus to create man. Prometheus however, not at all pleased with the outcome of man, decided to steal fire from Heaven. As soon as Zeus knew this he became angered and immediately hired Hephaistos and other gods to create the first woman, Pandora, who would be both cunning and beautiful.


Having this woman made, Zeus presented her to Prometheus’ slightly dim-witted younger brother, Epimetheus. Epimetheus, being taken by Pandora, married her, and they were very happy. As a wedding present Zeus gave them a box, but told both Epimetheus and Pandora that it must never be opened.


So for a good time it wasn’t, until one day Epimetheus went out, and Pandora’s curiosity got the better of her. She decided that she would just open the box briefly to see what was inside and then close it back just as quickly as if nothing had ever happened – this, however, did not work.


As soon as Pandora opened this box awful things – such as lust, hatred, greed, and so on – started coming out, and no matter how hard she tried she could not get the box to shut and she could not get these abstract concepts back in.

So one by one they came out and as she thought it was over, and as she started to close the box, one more concept came out – hope – so that man, while he may have all of these sufferings and afflictions throughout his life, may be able to persevere, because no matter what he will always have hope to help him through it.

But don't fret over the release of all of man's most horrific emotions into the world - instead - come by Dallas wine bar at Ziziki's, or visit Ziziki's Taverna for Dallas Happy Hour or a bit of Mediterranean Fare In Dallas. Not unlike Pandora's Box - you do not know what you are going to get when you first open the doors, and when you come in you get more than you ever expected or could have wished for.

Zeus Should Have Eaten At Ziziki's Instead.

From Ancient Greece we get a host of exciting s stories that offer various different explanations for how things came to be. Like the city of Athens, for example, came to be called “Athens" because of a sort of competition between Athena and Poseidon. But why would Athena be important enough to carry such a weight, as having a city named after her? Certainly, she was a goddess of Olympus, and there is a grand temple in Athens, built in her honor - that still stands today.


Athena is not just a goddess in Zeus' grand council - she's also... sort of... his daughter.  Her story is that she was born from Zeus and Metis, Zeus’ first wife, but not in the traditional way. Metis was the goddess of wisdom, and it was said that one day Metis would have a child that would be greater in every way than Zeus himself was. So in order to keep this from happening Zeus decides to play a game with Metis. He had Metis transform into different creatures and once she turned into a fly, he ate her. Eating her, Zeus thought, might just stamp out this threat of a being more wise than himself. But, his eating her did not help anything though, because Metis was already pregnant. He'd been better off feasting on a bit of Mediterranean food at Ziziki's.


While Metis was inside of Zeus she made her daughter a helmet and robe, but this hurt Zeus greatly, so Hephaestus, wanting to lend a helping hand - took an axe and cut open his skull, which Athena then came out of – fully dressed and grown up. (Now here's an example celebrating SERIOUSLY grand Greek women!) 

So now, Athena, being the daughter of Zeus, holds a bit of power, and especially since she is the also the goddess of wisdom, war, industry, the arts, skill and justice.

When it came to Athens, (before it was actually named Athens...) Athena, along with Poseidon, both wanted to be the 'deity of this city' and wanted the city named after them, they decided that it was only fair to let the people of the city pick. They decided that the person with the best gift (which was chosen by the people) would be the winner.

It is said that Poseidon – being the god of the sea – struck down his trident and made a well appear, but the problem was that the water was too salty, so it was useless.

Athena then gave her gift – an olive tree. The olive tree won because the tree provided wood, oil, and food, and so Athena, being the winner, named her city Athens.

And even though this was a long time ago, the olive tree is still very prevalent today. Olives are used for many things, such as olive oil and even extra virgin olive oil, and in many Greek dishes too!

The Sphinx Just Egyptian? Of Course Not!

The sphinx, in Greek tradition, has the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face and breast of a woman. The other sphinx that most are more familiar with, from Egypt, is clearly male.

The term 'sphinx' was, of course - like most things in life, derived by Greek grammarians from the verb form of the word that means “to bind,” or “to squeeze”, but the etymology doesn't appear to be related to the legends and remains a bit unclear.

the Greek sphinx is said to be deadly and without mercy; those who cannot answer her riddle will suffer a fate comparable to other unfortunate Greek characters in history, as they are gobbled up (not unlike our scrumptious Mediterranean cuisine at Ziziki's) whole and eaten by this ravenous monster. On the other hand, the Egyptian sphinx was viewed as benevolent in contrast to the malevolent Greek version. 

The Sphinx is said to have guarded the entrance to the Greek city of Thebes, and to have asked the travelers a riddle to allow them passage. The Egyptian version merely guarded temples and cities, without asking any riddles.

What was the riddle asked by the Greek sphinx?  “Which creature in the morning goes on four legs, at mid-day on two, and in the evening upon three, and the more legs it has, the weaker it is?"

She would strangle and devour anyone unable to answer, but Oedipus solved the riddle by answering: “Man—who crawls on all fours as a baby, then walks on two feet as an adult, and then walks with a cane in old age.”

Some stories, though, say that there was a second riddle:

"There are two sisters: one gives birth to the other and she, in turn, gives birth to the first." The answer is "day and night" (both words are feminine in Greek).

Out-done at last, the Sphinx then threw herself from her high rock and died.

But what many don't know, is that JUST before the sphinx threw herself from the rock and died, she asked ONE FINAL QUESTION:

"Who has the finest Greek food in Dallas?"

To anyone who lives in Dallas, this is no riddle. The answer, quite simply - is "Zizikis"! (Ok, yes, of course... Ziziki's Taverna is also an acceptable answer.)