The
small-plate trend is gaining ground in both the Mediterranean
restaurant world and in foodservice abroad.
Many
Greek top restaurants offer tasting menus of 10 and
15 small dishes.
In
the United States, the popularity of meze becomes evident
by the ever-growing number of restaurants that specialize
in these small plates, on the East Coast as well as
in the West Coast.
Dips
and spreads and salsa-type dishes, in other words, make
up a large number of the Mediterranean's small plates.
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- These
are usually savory and pungent, with
robust, distinct flavours.
- “Gaea”
has a wide selection of such dishes,
from our lovely flame-roasted sweet
pepper and goat cheese tapenade to our
smoked eggplant tapenade
- All
of our tapenades fit into this category
too. These products are extremely easy
to incorporate on the meze table, and
can be savored alone, with crudile/fresh
vegetables, crostini, toasted pita wedges,
or our own meze bakes.
- They
are also extremely versatile and can
be worked in freshly baked bread sticks,
salad leaves, bread, cooked dishes and
salads.
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Variety is another important aspect of the meze tradition.
The array of different dishes served up together as
meze must comprise of a variety of textures, temperatures
and flavours.
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- There
is a whole array of fried foods that
Greeks savor as meze and these satisfy
the need for something crisp.
- The
wide variety of dips and tapenades satisfy
the need for robust flavours.
- The
hand-held little tidbits, such as cheese-filled
phyllo triangles and small meatballs
that go very well with our tapenades/dips,
address the need to foster a relaxed
environment where eating literally with
one's hands-finger foods- is socially
acceptable.
- Seafood
makes up a huge array of meze, because
Greeks, like all Mediterranean people,
love the fruits of their beloved sea.
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The
most important thing to remember about the meze tradition
is that it goes hand-in-hand with the Mediterranean
lifestyle, and that is what “Gaea” is all
about. |
