Food: Goin' Greek In Tarpon Springs

Now that we have entered the seasonal Black Hole - no more Buc's ball until August - our Sundays are free for other pursuits. So, "What do you want to do?" "I dunno, what do you want to do?" That exchange went on for a good half an hour as we watched a Travel Channel segment on Athens, Greece.

Suddenly, a "Eureka!" moment hit us. "Let's go Greek," we cried out in unison. After suiting up for the trip, we piled in to Gus (our pickup) and hit the road to Tarpon Springs. Thoughts of lunch with a bottle of Retsina at Santorini's danced in our heads.

As we exited our ride in the parking lot across Dodecanese from our favorite Greek dining spot, to my horror, I discovered that Santorini's no longer existed. No, it hadn't slid off the cliff into the caldera below. The building was still there, but it had a new paint job and a new name - Dimitri's On The Water. I asked the parking lot attendant what had happened to Santorini's. He explained that Santorini's had changed hands. There was an energetic new owner who had made a number of improvements in both food and decor, or so said the attendant.

We walked across the street, and went inside. What a shock! The interior was shiny and new with a well designed floor plan.

The hostess greeted us at the door and we were promptly seated. Our waitress presented us with menus that looked like holdovers from Santorini's. We were told that new menus were in the works, but that our favorite foods would remain.

That was good news because I was craving an order of Charbroiled Octopus with a side of Horta. The octopus was as good, if not better, than what I had been served in the past - both in the Santorini restaurant and on the island of Santorini. Horta is a very healthy side dish of boiled greens that is considered a staple in Greek households. Both the octapothi and horta are listed as appetizers, but when ordered together make for a very filling meal.

My dining partner, who tends to be a bit squeamish when it comes to food with tentacles, chose the Tarpon Salad. This salad is essentially the same as the Greek salad with a potato salad center that was made famous by the Pappas family. The salad along with the complimentary serving of sliced breads made for a very satisfactory lunchtime repast. The shared bottle of Retsina was a perfect accompaniment to all of our food choices.

Dimitri's still has waterfront dining, but the weather was a bit too cool to sit outside. After lunch we discovered that they have outdoor gas heaters which caused us to regret having chosen to sit inside.

Inside or out, Dimitri's will be added to our list of "go - to" dining venues in the Tampa Bay area. Dimitri's does not, as of this writing, have a web site, but they are located at 690 Dodecanese Blvd. You may call them at 727-945-9400.

Our bill, including a 20% tip, came to $71.