Lowcountry Cuisine Spring/Summer 2019

lowcountry cuisine LC 59 www.LowcountryCuisineMag.com | www.CharlestonRecipes.com B eing known as a city with a culinary scene full of hot biscuits, fried chicken and shrimp ‘n’ grits, you wouldn’t expect to find a multitude of authentic Greek restaurants in Charleston. Turns out, there are several of them spread throughout the greater Charleston area that are small, family-owned restaurants, serving up food made from old family recipes that continue to excite the palates of their patrons. I came upon this discovery in my own Greek food adventure through Charleston. OLYMPIK RESTAURANT My first stop in this adventure was Olympik Restaurant in West Ashley, a perfect example of a quintessential family Greek restaurant. It is owned by a husband and wife, though neither one of them is from Greece; Ali Naderi is of Persian descent and his wife is American. Ali informed me that Persian food is similar to Greek food, and he puts his own Persian twist on many of the menu options. I sampled quite a variety of items off the menu, including a meat platter consisting of chicken BY LAURA DONNELLON, CHARLESTON FOODIES ON A BUDGET Going Greek An Adventure in the Lowcountry