Kokkari: Contemporary Greek Flavors

by Erik Cosselmon, Janet Fletcher (Primary Contributor), Sara Remington (Photographer)

Traditional family recipes and the ancient Hellenic custom of welcoming the stranger as a friend known in Greece as philoxenia have inspired the uniquely welcoming ambience of Kokkari restaurant in San Francisco. A whole spring lamb spit-roasting over an open fire greets diners, and the menu offers familiar dishes like dolmades, avgolemono soup, and lamb moussaka along with more unusual Greek dishes such as deep fried smelt, watermelon and feta salad, and grilled octopus. Through its use of fresh seasonal ingredients, Kokkari brings a refined, cosmopolitan sensibility to a beloved Mediterranean culinary tradition. Its owners and chefs are proud to have ushered in a new era of appreciation for vibrant Greek flavors. Now they invite you to try some of their favorite dishes at home, and wish you a Greek bon kali orexi!

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Food and Drink

224 pages, Hardcover

First published September 7, 2011

Reviews

[Yaaresse]

OK, they totally lost me early on with the "we're from small town Palo Alto" fake modesty BS. The only thing "small town" about Palo Alto is...I can't even think of anything. Small town, my ass. My spouse is from the bay area, and he nearly choked on his own spit when I read that part to him. There is nothing even remotely "small town" within hours of that place.

So, basically, we have a dentist and a real estate broker and their wives -- who, it appears, have no actual identities except to be the wives of these two guys because we don't get any info on them except one of them "keeps an eye on the food and flavors" and the other "has a love for Greek culture." They hire a bunch of people who actually might have restaurant experience and "little ol' small town" them open two restaurants: Palo Alto and San Francisco. Then they put their name on a cookbook that is most likely the work of the people they hired. Can these two guys so much as grill themselves a cheese sandwich? We have no idea. This overly chatty intro doesn't say. It just goes on about how many business deals are struck in their places and how well dressed the customers are. The whole tone is very....bay area. Let us impress you with our marketing talk and how well connected we are.

It is a pretty book, what I got to see of it. They hired a decent photographer to take sexy, artsy shots of miscellaneous things. Yep, downloaded the sample. I don't buy a cookbook anymore unless I can either hold it in my hand or download enough of a sample to tell if it's ever been viewed by a proofreader. I've been burned too often to do otherwise. And I don't trust reviews anymore. (People will praise anything if it's free, especially if they think they'll get more free stuff in the future.)

The list of recipes looked promising, but I can't tell you anything at all about the actual recipe formatting because the sample doesn't contain a single recipe. I'm not dropping $20 on a cookbook unless I can see the formatting and layout of at least one recipe. It can be a recipe for ice for all I care, but I want to know what to expect.

[Stephen Simpson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t generally like “chatty” cookbooks, and I don’t feel like the digressions in this one add anything of value.

The recipes themselves are mixed. As advertised, this is “contemporary Greek”, so don’t look for a book full of the staples and old favorites (though there are a couple). The recipe covers lamb and seafood well, but I feel it is less impressive with poultry and pork.

Some of the appetizers and sides are interesting, but this is more of a “check out from a library” type of cookbook rather than one that deserves scarce shelf space.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading the book makes me want to visit the restaurant someday. Haven’t tried any recipes yet, but I’m definitely intrigued.

[Kimberly Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Baaaaaaa..... Lamb, lamb & more lamb!

This book is very nicely put together & the presentation is lovely. All of the basic ingredients are pictured & explained as is the tradition of Greek hospitality.

The recipes are tempting, and if you like lamb as much as I do, well there are many recipes that will make you happy. The Bizelosalata (Sweet Green Peas w/ feta) sounded marvelous as did the: Grilled octopus w/ lemon & olive oil; Grilled calamari stuffed w/ feta, mint & orange; Tyropita (cheese stuffed filo); Lamb eggplant casserole w/ custard topping; & Braised pork w/ celery & avgolemono.

I'm looking forward to trying the lamb riblets w/ lemon & oregano and the grilled octopus.....

[Peter Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

highly accessible greek cookbook based on two aware winning restaurants in Palo Alto and San Francisco