Mazomos Taverna

In this newfound sense of mission to find cheap eats that taste good, most of the times I’ve been lucky. Sometimes, though, the formula just doesn’t work!

That’s a little how we felt the other night at Mazoma, a family style taverna in Maroussi whose owners have ties to Naxos and bring meats, cheeses and recipes from the island to your plate. But I hoped for something more, simple yes, but more authentic, in the vain of so many Cretan restaurants that have opened up in town over the last few years. Ever the optimist, I though the idea of regional cuisine is spreading its wings beyond Crete and the few Politika restaurants that currently monopolize the localized food scent.

Naxos has an illustrious culinary history thanks to the island’s own fecundity and to its rich history. Naxos cheeses, meats, potatoes and more are famed throughout the Aegean and the rest of Greece. Unfortunately, none of this richness was evident on the menu or in the quality of the actual food we were served. I was happy to see that Mazomos keeps a fair number of Lenten dishes throughout Sarakosti, and we concentrated on these. They were out of revithokeftedes (chick pea patties), so we ordered the kolokithopastitsa (a zucchini dish) in their stead. I liked the sound of this dish and reminded me of a dish I love to make from Samos: pumpkin and onions cooked to a caramelized perfection in the skillet. The Samos version has feta; in Naxos apparently they add hot peppers. The taste was fine but the dish came out slightly burnt from less than artful frying and soft as baby food. The salad was pretty good, a mix of lettuce and what seemed like home-made sun dried tomatoes. We ordered the dolmades, which the waiter promised were also homemade but that seemed to me in murky, mushy taste and texture, and glistening appearance to have made a pitstop somewhere between Apirantho (a town in the mountain reaches of Naxos) and the Zanae factory in Northern Greece. I can’t say for sure, but they certainly didn’t taste like mom’s. Ditto on the cuttlefish and spinach, one of the masterpieces of Greek Lenten fare when done well. A grey blob of mucousy slop when done poorly. The second, infortunately, characterized ours. A leftover from Kathara Deftera (Clean Monday, the Greek equicalent of Ash Wednesday and the official start of Lent) that had been zapped in the microwave? Maybe…

The pasta with shrimp was also banal, although the shrimp was fresh. What can I say? I feel for people who run restaurants in these trying times; this place obviously has a clientele—it was half full on a Wednesday night. Its rustic look, with wood, koreloudes, pictures of the island and knick knacks from another era appeal to a certain diner. That’s all fine. My advice: Just improve the food. Cheap or not, we left almost everything on the plate.

Cuisine: Rustic fare from Naxos

Athens Area: Maroussi (accessible by taxi, 30 min. from Syntagma)

Decor: Rustic kitsch, wood paneling, farmers' chatchkas and more

Wine List: Greek and decent house wine

Prices: 20-22 euro per person

Address: 19-21 Kyprion Agoniston str., Paradissos Amaroussiou, Tel: 210 803 5800