Restaurant: Griechische Taverna, Münster

Fresh , tasty Greek food in a pretty little corner of Muenster, Griechische Taverna is a gem of a place to make your local.

My search for a quality Greek restaurant in Muenster has been an ongoing one, producing sporadic fruit. Fortunately, given that Muenster seems to delight in cultivating a global cuisine scene, and that dining out is a favoured past time of the locals, there does seem to be a disproportionately high amount of tavernas around. Unfortunately, not all satisfy the taste-buds, hence the ongoing nature of my quest.

It was with a recommendation from a local, that I strolled to the charming Griechische Taverna, on Wasserstrasse, and, in an airy space, infused with clean, early evening light, promptly ate myself silly. With eyes evidently far bigger than our stomachs, my hungry dining partner and I confidently ordered the mezze plate for two and a gyros each. Mine, traditional, his baked in a pan, smothered in cheese (a touch of Germany in an otherwise very Greek affair).

We realised we’d pushed the boat out a touch too far when, three quarters of the way through the delicious mezze plate (tzatziki, taramasalata, aubergine dip, feta and tomato dip, gently fried zucchini, olives, wedges of salty feta and Spanish onion, with a little basket of bread), we both fell silent. Silence, mid-meal, is indicative of the body’s frantic need to digest before you feed it more tzatziki smothered bread.

And then the mains arrived. Enormous, fresh and simple, accompanied by a little side salad. Just in case we were still hungry. There once was a time, because the Greeks just love feeding people, I could put away a bread, tzatziki, moussaka, Greek salad and a caraffe of white wine with only a slight feeling of the discomfort borne of overeating. Clearly, given that I could not finish my platter of meat, tzatziki, fries and salad, this day has gone.

Light, spacious and in a pretty little part of Muenster’s city, Griechische Taverna very much satisfied the constant Greek food craving I all but live with. I will return (likely time and time again) but I have learnt my lesson – next time, as the waitress said, with a wink, it has to be one or the other, a starter or a main. Not both. At least not until I am match fit.

Where: Wasserstrasse 1-3, Muenster, Germany

Contact: 0251 74 85 89 90, fax: 0251 67 44 22 0, e-mail: info@griechische-taverna.de