Why pack a bag and incur the expense of a culinary trip around the world, when you can experience the cuisine of countries from Jamaica to Georgia—the republic, not South Carolina’s southern neighbor—without ever leaving Greenville?
Greece
Lamb Board: JiRoz
When John Makkas fulfilled his dream of opening a Greek restaurant five-and-a-half years ago, his concept was simple: serve genuine Greek dishes with a modern twist. “We serve food the way my grandmother would make it,” says the executive chef/owner. “We might plate it differently, but our Greek food is very authentic.”
One of John’s “modern dishes” is the lamb board. A riff on a charcuterie board, his interpretation combines a medley of tastes from Greece: lamb braised in red wine with tomatoes, garlic, fresh oregano, and thyme; feta and kefalotyri cheeses; house-made pickles; imported olives, rustic bread, and yogurt-based tzatziki sauce. John, whose parents hail from Karpenisi, a tiny mountain village in central Greece, admits his creation may not be typical fare in his family’s native land. But between the lamb, a favorite protein, the cheeses and olives that always grace a Greek table, and the garlic-spiked tzatziki found at every Greek feast, the components hit key areas of Greek cuisine.
644 N Main St (at Stone Ave), Suite 100, Greenville; jirozgreenvillesc.com
Georgia
Khachapuri: Keipi
In the republic of Georgia, they celebrate special occasions in style—with a toasting dinner called a keipi (KAY-pee). Presiding over the meal, which is served family-style at a big table, is a tamada, or toastmaster. It’s an experience that creates community by bringing strangers together over food and wine, and it’s now available in Greenville at Keipi restaurant in Hampton Station.
A keipi includes a parade of traditional dishes, explains Reilly Dooris, the restaurant’s general manager, including khachapuri (“cheese bread” in Georgian). The most authentic iteration of this dish comes from the Adjara region. A mix of mozzarella, ricotta, and feta cheeses (standing in for Georgian silguni farmer’s cheese) nestled in a boat-shaped piece of dough, Adjaruli khachapuri comes to the table hot from the oven, with a knob of butter and an egg cracked over the top. To eat it, mix the yolk and butter into the melted cheese and break off pieces of the bread “boat” to dip into it.
1320 Hampton Ave Ext, Greenville; keipirestaurant.org
China
Chinese Roast Duck: Asia Pacific
“Asians love crispy roast duck,” declares Hong Kong native Alva Mak, owner of Asia Pacific restaurant and grocery in Greenville, who reports that this dish is among her most requested. Especially popular on holidays like the Chinese New Year and Chinese Moon Festival, Cantonese roast duck must be prepared the night before it is to be served.
To start, the duck is sliced open at the abdomen, its innards removed, and the cavity filled with a proprietary blend of Chinese seasonings and aromatics. Then it is sewn shut and doused with boiling water to tighten the skin, before being hung up to dry overnight (this ensures a crispy skin). The next day, after the bird is roasted in a hot oven, the chef cuts open the stomach to allow the savory juices to flow out; these are used to dress the succulent duck. It’s served here with Chinese broccoli, stir-fried with garlic, and tossed in oyster sauce.
420 N Pleasantburg Dr, Greenville; asiapacificgreenville.com
India
Biryani: Persis Indian Restaurant
Cima Mathur believes that delicious food is a way of serving happiness, which is what she strives to do at Persis Indian restaurant. There, her signature is biryani, a traditional dish made with meat and basmati rice. “Biryani is the essence of me,” shares Mathur, a first-generation immigrant to the U.S. She was born in Hyderabad, the southern India city where biryani originated centuries ago as a dish for royalty. De rigueur at Indian weddings and special occasions, “biryani is always a celebration,” Mathur says.
She uses chicken in her version, marinating the meat overnight in a laundry list of fragrant spices—from cardamom to turmeric—and yogurt. Her technique is known as dum biryani, meaning the marinated meat and basmati rice are partially cooked, then combined in a big pot, covered, and slow-cooked with saffron, mint, and lemon juice. Fit for a king—or queen—the finished dish comes with raita, a cooling condiment made with yogurt, cilantro, cucumbers, and carrots.
1451 Woodruff Rd, Suite R, Greenville; persisbiryanigreenville.com
Mexico
Trio of Tacos: Papi’s Tacos
Highlighting the zesty flavors of Morelos, Mexico, where he is from, Jorge Barrales (aka Papi) has been delighting downtown diners at Papi’s Tacos since 2013. With the help of his son, Jorge Jr., the duo dishes up some of the best tacos in town, using family recipes passed down through generations.
Tacos, like the al pastor, embody the flavors of their home. For this Mexican favorite, pork tenderloin is marinated in a guajillo chile base and grilled, then shaved and piled into a homemade taco shell. Onion, cilantro, and grilled pineapple join the mix, along with your choice of house-made salsas. “This recipe is near to my heart, because it’s my grandma’s recipe,” the younger Barrales says.
Other taco options include shrimp marinated in chimichurri and grilled, then topped with fresh slaw, slices of pineapple, pico de gallo, and chipotle crema. A salad of pickled nopales, shaved iceberg lettuce, queso fresco, and refried bean spread fill the bean and cactus taco.
300 River St, Suite 123, Greenville; eatpapistacos.com
Colombia
Bandeja Paisa: Sacha’s Café
Elkin Muñoz had a background as a chef and restaurateur when he brought his family to South Carolina from Colombia, South America, in 2000. Four years later, Elkin and his wife, Irma, opened Sacha’s on Pleasantburg Drive, prompted by a desire to share the family’s culture and the authentic flavors of their country.
Bandeja Paisa sings with those flavors. A meal for a group, this plentiful platter from the Paisa region of northwest Colombia—and one of Sacha’s best-sellers—holds a collection of staples from Colombian cuisine: beans and rice, steak, chorizo, fried bacon (chicharrón), avocado, arepa (a fried corn cake), and fried sweet plantains, finished off with a sunny-side-up egg. The elements are not highly spiced; instead, Sacha’s prefers to let the flavors of the individual ingredients shine through. It’s a dish that reminds their son Alejandro—who is preparing to take over the family business—of home. “I grew up on this,” he says. “It takes me back to my childhood.”
1001 N Pleasantburg Dr and 598 Pendleton St, Greenville; sachascafe.com
Germany
Maultaschen: Schwaben House
Some 300 years ago, monks in the Schwaben region of southwest Germany received a large piece of meat during Lent. Since eating it would be a sin and discarding it would likewise be a sin, they decided to wrap the meat in pasta dough so God couldn’t see it. The dish they inadvertently created was called “maultaschen,” which translates from German as “cheat God.”
Maultaschen is a signature dish in Schwaben, but you don’t have to travel to Germany to sample it. At Schwaben House in Greenville, Annette Ferro, who moved here to open the restaurant in 2009, proudly serves this dish from her homeland, filling pasta sheets from local maker Naked Pasta with a balanced mix of pork, spinach, parsley, onions, and leeks. Maultaschen appears on the menu in several forms: in soups, as an entrée, and in this tasty appetizer, nestled on a bed of arugula, and blanketed with melted Gruyère and Swiss cheeses and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.
1810 Laurens Rd, Greenville; schwabenhouse.us
Jamaica
Oxtails: Jamaica Mi Irie
“In Jamaica, if your mother or grandmother is cooking oxtails, it’s an occasion,” says Mike Sullivan, owner and chef at Jamaica Mi Irie, who came to Greenville in 2009. “We would have oxtails on Sunday, which is a feast day in Jamaica.” Why so memorable? Because beef is expensive in Jamaica, the dish is reserved for special days.
Made from the tail of a cow, oxtails are the top seller at the restaurant. To make the dish, Sullivan cuts the oxtails into small pieces, then seasons them and puts them in a pressure cooker. Next, he purées green bell pepper and onions in a blender and combines it with chicken broth as a marinade. To that, he adds the oxtails and the juice from the pressure cooker and cooks the stew for about an hour. Traditional accompaniments include beans and rice cooked in coconut milk, steamed cabbage—he cooks his for less time so it’s slightly crunchy—and crispy fried plantains.
28 S Main St and 1451 Woodruff Rd, Greenville; also at Cartwright Food Hall, 215 Trade St, Greer. miirie.com
Photography by Andrew Huang
