Mediterranean aromas, carefully selected products and taste at the forefront are the basis of a menu with a lot of Italian influences and a well known culinary name behind it. Gikas Xenakis, as a consultant chef, collaborates with Nikos Sotiropoulos as a head chef and the result is absolutely amazing.
There followed squid with basil pesto and sweet potato chips. Oh my God. It is no doubt the most delicious, the softer, the most perfectly combined squid I have ever tasted in my life. This dish is so surprising that I want to go in the kitchen to see how they make it. Thin sticks of sweet potatoes created a nest on the top, decorated the plate and gave it visually the “magnificence” it deserved, while tastefully completing it in texture, was elevated really high!
A similar set-up was made with the beef tartar (main picture) with the fried potatoes and the parmesan cream that followed. Another light and cool dish, with extraordinary quality meat and combinations that can be heard during the winter, but the balance was how the game was won.
Exactly what happened with the parmesan risotto. I don’t know how much butter the risotto needs to bind, but at I Frati of Mykonos it is so delicate, as if only extra virgin olive oil has been added. The rice was perfectly boiled and the tasty combinations with truffle oil and fresh truffle, as well as chives. It was the top. A little basil oil in the garnish, gave a nice, neon color and all its sweet, summer aromas were emerging as soon as the dish was on the table.
And then followed another dish, which was like having ordered the chef with the materials I love, and he had combined and cooked them perfectly! Linguine all’amatriciana with pork belly and shrimp, chili pepper and a little lemon. A dreamy mare e monti pasta, with “nervous” linguine, tied to the sauce, crisp salty bacon, juicy sweet shrimp, a little spicy hot with a touch of acidic. If this dish was served somewhere in Athens, but exactly as it is in I Frati , I would have it once a week to enjoy it!
A carbonara followed. I requested one to see how a “summer” carbonara could be made. The question was, how the egg cream and the guanciale, which are fatty ingredients by definition, will come out in a summer version. And of course I was again surprised pleasantly. The taste of the genuine carbonara was there, barely lower in intensity, less creamy, but perfectly crafted for someone to enjoy it during summer time.
The restaurant opens in the morning with breakfast and “all day”, with tasty suggestions, which are so gratifying that you do not need to snack anything until dinner time. From burger with smashing delicious brioche bread and fried eggs with fresh truffles and toasted bread, to the delectably fabulous pizzas and sandwiches with ciapada romana. And of course smoked salmon, salads and exceptional desserts!
