The Acropolis Grill brings fine Mediterranean cuisine to Chattanooga
When it comes to restaurants, Chattanooga has a plethora. Everything from breakfast to dessert can be accounted for with a variety of options, but there’s only one place that serves Mediterranean food so good it’ll have you thinking you’re standing in Mykonos: The Acropolis.
“Our food is decidedly rustic,” says owner Nick Kyriakidis. “Greek, Italian, they’re not so highbrow. It’s more of an old-world, classical style of cooking.”
Anyone visiting the Acropolis can experience a taste of the Mediterranean with dishes incorporating fresh mozzarella, roasted garlic, fresh basil, and classical flavor incorporating vegetables like artichoke hearts. From fresh imports to locally sourced produce, The Acropolis pushes their standards higher still. At a Mediterranean table, connections are made. Not just between those eating the food, but a connection with the food itself.
“Everything is done around the table,” says Kyriakidis. “We celebrate around the table. We mourn around the table. We fight around the table, and we forgive around the table. Food connects us, so we should cherish our connection to it.”
These old world Mediterranean ideas about food and culture are rooted in their connection to food and how it’s made. They strive for fresh ingredients and that’s something that Kyriakidis has made a point in the Acropolis here in the states.
The Acropolis’ recent renovations in 2013 brought with it a stronger feel of Greece, the whitewashed walls reminding guests of the island of Santorini, the crisp, clean lines making for a chic, but simple atmosphere. The simplicity carries over into the food made with only honest ingredients that give the food a truly rustic, old-world flavor.
The remodel brought new menu items that have been a hit, including Eggplant Napoleon which features layers of eggplant, roasted vegetables, artichokes, sundried tomatoes, marinara, finished with feta and mozzarella.
For a contemporary twist that may be a not-so-traditionally “Greek” but dish, yet will make your mouth water with clear Greek influences are the Greek Nachos; house potato chips baked with feta, mozzarella, shaved gyro meat, red onion, Kalamata olives, finished with shredded lettuce, tzatziki, basil pesto, and tomato cucumber relish.
Try a meal from their list of specials that features dishes like Bacon Wrapped Quail Breast, Heritage Pork Chop, or Pecan Crusted North Carolina Trout. Each dish listed has a suggested wine pairing as well as the glass/bottle price, making your dining experience smoother and easier…although now you must face the fact that you have to actually choose between the dishes…or not!
Specialty drinks are available daily as well, ranging from a crisp Peach Bellini to a Greek Goddess, which consists of pomegranate vodka, pomegranate liqueur, and cranberry. Hand-crafted specialty 16-ounce draft beers range from $4-5 as well as domestics, with a selection of high gravity beers costing $6.
With spring just around the corner, so is patio dining. The Acropolis patio is a relaxed atmosphere that will have the food, drinks, and desserts flowing long into those cool, spring evenings. Known as piazzas, terraces, and verandas in varying European languages, patio dining is an inherently European thing to do, and nowhere is it more common than around the café tables of the Greek isles of the Mediterranean.
“Al fresco dining is very relaxed,” says Kyriakidis. “It’s a time to just enjoy your meal, and enjoy the company you keep.” It’s a breath of fresh air to enjoy a meal as the sun sets, or under the evening stars and the sparkle of the lights.
Round your meal out with one of the many award winning desserts freshly prepared in The Acropolis bakery. With more options than you could count on one hand, from Baklava cheesecake, to cannolis, and custard eclairs to choose from, you may have a hard time settling with just one. Get a slice of each or order an entire cake or pie of your choosing for any event (or as a late night snack of your own, we don’t judge.)
Take a culinary trip to the Mediterranean with a mouth-watering journey to The Acropolis. Hospitality is the code of the Greeks so expect to see smiling faces and leave with a warm, fully belly.
The Acropolis Grill
Open daily for Lunch and Dinner
2213 Hamilton Place Blvd.
(423) 899-5341
www.acropolisgrill.com