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VENUS, GREEK CYPRIOT CUISINE (By Judy Worley)
The word “Venus” is the Latin names for “Aphrodite” the goddess of love, marriage and family life. According to Hesiod, “Aphrodite” was created from a circle of white foam in the sea. Her name literally means foam-born. She was attended by Eros and Himeros when she was first born and stepped ashore onto Cyprus, making Cyprus “Aphrodite’s” birth place. She was also known as a sea goddess of sailors.
The style and the décor of this beautiful restaurant are of a Greek village design and have a very Mediterranean atmosphere. Whether your dining alone or with family or friends you can enjoy the open airy design, with light woods, elegant table settings, a weathered stone wall with a relaxing fountain of Greek design, beautiful flowers and palm plants throughout. There is also a creatively designed bar that is made to look like an ancient Greek warship. And what really caught my attention was the 9-foot statue of the Greek goddess “Aphrodite” at the entrance that creates an ambiance of the vibrant Mediterranean Greek Island of Cyprus.
“Venus” is unique with an outstanding Cyprus cuisine influenced by Middle Eastern, French and Italian and the British invaders and is by-far the best Greek Cypriot food I have ever tasted. The restaurant “Venus” is known for being the best fresh-made to order Greek cuisine in Chicago. Their Seafood is the freshest of the fresh with an excellent selection that includes Salmon, Sea Bass, Swordfish Fillets, Red Snapper, Cod and Octopus. Chef Kostas Anyfantis is one of the best Chefs in Chicago and is known for his creativeness of his signature dishes and other fabulous food creations.
His signature dish “Kleftiko” is made like no others across the USA. The way the chef cooks his “Kleftiko” is the same way the Freedom Fighters would cook all their meats back in the 1600’s when Cyprus was at war. The Cypriots would dig a hole and cook the meat in the ground for long periods of time so the enemy could not smell the food and find out where they were hiding.
Over 300 years later Chef Kostas uses the same method (in an oven not in the ground) by cooking his “Kleftiko” as did the Freedom Fighters in the 1600’s. With a unique blend of seasonings Chef Kostas then wraps the Lamb in foil and slow-bakes it for six hours to a perfection. This is a delicious dish with a unique flavor and is so tender that melts in your mouth.
Other great signature dishes I found to be really scrumptious are the Pastitsio Tsoukas made with ground beef tossed with pasta topped with their homemade béchamel sauce, baked individually in a ceramic pot and Sieftalia which is grilled rolls of ground meat and spices served with Tiganites Patates.
The appetizers are all really delicious too. The Combo Plate is great with a wonderful assortment of spreads. My favorite is the Tirokafteri Feta Cheese spread and Pita Bread. This is made with a hint of spice and is so good that between it and the “Kleftiko” they are both well worth driving three hours to get more.
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