Harry Alexiou has run rotisserie chicken shop Funky’s on Duthy since 2011. In that time he’s introduced Greek items to the menu as weekly specials: a moussaka here and a spanakopita there. But he’d long been wanting to open a place that celebrates Greek cuisine – putting his heritage front and centre.
“Several years ago we hosted a Greek day, where we prepared a lamb on spit and other traditional Greek meals for our customers,” says Harry. “It was a huge success, and many of our customers were asking us to continue preparing Greek dishes. Moussaka was very popular, as was pastitsio and spanakopita.”
Enter Eleni’s Kouzina & Grocer, which opened last week in the original Funky’s site (before it moved a few doors down in early 2022). The Unley deli is serving yiros stuffed with charcoal-fired lamb or chicken, zucchini fritters, or saganaki, as well as take-home meals – frozen or hot and ready to go – like moussaka, pastitsio (a Greek pasta bake with bolognaise under a blanket of creamy bechamel), dolmades and gemista (a medley of stuffed capsicums and tomatoes) made with traditional recipes passed down through the families of Harry and his wife, Helen, who also has a Greek background.
“We both grew up eating traditional meals, with some recipes unique to our parents’ regions,” says Harry, whose family comes from the island of Lesbos. (Helen’s family comes from the Peleponnese in southern Greece.)
There’s a table and a couple of stools out the front for those who want to tuck into their yiros immediately, but otherwise the place is geared towards takeaway. Shelves are lined with Greek produce imported via distributors in Melbourne and Perth – including olive oil, balsamic, kalamata olives, organic honey, sparkling water, pasta and sea salt. You’ll also find a range of cheeses – such as feta, kefalograviera (used for saganaki) and kasseri (which Harry says has a “rich buttermilk flavour” and is ideal for melting over toast) – as well as pita bread, which Harry also supplies to several restaurants.
“We went to Greece in 2011 and 2019, and loved the flavours of the local cuisine, the dishes made with simple, fresh ingredients - especially the olive oil,” says Harry.
There’s also a range of Greek sweets, including baklava; portokalopita (a syrupy orange cake made with filo pastry); galaktoboureko (baked custard pie); kourabiethes (shortbread biscuits coated in powdered sugar); and kataifi (a pastry of shredded filo dough filled with nuts and soaked in syrup).
Eleni’s Kouzina & Grocer
23 Duthy Street, Unley
(08) 7230 9189
Hours:
Tues to Fri 11:30am–6.30pm
Sat 9am–3pm
Mon & Sun Closed
