Finally, medical representative Brenda Bean is calling for a comfy family gathering at
her Greek cuisine pick.
She says all the dishes are melt-in-your-mouth delicious, and you simply must try a bite
of everything, but make sure you save room for dessert because Brenda guarantees you'll
oh and ah at their giant piece of baklava.
It's in Pembroke Pines, and it's called Mezes Greek Taverna.
My name is Taylor Englemen, and we're at Mezes Greek Taverna, and I'm the manager here at
the restaurant.
We opened the restaurant in 2007, and the owner, his idea was to create a restaurant
that was family friendly, that people could come in and eat very good, affordable food
to kind of step out of their busy day and sit down on a Friday night, Saturday night
and be able to eat something that's, again, healthy, affordable, and delicious.
Mezes means small plates, and the way that families and friends eat in Greece is a lot
of small plates to share, to try a little bit of everything, so when family and friends
come together, there's always tons of food on the table.
The most popular dishes here at Mezes include shrimp saganaki, which is a shrimp baked in
the oven with tomatoes and feta cheese on top.
The grilled octopus is also extremely popular, and that's grilled, finished with a little
olive oil and vinegar.
And then for meals, we have lamp chops, and those are grilled.
Those are excellent.
And then we also have flounder, which is a filet of fish baked in the oven with potatoes,
tomatoes, spinach, a little ouzo.
And then finally, one of the most popular dishes, if not, the most popular dish is the
moussaka, which is a typical dish that every mother, grandmother is making in Greece, and
that's layers of eggplant, ground beef, potatoes, and bechamel on top.
Mezes Greek Taverna is all about food that's cooked with love, and it's food that if we
don't like it, if we're not gonna enjoy it, we're not gonna serve it.
The whole idea is for you to come in and really enjoy the food that you're eating.
So you went with a couple of girlfriends.
Yes.
It's the only way to go so that you can share the meals.
And that was the agreement when we went.
We decided that we would go.
We've all been there several times, and we get there, and it was delightful.
You know, it was very friendly.
You go in.
You see the fish counter.
You see the family in the kitchen behind that, and we started with falafel.
That was the special appetizer for the night.
It was excellent.
It was just nice and little crusty on the outside, and on the inside, it was just delicious
and moist.
Wet, not dry.
Just perfect.
[Michelle] Right, right, right.
[Brenda] And then the hummus that went with it and some black olives.
LaChanze?
I had the spanitova, and it was just--
[Michelle] Spanakopita?
Mm-hm.
[Michelle] Okay.
It was really good.
Very flakey.
[Michelle] Layers of pastry with spinach?
[LaChanze] Spinach.
It was really good.
Very good, very flavorful.
It was large, a very big portion.
For an entree, I had the shrimp gyro.
It was so good.
Oh, shrimp gyro!
I've never had a shrimp gyro.
How was that done?
It was done the regular way, but just instead of having lamb or chicken or beef, I substituted
shrimp, and it was really good.
That sounds yummy.
Craig?
Well I started with a sangria.
They actually made it there, the fruit, and it looked like a tall glass, and it was spectacular.
I was very--
[Michelle] You also had that?
Yes, I sure did.
[Michelle] It's almost like an appetizer, right?
With all the fruit in there.
[Craig] Yeah, it could've been.
It could've been.
[Michelle] Citrus?
[LaChanze] Yeah, citrus and apples, which was surprising to me.
I was very indecisive that night.
I just came from a show in Pembroke Pines, and I got there, and I was welcomed by the
owners, and they were just so nice, and the server actually did all my recommendations
for the night, so she recommended the sangria, which was great, and then I had the grilled
octopus, and it was greatly grilled, mildly seasoned, and it tasted amazing.
And then she recommended the dinner special, which was a flounder with tomatoes and cheese
and everything, and I'm not a big sauce type person, but the flavors were just incredible.
The fish was made perfectly, and it was definitely a great choice.
What else did you have?
'Cause I know you had just started with your falafel and your hummus.
Yes, so I had the gyro platter, and I asked to have the pita on the side versus having
the gyro lamb put on the pita.
[Michelle] Instead of the sandwich.
Yeah.
The lamb was just beautiful.
Sometimes when you get lamb in places, it's a little dry.
It was just perfectly moist.
[Michelle] Is it shaved?
[Brenda] It's shaved, and I had it with the green beans with the tomatoes and some Greek
spices.
I don't even know what was in there, but it was delicious!
I would have never thought of putting beans and tomatoes together like that, and my friends
had moussaka and the spanakopita.
Moussaka is one of my favorite things.
Did you try their moussaka?
Yes, I tried everything.
So moussaka is kind of like a Greek lasagna.
It has a thick bechamel.
It has ground lamb, sometimes beef.
[Brenda] Potatoes.
[Michelle] Bechamel, potato puree.
[Brenda] Oh, it was heavenly.
[Michelle] All layered.
So it's kind of like a lasagna would be, but--
[Brenda] Yeah, it looks like it, but it's better.
It's heavenly.
It really is heavenly.
All right, so who had baklava?
I know you probably had baklava.
Yes.
Anybody else here--
Yes.
Had the baklava experience?
Yes, yes.
So tell me about it.
It's authentic because on my trip to Greece, I had it, and it was precisely just the way
it was there.
[Michelle] As big, though?
[LaChanze] Yes.
Yes, yes.
Filled with all the flavors.
Filled with all the nuts.
Flakey.
Rich.
Just decadent.
[Brenda] Yum.
You had Galaktoboureko?
Yeah, I can't pronounce it, but...
Again, it was a recommendation from my server, and I asked her about the coffee--
[Michelle] I've actually made it on the show.
[Craig] Did you really?
[Michelle] It's delicious.
It's like a custard.
[Craig] Yeah!
It's a custard.
I thought it was gonna be more like a flan type of thing, but it wasn't, and it very,
very--
[Michelle] It's almost like pudding.
Yeah, it's like pudding!
Yeah, it's delicious.
So was it like, spicy?
No, no.
Very mild.
It's creamy.
It's milky.
But I know that that doesn't sound good.
It's just rich and creamy and very warm and inviting.
It's kind of something like a grandma would give you.
[LaChanze] Okay.
Yeah, it's like a hug.
Right?
Absolutely.
[Michelle] When made properly.
Well I wanna try yours.
No, you don't.
I'm making mine okay.
It was okay.
I'm sure theirs is better.
So Brenda, sum up your experience, please.
You want real, authentic, made-from-scratch Greek food, it's a great place to go.
The service is fantastic.
The food is melt-in-your-mouth, and you can't go wrong, no matter what you want.
LaChanze?
It's become my staple.
In fact, I went there yesterday.
I love the environment.
It's attentive, and the food is divine.
[Michelle] Perfect.
Craig?
It was a warm atmosphere from the minute you walked in the door.
The food was terrific, and they actually asked me when I was gonna come back and be back
in town, so I would highly recommend it.
That's lovely.
Well, spend the day in Greece when you visit Mezes Greek Taverna, located 10040 Pines Boulevard
in Pembroke Pines.
Open daily for lunch and dinner, reservations are accepted, and the average price for dinner
without drinks is about $35.