An Unexpected Trip to Fitos

We had planned a quiet day today - we seem to have quite a lot coming up over the next few weeks so a day at home to ourselves seemed like a good idea.  We had hoped that we might have taken a quick trip down to Paphos in the evening to meet up with the Robsons but that was not to be so we will have to catch up with them the next time they are over.  The cats had been missing most of the morning.  Chivers can generally be lured back home by a rattle of the treats tin but Minnie has, over the last week or so, been much more conspicuous by her absence.  Everything is very much on her terms but we found them playing together under the olive tree in Gregoris's garden - well Chivers wanted to play but Mins was asleep against the wall contorting herself as she likes to do.

If we had met up with the Robsons they had kindly offered to take us for a meal and then when we weren't meeting up we were at a bit of a loose end so we checked our piggy bank and found that we had enough for an impromptu visit to Fytos's takeaway.  We were planning to take Nicky and Mark there on Saturday for Kleftiko so it gave us the opportunity to book a table if nothing else!

I think I have said before that a lot of these kleftiko/souvlaki places are springing up around Cyprus - returning to a more traditional and basic way of eating and are very popular.  This one is only five minutes up the road from us so ideal for a takeaway as our food shouldn't get too cold on its way back home.  

The kleftiko oven is an integral part of these establishments and is a dome shape where the food is sealed in and cooked for a long time so that the flavour is sealed in and mingles with oil and herbs.  Often the potatoes are popped in with the meat and come out soft and yummy.  A kleftiko meal eaten in situ generally seems to cost about €10 and the meat and potatoes will be accompanied by dips and salad and pittas and then followed by some seasonal fruit and, if you are lucky, some coffee and a freebie brandy to top it off - not bad for the equivalent of £8.00!! 

Fitos's is a family concern and we were entertained with the antics of the two small boys and then the dogs which had managed to get loose and were carreering round the establishment to such an extent that Dad had to be called to sort them out!!!

Although sitting on the side of a main road we were treated to a beautiful sunset as we waited for our food to arrive.  Note to Vix and Trev - the house we have seen for rent has this sunset as its evening view - fantastic isn't it????  Although it was a beautiful evening it felt a little chilly as we sat there and it is only the end of August.  We have asked for a table indoors for Saturday just in case as I know that we none of us like eating cold food!!

Something got lost in translation as our 'takeaway' became an eat indoors so we had our pork souvlaki pitta and our chicken souvlaki pitta sat at the table - which was no hardship!  As we finished our last mouthful we spotted our neighbour George waiting at the counter - he had come to get a takeaway for his family - saves Pam cooking!!  Anyway our two mega pittas and a beer and lemonade set us back all of €13.50!!!