Yiasou Charlotte Greek Festival

Yiasou!, the Charlotte Greek Festival wrapped up Sunday, and it was definitely worth the trip.  Erin and I planned to attend after we first saw the sign outside of Holy Trinity, but we failed to make note of the date.  Fortunately, life worked it out for us, and Friday’s chain of events led us past a parking shuttle sign for the Greek festival. Given the last-minute nature of our decision, we grabbed the cameras, and with a cursory review of their website, decided to wing it.

The tour of the church was at the top of our list so we decided to start there. We had the pleasure of sitting through the presentation and tour just as sunset was beginning, and the glorious light reflecting through stained glass in the church was truly majestic. We highly recommend the presentation on the history of the Greek Orthodox Church which included explanations of the architecture and icons. We found it quite fascinating.

Item two on the list was food, and there was lots of it.  We wandered around getting the lay of the land, and available options before making our selection.  The Kafenion was our first stop, it was tent full of tables laden with Greek pastries.  Actually, there seemed to be a constant cycle of them disappearing as fast as the fresh trays were delivered.  The whole scene was a magnificent example of the order that finds its way through complete chaos.  After, opting to pass on the pastries, we went to check out the Greek dinners and indoor dining before deciding to go with the gyros and Greek fries. The sandwich and fry stands were almost hidden in the back of the lot and very popular.

Despite the overwhelming mass of people anxiously awaiting Mediterranean meat medleys delicately wrapped in warm pita bread, the lines moved rather efficiently. It only took us about about 10 minutes to get our gyros and Greek fries. We weaved our way around the drink lines, and decided to try our luck with the indoor seating, in hopes of actually finding chairs.

As you can see, we were fortunate enough to find good light along with seating, and those fries tasted even better than they look.  I personally enjoy the large wedge fries with a little bit of skin, and the mix of Mediterranean seasonings was a superb addition.  Not only was the flavor excellent, but they were a great consistency as well – slightly crisp on the outside with a soft center.

The assembly line construction of our gyros made it difficult for us to capture their deliciousness, and we were too hungry to keep trying.  The consistency and ratio of the pita with the meat and tomatoes was well balanced, but I would have been a little happier with slightly less tzatziki. Sufficiently stuffed, we decided to digest and explore before dessert. They had several carnival rides for the children that we enjoyed photographing.

Next, it was time for the main event, dessert. Once we passed the dessert tents upon our entrance to the festival, we knew that we could not leave without our fill of loukoumades and a baklava sundae. Saving the best for last, we ordered loukoumades, phenomenal deep fried doughballs covered in honey and powdered sugar.  Every honey filled bite was perfectly crisp and sweet.

The baklava sundae consisted of two scoops of vanilla ice cream, topped it with minced baklava and extra syrup. The result was a delicious bowl of sugary success.

Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed the Charlotte Greek Festival, and recommend checking it out next year. Here are our tips for an great Greek adventure:

• Bring cash to avoid the ATM fees inside the festival. We managed to make it through the whole evening for under $35, but we skipped on the alcohol, and a lady in the entrance line gave Erin a free admission ticket.
• Try to attend during off peak hours. The church grounds were crowded, making it difficult to move in some areas.  We plan to go Thursday evening next year.
• If you live in the uptown area, take the rail or a B-Cycle, and then walk or take the shuttle from the East Blvd stations. Parking was limited and we did not notice anywhere to lock up bikes at the event. As a bonus, this year CATS rail and bus tickets/transfers from the same day earned you free admission.