Fresh Pick of the Day: Kellari Taverna Goes Heavy on the Greek

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THE RECENTLY OPENED Kellari Taverna, located in the space previously occupied by Restaurant K, is like stepping out of D.C. and into a bustling European restaurant. The original Kellari is in New York, and Greek food lovers have a lot to admire here.

To get things started, share a couple mezedes. Dip the Kellari chips of eggplant and zucchini into tzatziki sauce, or try a classic spanakopita, a spinach and feta pie.

For main dishes, there's a focus on seafood, and you can select your fish right out of an iced display — fish range from mid-Atlantic black sea bass to turbot from Greece.

As chef Gregory Zapantis says, getting fish so fresh isn't always easy.

"I have to get up at 3 o'clock in the morning to talk with some of the fishermen and purveyors in Greece and Spain and Senegal, since if you want to get the best fish, you have to be on a personal level with them," he says. "For your friends, you go the extra mile; that's how life is."

You order fish by the pound, and your waiter can help you choose the right size if you're sharing or eating it yourself.

"In Greece, seafood tavernas don't have a printed menu, and they just tell you what's available," Zapantis says. "We can't do that in the U.S., but you can pick and choose the seafood you want us to cook for you."

Zapantis says that some fish come from the Mediterranean, others from the Northeast, and that the best lobster is from Nova Scotia.

"A restaurant is not about the owners or the chef, but the product," Zapantis says. "When you give me a pristine piece of fish, how can I do it wrong? I can only do as good as the food I put on the plate."

Desserts are simple, and anything with Greek yogurt is going to be delicious, like the yogurt with wild thyme honey and toasted walnuts. The baklava, made with honey and rosewater syrup, is a heavier option but just as good. There's also a lovely Greek mountain tea to finish the meal with.

The restaurant feels cozy yet is large enough to seat 220 and has a private dining room that can hold 50 people. There's a table right next to the kitchen where you can see the action, which Zapantis loves.

Kellari also has an extensive wine list (the restaurant's name means "cellar" in Greek), with many from Greece. If you're stopping by for a post-work drink, you can nosh on complimentary olives at the bar or order from the bar menu, which includes crispy calamari and seafood sliders.

"A kitchen is full of life and emotions throughout the day; and even though it is so hard to work, it's a lot of fun as well," he says. "We laugh and we scream and we yell and we pick on somebody; so much is going on."

There's a lot going on at Kellari, and while the kitchen is bustling, the real show is on the plate.

» Kellari Taverna, 1700 K St. NW; 202-535-5274. (Farragut North)

Written by Express contributor Amy Cavanaugh
Photo courtesy Mentis Studio