“Mount Athos Area Gourmet 2013” Makes A Stop In Athens

During the gastronomy seminar, Monk Epifanios o Milopotaminos prepared two dishes from the theme menu “Monastic Cuisine” that will be presented during the festival from 27 May to 2 June.

The flavors of Holy Mount Athos were introduced to an audience in Athens last week at a gastronomy seminar held within the framework of the “Mount Athos Area Gourmet 2013.” The seminar took place at the LE MONDE Institute of Hotel & Tourism Studies.

The “Mount Athos Area Gourmet 2013” is a festival that will last one month (from 15 May to 15 June) in the Athos region and unite local tradition with gourmet creations, always based on local organic produce.

Chef Dina Nikolaou made a short introduction of the book “The Cuisine of the Holy Mountain Athos” of Monk Epifanios o Milopotaminos. The book, published in Europe and the U.S., includes 126 recipes, containing all the “secrets” of the macrobiotic diet that the monks of Holy Mountain Athos follow for centuries.

The festival includes five weekly thematic sections that highlight the individual culinary influences of the area: ancient cuisine, local, monastic, refugee and Mediterranean.

The “Mount Athos Area Gourmet 2013” will involve a total of 14 chefs that will prepare menus that highlight both the local primary sector and its products along with culinary trends and influences in the area.

The “Mount Athos Area Gourmet 2013” is organized by the Mount Athos Area Organization and chef Dina Nikolaou and held under the auspices of the Ministry of Macedonia-Thrace and the Greek National Tourism Organization.

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Athos region expects increase in 2013 arrivals

The Mount Athos Area Organization said that early bookings to the “third leg” of Halkidiki are showing a major increase, according data from cooperative travel agencies.

“The increase sometimes exceeds 90 percent and in many cases ranges in much higher levels with arrivals coming from markets all over Europe, the Balkans and Russia,” the organization said.