⭐️ The one I want to recommend is a Greek restaurant!

Who can relate, guys! The Saudi food note I posted a few hours ago is still stuck in review and won’t come out. These are two restaurants in the same mall—one was approved smoothly, and the other didn’t even get a rejection reason. This operation is really confusing 🥵 Fortunately, this Greek restaurant can be shared normally—in the concrete jungle of Riyadh, there’s actually a flavor that can transport you to Santorini in a second. The spicy and sour tomato shrimp wrapped in melted cheese, eaten with bread dipped in sauce, even Hua'er yu Shaonian would say “amazing”! 🦐 Shrimps Saganaki: The soul of Greek cuisine that makes you squint from sourness but can’t stop eating When I first saw this dish on the menu, I always thought it was like “curry in Greek clothing”: the red sauce bubbled in a small clay pot, with the orange-red of shrimp, the bright red of tomatoes, and the snow-white of feta cheese. The three colors collided like a painting, and I was hooked by its appearance before even tasting it. As soon as the waiter brought the pot to the table, the salty aroma of feta cheese mixed with the sourness of tomatoes hit me. I picked up a shrimp and took a bite—instantly squinting from the sourness! But miraculously, after my tongue numbed for two seconds, I actually tasted the layers: the tomato sauce was thick with a bit of graininess, sour and clear without being astringent, and there was a hint of chili spiciness hidden in it; the shrimp were large, with thin shells and tender meat, every fiber soaked up the soup, so fresh that I kept smacking my lips; the best part was the pieces of feta cheese, melting into a semi-liquid in the hot soup, salty and solid with a bit of fermented sourness, forming a wonderful “duet” with the sourness of the tomatoes. My local friend laughed and taught me the “correct way to eat it”: tear the freshly baked whole wheat bread into small pieces, press them firmly into the sauce, let the bread soak up the tomato soup and melted cheese, even the hard crust on the edges became soft. One bite, and the wheat aroma of the bread, the sourness of the tomato, the saltiness of the cheese, and the freshness of the shrimp exploded in my mouth. It was so sour that I wanted to stamp my feet, but I couldn’t help tearing off another piece of bread. This is probably the addictive magic of Greek cuisine 😋 🌊 Eating Greek food in Saudi Arabia: Why can it be more “Greek” than Greece? I was mentally prepared for “Middle Eastern version of Greek food to be altered”, but was severely proven wrong: The chef is a bearded Greek uncle. When he saw us taking photos of the shrimp, he specially came over and said in English “this is my mother’s recipe”, with pride in his eyes; The feta cheese is air-freighted from Crete, Greece. Its saltiness and sourness are more “aggressive” than what I’ve had in other countries. The uncle said “only uncompromising cheese has soul”; Even the tomatoes are selected from Greek varieties, small in size but high in acidity. When making the sauce, only olive oil and oregano are added, no water at all. No wonder it’s so “bravely” sour. 📍 Hidden guide for following the food tour: The restaurant is in a high-end mall in Riyadh (we won’t say the specific name, for fear of being stuck in review again 😂). Search for “Greek Restaurant” and you’ll find it. The blue and white facade is super eye-catching, and taking photos comes with a Santorini filter; In addition to the must-order Shrimps Saganaki, Moussaka (Greek eggplant lasagna) is also amazing. The eggplant is stewed soft, and the meat sauce is mixed with béchamel sauce, so fragrant that you could swallow your tongue; Don’t miss the Greek yogurt jelly, sprinkled with honey and walnuts, sour and refreshing, relieving greasiness and ending the meal perfectly, neutralizing the spiciness and sourness of the shrimp; The average cost is about 120 SAR (approximately 230 RMB), which is reasonable among international restaurants in Saudi Arabia. After all, being able to taste “flavors moved from Greece” is worth the price～ When I walked out of the restaurant, the glass curtain wall of the mall reflected the sunset, dyeing the sky pink and purple. Suddenly, I felt that this Saudi trip following Hua'er yu Shaonian was like unpacking a blind box—one second I was eating with my hands in the old town, the next second I was sitting in a Greek restaurant eating shrimp. #SaudiArabia #SaudiFood #SaudiArabiaTravel #SaudiTravel #HuaerYuShaonianSilkRoad #HuaerYuShaonian #SaudiArabiaTravelInspiration #RedBallProjectAroundTheWorld #Riyadh