Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Making a moist, flavorful chicken
Greek Islands Taverna owner shares tips for popular dish.
Q: We went to Greek Islands Taverna recently, and my son ordered the roast chicken ladoregano. It was cooked perfectly, very moist, lots of flavor and the portion was huge. He said it was the best chicken he’s ever had. Can you please ask the chef for the recipe? I’d love to make it for him at home. Thank you. — Diane Gonzalez, Pompano Beach
A: Every year I consistently receive multiple requests for recipes from Greek Islands Taverna, (3300 N. Ocean Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, 954-565-5505, greekislandstaverna.com). So much so, I have to spread them out as to not overwhelm the restaurant. When I reached out to owner Sotiri “Sam” Kantzavelos, he graciously took my call, as always, even while on the golf course. After the back nine, we spoke in depth and Kantzavelos shared his thoughts on what exactly prompts readers’ frequent recipe requests.
“On Jan. 17th we will celebrate our 20th anniversary,” he said. “There is one thing that is very important in this business. And that is consistency, consistency, consistency. If you order our chicken one day and return a week, a month or a year later you will find the same food, made from the same ingredients, using the same recipe. This is the secret to our success.
“For this dish, we’ve been using Bell & Evans broiler chickens since the beginning, and you can taste the difference in the quality of the product and the texture — which is why we’ll serve almost 70 orders a day during season. This is a healthy dish, the way it’s prepared, and the sauce is light, which is another reason why people love it.”
Why all the fuss over what brand of chicken? According to Kantzavelos, “Common supermarket chickens just aren’t the same.”
Bell & Evans started in the poultry business in 1894, shipping fresh chicken by train from Amish Country in Pennsylvania to New York City. In 1998 the company became the first of its kind to commit to raising birds without the use of antibiotics. Another industry game changer came in 2005 with a $26 million, state-of-the-art, 100 percent air-chilling facility. This processing method, versus water chilling, eliminates the use of chlorinated ice water that is absorbed by the bird and dilutes the natural juices. Air chilling enhances the chicken’s flavor, tenderizes the meat and produces less environmental waste.
The roast chicken ladoregano recipe first appeared in this column 14 years ago. Kantzavelos confirmed the recipe remains the same today as it did in 2004. Some things never change. And in this business, that’s a good thing.
Congratulations and happy anniversary to Sam, his co-owner and brother George, and Greek Islands Taverna’s entire team of dedicated employees.