ANNOUNCER: At least 2,000 islands form an important part of the classical country of Greece. Though most the nation’s land mass is part of the main peninsula, the azure blue of the Aegean Sea and the white snowcaps of the Cretan mountains are so essential that the national flag reflects them in its blue and white schemata. The Greek Islands range in size from the largest, Crete, over 150 miles long, to tiny archipelagoes with points of land no bigger than a generously sized garage. But each comprises a part of the whole. They are Greek throughout.

JAKE: Did this column move to a different section of this rag?

JASON: Maybe the film section. I know Mr. Announcer watches Summer Lovers at least once a week. Who did you like better, Daryl Hannah or Valérie Quennessen?

JAKE: Stop it!

ANNOUNCER: The cuisine of the Greek Republic shares roots with other Eastern Mediterranean cultures. Lamb, olives, grapes, feta cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinegar, chickpeas and eggplant — all through the Middle East these and other simple foods are prepared with spices and combinations redolent of ancient trade routes that connected the empires of the sheiks, shahs and aghas. But rather than eclectic or exotic, Greek recipes are actually homey and down-to-earth. This is what the boys found and liked best about the new Greek restaurant, Opa! Greek Cuisine, opened last summer on Sixth Avenue in Tacoma.

JAKE: Opa!, a Greek word used to describe a jubilant emotion, is also the name that Ernesto and Roberto Gomez chose for the former Casa Bonita Mexican restaurant to white-wash it up Mediterranean. Grabbing a table next to the fireplace, I ordered a Greek coffee. Opa! has future plans for a liquor license but after nearly six months, diners are eating with all their brain cells intact.

Opa!’s menu is extensive. Entrees include gyros (of course), chicken or beef; seven dips (of course); and two traditional Greek casserole-type dishes, moussaka and pastichio. There are four salad selections, including Caesar and Greek, as well as traditional dishes like spanakopita and dolmathes. French fries seem surprisingly appropriate, and my dining neighbors dipped some of the golden goodies into a mound of spicy hummus, wolfing them down.

JASON: I still get sort of bent out of shape at Greek places that charge for tzatziki sauce. To me, that’s like charging for ranch dressing when you order a salad, and that’s just wrong. Regardless, I’m still going to order the addictive yogurt, shredded cucumber and garlic sauce by the cupful and smear it over everything on my plate (reminds me of Nathan Lane in The Bird Cage trying to learn to smear in a manly fashion). Speaking of salad, Opa’s came with sliced red, yellow and green pepper on torn romaine lettuce with feta, cucumber, red onion and pitted kalamata olives. Joy is the only real word I can use to describe how I felt at the sight of these fresh vegetables. No brown edges, no rubbery bite. The olive oil and herb dressing was so-so. Now back to praising veggies that snap when you bite them. Opa!

JAKE: Opa!

JASON: I was skeptical of seafood in a pastry, I admit. After cutting into the soft steaming package and watching creamy filing ooze out, I was intrigued by the psaropites or prawn pie appetizer ($8.25). After the first bite, I was hooked. Tender prawns bits, dill, lemon, light béchamel with subtle garlic served with a roasted red bell pepper sauce for added flavor. And the flaky dough that enveloped the ingredients lent a little buttery grease to it. Opa!

JAKE: OPA!

JASON: Think all meatballs are the same? Not in Greece. Keftethes were so soft, almost melting in my mouth; a baby could have gummed them easily. Gently spiced, the six round quarter-size misshapen balls were covered in a tangy marinara sauce ($6.25). I ordered them specifically to go on top of mizithra spaghetti ($9.99). The menu promised brown butter, fresh garlic and mizithra cheese. I tasted garlic, but couldn’t detect any actual pieces mingling with the nicely al dente pasta. A veritable avalanche of snowy cheese covered the whole assembly, greatly pleasing this cheese fanatic. I guess I was expecting something more exciting. The words ‘brown butter’ were lost on me; is that just a fancy way of saying heated butter or olive oil? I was “brownly” disappointed.

JAKE: no OPA!

JASON: Seriously? The whole review?

JAKE: I opted for a gyro ($9.25), the Greek open-faced sandwich featuring layered lamb and beef roast. Served on flat pita bread and rising on a bed of lettuce, chopped onions and tomato, the lot is accented by a classic tzatziki cucumber/yogurt sauce.

JASON: Traditional Greek comfort food pastisio ($11.95) will make any pasta lover rethink long noodles swimming in sauce in favor of the layered, formed lasagna-esque dish that Greeks …

JAKE: Opa!

JASON: … have been making for centuries. Seasoned ground sirloin forms the base for large macaroni noodles mixed with thin tomato sauce, tomatoes and parmesan cheese. The crowning glory is the half-inch thick topper of béchamel sauce; a rich butter, milk, flour and egg concoction.

JAKE: My favorite is the mousaka ($11.95). It is a Greek standard that has developed variations around the Mediterranean countries. It is usually a type of layered casserole with seasoned ground beef or lamb interspersed with vegetables. In the Opa! variety, a thin base of eggplant mixes with deliciously seasoned ground beef throughout. All is married smoothly with a courtly béchamel sauce. It was superb. The seasoning had a hint of some sweet spice, perhaps cardamom or nutmeg or cinnamon, aromatically evoking the trade routes that once crisscrossed the desert lands of the Fertile Crescent.

JASON: Ever wonder why most men don’t order dessert, but encourage women to do so? Two reasons: we want it on the table so we can watch our hot dates suck on a chocolate covered spoon or fork or we want to have a taste without suffering from the possible guilt of not eating even half of it. The lit glass dessert case at Opa! is strategically placed as to be the first thing diners see as they walk in the door. The owners here know what they’re doing by placing subconscious thoughts of those tempting sweets in our brains while we’re hungry. Galaktoboureko is light lemony custard baked with filo dough on top and bottom and then soaked in a honey syrup ($4.50). Even though it was almost as large as an order of pastitso and just as filling, I ordered my own, didn’t share, only ate half and asked for a box. Guilt can go to hell, and I was dining with my brother.

JAKE: Opa!

Opa! Greek Cuisine

Where: 6104 Sixth Ave, Tacoma, 253.565.0505, www.opagreek cuisine.us
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Cuisine: Contemporary Greek cuisine with vegetarian options
Scene: The spacious building sports the expected Greek décor with blues and whites, curved arches, plants and Mediterranean themed paintings. A belly dancer is a common site on weekend nights.
Drinkies: As of press time still no liquor license in site.  Coffee, tea and sodas are the options.

MENU

• Prawn pie >> $8.25
• Mizithra spaghetti >> $9.99
• Pastisio >> $11.95
• Mousaka >> $23.49