With restaurant Elea, The Hague has gained another top restaurant: Greek cuisine at its best!
Greek cuisine is characterized by grilled meat and vegetable dishes, mildly spiced stews, flatbreads, crunchy salads and sugar-sweet pastries. Delicious, certainly. But at fine-dining restaurant Elea on Noordeinde in The Hague, you eat Greek cuisine as you have never eaten it before. Innovative, creative and truly wonderful!
Elea is not an unfamiliar name; the restaurant run by hostess Bibi Kuyp and (Greek) chef Takis Panagakis was previously located in Rijswijk. The two met at restaurant Mazie in The Hague, where Takis was chef for six years. In 2016, they opened their own restaurant Elea in Rijswijk.
The old location is nothing compared to their new spot just a stone’s throw from Noordeinde Palace. Elea now covers 300 m² and seats 55 people. Next to the open kitchen is a chef’s table. The light interior exudes a serene atmosphere and, naturally, features a number of (subtle) references to Greece. For example, the olive trees refer to the name Elea, which means ‘olive’ in Ancient Greek. The authentic stained-glass windows in the ceiling are a real eye-catcher.
On the menu
Greece has been occupied by the Ottomans, as well as by the Italians and the English. You can find all these influences in Elea’s Greek seasonal cuisine. In spring, they cook extensively with fresh herbs; in summer, a refreshing menu is served (lots of citrus); as autumn approaches, more intense flavours are served (more spice and lots of mushrooms); and in winter, they serve root vegetables and even more spices (think cinnamon, allspice and cloves).
Modern moussaka
A well-known Greek dish is moussaka: layers of aubergine, potato and minced meat topped with a creamy béchamel sauce. Moussaka is served here too, but in the form of an amuse-bouche. At the bottom is béchamel foam containing crispy potato. On top is confit and smoked aubergine with vegetarian mince made from radish and oil infused with various spices. A very tasty and subtle modern variation that immediately sets the tone for the rest of the menu. The bread (partly white, partly brown) and the olive oil— from Greece, of course!—are also delicious.
Next-level Greek salad
The next dish is Dutch Yellowtail kingfish with a Greek salad. At Elea, don’t expect a standard Greek salad of cucumber, tomato, feta and oregano (although there’s nothing wrong with that either), but a highly refined, fresh and delicious dish of yellowtail kingfish with cucumber, tomato, green pepper and caper leaves. The beautiful textures together create an incredible taste sensation. The mild flavour of the caper leaves is particularly special; they are picked at the end of the season, preserved in brine and then stored in extra-virgin olive oil. Sommelier Marios Lamprianidis serves a special wine from Estate Argyros, made from Assyrtiko grapes on the island of Santorini.
Celeriac Wellington-style
Wellington requires some skill and good timing. I will never attempt a Wellington again. What a nightmare this British classic can be: undercooked meat and wet, soggy pastry, especially on the bottom; no, I’d rather leave that to the professionals. Elea’s Wellington-style celeriac may look simple, but don’t be fooled: the entire process of preparing the celeriac this way takes around four days! It comes with mushrooms, wild garlic and a smoked avgolemono sauce—a kind of Hollandaise made from egg, butter and lemon. No soggy mess, but a perfect crust and an extremely tasty filling. Delicious!
Langoustine with suneli spices
The langoustine is also excellent, combined with pumpkin and potato, pumpkin seeds and a sauce made with suneli spices. The sauce tastes a little like curry and pairs wonderfully with the langoustine.
Veal chuck stifado-style
Stifado is a well-known Greek stew made (usually) with beef, onions and tomato, allspice, cinnamon and red wine. Every housewife makes it her own way, says Takis. He makes his stifado with very tender veal cheek, smoked yoghurt cream and bulgur with Metsovone cheese—a smoked cheese from the mountains. It comes with an onion filled with pine nuts and a stifado variation. Comfort food at its best!
Sweet tzatziki dessert
Of course, everyone immediately thinks of tzatziki when they think of Greek cuisine. But as a sweet dessert? You probably haven’t eaten that before. The clove of garlic is made from white chocolate and Greek yoghurt. A fresh and lightly sweet dish—what a wonderful finale, especially with the sweet wine served alongside, made from late-harvest grapes from winery Ktima Gerovassiliou in Epanomi, 25 kilometres southeast of Thessaloniki. In addition to wines from France, Italy and the New World (all wine-producing countries outside Europe), Elea’s wine list fortunately also includes many excellent Greek wines. What grows together, goes together applies here too, so be sure to order a Greek wine with one (or more) of your dishes.
Greek style this weekend
Restaurant Elea is open from Thursday through Monday from 6:30 p.m. for dinner, and on Saturday and Sunday from 12:30 p.m. for lunch. The menu consists of a seasonal five-, six- and seven-course menu (€80 to €110), also available in a vegetarian version. The chef’s table has its own menu, and there is also an à la carte menu. On Saturday and Sunday, a three-course (€52.50) to four-course (€62.50) lunch menu is served. My tip: enjoy a Greek lunch this weekend and let yourself be surprised by the special Greek dishes at the highest level, paired with Greek wines, in this beautiful restaurant.
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Images: Alieke Eising and own images
