The women gastronomy of Paros either in old age, or in maturity, or young with dreams and will, they come from the whole range of gastronomic activities. Farmers, ranchers, cheesemakers, beekeepers, in the standardization and trade of agri-food products and finally poor cooks, in addition to their work, have families, children and grandchildren, and are models of professionalism, representing the dozens of similar women who on the one hand support the institution family and women entrepreneurship and on the other, strive to give value to the Parian land, and meaning to its inhabitants.

Let's get to know them in more detail:

 

The Iliad of the Whites

And there among the dry stones and the stone buildings, the kingdom of stone, among the jagged windmills one will meet the Iliad, not the famous Iliad of Homer with I, but with H by Elias. A rock of life since from 1940, the year she was born, until today, her life will have to be found by a modern Homer to narrate it. Orphaned by birth from mother and father and married since 16, she gave birth to 6 children, lost 2 children, now has four sons, 9 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren, and all her life is on the animals. Not a single day has been missed, there with the north winds, there with the rains, there with the snow. It first starts with the calves fed with ground corn and fresh water. Then she goes to milk the kids, so that her son Michalis can come and take the milk for cheese-making to the cheese factory of the Paros Cooperative, which makes delicious gruyeres. But her great joy is the kids!

 

Charoula of Marpissa

In a square of Marpissa where there are four alleys, under two mulberries that in the summer make a huge shadow, and above the stairs that go down to the public, the environment is reminiscent of an ancient theater scene. The square, protected from the north winds and the meltemia, gives a view-escape to the south, Piso Livadi and the sea, while a folk fresco in the center, on the theme of Charoula tavern, becomes even more popular with the annual maintenance and interventions of the cook. The owner and cook of the tavern is the lady Charoula Patelli originally from the island of Heraklion, who started cooking in 1977 with classic Greek food and some local recipes. Charoula's tavern has been happily closed for 40 years and is one of the most famous on the island. ewe), without missing the moussaka, the pastitsia and the stuffed.

 

Maria Stamatiou in the Tavern of Katsouna in Santa Maria

One of the most popular and authentic taverns of Paros is Katsouna fish tavern. Just behind the beach of little Santa Maria, the lady Maria Stamatiou since 1993, together with her 2 daughters she has turned the yard of her old farm house into a tavern. And with two conversations we talk about the courtyard of wonders, because two hundred meters from the beach, one of the most cosmopolitan beaches of the island (one hundred euros the umbrella for the first line on the sea αν they came and you see on the island…) you meet, without another, Greece of 1960. In this magical garden, an oasis of authentic life of Paros, the only thing that has changed in the tavern of Katsouna is that you have to book two or three days before to reserve a table. It is the only compromise he has made in recent times. Apart from the first fish that are masterfully cooked here, there are also meats produced by them, since next to the hill the family breeds animals, pigs, goats, roosters and chickens, which are cooked in various ways.

 

Maria of the Art Café in Prodromos

Η Mary is the boss on Artistic Cafeof the Forerunner. And if in the winter, when Paros is full of visitors, the main traffic is the cafes, the orange groves, the ouzas of the men who play backgammon, some lentils at the weekend. In the summer the cafe is transformed and the goldsmith Maria cooks on her own, takes the orders, takes out the bills, with the help of Antonis she manages everything. The appetizers are many and special. The cuttlefish with fennel, the stuffed squid, the cooked octopus, the frying pan, the livers, but also the daily revitada stand out. Other times, improvised parties are held, because they both own music and song. In the Art Café of Prodromos, one lives moments from other eras. And thanks to that, the people who visit it know and fall in love with Prodromos.

 

Katerina the cheesemaker from Marpissa

A new cheese factory, the "Paris Cheese Factory" over the hills of Logaras, is the project of a young woman, scientist, Katerina Moschou who after her studies at the Agricultural University of Athens, and her work experiences - she worked in recognized dairies in Greece and Cyprus in positions such as quality control director - decided to fulfill her dream and return to Paros not for holidays but to make her life! Katerina does everything alone. From dawn he makes cheese and from noon he starts the deliveries. In the first year she had two customers, now with her truck she travels all over Eastern Paros and makes distributions to suppliers and stores. Its products are breathtaking. As for her dreams ται they are fed daily by the love and respect nurtured by her compatriots, by her passion for her work, and of course by the power that the view of the sea gives her…

 

Elisavet Vogiatzis, the beekeeper from Kostos

Studied the Elisabeth Vogiatzis at the Technical University of Athens in applied mathematics and natural sciences and her husband Angelos, an specialist in computer science and accounting applications, wanting to live a new life, decided in 2013 to settle in Paros and take over the beekeeping unit that Dimitris has had for more than 30 years. Boyatzis, Elizabeth's father and president for years of the island's beekeepers. Before settling on the island, they studied Beekeeping, Beekeeping and Natural Cosmetics at the Institute of Agricultural Sciences. These studies, the help of their teachers together with the many years of experience of Elizabeth's parents - who own both the art of beekeeping and the environment of the island - formed the basis for their new venture. To standardize honey, royal jelly and ointments with the brand name "From Paktia". And they did it!

 

Theodora Louki from Arsenis delicatessen

H Theodora, 6 years younger than her brother Arseni Loukis, from a young age she stood by him. Either when he worked as a hotelier, or when Loukis built his own "shack" with his production in the river of Naoussa, in the summers when he did not have a school, he worked with him and cut receipts, gave documents, supported the fund. In 2015, Arsenis decided to deal only with production and wholesale and Theodora to take over their own stores, the Arsenis delicatessen. The first priority is the local products, all the productions of Arsenis, his vegetables, his fruits, the capers, his suma, followed by the products of Paros (cheese, honey, wines, mountain teas and herbs), then a fan with products from the Aegean: pasta from the Chian cellar, louzes from Tinos, samota figs and Turkish delights from Syros, a variety of cheeses from Naxos, all kinds of rusks, pastries, pasta and fruit from Crete, cheese from all over Greece , phthtogalo of Chania, krasotyri from Kos, mastelo of Chios, oil cheese of Mytilene, and then all of Greece follows!

 

Chrysoula Kritikou in Lefkes of "Syntrofia"

The Cretan family has a distant tradition with the gastronomy of the Whites. From 1904, the Cretan great-grandfather had first opened a bakery in Lefkes, while from 1971 to 1999, for about thirty years, the Cretan Army made the famous white loaves every day. Stratis, an important personality of the Whites, had 6 children and dozens of grandchildren with his wife Marigoulas. The new bakery of the village was taken over by the children of Antonis, grandchildren of Stratis, Stratis and Dimitris, while the Chrysoula Antonis's sister, at the entrance of the Whites, on the public, made the “Pet Tavern”Which for about 20 years, serves Greek cuisine. Her children help her, especially her bright and happy daughters, Maria and Barbara, because it is true that in Chrysoula's hangout, there are more smiles and a good heart for that and it is my favorite hangout in Paros. From food, Chrysoula cooks like her mother, selected ingredients, generous portions, family care, resurrects stereotypical Greek dishes and gives them a mythical dimension, such as. moussaka, shoes, and chickpeas.

 

Katerina Papadimitriou - herbal grower in Aliki

Ο Kamaranthos  is a farm of 23 acres in Kamari of Alyki, which gathers and presents the plant wealth of the Cycladic ecosystem. In addition to the approximately 200 types of native herbs present on the estate and a pre-existing old vineyard, a number of traditional agricultural products have been planted and grown according to the rules of organic and sustainable agriculture. In a landscape reminiscent of Paros of the old decades, where the land was sacred, it was fruitful and was not intended for a plot, the Katerina Papadimitriou Tsavalou, left behind a career in the public sector and the European Union, and planted olives, pomegranates, figs, locusts, acacias and 4.500 herbal roots. Its goal was to create a visitable farm, so that the visitor can see up close the crops, the processing and the plants of Paros, such as e.g. fennel, thyme, mint, sage, mint, honeysuckle, and of course to know the nutritional and organoleptic properties of each of them, enriching his knowledge of the herbs that so taste the Mediterranean and especially the Cycladic cuisine.

 

Marianna Chalari in Piso Livadi

Η Chalaris Fish Tavern or otherwise "of Marianna" has been operating for about 20 years in the port of Piso Livadi. THE Marianna in the shop and Antonis her husband at sea with his trechantiri, "Captain-Manolis", with nets and longlines to feed daily -God willing and weather permitting- with all kinds of fish. The years passed and Marianna was a servant - she is on her feet from morning to night - and Kapatsa made extensive extensions in her shop - all tasteful -, she multiplied her specialties, and not only set up a sought-after hangout, but she contributed decisively to become Piso Livadi gastronomic destination.

 

Konstantina Barbarigou - Fixed in Naoussa

Here, where the heart of alternative Naoussa beats, far from the so-called the port, and opposite to the north the lights of Mykonos dim, the Constantina, daughter of Argyros Barbarigou, and her boyfriend for five years (since 2016) have been honoring Parian and generally Cycladic cuisine with their tavern Fixed in Naoussa. I remember Konstantina as a little girl who came with her cousin Konstantza to "Papadakis" - the restaurant of Argyro Barbarigou, who changed the course of Parian Gastronomy, but also the life of Argyro - after their toys and false help serving. And now Konstantina follows in the footsteps of Argyros' mother!

 

The women of gastronomy of Paros - Greek Gastronomy Guide