From the staff report
WHEELING — Parishioners of St. John the Divine Greek Orthodox Church are preparing for their 23rd annual Greek Food Festival, scheduled to be held July 24-27 in Wheeling from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
“Come experience our heritage and traditions that are centuries old yet timeless in nature,” said festival director Gus Cayafas. “Our sanctuary tours will inspire you, our Orthodox bookstore will educate you, our food and drink will enchant you, and you’ll be blown away by the hospitality.”
This year’s menu features new and returning favorites for a total of more than 40 dishes to enjoy. New dishes include Opa Fries, Izakaya-style fries topped with gyro meze and tzatziki sauce.
An instant hit is the Large Greek Hot Dog, a deep-fried beef hot dog topped with tzatziki cucumber sauce, fresh tomatoes, onions and crumbled feta cheese. Greek Coffee House Kafenio serves up Salted Caramel Frappes.
The festival will host free cooking classes with a focus on desserts. Classes will take place each day at 2pm and 4pm. There will be two different lessons, the first of which will be on portokaropita, an easy and fragrant Greek dessert also known as Greek orange phyllo cake.
Demonstrations will be given by Maria Cayafas in the Learning Center on the second floor each day at 2pm.
“In Greek culture, there is a tradition of love, philotimo, of doing good deeds for people,” Maria Kayafas said.
“This is also evident in our cuisine. Our desire to treat guests, neighbors and family is apparent as we passionately prepare Greek food to share our love for others,” she added. “It’s another way we share our culture.”
Kourulakia are orange and/or anise flavored butter cookies that are hand-rolled into fun twisted designs and are traditionally served with an egg glaze and topped with sesame seeds.
Typically served with coffee, the recipe will be demonstrated by Barb Landers in the second floor learning center each day at 4 p.m.
“I owe my cooking skills to my mother and grandmother,” Landers says. “My grandparents immigrated from the Greek island of Karpathos and taught me recipes that I still use today. I’m excited to share traditional Greek recipes with people who want to learn more about Greek culinary culture.”
Organizers said the authentic food, electric atmosphere and contagious hospitality felt throughout the festival make this summer’s event one not to be missed.
“There will be something for everyone and our parishioners can’t wait to share their faith, food and fun with you all,” Gus Cayafas said.
Outdoor seating will feature gyro sandwiches, Greek tavern-style fries, Ikaros wings, chicken kebabs and more.
The aged cheese known as saganaki is served daily after 4pm.
Young people from the community will be preparing golden fried honey puffs, lemonade and baklava sundaes.
Agape dancers will perform dances from different regions of Greece accompanied by live and authentic Greek music performed by the Greek company and disc jockey George Yamalis.
In addition to the outdoor activities, a variety of festival favorites will be served on the second floor of the Greek Center Hall, including roast lamb and chicken, pastitsio, moussaka, spanakopita, dolmates (stuffed grape leaves), Greek village salad, and a wide selection of homemade Greek pastries.
It serves flavoursome cuisine true to Greek culture.
Vendors will also be setting up shop, offering guests the opportunity to take a piece of Greece home with them.
“But our greatest desire is to share the beauty of the Orthodox faith with all our visitors,” commented Gus Kayafas. “When you come to the Food Festival, we invite you to learn more about the Orthodox Church by visiting St. John’s Bookstore, taking a church tour, listening to a liturgical chanting demonstration by the youth choir, and of course, speaking with Rev. Demetrios Tsikoulis if you have any questions about their ancient faith.”
The sanctuary will be open for guided tours at noon, 3pm and 5pm.
The Byzantine Youth Choir performs daily at 4:45 pm.
Officials said the new dish, called mezze – a Greek appetizer of gyros meat sautéed on the grill with peppers, onions and feta cheese served with fried pita triangles – will be re-available at Taverna and Kafenio.
It was noted that kafenios, or coffee houses, will be returning this year with much anticipated grand events.
“We’re excited to be able to return to some of the festival’s popular menu items that were introduced in 2021,” said festival-goer Daniel Danlev, 20, who shared his enthusiasm with the organizers. “You won’t want to miss our Kafenio iced frappe, our latest addition, the Salted Caramel Frappe, our Baklava cheesecake, and Ladopsomo, our cinnamon sugar fried bread.”
All food sales will be done in person, with no pre-orders being accepted on the second floor of the Greek Center.
Food can be packaged to take away or eaten in the outdoor dining tent.
Check out the Grecian Festival page for festival updates and news, or go online to grecianfest.com for information and to download menus.
For questions, please call (304) 232-4976. The festival will be held in the Center Market Historic District.
Free parking is available on Chapline Street and in the lot across from the church.
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