By Sarah Coyne
It is that time of year when you yearn to escape the heat and head for the cooler climes. Last weekend I found the perfect spot to escape from the city to. I headed to Kanalli restaurant in Pomos, just up the coast from Polis. Kanalli restaurant was initially opened in 1983 and today has been passed to the next generation with the owner Grigoris Polyviou in charge. The central ethos is to provide fresh, fresh fish. By fresh, they mean caught by the fishermen that very day.
Fish is supplied to the restaurant from the small ports of both Latchi and Pomos harbour. On the Sunday lunchtime we visited it was hectic. We were fortunate to grab the last space in the car park and even luckier to get a great table right at the edge of the restaurant to make the most of the view down to the harbour. It is in an elevated position with wonderful views of the harbour one way, and the rugged mountains the other.
The restaurant is large and simply decorated. What gives it the wow factor is its location, which is quite simply spectacular. During these summer months one of the best aspects of this venue is that at lunchtime it is entirely in the shade and with the ceiling fans in full action it was a surprisingly cool place on a very hot day.
With Covid-19 still with us, it was good to see that all the staff were wearing masks, and the usual sanitizer gel, disposable single-use menus and table cloths were in evidence. When we arrived it was peak time with large family tables and the restaurant nearly full. The atmosphere was buzzing. The staff coped exceedingly well, working flat out to cope with the Sunday lunchtime demand.
After our drinks we had a good look at the menu, which was obviously mainly fish but with some good options for our non-fish-eating friends, including choices of pasta, steaks and moussaka. There is also a large selection of salads for those on a post lockdown health kick! The Fish menu is divided into Grilled and Fried. The Grilled Fish section includes over 14 options while the Fried Fish has over ten options including a combination dish with a little bit of everything. With the main fish dishes available from just €10, the restaurant certainly offers excellent value for money.
We decided to share a fish meze for two. It was reasonably priced at €19, and we liked the options available. After a short time, the food arrived in three stages. We started with the Greek salad with feta, typically there is not a lot to write about a salad, but this one was exceptional with the freshest and sweetest of tomatoes.
This was served with the bread basket, olives, Taramasalata and Tahini. Next, the fish started to arrive at the table. I am not a great fan of mussels, so my husband ate those, and he declared them to be the best he has ever tasted. There was a plate of King Prawns and Crab Claws, Red Mullet and White Bait with a generous plate of fried Calamari. All was cooked to perfection, nothing being greasy or rubbery. This was followed by a whole Sea Bream, Octopus, Cuttlefish and on the side a plate of chips.
All the portions were generous, and the fish was very fresh. The experience of just sitting in this cool restaurant devouring fish dish after fish dish made the perfect stop on our journey. The fact that the restaurant was so busy showed we were not alone in our admiration of the food at Kanalli. On my next visit, I will definitely call and book a table ensuring to get one on the edge with the view. The whole meal is a real experience to sit, eat, relax and take your time with the stunning view. Well worth the road trip up from Paphos.
