Like mama used to make
Providing a nutritious lunch for busy office workers has turned into an internet business for one Nicosia chef
Mama’s Kitchen conjures up images of a rather buxom Greek lady leaning over a hot stove as she stirs up wonderful ingredients bubbling in an oversized pot. Behind her is a wooden table covered in a red chequered tablecloth laden with all sorts of colourful herbs and vegetables that can only be found so very fresh and juicy in the sunny Mediterranean. It’s the 1960s and a young boy runs into the room holding his satchel as the elderly lady lifts up her large spoon and smiles, letting him have a little taste of the day’s delicious speciality.
Like a scene from a film, we’re suddenly transported to the 1980s where the boy is now a grown man and is left only with the memories of his grandmother’s cooking. He’s alone in his apartment as the doorbell rings and he rushes to find some cash. Greeted by a delivery man in a shining red jacket, he’s handed a box and told ‘bon appetite’. As he digs into the food, he gobbles it up so fast that it’s only once he clears the dishes that he realises he didn’t really enjoy it. Although filling, it seriously lacked flavour and was about as good for you as eating tube of superglue.
At that point his mind drifts back to the way his grandmother used to crush the garlic with pestle and mortar while her aged hands never tired of cutting the fresh parsley and onion into the tiniest of pieces as she sprinkled it over the beans she had just picked from their pods. If we were still in movie mode, the next scene would show the man in a suit as he manages his brand new shop where only the most healthy and tasty Cypriot food is being dished up by smiling uniformed ladies behind the counter. As we are shown a glimpse of the shop front, a big green sign reads ‘Mama’s Kitchen’ and depicts a woman complete with apron and chef’s hat who stirs up her delights over the large stove.
Now, 20 years later, Aris Aristidou is the proud owner of what has become one of the island’s most successful take-away chains. “The first shop on Akropoleos Avenue started off as an attempt to offer people with busy schedules the chance to pop in and pick up some lunch that their mum might have cooked for them,” says Aris. “The whole idea was to offer people traditional Cypriot quality cuisine that they just don’t have time to prepare. Dashing in for a take away was an easier solution than changing lifestyle.”
The concept took off from there and the small shop was eventually moved to new premises in Ifigenias Avenue as plans began for another branch. With a smart and modern shop now located by the Capital Centre in the centre of Nicosia, businessmen and shop owners can easily escape the fast food frenzy. There are even plans for branches to open in other areas of Nicosia, but Aris seems more intent on telling me about his very ‘special bread’. I’m intrigued and so he gets up and hands me something that looks like a mix between bread and cake. I take a bite as the slightly sweet and fluffy bread melts in my mouth and Aris looks like the cat that got the cream. “It’s my special recipe,” he tells me. “Mama’s Kitchen just wouldn’t be the same without it and people seem to love it. So this is my next endeavour, to distribute this unique bread to selected outlets around the island.”
While Aris may have been aware of his baking talents when Mama’s Kitchen first took off, he certainly didn’t know that take away would eventually turn into a delivery service and that delivery service would turn into internet service. Yes, there’s now even a website with a take away and delivery menu so eating becomes as effortless as waving a magic wand. Times have certainly changed from the way things were done in the past, but in the world we live in, where time is precious and more fast-paced than people even knew the meaning of years ago, things have to move forward to meet our needs. Now, if you’re busy at work all it takes is one click and phone-call and you can have just what you fancy delivered to you before your tummy even has a chance to rumble. But technological innovation doesn’t necessarily mean a compromise in quality as traditional food is still honoured by the company just like it was when housewives spent all day in the kitchen.
In a land where people live to eat instead of eating to live, the menu seems absolutely endless and makes browsing almost as fun as shopping on e-bay. With different food available for each day of the week, you can take your pick from a huge menu that also includes an interesting range of vegetarian dishes. From rice with spinach to the traditional afelia, moussaka and stuffed aubergines, it’s enough to make your mouth water just by reading through what’s on offer. Then of course there are all the healthy pulses that really make the menu complete. If you want something home cooked but don’t fancy all the local foods then there’s also the choice of international cuisine with mango chicken and pork fillet being the most popular dishes.
Scrolling down the page, I also realised that there must be a whole bunch of people out there just like me who don’t know how to cook wholesome traditional food. Why did I come to this conclusion? Well, Mama’s Kitchen even advertises a catering service and that can only mean one thing – there are a good number of pour souls who freeze in their tracks when it comes to putting their culinary skills on show for guests.
And because there’s no dinner party in Cyprus that would go down very well with jacket potatoes and baked beans on offer, opting for Mamas Kitchen is probably a life-saver (or at least a brilliant saviour of all worthy social and family relationships).
I like to believe that a white lie can sometimes be justified so I’ve already decided that when my future in-laws come round for that very first gruelling dinner, Mama’s Kitchen food will already be keeping warm in the oven. Let’s just hope that they aren’t reading this article! Any plans to introduce cheap personal chefs Mr. Aris?
Mamas Kitchen
36A Ifigenias Avenue, Akropolis, and 15-19 Evagorou Avenue, Central Nicosia. Tel: 22 312665, www.mamaskitchen.com.cy
