Food & Drink
Cyprus Specialities
If you are looking forward to some popular Greek dishes in Cyprus, then you won’t be disappointed; Greek Cypriot food and drink and Greek food is largely identical with some differences here and there for those in the know.
Halloumi is a rubbery cheese that when fried or grilled can be added to most dishes or eaten on its own. Deliciously salty, you will be hard pushed not to try it on your trip. Cypriots love combining it with melon in the hot summer months.
Meze is Cyprus’s equivalent to tapas and contains a wide range of small plates from dips to potatoes, halloumi to fish.
Tiropittes are considered more in the street food category and are flaky pastry cheese pies. Try the spinach ones - Spanakopittes - too, delicious!
Loukaniko are sausages, often flavoured with orange peel, fennel seed, and various other dried herbs and seeds. You’ll often get them on meze boards.
Souvlakia is an extremely popular dish for Cypriots. It consists of small pieces of pork or lamb, skewed and cooked – with or without vegetables – on charcoal and served in pitta bread with tomatoes, cucumber parsley and onion.
Daktyla, or lady fingers, are sweet treats filled with ground almonds and cinnamon sugar.
Ekmek Kadayif is a Turkish bread pudding desert and served with a type of clotted cream.
Favourite Drinks
Frappe is perfect for a hot day; usually a concoction of instant coffee, foam and ice.
Cypriot Coffee is an island speciality and a strong one at that. It’s served with a glass of water alongside and it’s best to sip it slowly and not to drink the dregs at the bottom.
Ouzo is the popular anise-flavoured aperitif made by distilling grape juice. Drink it neat or with water/ice.
Brandy Sour is considered the unofficial national cocktail of Cyprus and is a delicious long drink made from Cypriot Brandy and lemon flavourings.
KEO is the Cyprus beer and you’ll see it everywhere. Take a sip!
Commandaria is the well-known and well-loved rich, fruity, sweet desert wine.