Festival a taste of Greek culture

By Pete Fontaine
Posted 8/17/17

It's one of Rhode Island's oldest operating traditions. It's an outdoor event that annually showcases the Greek Culture and Orthodoxy as the Assumption Orthodox Church commemorates the Fest of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. We'll be"

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Festival a taste of Greek culture

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It’s one of Rhode Island’s oldest operating traditions.

It’s an outdoor event that annually showcases the Greek Culture and Orthodoxy as the Assumption Orthodox Church commemorates the Fest of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.

“We’ll be turning our parish grounds into a Grecian Village,” said Elli Panichas, the event’s long-serving public relations director, who announced that the 90th Annual Festival will swing into action this weekend – Aug. 18-20 – at 97 Wolcott Street in Pawtucket. “Come and enjoy our many Greek foods and entertainment.”

Panichas, who is also active in the Neutaconkanut Hill Conservancy, said “guests will be greeted by a life-size Evzone – guided to the festival grounds through a Paradise of Flags where each area will carry the flavor of the beautiful Greek Village and Islands.”

The annual festival, which draws people from throughout the state and nearby Massachusetts, will feature lamb roasting on the spit as well as an abundance of other Greek foods pastries.

“To add to the fullness of our (Grecian) village we offer an indoor-outdoor Greek Marketplace – an Agora - with a large display of specialized clothing, jewelry, giftware, art and religious items,” said Panichas.

However, as the tireless Panichas and other committee and Assumption Church parishioners will attest, “it’s all about the food at our festival.”

“We’ve developed a reputation for serving outstanding Greek food,” Panichas said, “to thousands upon thousands of people. It’s incredible to think we’ve been going 90 years; the community joints together with strict guidelines for all the cooking and baking to make sure every item and dish has the uniformity in quality and flavor.”

In what could be described as the “key ingredient” to the festival’s on-going success, Panichas pointed out that “the women of the parish bake all the pastries in our professional kitchen while the men prepare all out meats right on the premises to further ensure that every dinner is of the highest quality in presentation and taste.”

Among the food offerings that will be available this weekend according to Festival Co-chairman John Zervas and Elaine Bassis, will be roast lamb, baked lamb shank (Greek Osso Bocco), chicken, rice pilaf, souvlaki, tiropetes, pasticio, spanakopeta, stuffed grape leaves, moussaka and more.

“We invite people to come and indulge in the many Greek pastries our proud parishioners have made,” Panichas said. “Nancy Forest, Patti Panichas and Vikki Kizirian have done another wonderful job to prepare this year’s pastry offerings.”

That list, she said, will include Greek rice pudding, kourambiedes, finikia, kououlakia, baklava, galactoboureko and, as Panichas hinted “people should know that the Ladies of the Philoptochos Society may just add a few surprises to their list of goodies.”

There will also be a Greek Coffee House featuring Paximadia (biscotti), and the signature dessert baklava, cheesecake and festival goers will even be able to enjoy a glass of Ouzo, Mavrodaphne, Metaxa and Mastiha while watching the Greek dancers and listening to Greek music, replete with a bouzouki player.

Ladies from the parish will demonstrate the techniques of baking with fillo and people will also learn the secrets of making Greek baklava and spanakopeta.

Admission to the festival is free and the event will be held rain or shine. Free shuttle service is available just minutes away on Roosevelt Avenue across from Pawtucket City Hill. Festival hours are Friday, 5 to 10 p.m.; Saturday, noon to 10 p.m. and Sunday, 12 noon to 9 p.m.

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