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May 18. 2012 8:28PM
Members of St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church in Nashua take lamb off of a large skewer on Friday during the group's Greek Festival. (NANCY BEAN FOSTER)
It's all Greek in Nashua
Members of St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church in Nashua take lamb off of a large skewer on Friday during the group's Greek Festival. (NANCY BEAN FOSTER)
NASHUA — Dozens of people waited in line Friday morning, eager for a little taste of Greek heaven at the annual Greek Food Festival.
Hosted by St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church, the yearly festival has become a staple in the city, with hungry residents looking forward to feasting on spanakopita, pastichio and gyros.
“This is all about the food,” said Jamie Pappas, one of the event organizers. “And here, everyone is Greek for a day.”
The Greek Food Festival kicked off on Friday, and will continue today from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the church, 500 W. Hollis St.
Pappas encourages the estimated 8,000 attendees to come hungry and leave with extras. Some of the favorites being served include marinated lamb and chicken, Greek meatballs called keftethes, and stuffed grape leaves known as dolmathes.
“But most of all, they seem to really come for the lamb,” said Pappas, adding 1,700 pounds of lamb will be served throughout the two-day event, along with 900 pounds of chicken and about 1,400 gyros.
Homemade pastries such as baklava and loukoumades are also a popular treat for those looking for something more sweet.
“We come here every year. We really look forward to this,” said Sandy Comstock of Amherst, who brought along her father, Joe Kershaw of Nashua. “My dad gets one of everything.”
Although they stayed for lunch, Comstock and Kershaw were sure to buy more for Friday's dinner.
Evangelos Valeras, who was raised with Greek food, volunteered his time to help make hundreds of gyros. As a parishioner, Valeras said the food festival is a needed event to help raise money for ongoing church needs and charities.
But more importantly, it joins the church family with the greater Nashua community, helping to educate others about the church's mission, explained Jim Spargo, one of the grilling experts.
“This year I tried the gyros, and it really is good,” said Terry Sorrentino of Merrimack, another regular at the Greek Food Festival who insisted she won't be leaving without getting more takeout food for the weekend.
About 130 pans of spanakopita were prepared, 80 trays of Greek lasagna, 6,000 dolmathes, thousands of meatballs and hundreds of loukoumades, or Greek donut holes.
“The pastries that we have will probably be gone by the end of the evening,” said Pappas, adding volunteers will be working overnight to replenish the food in preparation for day two.
About 100 volunteers are necessary to make the festival possible, according to Pappas, who said it is a joint effort four months in the making.
Tents have been posted outside for extra dining, and patrons are invited to park at Stellos Stadium if the church parking lot is full. A shuttle bus is available to bring people to the food.
Hosted by St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church, the yearly festival has become a staple in the city, with hungry residents looking forward to feasting on spanakopita, pastichio and gyros.
“This is all about the food,” said Jamie Pappas, one of the event organizers. “And here, everyone is Greek for a day.”
The Greek Food Festival kicked off on Friday, and will continue today from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the church, 500 W. Hollis St.
Pappas encourages the estimated 8,000 attendees to come hungry and leave with extras. Some of the favorites being served include marinated lamb and chicken, Greek meatballs called keftethes, and stuffed grape leaves known as dolmathes.
“But most of all, they seem to really come for the lamb,” said Pappas, adding 1,700 pounds of lamb will be served throughout the two-day event, along with 900 pounds of chicken and about 1,400 gyros.
Homemade pastries such as baklava and loukoumades are also a popular treat for those looking for something more sweet.
“We come here every year. We really look forward to this,” said Sandy Comstock of Amherst, who brought along her father, Joe Kershaw of Nashua. “My dad gets one of everything.”
Although they stayed for lunch, Comstock and Kershaw were sure to buy more for Friday's dinner.
Evangelos Valeras, who was raised with Greek food, volunteered his time to help make hundreds of gyros. As a parishioner, Valeras said the food festival is a needed event to help raise money for ongoing church needs and charities.
But more importantly, it joins the church family with the greater Nashua community, helping to educate others about the church's mission, explained Jim Spargo, one of the grilling experts.
“This year I tried the gyros, and it really is good,” said Terry Sorrentino of Merrimack, another regular at the Greek Food Festival who insisted she won't be leaving without getting more takeout food for the weekend.
About 130 pans of spanakopita were prepared, 80 trays of Greek lasagna, 6,000 dolmathes, thousands of meatballs and hundreds of loukoumades, or Greek donut holes.
“The pastries that we have will probably be gone by the end of the evening,” said Pappas, adding volunteers will be working overnight to replenish the food in preparation for day two.
About 100 volunteers are necessary to make the festival possible, according to Pappas, who said it is a joint effort four months in the making.
Tents have been posted outside for extra dining, and patrons are invited to park at Stellos Stadium if the church parking lot is full. A shuttle bus is available to bring people to the food.
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