'Cut me off another tentacle, please.'

"A meze is a way of eating. It's not a set format or set actual food. A meze is a communal, beautiful way of eating, which is sharing and breaking bread. And the whole idea of a meze is that you sit down and experience many tastes and flavors in one meal." -Roddy Damalis

Saturday night, I had octopus. And it was so good.

A group of us had decided to venture out to this place that our professor read about. It was a bit nondescript at first. There was some slight decoration on the top of the building and the sign was vertical and rather blended in with the decor. However, when we entered, we instantly realized that this was unlike your average place.

The interior of the restaurant was sort of astounding. There were massive chandeliers, rows of some type of strings (which sounds odd, but looked great), and walls painted a deep red, one of which was full of plates and the other with newspaper and magazine articles. All of this created a beautiful atmosphere.

Roddy Damalis, the chef and owner of the restaurant, was super nice. He came out and talked freely with us, discussing the purpose of food and the meze. We decided to allow him to surprise us with our meal.

It was the best decision we could have made. The time lapses, which Americans tend to avoid in meals, were part of what made it so great. It gave our group the opportunity to talk, share, and enjoy each other's company; the whole point of the meze.

Later, after we were stuffed with food, dessert, and coffee, we waddled back to the car and the hotel, eager to make everyone jealous with stories of our fantastic meal. Damalis had agreed to be interviewed for the documentary, so we gathered the equipment and headed back. By this time, less than 30 minutes later, the place was packed, a true revelation of how good the food truly was.

With passion in his voice, Damalis shared with us the reasons why he cooked the way he did, what sparked him to begin, and his general story. He spoke with such expression in his voice and manners...it was a fantastic interview.

The food was pretty fantastic, too.