Last winter, at Chicagoâs Greek Islands (200 S. Halsted St.), our Greektown dinner started with a bang â more accurately, a whoosh. A server carried a small black pan of blazing cheese to the table as startled diners burst into applause for what is the Windy Cityâs notoriously combustible appetizer: flaming saganaki.â
â
In Chicago, the dish is a ritual. Itâs dramatic, itâs delicious, and â letâs be honest â itâs also a little absurd in the best possible way.â
â
The word saganaki comes from sagani, a small, two-handled Greek pan. In Greece, the dish is straightforward: firm, dry cheeses such as kasseri, feta or halloumi are pan-fried until golden. No fire. No flair. Just cheese doing what cheese does best, served with crusty bread.â
â
In Chicago, we lightly coat the square or triangular cut of cheese in flour and fry it in a little olive oil until crisp and golden. Then we flip it once, warm it through, splash it with brandy (usually ouzo or Metaxa), light it up, and before setting it on the table, flamboyantly extinguish the flames with a lemon squeeze and a hearty shout of âOpa!â That word â part cheer, part celebration, part call to âletâs dance!â â adds the perfect exclamation point.â
â
So, where did this fiery tradition begin? Depends on whom you ask.â
â
Tap on our bio link to read more.â
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Photo 1: Salvador MartĂnez shows off the flaming cheese saganaki dish at the Parthenon restaurant in Greektown on Feb. 11, 2014.â
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Photo 2: Eleftheria Sioulas, senior sous chef at Avli on The Park, demonstrates how the restaurant uses fresh lemon juice on flambĂ©ed saganaki on June 6, 2025.â
â
? David Hammond / for the Chicago Tribuneâ
?ïž Alex Garcia and Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune
Last winter, at Chicagoâs Greek Islands (200 S. Halsted St.), our Greektown dinner started with a bang â more accurately, a whoosh. A server carried a small black pan of blazing cheese to the table as startled diners burst into applause for what is the Windy Cityâs notoriously combustible appetizer: flaming saganaki.â
â
In Chicago, the dish is a ritual. Itâs dramatic, itâs delicious, and â letâs be honest â itâs also a little absurd in the best possible way.â
â
The word saganaki comes from sagani, a small, two-handled Greek pan. In Greece, the dish is straightforward: firm, dry cheeses such as kasseri, feta or halloumi are pan-fried until golden. No fire. No flair. Just cheese doing what cheese does best, served with crusty bread.â
â
In Chicago, we lightly coat the square or triangular cut of cheese in flour and fry it in a little olive oil until crisp and golden. Then we flip it once, warm it through, splash it with brandy (usually ouzo or Metaxa), light it up, and before setting it on the table, flamboyantly extinguish the flames with a lemon squeeze and a hearty shout of âOpa!â That word â part cheer, part celebration, part call to âletâs dance!â â adds the perfect exclamation point.â
â
So, where did this fiery tradition begin? Depends on whom you ask.â
â
Tap on our bio link to read more.â
â
-----â
â
Photo 1: Salvador MartĂnez shows off the flaming cheese saganaki dish at the Parthenon restaurant in Greektown on Feb. 11, 2014.â
â
Photo 2: Eleftheria Sioulas, senior sous chef at Avli on The Park, demonstrates how the restaurant uses fresh lemon juice on flambĂ©ed saganaki on June 6, 2025.â
â
? David Hammond / for the Chicago Tribuneâ
?ïž Alex Garcia and Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune