Yalos Greek Taverna opens in Island Park

Panagiotis Kambitsis thinks he has the secret sauce to running a successful restaurant in Island Park, and that sauce is tzatziki. The owner of Pappa Gallo in Rockville Centre has taken over the large space that held Aura Modern Mediterranean, and changed the name to Yalos Greek Taverna.

The previous concept, Aura, had an approachable menu that was more Greek and Italian fusion. Yalos keeps the upscale club vibe while going full-on Greek, in the vein of North Shore spots Kyma and Limani. There's an impressive raw bar of imported Greek fish like the fabulous lavraki and tsipoura, which Kambitsis says come in daily. And the unapologetically Greek menu sports names like horiatiki, taramosalata, skordalia and melitzanosalata eggplant spread.

"Mediterranean isn't Greek and Greek isn't Mediterranean. Greek is Greek," he said. "As a Greek owner/operator, I'm going to call it what it is. It's a Greek restaurant with a Greek owner and Greek chef." 

Kambitsis owns several bar, restaurant and bakery concepts, including Mojo and Sugarberry Bakery Cafe in Rockville Centre, which supplies the rotating list of Greek pastries. His office is in Rockville Centre and he said he'd previously have to go to the North Shore or Astoria, Queens for Greek seafood. And so far, he seems to be addressing a need, because the restaurant was full on a recent weekday night. 

The spacious dining room has a similar white tablecloth look to its previous iteration, but now sports a mural of a Greek seaside resort town, and Kambitsis says he's also in the process of importing more tables and other furniture from Greece. Many of the servers have stayed on with the concept change, and service throughout the evening was swift and friendly. 

The menu has many of the popular Greek dishes you'd expect from an upscale modern Greek restaurant, like a substantial starter of three flavorful spreads, or pikilia ($22). With six options to choose from, the taramosalata or whipped fish roe with lemon and olive oil was the standout with its silken puree of creamy fish.

And don't sleep on the bread salad. Dakos ($21) stems from a centuries-old Greek recipe that helped sustain rural farmers when fresh-baked bread was scarce. A barley loaf is dried into a rusk and then rehydrated until it has a spongy texture. The rusk is topped with fresh tomatoes, feta and capers, so it's springy and tangy and earthy at the same time.

The restaurant also has an impressive wine list, with nearly 40 bottles from Greece alone, ranging from $55 to $210 for a 2004 Terroir Nemea Agiorgitiko. 

Yalos Greek Taverna, 4338 Austin Blvd., Island Park, 516-208-7535, yalostaverna.com. Open 4 to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 4 p.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.