
DATE: Thursday, May 1, 1997                 TAG: 9704290133

SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS         PAGE: 02   EDITION: FINAL 

COLUMN: ON THE TOWN 

                                            LENGTH:   86 lines

FOOD BIG DRAW AT GREEK FESTIVAL

At the peak of the 1997 Greek Festival this weekend, the food tent probably will have four lines going.

The festival, which opens today at 11 a.m., runs through 6 p.m. Sunday.

The tent will be manned by members of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral community.

About 250 and 300 volunteers have put in hundreds of hours preparing the foods, crafts and other items visitors have come to expect since the festival's humble origins as a fall bazaar in 1954.

Not the least of the volunteers are the men and women who will be dishing out the servings of souvlaki, moussaka, spanakopita and yaihni beans.

``Picture this,'' said Sophie Punsalan, a member of the Festival Steering Committee, ``short, little old Greek women who can barely see over the pans, with their hats and aprons on, dancing to the music while they dish out the food.''

Punsalan, Chris Webb and Mary Vourlas, whom the others described as ``the matriarch'' of the festival, were describing how it grew from a bazaar sponsored by the Hellenic Woman's Club, to the four-day event of today.

``That first year we had about 500 people,'' Webb said ``It grew from 500 to 50,000.''

Punsalan, who is president of the Hellenic Woman's Club, explained: ``We were ready to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Annuciation community in 1986, when we decided we wanted to bring in other groups that were part of the church community, and that's when it became a festival.

``Now each group participates and does what it does best. Some make the loukomades (honey-dipped fritter pastries), while others cook the meats or bake the pastries. We involve the young people as dancers, waiters and bus-people, and even the seniors, as food servers. Some of the ladies in the 75- to 90-year-old group make and design their own arts and crafts that are sold inside.''

``And it takes every one of the volunteers to make it work,'' said Webb. The ladies estimated there are probably 7,000 people of Greek descent in the Greater Hampton Roads area, which means there are a lot of Grecian wannabees stopping by the Granby Street festival.

``The big draw is the food,'' Punsalan admits, ``but while they come to enjoy the delicious food of Greece, they stay and enjoy the music, the dancing, and, if they have a little extra money, they may go inside and buy an 18-carat gold necklace from Greece or a painting. The main thing is to expose Greek culture.''

In addition to raising consciousness, the festival also raises money, both for Annunciation projects, and for other local charities, according to Punsalan.

``I think people like the idea of being outside under a tent,'' Chris Webb said. ``They're listening to foreign music, eating foreign food. They think they're on a Greek Island. It's very romantic.''

Food and music are staples of the annual Greek Festival. Sampling the a la carte menu we find: Greek salad ($2.25), souvlaki (chunks of marinated, charcoal-broiled pork over rice pilaf, $4.50), chicken souvlaki ($4.50), moussaka (sliced eggplant with ground meat and tomato sauce, topped with a cream sauce of eggs, butter cheese and milk, $3.50), pastitsio (macaroni with ground sirloin topped with a creamy cheese and baked in a casserole, $3.50) and spanakopita (spinach and feta cheese wrapped in filo pastry leaves, $2.50). Then there's baklava (nuts and butter in layers of filo, sweet and syrupy, $1), nut rolls ($1), and many other desserts. There is a barbecued lamb dinner ($10), served from noon to 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. New this year is a picture menu with descriptions for those unfamiliar with Greek cuisine.

And for those who want to cook Greek food at home, there will be a free cooking school on Saturday, with classes at 2:30 and 4:30, and no registration necessary.

The Greek band ``Pegasus'' plays every day throughout the festival, and various groups demonstrate traditional Greek dances. There's plenty to eat and drink at this grand party, and plenty of Greek hospitality under the big tent. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by SAM MARTINETTE

Chris Webb, left, Mary Vourlas and Sophie Punsalan are members of

the Greek Festival Steering Committee that plans the annual

festival. In addition to food, they include music, dancing and a

bazaar as a taste of Greek culture.

Graphic

AT A GLANCE

WHAT: 1997 Greek Festival, with food, music, dance and crafts.

WHERE: 7220 Granby St.

WHEN: 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday and

Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday.