Cyprus makes eating well unusually easy, because the traditional food already looks like what most people are aiming for. It also makes eating far too much even easier, because hospitality here is measured in volume. Both are worth understanding before you arrive.
The Advantage You Start With
The traditional Cypriot table is built on olive oil, vegetables, pulses, fresh fish, good bread and cheese. That is the Mediterranean pattern almost exactly, and it means eating well here requires no discipline or special ordering.
Our guide to the Cypriot diet covers what that consists of in detail.
The Problem You Will Meet
Portion sizes. Cypriot hospitality is genuinely tied to abundance, and a full meze runs to twenty or thirty plates arriving over two or three hours.
Two practical responses. Order meze only when you have the afternoon and the appetite for it, and pace yourself because the meat always comes last. On other days, order individual dishes instead, which most taverns will do happily if you ask.
What to Order
The Overlooked Half of the Menu
Visitors reliably order grilled meat and miss the pulse and vegetable dishes, which are the best things on most tavern menus.
Louvi me lahana, black eyed beans with greens, olive oil and lemon, is the everyday dish most representative of how Cypriots actually eat. Fasolia is a slow cooked bean stew. Kolokasi, taro root braised in tomato, exists almost nowhere else in the Mediterranean.
The Things Worth Trying Once
Sheftalia, the grilled caul fat sausage, is the most distinctly Cypriot thing you will find. Afelia, pork with red wine and coriander seed. Kleftiko, if the tavern has a proper clay oven. Grilled halloumi arrives with almost everything.
Our guide to Cypriot dishes worth ordering covers the full list.
On the Coast
Whole grilled fish priced by weight is nearly always the best choice. Ask what came in that day. Our guide to the best fish taverns in Cyprus covers where to go.
Where You Eat Matters More Than What
The biggest single improvement most visitors could make is leaving the resort strip. Village taverns cook from family recipes, use local produce and charge less.
Our guides to the Troodos mountain taverns and the best restaurants in Cyprus both point inland for that reason.
Eating Through the Day
Cypriots eat light at breakfast, make lunch the main meal and eat dinner late, frequently after nine. In summer that pattern exists for good reason, since the middle of the day is too hot for anything heavy.
Following it works better than fighting it. Arriving at a tavern at seven means an empty room, and arriving at ten means you have got it right.
What to Drink With It
Village wine by the carafe, which is unlabelled and frequently very good. Our guide to traditional Cypriot drinks covers the rest, including the zivania that will arrive at the end whether you ask for it or not.
If You Have Dietary Requirements
Vegetarians do better than the meat heavy reputation suggests, because the pulse and vegetable tradition is deep and halloumi is everywhere. Say so when booking and most kitchens will adapt.
Vegans have a harder time in traditional taverns, though the Lenten cooking tradition, which is dairy free by design, means the dishes exist. Ask about nistisima.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Cypriot food healthy?
The everyday village diet is, being close to the Mediterranean pattern. A full meze is a celebration meal rather than a daily one.
Can you order less than a full meze?
Usually yes, by ordering individual dishes instead. Some taverns push the meze hard, so ask when you book.
What should I order first time?
Sheftalia, a village salad, halloumi and whichever pulse dish is on that day.
Is it expensive to eat out?
Village taverns are inexpensive for the volume of food. Resort restaurants and Limassol fine dining are a different matter.
Final Thoughts
Eating well in Cyprus is mostly a matter of ordering what locals order and going where locals go. The pulses, the vegetables and the village kitchens are the parts visitors miss, and they are the best of it.
This article is general information rather than dietary advice. Anyone with specific nutritional needs should speak to a doctor or registered dietitian.