Mykonos offers some rare finds in Greek cuisine

I was tipped to Mykonos Greek Cuisine by its owner, who called to tell me there was an authentic Greek restaurant in Sun City Summerlin — the only authentic one in town, she said, although I suspect some of the other Greek restaurants would wish to dispute that.

At any rate, I was glad she called because otherwise I never would have found this place tucked in a shopping center that would be off the beaten path for all but Sun City Summerlin residents. And it is indeed somewhat different from other local Greek restaurants.

The main difference is in the menu. Mykonos serves the obligatory moussaka and pastitsio, but also such relative exotica as bakaliaro skordalia, pan-fried cod with mashed potatoes and garlic.

As for us, we were intrigued by the long list of mezedes, or appetizers, and decided to make a meal of them, tapas-style, choosing five that mixed the familiar and the not. Melitzanosalata ($8) was fire-roasted eggplant with garlic — lots of garlic, which definitely is a good thing — and olive oil and Greek yogurt, and served with triangles of hot grilled pita. We've had this dish numerous times over the years, but we can't remember one that was this balanced, this nuanced.

Which also was the case with the zucchini chips ($7), thin slices that had been fried and lightly dusted with cheese. There was a ton of them, served with the traditional condiment tzatziki, and they were a nice crispy contrast to the creaminess of the melitzanosalata.

The spanakopita ($6) was a contrast in and of itself. You no doubt know this one, the ever-popular spinach pie, the interpretation and quality of which tends to vary wildly from place to place. This was a good one (and large, too), the phyllo of the two triangles crisp and buttery, the spinach filling creamy with feta and enlivened by herbs.

The one slight disappointment was the fava ($6), a puree of the beans with onion and olive oil, which we ordered because the restaurant, surprisingly, was out of hummus. This one was dry and not particularly flavorful.

Well, there was one other disappointment: We ordered loukaniko portokali, Greek sausage with orange peel, but our server somehow overlooked it and we didn't realize that until we couldn't have eaten another morsel.

Service throughout was good overall, though. The interior of Mykonos is sleek and neutral, with pops of color from some lovely photo murals of Greece, and we were struck by its cleanliness, and by the fresh fragrance that lay just under the aromas of food cooking. There was, however, a definite shortage of clientele.

But now you know about it, too.

Las Vegas Review-Journal restaurant reviews are done anonymously at Review-Journal expense. E-mail Heidi Knapp Rinella at hrinella@reviewjournal.com. Find more of her stories at reviewjournal.com and bestoflasvegas.com, and follow @HKRinella on Twitter.