Their economy crumbling and their smokers defiant in the face of a public area smoking ban, the Greeks clearly have some valid reasons to be upset at the moment. If only they had modelled their economy on Retsina, our favourite Greek restaurant, they probably would be saved - happily turning a profit as the rest of Europe clambers over themselves to get in the queue for the Kleftiko.

Actually, it was when we tasted the Kleftiko at Retsina that we realised we were in love. Sadly, it was with someone else's main course. Don't get us wrong - our selection of the Mixed Grill (the solid choice in many a restaurant) was also excellent, but there was something in that tender and succulent lamb shank that brought a small tear to our eye.

Retsina's a meat lover's dream. Unless that love is wearing, rather than eating.

Not just that, it spurred us to share large portions of our grill in order to obtain mere morsels of Kleftiko. It was a vicious cycle. The more we obtained, the more we wanted. The more we wanted, the more of our own dish we had to give up. Soon enough we were scraping the plate clean of tender chicken kebab in order to obtain a small shred of lamb. We had finished our dish and yet we were still starving. In short, we had overstretched ourselves and pushed more out of our gastronomic experience than we brought in. The Greek economic tragedy was never more real to us than at that moment.

We suppose we had better talk about some of the other things about Retsina - a small family run restaurant in North West London. It is a local hero and obtained cult status with a deserved nomination on Gordon Ramsey's the F-Word, not that it needed the endorsement given it is always pleasantly busy regardless of whether it's lunch or dinner.

We are sure that customers love the friendly service, but more likely it's the amazing food that keeps bringing people back. The true stars are the specialities and other main courses - the grills in particular are a favourite. Be warned though - the main course portions are filling and great value for money, so come hungry and be prepared to be satisfied.