Lunch or dinner (or both) at the Spring of Life Taverna...with your dog

Lunch at the Spring of Life Taverna, Amargeti

We found this taverna by chance while driving a rather circuitous route up through the mountains west of Paphos, on our way to the village of Panagia.  I had hoped we'd arrive at Panagia and try out one of the tavernas there, but we were all getting tired and hungry, so we decided to make a stop. I was so glad we did.

The Spring of Life (Zoodoxos Pigi) is balanced on the edge of a beautiful valley, full of olive trees and fruit trees, just outside the village of Amargeti. It's less than 15km from Paphos, unless you come via the crazy route that we took, yet it feels like a different world out there.

View from the balcony of the Spring of Life Taverna

The owner seemed a little surly at first, but grunted that he didn't mind Sage sitting quietly with us at our table. After a while, I realised that despite his gruff manner, he was actually very sociable; he brought us drinks on the house, and sat and talked to me about the taverna and the unusual decorations he had imported from Egypt.

This taverna serves quite a variety of dishes, mostly traditional Cypriot cuisine. We ordered main plates of: a lemon and local cheese soup (nicer than it sounds); lamb stifado; kalamari; and an enormous salad with halloumi and fresh vegetables. Sage enjoyed loudly crunching up lamb bones.

This place was a great find. There were a few other customers, but everybody was speaking in hushed voices (I'm not sure why), and there was a lovely, peaceful atmosphere. The food was great, and reasonably priced. The views were wonderful. And the large terrace area that wraps around two full sides of the taverna, was full of Mediterranean pot plants (geraniums and succulents) and covered by overhanging vines for shade

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