Greek grilled meat skewers, typically made with pork, chicken, or lamb, marinated in olive oil, lemon, and herbs, served with pita bread and tzatziki.
From Greek 'souvlaki,' diminutive of 'souvla' meaning 'skewer' or 'spit.' The word reflects the ancient Greek tradition of cooking meat on skewers, a method dating back to ancient times when soldiers would cook meat on their swords.
Souvlaki is literally ancient fast food—archaeological evidence shows Greeks were eating grilled meat on skewers over 4,000 years ago! The technique was so practical that Greek soldiers would sometimes use their cleaned swords as improvised skewers when proper cooking equipment wasn't available during military campaigns.
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