Though the bistro was a seven-day operation, we always found time for a late dinner, which often became an early morning scooter ride back to our crappy little cabin.
We loved the Aegean island's limited but delicious bounty of ingredients - rich curd-like yogurt, thick glistening honey, pungent oregano, and of course, flame-licked octopus and goat.
One of our favourite dishes to order and prepare for our guests was kleftiko, a slow cooked stew of goat, lemon, oregano, tomato, feta and potato.
We ate, awash with sharp white wine, before the night became a blur of Ouzo, plate-smashing and beachside shenanigans.
Take me back to my 20s, take me back to Naxos.
• Dariush Lolaiy is co-owner and head chef at Cazador
Goat shank kleftiko
Serves 4
4-8 goat shanks (depending on size)
2 onions (peeled and sliced)
6 garlic cloves
200ml dry white wine
3 sprigs of fresh oregano (or thyme)
2 lemons
4 waxy potatoes, cut lengthways into wedges
50ml extra virgin olive oil
4 tomatoes (halved)
200g feta (broken into pieces)
Method:
1 Season the shanks liberally a few hours before cooking.
2 Sear the shanks over high heat in a heavy based pan with olive oil until browned all over.
3 Add shanks to tray and deglaze the pan with dry white wine, and add the liquid to the tray.
4 Add a few bashed garlic cloves, onion and fresh oregano.
5 Squeeze 2 lemons over the meat, and add the used lemon halves to the tray.
6 Pour the 50ml of olive oil over everything and seal the tray tightly with tin foil.
7 Put in a low oven for two hours.
8 Add peeled waxy potato wedges, halved tomatoes, and feta to the pan.
9 Toss everything so it's all coated in oil and juices and return to the oven for another 40 minutes or until the meat is falling off the bone.
10 Serve a little of everything in a shallow bowl with flat bread to mop up the juices.
