An Island of Mediterranean Cuisine in the Middle of Chicago : Greektown, west of the Loop, has perhaps the nation’s finest assortment of Hellenic restaurants.

CHICAGO — Suraiyah spins and twirls across the half-moon stage like a top made of Jello, finger cymbals clashing, her gauzy, sequined scarf and harem pants trailing in the breeze. As the electrified band strums faster, she begins undulating, her hips totally decoupled from her rib cage, her abdomen rippling like the water in a Jacuzzi.

No, it’s not a strip show, though her costume is out of Scheherazade via Minsky’s. Suraiyah is a belly dancer, a youthful practitioner of an ancient and honored art as it is celebrated at the Neon (meaning “new”) Greek Village, the last full-blown nightclub-restaurant in Chicago’s Greektown.

Once there were 35 such clubs in this neighborhood, less than a 10-minute taxi ride west of Chicago’s Loop. Before the 1950s, as many as 30,000 people were packed into the half-mile-square, triangular area, known as the Delta--the oldest and, at the time, largest Greek settlement in America.

In the mid 1960s, the entire community was uprooted to make room for what is now the University of Illinois at Chicago, leaving behind a three-block stretch of South Halsted Street dotted with a dozen lively restaurants, bakeries and grocery stores. Here you’ll find what is arguably the nation’s finest collection of Greek restaurants, packed into a single area.

They still call it Greektown, though its 100,000 residents--some estimates are higher--have dispersed and redispersed throughout the city and suburbs, and Chicago’s claim as the largest Hellenic population center in the United States has been taken over by New York.

But Chicago remains the capital of the cuisine, which, like kindred foods of the Mediterranean, is rich with savory dips and spreads, fresh seafoods grilled with olive oil, lemon and oregano and hearty roasted and barbecued lamb dishes. And Greektown’s restaurants remain popular with both locals and tourists who don’t mind traveling into an area that is surrounded by not-so-safe neighborhoods to explore restaurants that are casual but festive, with high spirits and decibel levels on weekend evenings. (Weeknights are quieter but they offer the advantage of no waiting lines.) Considering the paucity of authentic Greek offerings in Southern California, it is definitely worth the effort.

The best way to savor Greek food is in a group, nibbling a little of this, a little of that, family style. Fortunately, Greektown’s best places serve ravishing combination platters of appetizers and entrees, so even a single diner can taste a whole array of delicacies.

And it is relatively inexpensive, with appetizers coming in at $2-$5 in most places; typical entrees such as roast lamb or cod with garlic sauce in at $7-$10 and only specialties, such as whole grilled fish or triple-rib lamb chops, hitting $15 per person.

Like the menu at one of the preeminent restaurants, the Parthenon, some Greektown menus are vast, though key items are available everywhere. You will not want to miss, for example, the Parthenon’s briny dip called taramosalata, made of whipped fish roe blended with garlic, olive oil and lemon juice, bound with either bread or potatoes. The same seasoning trio at the same restaurant gives pureed baked eggplant a special kick in the dip called melintzanosalata.

At another restaurant, Greek Islands, try skordalia, a sauce of pureed potatoes laced with enough garlic to keep Dracula at bay. Garlic also works magic in a dip of thick yogurt and cucumber called tzatziki.

Octopus, generally well tenderized, comes in many guises: cold in a full-bodied vinaigrette, or grilled with the holy trinity (garlic, olive oil and lemon juice) or hot in a winey casserole. And the grilled version should not be missed at Santorini.

But most famous is gyros (pronounced, yeeros): a garlic and herb-laden loaf of densely packed, minced lamb, beef or a combination of the two, broiled on an upright spit, then sliced thin as it crisps. One of the best is found at Dianna’s Opaa, where, as at many places, it is typically served as an appetizer or stuffed into a pita pocket with onions and a dollop of tzatziki.

A tremendous favorite everywhere, as much for the show as the taste, is saganaki: sauteed kasseri cheese, flambeed tableside with the anise liqueur called ouzo, as the waiter holds the insulated serving dish in his hand. To douse it he quenches the flame with a spritz of lemon and shouts “Opaa!” The result is a cheese thatis crusty on the outside and oozing on the inside. Saganaki is a Chicago invention that worked itself back to the old country, much the way Chicago-style pizzas helped Italians reinvent the pie. Several restaurateurs on the strip here claim credit for the invention, with Petros Kogiones of Dianna’s Opaa generally thought of by locals as making the most convincing case.

The Parthenon also makes good versions of a couple of the best-known casserole dishes: moussaka, a layering of eggplant and minced meat, usually lamb, baked with a tomato-based sauce and topped with bechamel; and pastitsio , essentially the same composition with macaroni subbing for the eggplant.

I like the vegetables, such as okra or greens, typically cooked long, often with a tomato sauce at Santorini. At Greek Islands, leg or loin of lamb, whether roasted, baked or barbecued, also is traditionally well done. Those who prefer their lamb anywhere to the rare side of medium are better off ordering chops and specifying the preferred temperature.

Those who like innards should try the restaurant Plaka, for the wonderful mixed saute called meze-- which also means hot appetizers--of lamb liver, sweetbreads and one or more varieties of Greek sausage in a thin but rich gravy.

Seafoods are the prime focus of Santorini, a gorgeous, bi-level spot done up in the white stucco of its eponymous Cycladic island. Less than 5 years old, this is currently the hottest of the Greektown restaurants, widely appreciated for its grilled octopus. With a limited assortment of other traditional dishes, the menu offers the area’s widest variety of fresh fish and shellfish. Black bass is a marvel.

Across the street is Greek Islands, a massive, multilevel, multi-room establishment with an open steam table where it’s possible to inspect the offerings. This is one of the city’s most honored restaurants, specializing in grilled fish. Consider, too, baked cod with skordalia. On a busy weekend evening the lines can get long--but the hosts often ease the wait by passing out a shot or two of ouzo.

A few doors to the south is Dianna’s Opaa, with murals and fenced-in seating areas to create the look of a small village. Serving excellent lamb chops and wonderful stuffed grape leaves, owner Kogiones is a show in himself, leading the crowd in Greek dances and generating the spirits that make this spot especially popular with the younger set.

About a block further south is the Neon Greek Village, where the food shares the spotlight with the floor show. It’s open only on weekends, with the band and dancer beginning after 9 p.m.

Right next door is another long-time favorite, the Parthenon, still the choice of vast numbers of Chicago Greeks and non-Greeks alike. With a popular bar and four spacious dining areas done with murals and hangings, Chris and Bill Liakouris serve exemplary versions of all the classics. Pick a great spinach-cheese pie (spanakopeta) baked in the flakiest filo pastry. The octopus salad is superb.

The Liakouris brothers also own the Courtyards of Plaka, just a few doors down, in a lovely, upscale setting featuring low lights, plants galore and a pianist to accompany specialties such as a lusty Grecian bouillabaisse and exceptionally delicate renditions of classic items. The create-your-own meze combination is outstanding. Expect to pay a dollar or two more per item than elsewhere on the strip.

Of several fine restaurants outside of Greektown, one deserves special attention: the Grecian Taverna in Lincoln Square, a neighborhood about six miles northwest where thousands of residents of Greek descent moved in the wake of urban renewal. Deceptively simple in looks, its renditions of all appetizers are impeccable, notably the skordalia, and the roast chicken and lamb loin get special treatment. One whiff of the preparation area at the door tells the story.

GUIDEBOOK

Dining in Greek

Restaurants

The Parthenon, 314 S. Halsted St., (312) 726-2407.

Greek Islands, 200 S. Halsted St., (312) 782-9855.

Santorini, 800 W. Adams St., (312) 829-8820.

Dianna’s Opaa, 212 S. Halsted St., (312) 332-1225.

The Courtyards of Plaka, 340 S. Halsted St., (312) 263-0767.

Neon Greek Village, 310 S. Halsted St., (312) 648-9800.

Grecian Taverna, 4761 N. Lincoln Ave., (312) 271-4419.