Rola Melitzanas at Boukies, Dish #52

Welcome to 100 Dishes to Eat Now, the tasty countdown leading up to our “Best of 2012” issue. Tune in every day (weekends, too!) for a new dish from the Fork in the Road team.

[See More 100 Dishes: Fish Tacos from Florentina’s Restaurant, Dish #53 | Fish Sangwich from Lake Trout, Dish #54]

Dolmas are the generic name for any kind of stuffed vegetable in Greek cuisine. The stuffing can be vegetarian (rice and herbs) or not (ground lamb and rice).

The version found at Boukies — a comparative newcomer among East Village restaurants — uses thin-sliced eggplant, which is rolled around the filling like enchiladas, or maybe crepes. The stuffing is spicy ground lamb, in a recipe that comes from the island of Thessalonika, and the roll-ups are strewn with goat cheese, sluiced with tomato sauce, and dotted with micro-greens.

I’d eat this for any meal of the day.

Boukies
29 East 2nd Street
212-777-2502

Boukies is a late-night sailor’s beacon on lower Second Avenue