Greek flavors are bright with lemon and yogurt, rich with olive oil and oregano—tasting them feels a little like basking in the Mediterranean sunshine. Head to Cheboygan to find intoxicating ethnic flavor Up North.

Top of the Greeks—Cheboygan
Climb the Carnation Restaurant’s back stairs to find a candle-lit Greek dinner perch on the second story. Jaki Tallman of Cheyboygan’s Greek Pappas clan opened the restaurant in her grandparents’ former second-floor apartment, parting the heavy curtains and painted the wood paneling a popping spring green. Find the familiar moussaka, saganaki, spanakopita with homemade tomato sauce, Grandpa Pappas’s baklava and specials like wine-poached figs and lemony lamb chops with minted mashed potatoes. Dinner is Thursday-Saturday, 423 N. Main, Cheboygan, 231-627-4599.