along what some western countries are only now "discovering'' -- healthy eating.

According to Greek-born chef Mr. Paul Venieris, his countrymen's diet has always been healthy, partly because of a national preference for "all natural food'' such as fish, vegetables and fruit, and partly because freshness is absolutely the by-word around which meals are built.

"Greeks live off the land,'' Mr. Venieris said. "They eat well from the various food groups, and they love their cheeses and wines.

"Outside the cities, everybody grows their own food; the fishermen's catches are eaten the same day; and meat is never frozen.'' Restaurants also follow this pattern, using only fresh ingredients in the meals they prepare.

"Fisherman come ashore with their catches, and walk right across the street to sell them to the restaurants,'' the chef explained. "Very often, guests choose their own fish from the fisherman, and then sit while the restaurants cook them.

Traditionally, Greek cooks have always taken advantage of whatever produce is available to invent and re-invent dishes. That, Mr. Venieris said, is why there is no definitive recipe for Greek salad, for example.

"Each house, each restaurant will choose its own mix of ingredients. Every Greek has his own version of making something. It is basically taking basic ingredients and doing what you want with them.'' Although it is a Mediterranean country, Greek cuisine differs from other countries in the region, the chef explained.

Although some pasta is eaten, it is "not the same'' as that of Italy; lamb and veal are the most popular meats, and fish is the most popular seafood, although octopus and squid are also much enjoyed. Steak is almost unknown.

"At Eastertime, a whole lamb is roasted on a spit out of doors,'' Mr.

Venieris said. "The men take turns turning the spit while the women are indoors making the salads and other dishes. It takes about six hours to cook the lamb.'' Unlike their counterparts in fast food-oriented countries, Greek housewives prefer to prepare everything from scratch. So-called convenience foods -- frozen, packaged or otherwise -- are not commonly known or accepted.

"Why open packages when you are surrounded by fresh ingredients?'' Mr.

Venieris asked. "Besides, the traditional Greek kitchen stocks all the spices and other ingredients necessary to make many things, including cakes and cookies, so it would be uneconomical to go out and buy package mixes, even if they were available. Besides, packaged food is full of preservatives and you don't know what you're eating.'' Because refrigerators have not been as common as in other countries, the concept of frozen food is also relatively unknown. At most, a fish (for example) would be kept two days, propped lengthwise on crushed ice.

In addition to fresh ingredients, Greeks like their food relatively unadorned.

Instead of gravies and sauces or ketchup and mayonnaise, a little olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground white pepper, lemon juice and oregano are the garnishes of choice.

"One day I prepared a fish and covered it with a sauce, and my grandmother was really upset,'' the chef related. "She asked if I liked the flavour of the fish and I said yes. `Then why are you changing it?' she asked. `All food is delicious, you don't have to alter it. You can enhance the food but you don't have to alter it'.'' It was a lesson Mr. Venieris never forgot. Indeed, he owes his successful career, in part, to his grandmother's lessons. Unlike conventionally trained chefs, his knowledge of cooking was acquired being around the restaurant his family owned in Greece.

As he watched, he learned, and then returned to his grandmother to verify the recipes -- a path he claimed was a lot harder than one might think.

"It was difficult to follow her,'' he laughed. "Like generations before her, she kept everything in her head. I'd ask her how much of something to put in and she's say `A handful' but my hand was bigger than hers!'' When it comes to cooking fish, Mr. Venieris said it was commonly cooked whole.

"It is very rare to see filleted fish,'' he explained. "Greeks love to fry a whole fish in a little olive oil, especially if it has a lot of bones.

Otherwise, they will put it in a nice casserole dish, surrounded by fresh vegetables, onion, green peppers and garlic, and cook it in the oven.'' Octopus undergoes rigorous "conditioning'' before it is edible.

"After it is caught, fishermen beat it on the rocks to tenderise it, and then it is hung in the sun for a day to dry it out. Then it is cooked over charcoal,'' Mr. Venieris said.

Meals are generally accompanied by a special bread, which the chef described as being "big and crusty on the outside and very light on the inside''.

Often it is dipped in a mixture of olive oil, oregano and red wine vinegar.

"That is our butter because real butter isn't good for you,'' the chef explained. "We do have a Greek butter, but it is very sweet and is usually spread on bread with honey.'' Asked what a typical breakfast might be, Mr. Venieris responded: "Fresh goat's milk yoghurt and lots of fresh fruit -- melons, figs, grapes, whatever is in season.'' Fresh mountain tea, which has a distinctive aromatic flavour and is caffeine-free, is taken with lemon and sweetened with honey, which is often enhanced with a mixture of cinnamon and cloves.

Greeks also love to make their own wine, for wine is an integral part of every meal.

In the close-knit Greek community in Montreal, where Mr. Venieris' extended family now resides, he too learned the art of wine-making from his father. At Christmastime, everyone brings their own wine to family gatherings, where there is much tasting and discussion over whose is the best.

In Greece, due to the climate, citizens follow the Mediterranean practice of resting between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Businesses and shops close (except in Athens) during that time, then everyone returns to work until around 9 p.m.

Despite the hour, a Greek evening meal is extensive, always taken at a leisurely pace, and can last for four or more hours.

"People sit down together as a family with a bottle of wine, all the food is put in the centre of the table, and people take what they want,'' the chef said. "That style is the same for all meals. Food is not served individually, nor is there any sense of hurry. A meal is always a friendly, social occasion.'' Indeed, the cook always prepares twice the amount needed for the family because it is a given that friends or relatives will always drop in. As a warm and sociable people, Greeks would be affronted if food was refused, or eaten in a hurry before leaving.

"Sometimes, they light a candle and make a joke that no one can leave until it is completely burned down!'' Mr. Venieris laughed.

The chef said that even the way people sit and eat is different, particularly in restaurants and cafe ms.

Greek cuisine "They might order ten little starters, and the chef knows to send them out slowly -- one at a time, because Greeks love to pick. They will kind of sit sideways at the table and casually remove bits and pieces with their forks, while enjoying a bottle of wine and chatting.'' Starters might include plates of shrimp, octopus, or tzatziki -- a yoghurt, cucumber and garlic dip for the inevitable basked of freshly baked bread.

Although there are such legendary "desserts'' as baklava, Greeks like to end their meal with fresh fruit -- "so refreshing in the hot weather'' -- and cheese.

Then, very often, following the long, leisurely evening meal, Greeks will go for a stroll. If they live in a small town or village, in all probability it will be to the central square, there to socialise.

"It is a very nice, simple way of life,'' Mr. Venieris said. "Very healthy and very relaxed.''