HIGH up in the Troodos Mountains, and tucked away in a narrow valley above Platres village, is the Psilo Dendro Trout farm and restaurant, one of Cyprus’ best kept open secrets.

I arrive in Platres just after a rain storm has swept through the mountains, a cool breeze blows, there is greenery everywhere and the steaming heat of the Nicosia plain is just an unpleasant memory.

The menu offers a full range of Cypriot food, including a very popular Kleftiko, but at the top of the list is the locally farmed and freshly caught trout; in true English-abroad style I order a trout and chips and take in the scene on the terrace.

Over the whir of a nearby waterfall, I can hear Russian, French and English, and of course Cypriot families chatting away. On the table next to me three happy couples have just finished their coffees and sweets, and are sporadically breaking into song before resuming their discussion about books they have read.

My food arrives impressively quickly, especially since, as I later learn, I am close to the 300th customer of the day. The fish is perfectly chargrilled, and straight away it is easy to see how Psilo Dendro has gained such a solid reputation; until now my experience of farmed trout has always been flaky and slightly earthy.

This is not the case here, where some 40,000 fish, in 12 three by 12 metre pools get a steady supply of fresh water from the Krios Potamos (Cold River) which flows from the top of the Troodos and gives the fish their fresh flavour.

Fishery manager Andrew Broom says the fish eat around two tonnes of pellets every year, and 25000 “fingerlings” (baby trout) are added to the pools each year, taking around 17 months to reach serving size.

Around 5,000 die naturally, which means around 20,000 make the four hour journey from pool to plate every year.

After lunch, owner Elizabeth Broom tells me about the history of Cyprus’ only trout farm and restaurant combo.

“I took over the lease on the farm 30 years ago, but it has been here for around 70 years. Back then things were a bit makeshift and old fashioned.”

As if to demonstrate her point, river water that had burst its banks in the morning’s storm spills across the terrace. “This happens when it rains heavily and the entrance into the pools becomes blocked; before we laid these stones the water would wash away all of the earth.” A Broom son is dispatched to unblock the pipe, and minutes later the puddles clear.

It is just one of many ways the Brooms have transformed Psilo Dendro into a streamlined and efficient operation; it seems to be weathering the economic storm as robustly as it weathered the rain storm early in the day.

Asked how business is going, Broom says they are as busy as ever. “Well, I work from 8am to 8pm every day... and we have 17 staff serving around 1,000 customers each weekend. That’s around 350 on Saturday and 650 on Sunday.”

She explains that Cypriots are maintaining the tradition for day trips to the mountains, and with the development of new roads from Limassol to the mountains, more could soon be taking advantage of thirty minute journey times.

“You have to be optimistic, and we are very grateful to the Fisheries Department for their support. But you have to keep standards high. If you serve 10 good meals and make a mistake with the 11th, Cypriots will forget the 10 good ones.”

The restaurant also receives tourists from around the world, who stay in nearby hotels; some of whom will have found it through the travellers’ bible, Lonely Planet.

Psilo Dendro opens every day in the summer “As soon as someone gets hungry” and they take last orders at 5pm, “but we do cater to groups after then by arrangement, and have been known to cater for 800 outside.”

n Psilo Dendro is closed from the end of November until March 1. For more information call 25 813131 or email psilodendro@cytanet.com.cy