Looking for the best restaurants in Athens?
First, ask yourself this: what makes a restaurant great?
The tastes for sure, but is it just that?
In my opinion it’s also the passion, the love, the soul of the cook flavouring every dish.
But how easy is it to find such authentic restaurants in a city as touristic as Athens?
Admittedly, it can be a challenge and that’s why we found and present five of the best restaurants in Athens that only some locals like our team at Athens Living Museum are aware of. Ready to explore?
Best restaurants in Athens you won’t find in any tourist guide
Aphrodite’s Bay
Picture this:
Eight tables arranged around a corner. Kostas, the owner, deep frying the catch of the day, while down below in the bay, noisy fishermen remove the combs from their fishing nets.
This is a normal day in the small and quaint fish taverna located in the Piraiki peninsula, over a bay that locals call Aphrodite’s Bay, and has given the restaurant its name.
To ensure the freshness of all the products, the number of dishes is limited and the menu comprises of Greek salad, calamari, shrimps and whatever fish the local fishermen have caught that day.
Sitting on a narrow sidewalk overlooking the bay while savoring generous portions of seafood, so fresh that it still smells of sea, and drinking chilled ouzo, is an experience that you shouldn’t miss. It belongs within the best restaurants in Athens for sure!
Ormos Aphroditis, Akti Themistokleous 288, Piraeus.
https://www.facebook.com/ormosafroditisantonodimitrakis/ )
Izabela’s Armenian delicacies
Izabela was the last Armenian queen, but the modern-day Armenian of the same name is surely the queen of the kitchen.
Like a mother, she greets every guest at the entrance with a warm smile and then sits at the table to share the elaborate yet homely dishes she has created for the day.
Isli kiofte, manti, kebab, lahmatzoun, taboule with pomegranate sauce, herbs and spices, yogurt and molasses, everything combined to create dishes that transport you to the heart of Armenia.
The folk-themed decoration gives the place an authenticity that makes it feel more like a home than a restaurant.
Izabela-Armenikes lihoudies, Anapafseos 36, Drapetsona
https://www.facebook.com/izampela.armenikesnostimies/ )
The Traditional
If there was a heaven for meat lovers, then it would be this grill restaurant offering an astonishing selection of meats:
Steaks, filets, skewers, traditional Greek recipes like kontosouvli, kokoretsi and exohiko, beef, pork, lamb and chicken in all forms and sizes will come to the table in minutes, and in gigantic portions.
Another specialty that shouldn’t be missed is their famous feta cheese with hot peppers, wrapped in aluminum foil and grilled until melted and creamy.
Located in the heart of the fabric market of Athens, the Traditional has an open grill that operates daily from midday to midnight.
To Paradosiako, Kolokotroni 59, Athens
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100054444251533&locale=el_GR )
GRANADA
This restaurant owes to Spain more than just its name, because at its heart it holds the tapas culture, so popular in Spain and all around the Mediterranean. Tapas are appetizers or snacks; they can be combined to make a full meal and are served cold or hot.
In Granada these simple dishes have evolved into a sophisticated cuisine. Traditional Greek ingredients like chickpeas, eggplants and lentils are combined with goats’ cheese, bacon and homemade jams to create dishes that have undergone a gourmet upgrade. Plates are served in the middle of the table, to celebrate the communal identity of Greek food culture.
Located in a small side street in the commercial centre of Athens, it fuses successfully the taverna roots with a Michelin star presentation. Certainly belongs within the best restaurants in Athens!
Granada, Miltiadou 11, Athens, https://www.facebook.com/granadakafeneio/?locale=el_GR )
Association of Greeks from Egypt
The exodus of Greeks from Egypt started before 1952, with the establishment of the new sovereign regime of Gamal Abdel Nasser. Then, with the rise of Pan-Arab nationalism and the subsequent nationalisation of many industries in the early 1960s, thousands of Greeks decided to emigrate away from Egypt. Many of them emigrated to Australia, the United States, Canada, South Africa, Western Europe, and Greece. Greek schools, churches, small communities and institutions all over Egypt subsequently closed, but many continue to function to this day.
So, what do migrants tend to do, when they settle down? Obviously, they recreate the homeland. And that’s exactly what the Association of Greeks from Egypt does, it brings to life a long-lost time. Waiters with bowties and linen tablecloths speak of a bygone grandeur. But, most of all, it’s the food that brings back memories. Homemade hummus and crunchy falafel, papaganous, tamboule and koumpempa – every flavour is a trip back to the Egypt that these Greeks loved and lost.
Syndesmos Agyptioton Ellinon, 3d Septemvriou 56, 104 33, Athens
https://www.facebook.com/groups/20240641088/?locale=el_GR )
A little bonus beyond the best restaurants in Athens
As a bonus, we invite you to embark on a culinary journey to the heart of Greece! ‘Around Greece in Five Dishes’ is a one-of-a-kind experience that features a talented actor who portrays five distinct characters from various regions of Greece, each presenting the specialty dish of their respective area.
As you savour each delectable bite, the actor will regale you with fascinating stories about the origins of the dish, the history of the region and the local customs that make it unique. You will taste: Ntakos from Crete, Fava from Sanrotini, Spetzofai from Pelion, Wild greens pie from Ioannina and Ravani from Veroia.
(Athens Living Museum, daily at 8:30 pm, Praxitelous 40, 105 61, Athens. https://www.facebook.com/athenslivingmuseum/?notif_id=1720767591766878¬if_t=page_user_activity&ref=notif )
Now that your know the best restaurants in Athens, remember that you may visit our amazing museum in Athens for more fun.
