Editor’s Picks: Athens

Superbly located in the center of old Athens, with a lovely layout for a family and very comfy beds.

Been around ~100 years, family style, ppl bring their own homemade wine, salads, meats, you feel like you’re at someone’s dinner party, packed, small 3-piece band, very old school - baskets of fresh cut flowers that you throw petals at them in the middle of the afternoon, singing old war songs that everybody knows, spilling out into the street. a lot of old fogies drinking, smoking, singing. - Charles

Great little fish tavern. Get the almyra greens when in season and all small fish.

Excellent paidakia (lamb chops)

Elvis is a souvlaki shop. If you have tasted souvlaki already it's probably not like Elvis'. The whole shop is Elvis themed and the staff is super relaxed and friendly. They don't serve souvlaki with pita like most of the restarants, but just souvlaki with fresh fried potatoes, lemon and bread. The lively neighborhood of Metaxourgeio takes its name from a silk factory that was once located there (metaxi is silk in Greek). While small, the trendy area is home to a vibrant mixture of people from all over the world who inhabit Athens’ typical old buildings, surrounded by theaters and a thriving art scene. It’s one of our favorite neighborhoods for strolling. These days, when we’re in the neighborhood, we make sure to pay Elvis a visit. A few years ago the place was a butcher shop, but then it was featured in one of Greece’s most famous comedy series, Mila mou vromika (“Talk Dirty to Me”). It played a starring role as an old butcher shop called Elvis that is turned into a popular dance club by the five unemployed characters on the show. After filming was over, the butcher shop was taken over by the owners of nearby Kerameio Bar. They refurbished it and turned it into a grill as a nod to its meaty past, keeping the name “Elvis” and injecting it with plenty of humor, loud music and flavor. Co-owner Angelos runs Elvis, keeping the menu brief and to the point. “We only have five plate options so that we can best control quality,” he said. Those are pork or chicken souvlaki, ground beef or lamb kebab, country-style sausage and pancetta – all grilled to perfection over charcoal and served on charming metal plates, topped with grilled pita and lots of hand-cut, freshly cooked French fries and accompanied by Elvis’s famous lemon-mustard sauce. While we wait, Angelos treats us to ice-cold tsikoudia (Cretan raki). To find Elvis once in Metaxourgeio you can either follow the music or the enticing smells of the grill to lead you there.

Gelato

Modern Greek restaurant group with mezes served all day, known especially for the Tzitzikas salad, a variety of ten fresh-cut vegetables, anthotiro cheese from Amfilochia and manouri cheese from Falani with a mustard vinagrette. STORY: Two friends that share the same love for good food, Panayiotis Mazarakis and Tasos Dimas, exploit their knowledge in the foodstuffs sector and establish the first restaurant “Tzitzikas & Mermigkas” in Ano Patisia. They brought in fashion the “grocery-style decoration”, with cans and jars on shelves, old advertisements of products and the classic tables with cutlery drawer. They collected recipes from various places around Greece, chose the best raw materials and begun to creatively develop the tried and tested, beloved to all of us Greek cuisine!

At Dope Roasting Co., don’t miss the bread (from bagels to baguettes, all made on site)—or a cold brew that’s been steeped for 24 hours. Everything here is made on the premises, from chewy crusty baguettes to excellent bagels, from fruity sodas to roasted turkey for sandwiches. “And here at Dope,” Tsaroukian says, “we use 24-hour cold brews, calling our chilled coffees cryo.” So I switch to a frothy cryo-cappuccino, to go with our dainty truffled turkey sandwich and perfect mortadella-filled baguette. The cinnamon rolls are as advertised: awesome.

http://www.stani1931.gr/ Culinary Backstreets - There are places that have been around so long that they’ve become emblematic of a city’s entire eating culture. In Athens, Stani (meaning “sheepfold” or “barnyard,” depending on your definition) is certainly one of them. It may have a rustic-sounding name, but this wonderful, old-fashioned dairy bar – in business since 1931 – is an urban fixture. Sadly, the tradition of the dairy bar – a place where people would go to buy milk and yogurt, or to eat rice pudding and dessert with their coffee – has all but died out. In the 1960s, Athens and Piraeus (Athens’ nearby port city, now effectively a suburb) were home to some 1,600 dairy bars; today, only Stani is left. Stani is located behind historic Omonia Square, once the center of Athens’ commercial district but today a somewhat forlorn area that has been in a downward spiral for the last 15 years. The economic crisis hasn’t helped, with hotels and shops closing right, left and center. A three-minute walk from the Omonia metro station down (not so pretty) Marika Kotopouli Street, Stani appears suddenly, like a culinary oasis in the midst of a commercial desert. The neighborhood may have lost its appeal, but the quality of the products Stani sells is so superb that the place remains popular with Athenians of all generations (although, being an old-fashioned place, the dairy bar is usually full of pensioners, which is part of the charm here). The store is small and the waiters are dressed in the traditional combo of black trousers and white shirt that is the standard uniform in old-school Greek eateries. You can either sit down (there are a couple of tables inside and more in a shaded area outside) or do takeaway. Right behind the giant fryer where the house specialty, loukoumades – deep-fried pastries doused in honey – are made, there are industrial-size refrigerators with glass-lined doors through which you can see what’s on offer. Among the must-try items here is the moustalevria, a thick, brown pudding made from grape must (unfiltered and unfermented juice from freshly pressed grapes) that is a seasonal delicacy offered in Greece in the fall. The taste and texture are unique: picture a sweet and fragrant concoction that hovers somewhere between pudding and an earthy Jell-O. Stani also serves the whole range of old-fashioned Greek desserts – including the “little mouse dessert” (a chocolate dessert shaped like a mouse), walnut pie and galaktoboureko (custard and semolina in phyllo) – from a menu has been the same for more than 30 years and that remains popular with customers who were raised on these dishes. But the whole reason to go to Stani is for the outstanding house yogurt, which is made with sheep’s milk that comes from small farms near Athens. The yogurt is served the traditional Greek way, on a plate with honey and walnuts. Few words do justice to the taste of the yogurt, which is so thick that at points it is almost solid. The honey and walnuts are the perfect accompaniment, and the portions are so generous that the yogurt is practically a full meal. It’s also worth noting that, in a city that definitely doesn’t specialize in breakfast (most Athenians tend to eat something on the go), Stani is one place where you can actually eat a full-on breakfast: warm fresh milk, fresh butter, fried eggs (they fry them with full-fat, old-fashioned butter), bread, orange juice and Greek coffee are on offer. Stani has belonged to the same family for years and there is an extreme amount of pride here. Adorning the walls in gilded frames are awards of excellence from the 1953 Thessaloniki International Fair. The awards may have been earned 59 years ago, but the truth is that little has changed at Stani since.

Their classic three-cheese tiropita is oozy with feta, anthotiro (whey cheese), and Cretan graviera (tastes like mild pecorino) and fragrant with mint. “Mint’s good for digestion,” Satiridis says, handing us another pie called kayiana, which cradles plush scrambled eggs cooked with tomatoes, cheese, and oregano.

Besides the traditional pork skewers, he serves soutzoukakia—meatballs associated with Smyrna (present day Izmir, on the Turkish coast), a dish that came with Greek refugees from that area during the forced population exchange between Greece and Turkey in 1923. We settle on meatballs with “everything”—onion, tomato, a lick of mustard, and a punchy sauce of Florina peppers. souvlaki place in the Varvakeios Market

Super-classic - Carnegie deli of Souvlaki joints, gold standard even though pretty cheese and touristy. You still go. Roberta's happy place. - Charles

Hidden away in Satovriandou, a neighborhood filled with boarded-up storefronts located right behind Omonia Square, Lefteris o Politis has been in business since 1951 and has been a CB favorite for years. The shop, whose name means “Lefteris who came from Istanbul,” has remained unchanged since it opened. On the walls are old-fashioned Coca-Cola ads, a framed certificate indicating that Lefteris belongs to the trade union of souvlaki makers and a framed portrait of Stelios Kazantzidis, the beloved Greek singer whose tunes were filled with a life of tears, immigration and loss. Unsurprisingly, there is only one kind of souvlaki on offer here, and it is spectacular. It’s a spicy meat kebab – which makes sense, considering the owner’s origins – made solely of beef, unlike most kebabs, and cooked on a traditional grill. It’s a dish for purists: beef kebab, tomato, thinly sliced onion and parsley wrapped in grilled pita. Despite the lack of sauce, the whole package is surprisingly spicy and succulent. Satovriandou 20, Omonia Telephone: +30 210 522 5676 Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8am-9pm; Sat. 8am-4pm; closed Sunday - See more at: http://www.culinarybackstreets.com/athens/2014/kebab-kontosouvli/#sthash.7aiedjCf.dpuf

Cozy up at To Laini for flavorful dishes and plenty of tsikoudia (grappa-like liquor).

For Greek Coffee from Culinary Backstreets - A traditional café located on a beautiful cobblestoned side street in Plaka with a cozy courtyard full of flowers and old-fashioned chairs and tables. 

Great breakfast, coffee, or lunch spot.Local dairy products, fantastic sheep and goat yogurts (ask for "straggisto" the thick strained greek yogurt) and local cheeses (try to goat chevre from Evia).

Fresh pita, spanakopita, etc.

Smaller than our bedroom at the end of a hallway, one grumpy guy and his wife, one style, opens when he opens/closes when he closes. A little soup nazi-ish. - Charles

5-6pm, top floor, super local, hole int he the wall, meatballs, cheap eats 5 euros for a plate, cool view.

Time Travel Taverna. In business since 1887, Diporto – a defiantly traditional spot in downtown Athens – has no sign and no menu. The staff doesn’t speak a word of English, and you might have to share a table with eccentric old men who look like they stepped out of a folk ballad. You will probably have to mime your order or draw it on the paper tablecloth. But if you ever wondered what it would be like to eat in a working-class Greek taverna circa 1950, read on. Diporto is located smack in the middle of what is – at least by day – one of the Athens’ most fascinating areas, home to a variety of specialized marketplaces. Varvakeios, one of the few of its kind in Europe, is the city’s largest fish and meat market, in operation since 1886. Around this enormous, chaotic market, where vendors try to outdo each other in shouting, lies Athens’ traditional center of trade, with streets devoted to specific merchandise: hardware stores and bric-a-brac on Athinas Street; spices, cheeses, kitchen equipment and plants on Evripidou and Sofokleous; doorknobs on Vissis (yes, there is a street dedicated solely to doorknobs). The basement-level taverna – whose name means “having two doors,” for the very simple reason that there are two doors leading inside – is easy to miss, given the lack of a sign and fact that the place is literally underground. Once you walk down the well-worn steps, a cavernous world of wonders awaits you. The place is dark, with a faded concrete-block mosaic floor and one wall covered in wine barrels, which, unlike at most Athenian taverns, are not meant purely for décor but are actually used to store wine. From the vintage marble sinks and old-fashioned aluminum wine jugs to the garlic wreaths next to a 1950s fridge and the strong smell of food and smoke that sticks to your clothes, the atmosphere is so reminiscent of the Greece of another era as to be almost eerie, as if through stepping through those two doors you have somehow traveled back in time. This is the kind of place where you can see pretty much anyone from the mayor of Athens to elderly men working in the market who like yelling about politics and their love lives (“I had a Bulgarian girlfriend for five years and then she died,” one man confided to another the last time we were there). There are just eight wooden tables and chairs, meaning that when it’s crowded you might have to sit with total strangers in front of the open kitchen, which is overflowing with pots and pans. The rustic peasant bread is placed directly on the paper tablecloth, without a basket or napkins – all the better for you to tear it with your hands. Diners don’t come to Diporto looking for the latest in culinary experimentation; choices are limited to only five or six dishes each day, based on what’s in season and available in the nearby markets. The white-haired owner, Mitsos, a rather brusque athletic figure, lets you know what’s on offer. The venue’s wintertime specialty – and, to our minds, the highlight of a meal at Diporto – is an excellent chickpea soup that comes in a large, shallow bowl filled to the brim and doused with olive oil; it’s enough to feed two people. This is simple home cooking, the chickpeas so soft they almost melt in your mouth. Other dishes, such as Greek salad, a plate of small fried fish, fried sausage or bean soup, are also consistently good. The house white is a good, cloudy retsina and – as is typical in tavernas – it is ordered by the kilo (a quarter, a half kilo or a kilo) and brought to your table in aluminum wine jugs. Retsina, which has been produced in Greece for more than 2000 years, is essentially white wine infused with pine resin, originally added by the ancient Greeks as a preservative. Often this is the simplest, cheapest wine available, but when it’s good there is something deeply comforting about it, making it the ideal accompaniment to Diporto’s home-style cooking. As one might expect, this is not the kind of place that will necessarily bring

Greek wine bistro, great for brunch and walk around the neighborhood.

Japanese Med fusion

Smack in the middle of the beautiful old neighborhood of Plaka, this seems the only cafe not catering towards tourists. Lovely people, home-made pies which you can pick out from a huge table (savory and sweet, all delicious!) and a few small dishes (the garlic and butter-filled mushrooms are my favorite). Great to have a break while showing your friends around the old town. In the summer sit at the lovely steps, in winter sit next to their fire place with some rakomelo. 

Greek donuts

Several locations. Amazing kataifi/galaktoboureko pastry.

Great chocolates from a Greek chocolatier.

A greek institution with classic Belgian chocolates.

In the plaka - the place that inspired the idea for Souvla (more fast casual, but one of the major inspirations) - Charles

Gelato

Hip grocery/food shop.

Most Greeks have memories of their granny making some sort of pie in a big pan for the family to share. Savory pies are sold in individual portions in bakeries (which are everywhere in Athens) and sandwich shops, or even whole and frozen in supermarket freezers, much like pizza is sold in the U.S. The Greek word for pie is pita (πίτα, not to be confused with pita bread). Usually an extra word is added in front of pita, so you get tyropita (τυρόπιτα), or cheese-pie; spanakopita (σπανακόπιτα), or spinach pie; and so forth. These two, along with bougatsa (a sweet pie with a light cream filling that is topped with powdered sugar) and loukanikopita (a whole sausage baked in phyllo pastry), are the most common pies in your average bakery. Phyllo dough (phyllo is φύλλο in Greek, meaning “leaf” ) is very popular, although there are some pies made with a less flaky dough. Tucked into the extremely busy Voulis Street right behind Syntagma Square, Ariston, which means “excellent” in Greek, is the place to go for pies of all varieties. This shop has been in the same spot since 1910 and is still owned by the family that opened it, the Lobotesis family. There are at least four people working here at all times to cope with the ever-changing crowd of Athenians walking in and out of the store. From professionals working in the area, students and retired grandparents wearing old-fashioned hats to mothers pushing strollers and tired shoppers taking a break from busy Ermou Street, everyone comes to Ariston. Customers usually head for the store’s specialty – kourou pies – which are placed inside a large, rectangular, glass incubator like precious babies. There is usually a whole mountain of these small pies shaped like half-moons, which are made with a solid, pastry-like dough with a feta filling and have an almost yellow glow. Kourou phyllo usually contains yogurt and butter and this is unmistakably reflected in the taste. The butter-rich dough and the hearty dose of feta make for a heavy, salty pastry that crumbles in the mouth and is the equivalent of a full meal. Ariston is not the only place in Athens that makes kourou pies but it is definitely one of the best. For those who prefer something a bit more unusual and sophisticated, there is a dizzying variety of at least 15 different pies on offer here every day. These are displayed in large metallic pans behind a glass partition, with a small white label (in both Greek and English) explaining the ingredients. Unlike the kourou pies, these pies are served in rectangular pieces. Their tastiness comes from the very hearty fillings, which have an almost porridge-like, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Ariston’s pies include feta and leek, feta and zucchini, mushroom, sweet peppers from the area of Florina in Northern Greece, and even a “farmer’s pie,” which is chock-full of different vegetables. Our personal favorite is the bacon, pepper and cheese filling; the meat flavor is greatly complemented by the pepper and the cheese, resulting in an almost pizza-like taste. If you decide to do takeaway they will wrap your pies up in a pink cardboard box with Ariston’s old-fashioned logo on it. It is a logo that has stayed dear to the heart of many generations of Athenians. Address: Voulis 10, Syntagma Telephone: +30 210 322 7626 Hours: Mon., Wed., Sat. 7am-6pm; Tues., Thur., Fri. 7:30am- 9pm; closed Sunday - See more at: http://www.culinarybackstreets.com/athens/2012/ariston/#sthash.EHk9sJjd.dpuf

To understand Koukaki’s down-to-earth origins, though, take a deep breath of carbs and comfort inside Taki’s Bakery, which has been satiating neighbors since 1962 with kulouri sesame rings, rich cheese pies and by-the-kilo pastries.

Super modern Greek food and good for a glass of wine and shelter from the sun.

Greek chef classically trained in Japan and adds Greek twist. Book months in advance or call early because only a few seats and he serves you at the sushi bar.

This is a 19th-century neighbourhood on the northern side of the acropolis hill. It lies above Plaka, near the entrance to the Agora, but has none of the bustle of the city centre. Take a walk, enjoy the flowers and the whitewashed walls. - Santorini Dave

Renzo Piano building. Summer festival. Great events for kids. https://www.snfnostos.org/en/snfestival/

This is a 19th-century neighbourhood on the northern side of the acropolis hill. It lies above Plaka, near the entrance to the Agora, but has none of the bustle of the city centre. Take a walk, enjoy the flowers and the whitewashed walls. - Santorini Dave

Ride the funicular to the top of Lycabettus

Athens Street Food Festival

Holistic beauty products, juice and essential oils, spa (Maria for facials).

Best hiking maps in Greece, bookstore, maps sold.

Expat store for comfort products from home.

Women's shoes

Wine & spirits shop

If you’re after an edible souvenir you can legally take home, the nearly century-old Ariana Olives nearby vacuum-packs whatever you choose from the many barrels of preserved drupes.

Charles rec Wine bar

Charles rec - cocktails

Charles rec - cocktails

Charles rec, wine bar

Ouzo & Mezedes concept. Roberta reccomendation

Champagne Bar

NYT - Kalamitou Street at Night - Eclectic restaurants and crackling night life animate a maze of streets steps from the Acropolis and the Greek Parliament. Instead of tucking into a heavy taverna dinner, head to Melilotos — 19 Kalamiotou Street, (30-210) 32-22-458 — hidden in the fabric district off Ermou Street. Its family-run kitchen specializes in fusion cuisine, using produce from the Greek islands. Here, Athenians in the know linger over fried Creten feta laced with ouzo and watermelon; a tangerine-infused pasta from Chios Island; and squid-ink tagliatelle flecked with smoked trout. Around 10:30, the area morphs into a booming bar scene, starting when the Dude bar across the street, a paen to “The Big Lebowski,” opens its nondescript doors. Around the corner, facing St. Eirini church, throngs of young Greeks crowd the outdoor tables at Tailor Made — Plateia Agias Eirinis 2, (30-213) 004-9645 — a micro-coffee roaster by day, drinking spot by night, with drinks like the Porn Star Martini, made with passion fruit. Many Greeks are not spending money on vacation or even gas, but they will pay to nurse a drink for 8 euros (about $10, at $1.26 to the euro) in a lively setting rather than sitting home and moping. If you’re in town, you may as well join them. 

Smack in the middle of the beautiful old neighborhood of Plaka, this seems the only cafe not catering towards tourists. Lovely people, home-made pies which you can pick out from a huge table (savory and sweet, all delicious!) and a few small dishes (the garlic and butter-filled mushrooms are my favorite). Great to have a break while showing your friends around the old town. In the summer sit at the lovely steps, in winter sit next to their fire place with some rakomelo. 

NYT - Kalamitou Street at Night - Eclectic restaurants and crackling night life animate a maze of streets steps from the Acropolis and the Greek Parliament. Instead of tucking into a heavy taverna dinner, head to Melilotos — 19 Kalamiotou Street, (30-210) 32-22-458 — hidden in the fabric district off Ermou Street. Its family-run kitchen specializes in fusion cuisine, using produce from the Greek islands. Here, Athenians in the know linger over fried Creten feta laced with ouzo and watermelon; a tangerine-infused pasta from Chios Island; and squid-ink tagliatelle flecked with smoked trout. Around 10:30, the area morphs into a booming bar scene, starting when the Dude bar across the street, a paen to “The Big Lebowski,” opens its nondescript doors. Around the corner, facing St. Eirini church, throngs of young Greeks crowd the outdoor tables at Tailor Made — Plateia Agias Eirinis 2, (30-213) 004-9645 — a micro-coffee roaster by day, drinking spot by night, with drinks like the Porn Star Martini, made with passion fruit. Many Greeks are not spending money on vacation or even gas, but they will pay to nurse a drink for 8 euros (about $10, at $1.26 to the euro) in a lively setting rather than sitting home and moping. If you’re in town, you may as well join them.

Coffee or drinks with view of the Acropolis

Christmas all year long. Local favorite for coffee or drinks.

Upscale spot for nice wines.

Great for a glass of wine and meze.

A for Athens, off bustling Monastiraki Square, serves mythically titled drinks like Polyphemus the Cyclops, as well as a cobbler that features mastiha, the distinctly fragrant tree resin from Chios (€12).

Time Travel Taverna. In business since 1887, Diporto – a defiantly traditional spot in downtown Athens – has no sign and no menu. The staff doesn’t speak a word of English, and you might have to share a table with eccentric old men who look like they stepped out of a folk ballad. You will probably have to mime your order or draw it on the paper tablecloth. But if you ever wondered what it would be like to eat in a working-class Greek taverna circa 1950, read on. Diporto is located smack in the middle of what is – at least by day – one of the Athens’ most fascinating areas, home to a variety of specialized marketplaces. Varvakeios, one of the few of its kind in Europe, is the city’s largest fish and meat market, in operation since 1886. Around this enormous, chaotic market, where vendors try to outdo each other in shouting, lies Athens’ traditional center of trade, with streets devoted to specific merchandise: hardware stores and bric-a-brac on Athinas Street; spices, cheeses, kitchen equipment and plants on Evripidou and Sofokleous; doorknobs on Vissis (yes, there is a street dedicated solely to doorknobs). The basement-level taverna – whose name means “having two doors,” for the very simple reason that there are two doors leading inside – is easy to miss, given the lack of a sign and