Best Restaurants in Athens

Two Michelin stars for Georgianna Hiliadaki and Nikos Roussos' playful deconstructions of Greek staples, like the famous 'Greek salad' served as a frozen gazpacho sphere. Tasting menus unfold in a restored neoclassical house.

Part deli, part taverna inside an old charcuterie, specializing in pastourma and soutzouki cured meats from the Cappadocian Greek tradition. Plates of aged graviera, spicy sausage, and fava arrive at marble counters between hanging hams.

A bare-bones fish joint down a Psyrri alley doing impeccable fried calamari, grilled sardines, and shrimp at taverna prices. It is the locals' cheap-seafood answer to the tourist traps of Plaka.

The kebab institution of Monastiraki Square since 1964, famous for its spiced beef kebab on pita with grilled tomato and onions. The Acropolis looms over the outdoor tables and the turnover keeps everything charcoal-fresh.

A no-sign basement taverna below the central market, run since 1887 on a handful of dishes: revithada chickpeas, fried fish, horta, and retsina from barrels on the wall. There is no menu; the cook tells you what exists today.

A two-Michelin-star Pangrati landmark in a stone mansion with a bougainvillea courtyard, serving French haute cuisine with Greek ingredients for over two decades. Its cheese trolley and wine list are among the deepest in Greece.