Ranked by TableJourney editorial score.
Whole octopus tenderised on a rock, then char-grilled over coals with olive oil and oregano, served with capers, red onion and a wedge of lemon. The Greek seaside meze, ideal with chilled ouzo.
Greek fishermen have been pounding octopus on coastal rocks to soften the connective tissue for millennia; the Aegean diet documented by Homer included it. Athens absorbed the dish through Aegean and Cycladic migrant tavernas in the 20th century; today every fish taverna in Athens, from Atlantikos in Psyrri to the Piraeus harbourside, serves it as the signature seafood meze. The proper preparation involves boiling the octopus first to tenderise (often in wine or with the cork from a wine bottle, the home tradition), then grilling to char.
5 editor picks for Grilled octopus (Htapodi sti skara) in Athens, ranked by editorial score. All Athens signature dishes · Grilled octopus (Htapodi sti skara) across every city.
Mavro Provato in Pangrati is the daily Athens mezedopoleio favourite for small-plate Greek cooking with regulars on the pavement from 14:00.
OrderThe smoked aubergine, the saganaki and a half-litre carafe of house white.
TipBook three days ahead for dinner; lunch tables on the pavement are walk-up only from 14:00 onwards.
Atlantikos in Psyrri is the central Athens seafood pick: Avliton 7 fires the daily catch on the grill from lunch through to past midnight every day.
OrderThe grilled octopus, the sea bream carpaccio and a chilled assyrtiko by the glass.
TipThe annex across the lane opens at 18:00 weekdays and 13:00 weekends; book the original room.
Manimani in Koukaki cooks the food of the Mani peninsula in a neoclassical building near the Acropolis Museum: cured pork siglino and handmade pasta.
OrderThe siglino with handmade pasta and a half-litre of the rosé from the Peloponnese.
TipClosed Mondays. Sunday lunch from 14:00 is the easiest service for booking a window seat.
Karavitis in Pangrati has cooked the Athens taverna canon since 1926, a rustic room with a courtyard, barrels of house wine and the bekri-meze stew.
OrderThe bekri meze stew with stuffed vine leaves and a carafe of the house red.
TipNo reservations are taken; arrive before 21:00 weeknights and before 20:30 on Friday and Saturday.
Taverna tou Oikonomou in Ano Petralona is the Athens mageirio that has cooked home-style food since 1930, with 15 to 20 daily dishes from the pan.
OrderAsk what came out of the pan today; the daily stew with a glass of the house red.
TipNo microwave and no menu; you point at the trays. Closes when pans empty out, often by 22:00.
Grilled octopus (Htapodi sti skara) makes more sense with someone from Athens explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.
4 hours
Discover the flavors of Greece through this cooking class with a market visit. Start the day with a trip to the market and, at the end of the lesson, enjoy the food yo...
3 hours
Taste an authentic Greek family meal during your stay in Athens with a class in cooking gyros. Leave formalities out, grab a beer or a wine from the fridge, and enjoy ...
3h 30m
Join us for a unique Greek experience that will take off your taste on higher level and immerse yourself in the mystery of the Artist Experience. You will become a dis...
