What is in season in Athens. and what to order when the market changes.
Spring
- Roast lamb at Easter: Whole spit-roast lamb is the Greek-Orthodox Easter Sunday meal, fired across courtyards and rooftops in Athens from dawn until early afternoon.
- Fresh fava (yellow split peas): Santorini PDO fava arrives in Athens markets through April and May, served as a warm puree with raw onion and lemon at most mezedopoleia.
- Wild greens (horta): Spring greens, dandelion, sorrel and amaranth appear at Varvakios from late March, served at lunch tables with olive oil and a wedge of lemon.
Summer
- Tomato and watermelon: Argolid tomatoes peak July through September, the only window the canonical horiatiki tastes right; pair with feta from the dairy counter at the table.
- Sea bream and bonito: The Aegean catch lands daily through the summer at the Varvakios fish hall; grilled sea bream and bonito carpaccio are the seafood-room order.
- Aegina pistachios at harvest: PDO Aegina pistachios harvest late August through September on the island a 40-minute ferry from Athens, with the Fistiki Festival on a mid-September weekend.
Autumn
- Grape harvest in Nemea: Agiorgitiko reds harvest in Nemea PDO through September; day trips from Athens for the winery tastings peak in October.
- New olive oil: First-press olive oil arrives in Athens markets from mid-November; Maison d'Olive in Kolonaki pours fresh-press samples from the back counter.
- Quince and pomegranate: Quince paste, pomegranate molasses and the Greek-Orthodox preserved spoon-sweets fill the autumn dessert counters at the long-running cafes.
Winter
- Chestnuts and roasted corn: Charcoal-roasted chestnuts and corn fill the central Athens squares from late November through Christmas, with carts on Syntagma and Monastiraki.
- Tsiknopempti grilled meat: Smoky Thursday before Lent (mid-February) is the canonical Athens meat feast; the Varvakios market grills 800 kilos of meat from noon.
- Vasilopita New Year cake: Vasilopita with a hidden coin is the Athens New Year breakfast, baked across bakeries from late December through the first week of January.
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