Top Casual Dining in Greece: 30 editor picks

30 casual dining worth the trip across Greece, editor-ranked by TableJourney. All Greece guides.

Diporto ★ 4.8 · Athens

psyrri · Sokratous 9, Athina 105 52

Diporto on Sokratous and Theatrou has poured Attic retsina from barrels since 1887, a basement koutouki in Athens with no sign and a handful.

Tip: Lunch only from late morning until the pans empty, often by 17:00; no menu, no English spoken.

Mavro Provato ★ 4.7 · Athens

pangrati · Arrianou 31-33, Pangrati

Mavro Provato in Pangrati Athens is the daily mezedopoleio favourite for small-plate Greek cooking, Greek wine by the glass and a sidewalk of regulars.

Tip: Book three days ahead for dinner; lunch tables on the pavement are walk-up after 14:00.

Ta Karamanlidika tou Fani ★ 4.7 · Athens

psyrri · Sokratous & Evripidou 1, 10552, Athina

Ta Karamanlidika tou Fani on Sokratous is the Athens deli-mezedopoleio for Asia Minor cured meats: Karamanli pastourma, sausages and small plates.

Tip: Closed Sundays. The deli counter runs 08:00-21:00 if you want to take meats home with you.

Mourga ★ 4.7 · Thessaloniki

Christopoulou 12, Thessaloniki

Chef Giannis Loukakis's Ladadika restaurant operates at the creative edge of northern Greek cooking. Kitchen leans market-driven creative greek.

Charoupi ★ 4.7 · Thessaloniki

Doxis 4, Thessaloniki

Chef Manolis Papoutsakis opened Charoupi in 2017 to bring Cretan ingredients and technique to Thessaloniki. Kitchen leans cretan modernist. At Doxis 4.

Karavitis Tavern ★ 4.6 · Athens

pangrati · Pausaniou 4 Pangrati, Athina 11635, Greece

Karavitis in Pangrati has cooked Athens taverna food since 1926, a rustic courtyard with barrels of house wine and the bekri-meze stew that defines the room.

Tip: No reservations are taken; arrive before 21:00 on weeknights and before 20:30 on Saturdays.

Olympos Naoussa ★ 4.6 · Thessaloniki

Leoforos Nikis 5, Thessaloniki 546 24

The 1926 waterfront landmark reopened in 2022 as one of the city's most ambitious restaurants under FNL-recognised chef Dimitris Tasioulas. Family-friendly.

Trizoni Exclusive ★ 4.6 · Thessaloniki

Doxis 1 and Salaminos 12, Thessaloniki

Chef Asterios Sousouras's daily-supply seafood restaurant in Ladadika earned an FNL Best Restaurant Award star in 2025 and is one of the most admired fish.

Taverna tou Oikonomou ★ 4.5 · Athens

petralona · Kydantidon 32, Athina 118 51

Taverna tou Oikonomou in Ano Petralona is the Athens mageirio that has cooked home-style food since 1930, with 15 to 20 daily dishes brought out of the pan.

Tip: No microwave and no menu; you point at the trays. Closes when the pans run out, often by 22:00.

Erganos ★ 4.5 · Heraklion

Old Town · Georgiadou 5, Iraklio 712 01

Erganos is the taverna Heraklion locals default to, a 1986 dining room beside Kazantzakis park with goat, keftedes and honeyed sfakianopites.

Tip: The taverna sits beside Kazantzakis park, a short walk uphill from the Archaeological Museum.

Mezen Salonica ★ 4.5 · Thessaloniki

Rogoti 3, Thessaloniki

Mezen's never-ending relay of small seafood plates arriving until you stop them has made it one of the most imitated formats in Thessaloniki.

SinTrofi ★ 4.5 · Thessaloniki

Doxis 7, Thessaloniki

SinTrofi's zero-waste kitchen and biodynamic wine cellar in Ladadika represent one of Thessaloniki's most principled dining propositions. At Doxis 7.

Clochard ★ 4.5 · Thessaloniki

Mitropoleos 11, Thessaloniki 546 22

Clochard's monthly-changing menu and exceptional Greek wine list make it the most wine-forward bistro in Thessaloniki. Kitchen leans french-greek bistro.

Mavri Thalassa ★ 4.5 · Thessaloniki

Nikolaou Plastira 3, Kalamaria, Thessaloniki 551 32

Founded in 1926, Mavri Thalassa in Kalamaria is Thessaloniki's most storied seafood institution. The wine cellar holds over 300 labels. For a casual visit.

Manimani ★ 4.4 · Athens

koukaki · Falirou 10, Koukaki, 117 42

Manimani in Koukaki cooks the food of the Mani peninsula in a neoclassical building near the Acropolis Museum in Athens: cured pork siglino and handmade.

Tip: Closed Mondays. Sunday lunch from 14:00 is the easiest service to find a window seat.

Atlantikos ★ 4.4 · Athens

psyrri · Avliton 7, Psiri, Athina 10563, Greece

Atlantikos in Psyrri Athens is the central seafood pick: Avliton 7 fires the daily catch on the grill from lunch through to past midnight every day.

Tip: The annex across the lane opens at 18:00 weekdays and 13:00 weekends; book the original room.

Ouzeri tou Terzaki ★ 4.4 · Heraklion

Venetian Harbour · Lochagou Marineli 17, Iraklio 712 02

Ouzeri tou Terzaki is a 1978 port-alley ouzeri in Heraklion where the mezedes arrive in waves and the raki keeps arriving alongside them all night.

Tip: The alley off Plateia Agiou Dimitriou is easy to miss. Aim for the port end of Lochagou Marineli and look for the chairs.

Ippokampos ★ 4.4 · Heraklion

Venetian Harbour · Sofokli Venizelou 3, Iraklio 712 02

Ippokampos is the pavement ouzeri on the Heraklion waterfront, all grilled fish, octopus and shrimp eaten a metre from the passing seafront traffic.

Tip: Tables spill across the promenade opposite the water, and the seafront ones go first on a summer evening.

Apiri Greek Eatery ★ 4.4 · Heraklion

Old Town · Agion Deka 5, Iraklio 712 01

Apiri Greek Eatery is a good-value Heraklion dinner, grilling octopus and sea bass and charring its wild greens pie over open coals every night.

Tip: Small room, so book for dinner. Lunch is quieter and the same kitchen is running the grill from 13:00.

Deka Trapezia ★ 4.4 · Thessaloniki

Stratigou Kallari 4, Thessaloniki 546 22

Chef Manolis Papoutsakis's no-reservation meze room in Ladadika brings Cretan ingredients to a walk-in format. Kitchen leans cretan meze. Booking recommended.

Iliopetra ★ 4.4 · Thessaloniki

Aischylou 5, Thessaloniki 546 34

Small, intimate, and reservation-only even at the casual price point, Iliopetra near Ano Poli was the most talked-about opening in Thessaloniki in early 2025.

Glykanisos ★ 4.4 · Thessaloniki

Megalou Alexandrou 46, Pylaia, Thessaloniki 555 35

The Sotiroudis brothers' seafood table in Pylaia has been one of Thessaloniki's most important fish restaurants since 2008. Kitchen leans creative seafood.

Maitr and Margarita ★ 4.4 · Thessaloniki

Fragkon 3, Thessaloniki 546 26

Open September to May only, Maitr and Margarita brings a genuinely seasonal approach to Ladadika. Kitchen leans seasonal natural wine bistro.

Klimataria ★ 4.3 · Athens

psyrri · Plateia Theatrou 2, Athina 105 52

Klimataria on Theatre Square in Athens has poured taverna food since 1927, the Psyrri institution where giant barrels line the wall and rebetiko plays most.

Tip: Live music runs most evenings from around 22:00; book a fortnight ahead for the weekend.

Athali ★ 4.3 · Heraklion

Old Town · Kydonias 15, Iraklio 712 01

Athali is an easy all-day Cretan taverna in central Heraklion, cooking wood-oven meats and wild greens from lunch until one the following morning.

Tip: Kydonias meets Kapetan Charalampi here, two minutes from Peskesi, so it is a useful fallback when that room is full.

Ligo Krasi Ligo Thalassa ★ 4.3 · Heraklion

Venetian Harbour · Lochagou Marineli & Mitsotaki, Plateia 18 Agglon, Iraklio 712 02

Ligo Krasi Ligo Thalassa is the Heraklion harbour table for a long seafood lunch, with mezedes, lobster spaghetti and the Venetian fortress in view.

Tip: The terrace looks over the harbour to the fortress, which is worth waiting for an outside table in summer.

Granary ★ 4.3 · Heraklion

Old Town · Kantanoleontos 9, Iraklio 712 02

Granary is the all-day eatery and espresso bar in central Heraklion, pouring Taf Roastery coffee alongside Mediterranean plates and Greek wine.

Tip: Named for the Venetian grain store that once stood opposite the Ducal Palace, and it keeps a wide Greek wine list.

Tip: The Mitropoleos sister room is the modern outpost; the Themistokleous original is the destination.

Top Casual Dining in Greece