27 editor picks across Greece.
27 hidden gems worth the trip across Greece, editor-ranked by TableJourney. All Greece guides.
Diporto is basement koutouki on a market-square corner with no sign, no menu, no english; the door is two trap-style entrances at street level.
TipLunch only from late morning until pans empty; descend the two doors and point at the trays.
Technically not hidden to locals but entirely off the tourist circuit. Located away from tourist zones, no English signage, no online presence.
Taverna tou Oikonomou is a greek room in Petralona. No microwave and no menu; you point at the trays. Closes when the pans run out, often by 22:00.
TipNo microwave and no menu; you point at the trays. Closes when the pans run out, often by 22:00.
Pnyka on Pratinou in Pangrati is the sourdough-only bakery with a stone mill in-house, baked in a wood-burning oven for a weekly local-habit crowd.
TipThe Pangrati branch holds the stone mill; the carob loaf is the long-keeper to take home.
On a secondary street between the waterfront and the main pedestrian zone, Super Ioulios looks like a neighbourhood coffee bar until 6pm when it becomes one.
Karavitis Tavern on Pausaniou in Pangrati is the 1926 neighbourhood taverna with a rustic courtyard, barrels of house wine and a point-at-trays system.
TipNo reservations are taken; arrive before 21:00 on weeknights and before 20:30 on Saturdays.
Erganos sits uphill from the Heraklion museums beside Kazantzakis park, a 1986 taverna that most visitors walk past on their way somewhere else.
TipAsk what the kitchen cooked that morning rather than reading the whole menu top to bottom.
Tucked on obscure Rogoti Street, Mezen operates a never-ending seafood meze relay that requires no ordering. At Rogoti 3. Booking recommended.
The walk-in bar counter at Mourga that most visitors to the restaurant district walk past without knowing it exists. At Christopoulou 12. Booking recommended.
Ouzeri tou Terzaki has worked a quiet port alley in Heraklion since 1978, and it stays hidden from the seafront crowds a hundred metres away.
TipAim for the port end of Lochagou Marineli. The alley is narrow and the sign is easy to walk straight past.
Chef Giorgos Zannakis's tiny room at the foot of Ano Poli was Thessaloniki's most talked-about opening in early 2025 yet still flies under most tourist radar.
Open only September to May, on a small street in Ladadika that most tourists never find, Maitr and Margarita builds its seasonal menu around natural wine.
Inside and immediately around Kapani market, four or five traditional ouzeries serve market workers and neighbourhood regulars at midday. At Egnatia 52.
Ta Karamanlidika tou Fani in Athens: greek room. Tucked onto the Sokratous-Evripidou corner near Varvakios, an Asia Minor deli plus mezedopoleio.
TipClosed Sundays. The deli counter runs 08:00-21:00 if you want to take meats home.
Veganato is the fully plant-based kitchen on Vourvachon in Heraklion, cooked to order by the owners and missed by almost every visiting diner.
TipEverything is cooked to order in front of you, so allow more time than a takeaway counter would need.
Since 1967, barely changed. Kavourmas of Xanthi beef, smoked mackerel with samphire, soutzoukakia of buffalo mince. At Aristomenous 4. Booking recommended.
The most atmospheric cafe in Ano Poli set in an Ottoman-era house with a rooftop terrace overlooking the Byzantine walls and the city below.
Atlantikos is small psyrri seafood room on a avliton side lane off ermou, easy to walk past, with the daily catch on the grill from lunch to past midnight.
TipBook the original room; the annex across the lane opens at 18:00 weekdays.
Chagiati hides on Erotokritou in Heraklion, Crete, a small dinner-only mezedopoleio that grills sardines and pours raki for a room of regulars.
TipClosed Sundays, dinner only from 18:00, and small enough that arriving after 21:00 usually means waiting outside.
Trading in some form since 1865 near Kapani market. Meze and tsipouro that have barely changed in a century. Booking recommended. Reservations advised.
Krinos on Aiolou is the 1923 loukoumades shop near Syntagma with a seated counter at the back where locals order honey, doughnut and a Greek coffee.
TipClosed Sundays; the seated counter at the back is the destination, not the takeaway window.
Alla ki Alla stands a minute from the busiest restaurant in Heraklion and stays half empty, which is the whole argument for eating there instead.
TipGo here when Peskesi is fully booked. Order the stuffed mushrooms and the fried zucchini balls.
Crumb Healthy Living Lab is the Heraklion bakery coeliacs and sugar-avoiders end up recommending to each other, well away from the tourist streets.
TipUseful if you avoid gluten. Check the cabinet labels rather than asking, because they mark every item.
Taverna Saita on Kydathineon in Plaka is the rare Athenian-locals tavern on the quiet end of the strip, opposite the Metamorphosis church courtyard.
TipPavement tables face the quiet end of Kydathineon; book a fortnight ahead for weekend dinners.
The Whistler Espresso Bar is the Agiou Titou room in Heraklion that does two jobs well, specialty coffee by day and cocktails with snacks by night.
TipCome in the hour before dinner, when the coffee shift ends and the bartenders start work on the drinks list.
On Giannitson near the port, Rouga is known to the port workers and city regulars who have been eating the tsipouro relay lunch here for years.
Hovoli works the charcoal on Daskalogianni square in Heraklion, Crete, a plain grill house the guidebooks skip and the neighbourhood keeps busy.
TipWorth knowing in August, when the central squares are full and this one still has tables at nine in the evening.
Guided tour · 3 hours
Discover the flavors of Thessaloniki on a guided food tour. Taste local delicacies, sip on ouzo or wine, and learn about the culinary history of the area.
1 day
“Cooking classes for Foodies” are the best way to experience the Greek culinary treasures and learn about the local culture. A seminar from an approved culinary school.
2 - 3.5 hours
Learn to make authentic Greek dishes in a hands-on cooking class in Thessaloniki. Prepare dishes like dolmadakia, Greek salad, and moussaka, then enjoy your creations ...