30 editor picks across Greece.
30 restaurants worth the trip across Greece, editor-ranked by TableJourney. All Greece guides.
Peskesi cooks Cretan recipes from its own farm at Haraso inside a restored stone mansion in central Heraklion. Book ahead, the room fills nightly.
OrderSfakiano lamb, then the carob mousse to finish
TipAsk for the olive oil tasting. The kitchen is supplied by its own farm at Haraso, and the oils are poured alongside rusk.
Merastri has cooked over a wood oven in Heraklion since 1998, closing lamb in the fire for hours and finishing pork fillet with staka and oven potatoes.
OrderArnaki ofto, milk-fed lamb held in the wood oven
TipDinner only from 18:00, and the courtyard tables go first at weekends. The Cretan list is worth an extra glass.
Chef Giannis Loukakis writes the menu each morning based on what the organic market and fishers deliver. Located in Ladadika. Kitchen leans creative seafood.
OrderDaily handwritten catch, Crayfish with goat garlic butter
Parasties runs an open wood fire opposite the Historical Museum in Heraklion, turning out smoked steak, big pork fillets and long-cooked Cretan plates.
OrderSmoked steak straight off the open wood fire
TipSit where you can see the open kitchen. Staff will walk you through a mostly Cretan wine list if you tell them what you ordered.
Olympos Naoussa reopened in 2022 after thirty years in a 1926 building on Nikis Avenue. Located in Waterfront. Priced at €€€. Kitchen leans modern greek.
OrderChargrilled shrimps with pastrami, Mount Athos cod with fennel
Chef Asterios Sousouras brings the family seafood heritage from a Halkidiki fish taverna into a refined Ladadika room. Kitchen leans creative seafood.
OrderHook-to-fork daily catch, Raw bar selection
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.
Ta Karamanlidika tou Fani on Sokratous is the Athens deli-mezedopoleio for Asia Minor cured meats: Karamanli pastourma, sausages and small plates.
OrderThe Karamanli pastourma board with sheep cheese and a carafe of tsipouro.
TipClosed Sundays. The deli counter runs 08:00-21:00 if you want to take meats home with you.
Diporto on Sokratous and Theatrou has poured Attic retsina from barrels in Athens since 1887, a basement koutouki with no sign and a handful of daily dishes.
OrderThe revithia chickpea stew, sardines and a small glass of retsina from the barrel.
TipLunch only from late morning until the pans empty, often by 17:00; no menu, no English spoken.
The Walls plates crab samosas, duck and sea bream in a garden inside the Venetian walls of Heraklion, the city's most composed modern Greek cooking.
OrderCrab-stuffed samosas, then the duck
TipThe dining room sits inside the Heraklion Tennis Club grounds by the Venetian walls, so allow time to find the gate.
Erganos has fed a mostly local room beside Kazantzakis park in Heraklion since 1986, with goat, meatballs and a long list of Cretan vegetable plates.
OrderBite-sized sfakianopites with cheese and honey
TipThe taverna sits beside Kazantzakis park, a short walk uphill from the Archaeological Museum.
Herb's Garden runs the Lato hotel roof in Heraklion from April to October, looking straight at Koules over fish, Cretan cheeses and seasonal salads.
OrderFresh fish with a Cretan white, watching the fortress
TipRooftop of the Lato Boutique Hotel, and seasonal: the team moves downstairs to Brillant from November to March.
Founded in 1926 as a harbour kafeneio, Mavri Thalassa now operates one of Thessaloniki's most serious seafood tables in Kalamaria. Priced at €€€.
OrderSeasonal whole fish, Seafood meze selection
SinTrofi's zero-waste philosophy shapes kitchen and cellar: the menu changes daily by season and market availability, as does the biodynamic wine list.
OrderDaily seasonal small plates, Biodynamic wine pairings
Mezen's never-ending philosophy: small plates arrive continuously until you signal otherwise. The tiny Rogoti Street location runs no reservations.
OrderFried red mullet, Kokoretsi of snapper, Calamari carbonara
Clochard operates at the intersection of French bistronomic discipline and Greek ingredient pride. Kitchen leans modern greek-french bistro.
OrderMonthly rotating tasting menu
Tsinari has stood on this Ano Poli corner since 1865, originally a cafe during the Ottoman period. Priced at €. At Alexandras Papadopoulou 72.
OrderTzigerosarmas, Grilled seafood mezedes
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.
Thigaterra cooks to a declared Slow Food brief on the Ammoudara strip west of Heraklion, working Greek producers and Cretan seas rather than a fixed menu.
OrderThe seasonal vegetable plates the menu is built around
TipReserve at least three days ahead. The kitchen asks for confirmation before it holds a table, which weeds out no-shows.
Apiri Greek Eatery reworks Greek standards on Agion Deka in Heraklion, grilling octopus and sea bass and charring a wild greens pie over coals.
OrderThe char-grilled wild greens pie
TipSmall room, so book for dinner. Lunch is quieter and the same kitchen is running the grill from 13:00.
Ippokampos is the seafront ouzeri Heraklion sends visitors to, grilling the day's catch and pouring raki at pavement tables across from the water.
OrderWhatever came in that morning, grilled whole
TipTables spill across the promenade opposite the water, and the seafront ones go first on a summer evening.
Ouzeri tou Terzaki has poured raki in a quiet port alley in Heraklion since 1978, sending out mezedes, moussaka and whatever the boats landed.
OrderA spread of mezedes, then the grilled fish
TipThe alley off Plateia Agiou Dimitriou is easy to miss. Aim for the port end of Lochagou Marineli and look for the chairs.
A Pylaia landmark since 2008, Glykanisos distils its own tsipouro label called Euforikon from Muscat grapes and serves it alongside creative seafood plates.
OrderSmoked eel, Shrimp pasta, Ceviche
This small Ladadika room operates September to May only, closing for the summer, and runs a seasonal menu built around whatever the team finds at the market.
OrderSeasonal market plates, Natural wine pairings
Born during the pandemic, Iliopetra sits at the foot of Ano Poli with a handful of tables and a daily-changing menu. Kitchen leans experimental greek.
OrderDaily market-driven menu
Ten tables on renovated Stratigou Kallari Street, led by chef Manolis Papoutsakis who also runs Charoupi. Located in Ladadika. Priced at €€.
OrderCretan pies, Seasonal meze relay
Tzitzikas kai Mermigas on Mitropoleos has cooked Greek small plates with seasonal ingredients off Syntagma Square in Athens for three decades.
OrderThe keftedakia and the kayianas allios with a glass of the house assyrtiko.
TipLunch from 13:00 is the easier seating; book three days ahead for Friday and Saturday dinner.
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 ...