On one of Thissio's most beautiful streets, lined with mulberry and sycamore trees, young fig trees and bougainvillaeas, this peaceful bistro opened in 2021 with the aim of "weaving fine gastronomy into the urban fabric". This intention, combined with an innate unpretentiousness, is what distinguishes Merceri and its philosophy, which is reflected in their articulate, flavoursome dishes. Chefs and owners Melina Chomata and Maria Ntioudi (Merceri is one of the very few women-run fine dining restaurants in Athens) managed to grab the attention of the esteemed Michelin Guide within Merceri’s first year. Not particularly surprising since both chefs have had long careers in Santorini's finest hotels before landing on Iraklidon Street.

The two very modest Chefs have a soft spot for seafood as it gives them “more room to experiment,” so the menu here is mainly fish-based. Star dishes include the hot lobster cake with a singed potato crust and Syros gruyere, a silky appetiser with an endearing taste of the open sea, and the spirulina-infused paccherini pasta with black pork pancetta, shrimps, bergamot and trout eggs, a concours d'elegance of smokiness, ocean flavour and floral freshness. Do not miss the squid starter, expertly cooked and served over a bed of sautéed spinach and Tinos kariki cheese (the island’s version of blue cheese), and the tender tuna sashimi served with an exquisite homemade wasabi, perfect with a smoky Paloma or a quaffable Mercerita aperitif, the house’s take on the classic margarita. Main course highlights include a perfectly cooked fillet of amberjack with mussels and a crisp slice of charred fennel, and a delightful grouper fricassee with wild mushrooms and spearmint. Make sure to save room for the extra orange-y galaktoboureko tart, Merceri's lighter take on the traditional Greek indulgence of syrupy, buttery custard pie. In late 2023, the restaurant also introduced its first tasting menu of seven dishes for €65, which is definitely one of the best value for money high-end dinners you can have in Athens, if you ask us.

Reviewed by Paul Pervanas

A fine farm-to-fork option for committed carnivores. Chef Yiannis Liokas describes his cooking as "mountain cuisine." He visits the restaurant’s organic farm in Central Greece every two weeks to oversee the produce that winds up on your plate: breeds like Charolais, Limousine, Red Angus, water buffalo from northern Greece, along with various types of sheep, goats, and game. All of the restaurant’s dairy products, eggs, honey, olives and olive oil, the legumes and most of the fruit and vegetables also come from the farm (free of pesticides, antibiotics, chemical fertilisers and hormones). Bralou’s epic meat pie—ground mutton and caramelised onions, wrapped in handmade filo pastry—takes classic Greek comfort food to another level. The hand-cut beef tartare with pickled mulberries and mustard seeds is also exceptional. Adventurous eaters should try the frygadeli (beef liver wrapped in suet) with smoked yoghurt and fresh herbs. Or choose a special cut of meat like a dry aged steak from the butcher’s counter. End on a sweet note with the kadaifi (vermicelli pastry stuffed with chopped nuts) served with sheep milk yoghurt mousse and caramelised walnuts. Bralou is open for lunch and dinner and has a deli across the street. There are two more branches, in Kifissia and Psychiko.

A beautiful neoclassical building with a charming courtyard houses this one of a kind restaurant, where chef Gikas Xenakis puts a novel spin on traditional Greek dishes. Many diners opt for the tasting menus, which are designed to please different palates and to cater to all kinds of dietary restrictions. There are two main tasting menus, one with five courses and one with seven, plus separate vegetarian and pescatarian seven-course options. If you go a la carte, start with the deconstructed hortopita (pie stuffed with foraged greens) or the scallops with cauliflower, kumquat and beetroot. For the main course, try the bourdeto, based on a recipe from Corfu, made with couscous and a spicy medley of scorpion fish, mussels and calamari. The pork cheeks with potatoes, apple and chicory are also delicious. Sweet tooths are well cared for: our favourite desserts are the Valhrona chocolate with salted caramel, tonka and banana, and Aleria’s spin on saragli, a pastry with pistachio nuts, apple and cinnamon.  

For date night, look no further than this beautifully-lit space on a quiet street near the Athens Concert Hall. The fresh culinary approach of chef Nikos Thomas fuses contemporary Greek cuisine with Asian and French flavours. Simul in Latin means “together”, and the “(in) situ” tagged onto the name alludes to the focus on the best local ingredients (for instance, all the seafood comes straight from a fisherman on nearby Evia island). Dishes most deserving of an encore are the char-grilled calamari with chorizo chutney, creamed parsley root, peas, coriander and a lime-coconut sauce; the ray cheeks with fried-to-perfection gnocchi, cauliflower and black garlic; and my personal favourite, the meltingly tender Challans duck with mashed roast carrots, topped with chamomile foam. There’s a 7-course tasting menu (the best strategy is for half of the table to go that route, combined with some a la carte dishes). Desserts, prepared by young pastry chef, Emmanuela Delatola, are well-balanced and beautifully presented. Especially the mango and passionfruit sorbet, wrapped like a dumpling in mango carpaccio on an olive oil crumble with coriander pesto.