It may not have the cool quotient of Bogota or Berlin, or the lovely boulevards of Paris or Madrid, but Athens has an allure all its own. And it’s not just history and archaeology. Financial headlines aside, many quarters of the ancient capital feel newly vibrant and energetic, with sidewalk cafés brimming with customers; creative young restaurateurs, designers and gallery owners setting up shop; and smiling local pedestrians carrying shopping bags. Here’s why the city is more than just a jumping-off point for the Greek Islands.
Design at NEW Hotel
Athens’ first Design Hotel, the NEW opened about three years ago as the brainchild of a Greek art collector, who brought in Brazil’s super-hip Campana brothers to design the 79 rooms and public spaces. Think tall ladder-back chairs going to nowhere and jaggedly shaped mirrors in the rooms, and walls and columns made of the remnants of old furniture–turned–art installation in the lobby and restaurant. While the rooms (from €200) can be on the snug side, they have smart details like pop-up mirrors and work desks, and plenty of natural light, which makes them feel larger. The NEW also has a terrific location near Constitution Square, and one of the best breakfast buffets in town. (I stayed here and at the Grande Bretagne as a guest of the hotels.)
Street life in Aigias Irinis Square
This small plaza, just off the main shopping drag of Ermou Street, is bubbling with new cafés and bars, serving everything from falafel to Mexican, and young Athenians packing their tables at all hours.
Wine at Heteroclito
A stylish sliver of a wine bar on a busy city-center corner, Heteroclito differs from Athens’ other wine bars by putting the focus on Greek wines. The personable owners are often on hand to chat with patrons, share their passion for Greek grapes and guide novices through their Assyrtikos and Xinomavros.
Café culture at 360 Cocktail Bar and TAF
My guide told me contemporary Greece essentially invented iced coffee, as the local favorite “café freddo” is a logical way to consume caffeine during Athens’ sweltering summers. Even on an overcast spring day, the city’s many coffee bars are packed with people having actual conversations, not staring into their laptops. Monastiraki Square is the center of café culture, with cool new offerings ranging from the sprawling, multilevel 360 (named for the views from its roof) and TAF (The Art Foundation), which is tucked away in a crumbling courtyard inside a contemporary-art gallery.
Seafood at Papadakis
Chef Argiro Barbarigou may be a celebrity—who counts Pierce Brosnan, Carla Bruni and fellow big-name chefs like Cat Cora and Michel Roux among her clientele—but there’s nothing overwrought about her intimate restaurant in the upscale Kolonaki neighborhood. She works magic with local seafood and traditional dishes like octopus stewed with honey and vinsanto (sweet wine from Santorini).
Home goods at Greece Is for Lovers
This design collective aims to add a new sense of “Greekness” to contemporary product design, producing goods that are a mixture they call “humor, irony, nonchalance and extravagance,” as well as playing on stereotypical notions of what it is to be Greek, past and present. Their appointment-only showroom stocks treasures ranging from martini glasses tastefully adorned with fishing hooks to tote bags that say, “No sleep till Hades.”
Greek food at Melilitos
This café near Aigias Irinis Square started life as a delivery service but three years ago grew into a full-service restaurant after demand boomed for its healthy, home-cooked Greek food. It’s lovely for a simple, casual, affordable alfresco lunch or dinner.
Views at Hotel Grande Bretagne
The grande dame of Athens is as grand as ever, with colonnaded lobbies, ceilings dripping with crystal chandeliers, 320 traditionally outfitted guest rooms (from €260) and attentive, formal service. But its biggest selling point is arguably the drop-dead views of the Acropolis, both from the premium rooms on the higher floors, and from the GB Roof Garden Restaurant & Bar, which is open to all.
Escaping to the Island
Foremost among the sophisticated “dayclubs” and nightclubs lining the Athens Riviera, about 30 minutes from the city center, the Island is open for seaside lounging, languid lunches, late dinners and even later socializing. The views along the Saronic Gulf are stunning, and the Mediterranean food and sushi are tasty, but the real reason to go is to check out the glamorous crowd, groove on the music and soak up the scene.
Upstart travel companies like Dopios
Young Greek entrepreneurs are setting out to break the old guided-tour model (official itineraries, expensive state-licensed guides) by offering custom walking tours led by passionate locals. They’ll go off the beaten path, and off script, giving real insight into the city (and take you for good coffee). A leader here is Dopios—the name means “a local”—which has been so successful in its first year in Athens that it has expanded to San Francisco, London and Istanbul.
For more information about Athens, visit discovergreece.com.
Design at NEW Hotel
Athens’ first Design Hotel, the NEW opened about three years ago as the brainchild of a Greek art collector, who brought in Brazil’s super-hip Campana brothers to design the 79 rooms and public spaces. Think tall ladder-back chairs going to nowhere and jaggedly shaped mirrors in the rooms, and walls and columns made of the remnants of old furniture–turned–art installation in the lobby and restaurant. While the rooms (from €200) can be on the snug side, they have smart details like pop-up mirrors and work desks, and plenty of natural light, which makes them feel larger. The NEW also has a terrific location near Constitution Square, and one of the best breakfast buffets in town. (I stayed here and at the Grande Bretagne as a guest of the hotels.)
Street life in Aigias Irinis Square
This small plaza, just off the main shopping drag of Ermou Street, is bubbling with new cafés and bars, serving everything from falafel to Mexican, and young Athenians packing their tables at all hours.
Wine at Heteroclito
A stylish sliver of a wine bar on a busy city-center corner, Heteroclito differs from Athens’ other wine bars by putting the focus on Greek wines. The personable owners are often on hand to chat with patrons, share their passion for Greek grapes and guide novices through their Assyrtikos and Xinomavros.
Café culture at 360 Cocktail Bar and TAF
My guide told me contemporary Greece essentially invented iced coffee, as the local favorite “café freddo” is a logical way to consume caffeine during Athens’ sweltering summers. Even on an overcast spring day, the city’s many coffee bars are packed with people having actual conversations, not staring into their laptops. Monastiraki Square is the center of café culture, with cool new offerings ranging from the sprawling, multilevel 360 (named for the views from its roof) and TAF (The Art Foundation), which is tucked away in a crumbling courtyard inside a contemporary-art gallery.
Seafood at Papadakis
Chef Argiro Barbarigou may be a celebrity—who counts Pierce Brosnan, Carla Bruni and fellow big-name chefs like Cat Cora and Michel Roux among her clientele—but there’s nothing overwrought about her intimate restaurant in the upscale Kolonaki neighborhood. She works magic with local seafood and traditional dishes like octopus stewed with honey and vinsanto (sweet wine from Santorini).
Home goods at Greece Is for Lovers
This design collective aims to add a new sense of “Greekness” to contemporary product design, producing goods that are a mixture they call “humor, irony, nonchalance and extravagance,” as well as playing on stereotypical notions of what it is to be Greek, past and present. Their appointment-only showroom stocks treasures ranging from martini glasses tastefully adorned with fishing hooks to tote bags that say, “No sleep till Hades.”
Greek food at Melilitos
This café near Aigias Irinis Square started life as a delivery service but three years ago grew into a full-service restaurant after demand boomed for its healthy, home-cooked Greek food. It’s lovely for a simple, casual, affordable alfresco lunch or dinner.
Views at Hotel Grande Bretagne
The grande dame of Athens is as grand as ever, with colonnaded lobbies, ceilings dripping with crystal chandeliers, 320 traditionally outfitted guest rooms (from €260) and attentive, formal service. But its biggest selling point is arguably the drop-dead views of the Acropolis, both from the premium rooms on the higher floors, and from the GB Roof Garden Restaurant & Bar, which is open to all.
Escaping to the Island
Foremost among the sophisticated “dayclubs” and nightclubs lining the Athens Riviera, about 30 minutes from the city center, the Island is open for seaside lounging, languid lunches, late dinners and even later socializing. The views along the Saronic Gulf are stunning, and the Mediterranean food and sushi are tasty, but the real reason to go is to check out the glamorous crowd, groove on the music and soak up the scene.
Upstart travel companies like Dopios
Young Greek entrepreneurs are setting out to break the old guided-tour model (official itineraries, expensive state-licensed guides) by offering custom walking tours led by passionate locals. They’ll go off the beaten path, and off script, giving real insight into the city (and take you for good coffee). A leader here is Dopios—the name means “a local”—which has been so successful in its first year in Athens that it has expanded to San Francisco, London and Istanbul.
For more information about Athens, visit discovergreece.com.
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