Lost Luggage and the Art of Traveling Light

Electric Foodgaloo?

This is Part 2 of my weekend in Athens where I will talk about all the wonderful things I at and drank! If you want to read about the sites I saw, head over to Part 1.

I arrived in Athens starving, excited for my first meal. I’m not even sure how I discovered Aesopou Fables, I think I was looking at Google Maps and filtered “open now” and “top rated” near my hotel. This place had 5/5 stars and over a thousand reviews, so I made my way straight there!

Lunch at Aesopou Fables

From left to right, the kontosouvli with Mythos beer, dolmadakia (top right), and raki (bottom right)

This restaurant is a Gold Award Winner for 2023 by the Greek Taste Beyond Borders organization “for its delicious meals and its contribution to the preservation of authentic Greek cuisine, Greek tradition and sustainable local flavors.” I have to say that my food was so good that I had to fight myself from going back again. I wanted to try as many new places as I could, though maybe my Athens tradition includes eating here first thing!

(Full disclosure, I would eat everywhere I visited again!)

It was mid afternoon and the place was empty. I got a table outside so I could people watch and just take in the fact that I was in Athens.

I started with some dolmadakia, grape leaves stuffed with a grain (in this case, it was rice) and herbs, served with some herbed yogurt and olive oil. Every dolmadakia that I remember having before this was always served cold, but this was served warm, which was a pleasant surprise! They were also one of the tastiest things I had ever eaten in my life. There’s a Greek restaurant across the street from my apartment in Rome where I get dolmadakia from at least once a week. It’s nowhere near as good as the dolamdakia are at Aesopou Fables. And it makes me a little sad. Oh well.

Then I had kontosouvli, chicken with pita and baby potatoes. One of my work colleagues told me he had the best chicken of his life in Greece and I thought I would put it to the test since I’m not the biggest fan of chicken. It did not disappoint! It was flavorful and juicy. The baby potatoes were baked perfectly and the right about of salty.

At the end of the meal, the server brought me some raki. Like many cultures in this region of the world, finishing off a large meal with something bitter is said to help the digestion. I was a little hesitant at first, I don’t love most bitter beverages, and I’m not ouzo person, but the raki was chilled and palatable.

Dinner at Cinque Wine & Deli Monastiraki

When dinner time rolled around, I wasn’t terribly hungry since lunch was very filling. However, the quest to find my favorite Greek wine had not seen any progress, so I decided to check out Cinque Wine & Deli Monastiraki.

You know how some people get incredibly annoyed watching “Searching for Italy” and seeing Stanley Tucci escape to gastronomic bliss every time he takes a bite of something on the show? I have to say I’m on Stanley’s side on this one. When you are surrounded by amazing flavors and textures and aromas your body just succumbs to the sensory experience and floods your brain with all that sweet, sweet dopamine. You can’t help but to roll your eyes into your skull as your body just melts into wonderful flavors.

I chose Cinque Wine & Deli because it was also rated 5 stars with a ton of reviews and because they offered wine flights. I sat at the bar and told the server which French and Italian wines I typically enjoy, and they suggested the flight with Psiles Korfes (a dry Muscat of Samos), Lenga (a Mavrokoudoura rosé), and the Geometria (a Agiorgitiko, and my now favorite Greek red). Not only did each of the wines come with tasting notes, but the owner put on a video for me about the production of wines.

For my meal I had the green salad with goat cheese, figs, and walnuts with a pile of pita and fantastic olive oil. I was full after the meal, but I had to get dessert, so I ordered the cheese cake with Greek yogurt with a cherry compote. It was like a deconstructed cheesecake, and it was fabulous!

Pita and olive oil, three amazing Greek wines, their Greek yogurt cheesecake, and the green salad with goat cheese.

But First, Coffee

I must mention the coffee I had on my walk to the museum. I got 12 ounces of caffeinated deliciousness from a place called 12 oz. This is an Italian coffee company with a franchise in Athens serving up the best cold brew with cold foam experience since I was in Seattle. I even got the “Bubble Freddos” which are squishy boba bubbles filled with coffee that burst when you bite into them. The whole drink was a steal at €3.50! In Seattle that would have easily been an $8 drink.

From left to right: a cold brew with foam, Greek coffee, and a valerian salad with grilled halloumi cheese.

Lunch at the Acropolis Museum

Now on to the Acropolis Museum Cafe and Restaurant! As I gushed in Part 1, the Acropolis Museum is a fantastic museum and the restaurant experience does not disappoint! There’s a huge terrace where you can eat and drink while staring up at the Acropolis itself. I had a valerian salad with grilled halloumi cheese, green hummus, radish, cranberry and vinaigrette with a glass of white which I did not write down, sadly. And a cup of Greek coffee afterwards.

The restaurant was reasonably priced for a museum eatery. It wasn’t the cheapest meal, but the quality of the food and drink matched the price. And you don’t need to pay admission to go to the café or the restaurant, just head up to the second floor!

Dinner at Bandiera

Ten hours of reading every placard at the Acropolist museum does work up an appetite! It was honestly so hard to figure out where to go for dinner – all the restaurants seem to have high ratings and tons of reviews. Bandiera was around the corner from my hotel, so I happened to pass it a few times by the time Saturday night rolled around, so I thought I would try it. Once again, I was not disappointed!

For my starter I had the saganaki cheese. This is a hard cheese that is fried and topped with a drizzle of honey and some black sesame. I asked for a white wine that would pair with it, and did not record which wine it was. But it was fantastic!

For my main course I had moussaka, which is like a Greek eggplant and beef lasagna of sorts. Again, I asked for a wine that paired but didn’t record it, further winning the award for Doing the Worst Job at Finding Their Favorite Greek Wine. I want to say I was too in the moment enjoying everything to think about doing it. I do remember thinking how wild it was that I was having my fourth swoon-worthy meal in 32 hours!

I’m also doing my worst at being a food and travel blogger, because I didn’t catch the dessert either! So at this point, if you’re still reading, I’m just bragging about an amazing couple days of eating! The dessert was complimentary, so I’m going to guess that is why I don’t remember anything about it other than it was delicious!

From left to right: saganaki cheese, moussaka, dessert, dessert and raki.

Last Lunch – A Little Taste of Home

I had planned on spending Sunday at all the sites included in the combined ticket for the Acropolis, Agora, etc., but I didn’t realize they all closed at 15:00/3 p.m. on Sundays. I decided to have a leisurely lunch at A Little Taste of Home. Another highly rated restaurant, and this one was across the sidewalk from a flea market, making it a great spot for some people watching.

For my starter I got the aptly-named Euphoria Salad. Katiki domokou cheese with pomegranate with some lemon … jelly? … all along the edged of the plate. I also got some pita with some spreadable cheese and olives.

For my main I got the tajine, which is a North African dish named after the conical lid that it is cooked in. It’s braised lamb with couscous, dried fruit, almonds and spices. Again, one of the best things I’ve eaten in my life, and again, I forgot to record which wine they paired for me.

I finished off with a Greek coffee and of course the Raki!

After this I did about 500 laps around Monastiraki and Psyri to help walk off a full weekend of amazing cuisine. I can’t believe I didn’t take better notes of everything I had, but that only means that I need to go back so I can do it better next time!

Counter clockwise from top: a soft cheese spread and black olives, Katiki domokou cheese, tajine, a red wine, greek coffee, and raki.