Can anyone recommend some good restaurants in Athens, Mykonos, Santorini and Paros that won't break the bank? I'm thinking in the $20-$30 range for a nice meal in a nice atmosphere? Will be in Greece in September and am getting concerned about our weak US dollar over in Europe. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Try Matt Barrett's website.

http://www.greektravel.com/

Hello from Mykonos,
Some very nice rest that is also a "must" in Mykonos but the range is 30-40e is NIKO'S behind the Town Hall in Mykonos Town and "Aleykandra" in the square between the Windmills and Little Venice.
Have a look at www.e-mykonos.gr
a portal of Mykonos island
Have a nice time

I assume you mean $20-$30 pp. My husband and I usually eat for that by chosing tavernas and ouzerias and having mezes rather than entrees. We much prefer having several small things we can share. Although we usually order too much, we generally come out for 28-35 Euros including cover and half a liter of house wine. The vegetable mezes typically run from 2.50-4 Euros, salads around 4-4.50, and meatballs in tomato sauce, dolmades, kalamari, sausages, etc., are in the 5-7 Euro range. Four dishes are about all we should eat, but we often order 5 or 6 and stuff ourselves because we love the food. Be sure to try some keftedes. We'd had tomato keftedes on Santorini (and occasionally elsewhere)and meat keftedes but on the trip we just got back from, we discovered tiro keftedes (cheese) and chick pea keftedes (which we thought might be like falafel but aren't - are a mix of things besides the chick peas.) Don't recall the names of the places we ate in Santorini and haven't been to Mykonos or Paros. But in Athens we like two places in the Plaka, Byzantino Taverna on Kidathineon and, around the corner on Geronta, O Gly-something. (It's in Greek anyway, so knowing the English translation doesn't help much, but it's at the corner under a grape arbor and is, I think, the only restaurant on the short street.) Though not as upscale as Byzantino, it's very cheap and has excellent food and large portions. Also great for an afternoon break. Most of these places serve the bulk of their customers outside in good weather but have inside tables if you prefer.

Oops, meant to add something about the dollar situation. Last May we were paying about $1.36 per Euro, but in Sept. it was closer to $1.26, as I recall. In Dec. we paid around $1.20. When we went to Greece the first of this month, it was about $1.26 but rose the whole time we were there, topping out about $1.30. With any luck (for you, though not for summer travelers), maybe the Euro is like gas and goes up during peak times. I have my fingers crossed for both of us since we're going to Belgium in Sept.

Despite the weakness of the dollar, we managed to average around $75 a day for hotels and about $90 for food, including afternoon drinks and snacks, and we ate quite well. (But won't be able to manage that in Belgium, so I sure hope the dollar strengthens by fall.)

Greek restaurants (tavernas) will have their menu on display somewhere near the entrance, so you can check prices before going in. Many even invite you into the kitchen to see what they have prepared. It is traditional to take a stroll around town in the evenings, and that gives you an opportunity to scout for a good restaurant. Often the best value for money will be found slightly out of the way. If it is busy, and most of the customers are Greeks, that is a good sign.

You can save money for breakfast and lunch by going to a bakery for pastries, cheese pies, or sandwiches, then splurge on your evening meal. There are small places that serve inexpensive gyros and souvlaki, but I wouldn't want to eat them every day. Another tip: rather than ordering Greek salad, ask for a tomato salad. It will have everything but the feta cheese, and is much cheaper.

Polly, it isn't so much the euro getting stronger as the dollar getting weaker. This was triggered by the Federal Reserve hinting that the steady rise in interest rates won't continue, and that, along with the huge US balance of trade deficit, is making foreign investors wary of the dollar.

Some economists are predicting the £ to rise to $2, and the € to rise accordingly, but I sure hope they are wrong. I will be going to Greece at the end of August, so have my fingers crossed for a $ recovery.

We went to this place in the Plaka in Athens a couple of weeks ago:

http://www.sholarhio.gr/english/index.php

There is no menu - the waiter brings round a big tray with lots of little dishes and you just point to what you want. The dishes all cost between 2.5 and 5 euros each. For 6 dishes, drinks and a free dessert it came to 31.50 euros.

If you are looking to take out food, I highly recommend Ariston which is a bakery specializing in cheese pies (forgot the Greek name). They are on the edge of the plaka and should be experienced.

Heimdall, I was really making a poor joke in my comment about the Euro and gasoline rising during travel season. But I'm sorry to hear about predictions for further serious dollar weakening. Like Scarlett, I'll think about that tomorrow, I guess. (And go count my leftover Euros. Was pleased to find I had over 700 $1.20 Euros left from a previous trip but didn't think I wanted to hang onto more than a couple hundred for Sept., hoping the dollar would strengthen. Pretty sure there's more, so maybe I'll be glad. But sure never expected to be doing - admittedly minor - "investing" in Euros.) I'll keep my fingers crossed for all of us.

A couple of things Lilypoo should know about restaurant shopping if she's never been to Greece. First, while you're checking menus, the owners/employees/whoever will be practically trying to drag you to a table. (Heck, you don't even have to check menus, you just have to walk past.) You have to close your ears and harden your heart. Second, sometimes the outdoor tables blend from one establishment to another and you have to check carefully to be sure you're sitting down at the one you wanted. Sometimes it takes checking table cloths or items on the table to separate one from another. More than one person, me included, has sat down at the edge of the wrong restaurant.

My husband and I are great fans of Greek yogurt with honey for breakfast (and dessert anytime). Nearly all of the hotels we stayed in this year, even the 40 Euro places, had refrigerators in the room, so we bought yogurt and honey at mini markets and had that for breakfast.

A favorite cheap lunch in Athens for many people, tourists and Greeks alike, is kabab at O Thanasis near Monastiraki Sq. Avoid Sun. or be prepared to wait for a table. We generally find early - about noon - is better than late. After 3 it lightens up again.

Thanks for the info.

Polly, those were some good tips about Greek restaurants. Funny how the waiters are so attentive at the beginning, but when you are finished with the meal and want your bill they are nowhere to be found. We Americans eat much earlier than the Greeks, so my comments about looking for a restaurant filled with Greek customers isn't very helpful much before 9PM. By that time of the evening the best restaurants will be filled, and only the bad ones need to tout for customers.

Lilypoo, if you make it to Antiparos (30 min boat from Paros) a good place to eat is Yorgis Taverna. It's about half way up the main street from the harbour, usually busy, and run by a wonderful family. The food is authentic Greek, and you are encouraged to go into the kitchen to make your choice. I haven't looked at the menu there for years.

The only item likely to go over your budget is fresh fish. Years of overfishing in the Aegean have made them a scarce and expensive commodity. But if you do order fish, it will be fresh off the boat that morning. Prices are by the kilo, so go into the kithen to choose your fish, asking what it will cost before deciding.

Another great thing about Greek restaurants is you can order items to be shared between you, just like you do when eating at home. So, for instance, you can order one Greek salad, one tzatziki, vegetables, etc, and split them up. You each order your own main course, and eat the starters while waiting for the main course to arrive.

"Ouzeria style" is actually just ordering a bunch of mezes (appetizers) for the table and sharing. Like a tapas restaurant. A lot of people eat the same way in tavernas - sometimes the appetizer list is twice as long as the entree list. The assumption is generally that you WILL share and the waiter usually brings a small plate for each person before the food arrives. My husband and I really like this because we often trade parts of our meals when we eat out and, while I don't think it's considered quite as gauche as it used to be, I still feel conspicuous sometimes. I love permission to share.

Another thing about this style of eating, which is mostly what we do, is that Greeks like (or don't mind?) everything coming at once. There is a good likelihood that your food will arrive the same way, and only in Athens were we ever asked (and then only once or twice) if we'd like the salad or soup or whatever served first. Sometimes it all comes at once, sometimes it trickles out. But usually it comes amazingly fast - and all the more amazing when, as Heimdall mentioned, you're trying to get the check.

There will almost certainly be a cover of 30 cents to over a Euro pp. The “cover” covers the bread and you’ll get it whether you want it or not.

Then there’s dessert. There may not be any in moderately priced places unless they cater to a lot of tourists and choose to offer it. Most Greeks stop at a cafe later for coffee, drinks and something sweet if they want dessert. I noticed more places offering something sweet this year - but often just ice cream, yogurt with honey (sometimes nuts also), and maybe baklava. But try to get it. Once the waiter has delivered the last of your food, that's the last you'll see of your waiter. (Except at another table.) He won't be back to ask if everything is okay, if you want anything more. You'll have to catch his eye and it will be just as difficult as on those occasions I'm sure you've experienced in the US when the guy (or gal) seems to be studiously avoiding you and you wonder if you've been unintentionally rude, you smell bad, or if the waiter is blind in one eye.

And, as Heimdall also mentioned, there will be no rush to get you out of there. In a Greek restaurant, you can sit at that table sipping your wine, chatting, picking your teeth, reading, knitting, or whatever you want to do and nobody is going to indicate that they want you gone. Even if people waiting for tables are lined up 3 deep on the sidewalk. Once again, you have to catch the waiter's eye. But if and when you do, the universal mime of writing on the palm of your hand will get you the check - after he has seated another table, taken another order, and served food to another table or two. (Though we did have the bill brought rolled up in a shot glass just after the food was served in a couple of places this year. But you still have to get them to come and take your money.) When I'm grinding my teeth in frustration because I want to hit the road, though, I remember the night we were finishing coffee after dinner at a fairly upscale restaurant with another couple (and were not being particularly slow) and the waiter approached our table. Not to see if we wanted more coffee, it turned out, but to say, "If you're finished with your dessert, perhaps you're ready to leave now." That puts things into better perspective for me.

Europeans seem to dislike credit cards more and more all the time. In Greece more than most. They’ll accept a VISA for a “large purchase” – which seems to be about 150 Euros min. this year – but they want you to pay cash for the 35 Euro meal that you’d take care of at home with a card.

Still, we’re such fans of Greek food that the differences and annoyances seem minor.