Restaurants Greece - Athens Santorini & Crete
 

Were headed to Greece in 3 weeks - and CAN"T WAIT!!!! However, we would like to ask for suggestions for restaurants in Athens, Santorini (anywhere on the island) and Heraklion area. Price is not the objective quality and the setting is foremost. Especially those little finds we all cherish. Any other pointers will be graciously accepted. Thanks in advance for your help.

I would recommend in Santorini: Ambrosia, Selene, 1800, Nectar, Katrina ( by the sea for freshest seafood). These ,with the exception of Selene, are in Oia.

I forgot how to spell the places we went to in Athens. Will get back to you.

In Crete we ate our meals in Chania where we stayed so i have no recos for Heraklion.

you are going to LOVE Greece!!!!!

In Oia, Santorini: 1800 House and Nikolas Tavern ( very simple place with excellent food, huge portions, and a rooftop deck)

In Amoudi Bay, which is close to Oia, Dimitris for wonderful seafood. And Katrinas.

Me too, I'm going to Greece in 3 weeks too! (Well 3 weeks and 1 day :) I'm jotting down these restaurant recs. I'd also love suggestions for Nafplio too. jdm_karen, have a great trip!

If you order fresh fish or a steak, be advised that you will be charged by weight, so be sure you get a price before you commit.

Thanks so much for the info. tripgirl,weadles,brotherleelove. Have a great trip also samtraveler.

jim( the jdm of jdm_karen)

We are just back from our trip to Athens, Santorini, and Chania in Crete.

Here are our restaurant experiences:
CHANIA...The BEST meal by far was at WELL OF THE TURK. It isn't easy finding this place, but well worth the trouble. It seems to be a fusion of Greek and Turkish food. Everything was very carefully prepared and wonderful to eat. I also had the best dessert of the trip....baklava served with vanilla ice cream and fresh orange sections.

We also ate at Tamam, Antigone, and To Karnegio...which was our least favorite of the restaurants we tried in Chania. Antigone is on the harbor front on the very very end. But because of this location, it is very quiet and peaceful..a much nicer setting than the other restaurants along the waterfront.

Tamam was very good. To Karnegio was good, but our meal there was not as good as at the other places.

SANTORINI: We had dinner at VANILIA...it is a beautiful setting. Reserve a table UPSTAIRS for the best view. The service was friendly and professional. The food was very good. We had a wonderful meal.

KASTRO...we ate lunch here. Another beautiful setting and good food and service.

MELENIOS:...We had lunch here in Oia. This is a pastry shop which serves light meals. Very nice.

SELENE: I have read so many raves about this restaurant but I don't know what happened the night we were there. It must have been the chefs night OFF.
First, let me say the service was very professional and all the people working there were SO NICE that it pains me to say anything negative about this restaurant. But the langoustine soup was totally bland and COLD. MY grilled grouper was tough, dry, and chewy.

AMBROSIA: Although this was the best meal we had at Santorini, the dinner ended on a sour note with great disappointment. If you go to this restaurant, CHECK YOUR BILL CAREFULLY.

All the food here was superb. The service was friendly. The view outstanding. (Reserve a table upstairs.)

It was such a nice meal that we had decided to return again the next night...until we got the check. Let me explain....

In every restaurant, snack bar, mini-mart in Greece we always got an official, machine-printed bill. At Ambrosia, we were presented with a handwritten bill on a piece of paper. There was also a "staple" on this piece of paper, telling me there had been something stapled to it, most likely the machine-printed bill.

Immediately, I was suspicious...with good reason. There were 2 problems.

The price we were charged for the bottle of wine was 12 EUROS HIGHER than what it said on the menu. Also, no matter how we did the addition, it did not add up to what the bill said. I even got out my mini-flashlight and my calculator.

The manager must have been observing my reaction because the waitress, a young lady from California, returned to our table and announced that the manager had "suddenly realized" he charged us the wrong price for the wine. With that, she grabbed the bill from my hand and disappeared.

When she brought us a new handwritten bill with the correct price for the wine, the addition still did not add up. And the price of one of the entries was totally illegible.

I asked the waitress to decipher for me the number that was written on the paper. She replied that "the manager is responsible for the bill" and she "can't read his writing either."

After some more back and forth, we finally got the whole bill straightened out.

What a SHAME that this restaurant with such outstanding food does not have management on an equal level.

ATHENS: Dinner at EDODI. THIS WAS AN EXPERIENCE. If you can manage to have dinner here, DON'T MISS IT. The best meal we had in Greece...or in many places all around the world. OUTSTANDING in food and service and ambiance. They have only 8 tables, so make a reservation.

Also, we found that all over Greece, the COFFEE and WINE were EXCELLENT. It was some of the best coffee we've had anywhere. And the wines, even the inexpensive house wines were very very enjoyable.