Reinventing the Classics of Greek Cuisine

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There are a core of classics that are so called for a reason. Tried and tested by generations of yiayiades and visitors alike, moussaka, pastitsio, horiatiki, souvlaki and their taverna brethren are things to be dreamed of when away and savoured when here. A trip to the back kitchen to confer with the chef on the day’s catch before eating a simply grilled fish with an aluminium boat of ladolemono and a view of the sea is one of my favourite rituals. Another famously Greek trait is the curious, inquisitive desire to experiment that led this nation to pioneer a revolution in thinking that lasted thousands of years. Unlike some of her European cousins, experimentation and adaptation in Greek cuisine is not only tolerated but encouraged. Don’t expect everyone to like it but you won’t be banished from the village in shameful exile. There is a broad cadre of Greek chefs, young and old, who are experimenting with the classics. What follows are a few that we’ve tried and enjoyed recently. 

Moussaka at Ateno

I was lucky enough to visit Ateno with a friend of the chef who generously sent out a plate of their excellent charcuterie and a delicious salad before we’d had a chance to order so that when the famous moussaka arrived I was worried about my ability to give it its due. I was to be proved wrong. Chef Nikos Karathanos has rethought moussaka from the ground up, literally, as the dish sits on a bed of crispy potato chips. The chips are topped with a flying saucer of eggplants stuffed with well seasoned mincemeat which is then covered in a nutmeg spiked bechamel. Not enough thought it given to the auditory aspect of dining and the sensory pleasure of cutting into a bechamel covered dome and hearing a crispy snap is wonderful. In the mouth is dish continues to be nuanced and playful, not words that are usually associated with moussaka. The whole menu is delicious. Read more here

Fish Sandwich at Atlantikos

The initial view of the restaurant doesn’t prepare you for the experience that is to follow and that’s all for the better. Located in a nondescript alleyway in Psiri, the restaurant flexes tables depending on the number of lucky initiates waiting to pay respects. As new people arrive, new tables are set up in the alley until some magical maximum has been reached, at which point the queue starts. Seabass with roasted vegetables is a regular fish taverna lunch and, you would think, unimprovable on. However at Atlantikos they take all of this deliciousness, put it in a sandwich and charge a relatively tiny sum for the pleasure. A fried fillet of seabass, accompanied by roast vegetables, doused with a mustard spiked sauce and enclosed in a crispy, chewy ciabatta style half loaf, this sandwich denies logic by being light and rich and intensely savoury and wonderfully nourishing. The fact that it costs less than €5 seems almost like an act of charity and I have fantasies of starving Athenian artists living on them until they reach global success and then reminiscing about them at banquets at the Frieze Art Fair. Reinvention without pretention. And what a treat.

White and Green Bean Fasolada at Manari

This new outpost by seemingly inexhaustible Ari Vezene and team has been attracting Athenians in the hordes since its opening early October, despite a rather unwelcoming reservations team. So the inaugural trip to Manari was fraught with low expectations. A friend ordered what seemed like the most unappetising dish on the menu – a white and green bean salad. A masterfully executed take on the fasolada, its citrusy seasoning with lime zest and dill is so refreshingly subtle and sophisticated, that it elevates this classic Greek winter staple into a whole new league. Unlike its traditional counterpart, there is no red tomato sauce, nor is it served warm. But there is something about the freshness of the ingredients and the comfort they provide, that allows this humble bean salad to not just straddle seasons, but to evoke the contradictory emotions of nostalgia and contemporariness.