El Taco Bueno

All of the food at this restaurant is superb but here is a small taste of what you’ll find.

After you are seated, you are quickly served with a little bowl of nachos and salsa dip and a large glass of water to get your appetite going while you glance over the menu.

For starters, you can order nachos topped with melted cheese or chili (or both!), Mexi Cali Fries, Jalapeno Poppers, onion rings, chili con carne and quesadillas, not to mention some of the best buffalo chicken wings to be had in Athens. Their salads, which include the bueno tostada and the Mexicana salad, both set in a scrumptious tortilla shell, are fantastic; they are enormous and tasty.

For the main course, you can choose their specialty, fajitas, which are both delicious and in such large quantities that you will definitely want to share with friends! You can also try their enchiladas, chimichangas and burritos as well as hard taco shells filled with the meat of your choice, including minced meat, chicken or beef. But if you get stuck on what to order, don’t hesitate to ask the staff for suggestions – they are more than happy to help!

The service is excellent and in the summer, you can enjoy your meal in the garden, surrounded by trees and colorful flowers.

Don’t forget to make a reservation – although the restaurants are fairly large, the tables quickly get booked up!

Note: Most of the above dishes can be made meat-free for vegetarians.

WHERE:
El taco bueno
Ethinikis Antistaseos & Psaron 1, Chalandri
Tel 210 6840460

El taco bueno autentico
Aristotelous 84, Chalandri
Tel 210 6813787

El taco bueno delivery
Pentelis Ave. 12-14, Chalandri
Tel 210 6800662-3

OPENING HOURS:
Tuesday-Saturday 19:00-24:00
Sunday 13:00-24:00

Average cost per person: 20-25€

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Locations:

Kifissia: Agiou Dimitriou 8 - Tel: 21 0801 2765 (around the corner from the AB Vasilopoulos super market on the main street)

Agia Paraskevi: Evergetou Giavasi 13a, 15342 - Tel: 213 0 240 776 - Email: ninnolo.gelato@gmail.com

They are also open for breakfast and brunch.

For further info, visit their Facebook pages here and here.

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Seafood legend Lefteris Lazarou won the Michelin race, gaining the country’s first star for Greek food—and rightly so, say the hordes clamoring for tables at this wood-floored, white-walled dining room (belonging to Hotel Eridanus) or a prized one on the terrace overlooking the Acropolis. Lazarou rises before dawn to source his psari (baked seafood dishes) and treats them in ways that veer into classical French territory without ever leaving Greece. Typical are cuttlefish risotto with caramelized garlic and bay leaf, and grouper with wild greens braised in egg-lemon sauce. Meat dishes are fewer, but just as amazing, such as his take on patsa, the workingman’s tripe soup, served in a martini glass.

Dinner for 2 from about 120€, fish priced by the kilo

80 Piraeus, Athens
210/522-8400
www.varoulko.gr 

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Babis, the chef/owner says that during World War II people would go down there for shelter, good food and wine. The taverna upstairs often featured a famous singer, and a lady would play piano, which you could hear downstairs. Babis specializes in Byzantine style food of which the Politiki Salata (salad of The City/aka Constantinople) is a sublime mix of aubergine, garlic, olive oil and sour cream however it is advisable to try absolutely everything. There is no real menu, however dishes that feature include slow roasted baby lamb cooked en parchment, meatballs with stewed scallions & artichoke hearts, mashed fava beans with diced red onions, lemon juice, olive oil, and capers, a tostada-type of treat with ground seasoned meat on one half and aubergine, tomato, and a mild white cheese on the other. They only serve barrel wines but you really shouldn't be drinking anything bottled with food like this; get it by the kilo. The whole meal is so cheap it will blow your mind. So, if you can find it and manage to get a table, seek out the secret taverna that has no name but doesn’t seem to need one.

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In an obscure location and difficult to find, the taverna I'm about to mention is so off the beaten path it doesn't even have a name, but its prices are so low and its food so exceptional that it is truly Athens's best-kept secret. When my grandfather was still alive he would often muse about the old days, about how much smaller and friendlier Athens used to be, about how in its zeal to become a modern European capital it had lost its unique flavor. When he told me about this little taverna in Gazi, it must have been 1985 or 1986, only a couple of years after the toxic spewing gasworks had been shut down, turning Gazi and its surrounding areas of hat and silk factories into an urban wasteland. He and his friends would go there during the war for shelter, warm meals, and barrel wine.

This was during the beginning of the Nazi occupation and before the famine, though even the Nazis couldn't find it on their nightly patrols despite the many nights with live music. He never went searching for the taverna after the war. I think he doubted it would still be there, so imagine my surprise a few months ago when I came across a site online where people were talking about an obscure little taverna that was hard to find, with no name, close to the popular Mamakas restaurant and the Benaki Annex building on Pireos Avenue in Gazi.

Intrigued, I went searching for it myself. The area is a ghost town during the day (but for how long is anyone's guess given how popular the area is becoming and the Metro stop Kerameikos just a couple of blocks away). Eventually, I finally arrived, finding a taverna specializing in Byzantine cuisine that opens only for dinner. There is no name, no telephone number, no reservations, and credit cards are not accepted. But what you will find is one of the most delicious meals you have ever had. I had a slow-roasted lamb on parchment and politiki salata (Constantinople Salad) that floored me. The following night I brought my mother for dinner and for drinks afterward at Mamakas. We paid far more for four drinks than we did for two meals, four appetizers, two salads, and four glasses of wine.

So how do you get there? Begin at Mamakas restaurant on Persephone's Street. Walk down a couple of blocks until you reach the block before the train tracks. Turn left on Dekeleon Street and follow it a couple of blocks to a little triangular square. At the corner (the street is still Dekeleon) is a Turkish cafe. Descend the stairs below the cafe and you'll found this little treasure.

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3 Matzarou St. & Solonos St, 106 72 Kolonaki, Athens, Τ: 210. 3633144

cilentio.gr

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We gorged so happily on these mezedes that we couldn’t summon much enthusiasm for our entrees, which warranted at least a bit of it. A simply grilled red snapper had tender flesh; baked chicken fulfilled its prosaic obligations.

Come dessert Vlassis looked beyond the national borders, serving us a panna cotta reminiscent of Italy and a cheesecake evocative of nowhere and everywhere. I could excuse the digression. It was the last act of our final meal, and we’d had our contented fill of Greece.

Vlassis, Maiandrou 15, Athens; (30-210) 7256335. Dinner for two, with wine, is 85 euros.


nytimes.com

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In 1955 the restaurant moves to its present place, next the entrance of Spice Market overlooking Galata Bridge, the Goldenhorn and Bosphorus. The old chef is hereafter supported by his son Christos Tsobanoglou who has undertaken the overall responsibility since 1967.

Pandeli’s cuisine constitutes the highlight of the local gastronomy for the 20th century and its ingenuity acquires universal appreciation.
In 2003 Christos Tsobanoglou and his children Paris and Sofia have opened the restaurant in Athens at Kefalari Kifisia and have brought the quality in oriental cuisine as well in Greece.
Nobody has over doubted that at restaurants one will taste the best choice of the food market, cooked the unique way- the Pandeli’s way by using the best and freshest ingredients.

Pandeli was recently (2004) been awarded from the Chaine de Rotisseurs of Greece. Also, The most of the foreign tourist guides mention restaurant as the number one choice (e.g. the French “Les Guides bleus”).

Istanbul: Misir Carsisi No.1, Eminonu, Istanbul, Turkey, tel. 0212 522 55 34

Athens: Pentelis 3, 14562 Kfisia, Athens, tel. +30 210 80 80 787

Address:
PANDELI RESTAURANT
3, Pentelis str., 145 62
Kifissia, Athens

Telephone: +30210 8080787

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Geros tou Moria, is a traditional and historical tavern in Plaka. Many celebrities and simple people choose it for their private or professional occassions. Business travelers also choose this tavern for their business meetings, or in order to relax after a busy day at work.

Live Greek music accompanies your meals here at Geros tou Moria, creating a nostalgic atmosphere. Greeks will reminisce of the old good times, where everything was simple, while foreigners will see the famous Greek entertainment.

Geros Tou Moria Tavern is situated in Plaka, a historical district of Athens, right under the sacred rock of the Acropolis. Plaka is one of the oldest neighborhoods of the capital, with many places of interest, the most significant of which, is the Parthenon. The Parthenon is visible from every corner in Plaka, creating a nostalgic atmosphere.
A walk around Plaka reveals remains of ancient monuments, as and other neoclassical buildings of unique architecture.
Nowadays, Plaka has become a hot spot for Greeks and tourists as it has many shops, restaurants, taverns and bars. 

Mnisikleous 27, Plaka - Athens - Tel.: +30 210 3221753 - Fax: 210 3223861 - e-mail: info@gerostoumoria-restaurant.com  

http://www.gerostoumoria-restaurant.com/

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Appetizers include an astonishingly tender grilled calamari and lamb skewered on toothpicks with light yogurt and mint sauce, with main courses of unusual regional and seasonal fare, such as pork or veal braised with quince or wild greens or eggplant, depending on the season.

In the summer there’s al fresco in the inner courtyard. The service is excellent and the owners charming.

ADDRESS:

4 Lysikratous St, Plaka
Telephone reservations:
+30 210 3227971

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