The Best Places To Drink In Athens
COCKTAILS
The Bar In Front Of The Bar
From a streetside hatch on a busy shopping street, The Bar in Front of the Bar serves inventive, zero-waste cocktails to customers gathered at its outdoor tables. We’d not had such good drinks in such a simple setting before. Now we wonder why everyone isn’t doing it.
Visit THEBARINFRONTOFTHEBAR.GR
Clumsies
Walk into the Clumsies and you might feel like you’ve stumbled into a house party – the building it now occupies still feels like the townhouse it once was. But the cocktails will confirm this is no student affair. The Clumsies is a ten-year veteran of the World’s Best lists thanks to won’t-find-them-elsewhere drinks like a blue Aegean negroni.
Visit THECLUMSIES.GR
Baba Au Rum
It’s a rum bar, so of course it’s got a tiki edge. Somehow, the tiki is cool here. The décor is mid-century tropical, staff are friendly and the atmosphere’s easy going. Soak it all up inside or spill out to the street on warmer evenings. And the drinks? Outstanding. This is the place to find out what a daiquiri and a mai tai should be.
Visit BABAAURUM.COM
Barro Negro
What Baba Au Rum is to rum, Barro Negro is to tequila and mezcal. The agave spirits take centre stage on a cocktail list of modern classics – ease yourself in with a mezcal old fashioned. Like Baba, which is handily placed about a minute’s walk away, Barro has an appealing neighbourhood vibe and street-front outdoor space for the summer.
Visit BARRONEGROATHENS.COM
Galaxy Bar
A wood-panelled Athenian institution that deserves at least an evening of your time, Galaxy is not to be confused with the bar of the same name at the top of the Hilton. This is a place that has embedded itself in the city over the last 50-odd years, drawing an eclectic crowd of locals who appreciate the classic cocktails and old-school staff.
Stadiou 10, Athens 105 62
Feelin’ Good
On the south side of the Acropolis, this small and stripped-back corner spot is a modern Greek take on a classic American jazz bar. It draws a cool crowd with DJ sessions and some US flourishes – look for perfectly turned garibaldis on the cocktail list and chicken nuggets among the snacks.
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Barreldier
This snug Italian-owned bar is hard to beat for an aperitivo if you’re close to Syntagma Square at the end of a long day. It’s known for barrel-aging its spirits. The result is its own unique take on classic drinks – try a negroni, which also features vermouth made to a secret family recipe.
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Couleur Locale
Head into Monastiraki flea market and, if you can find the lift that takes you up to Couleur Locale, you’re in for a treat. A younger crowd gathers each evening on its third floor for drinks with a view up to the Acropolis. A DJ adds fuel to the fire later on, though you can always take things down a level to the laid-back floor below.
Visit COULEURLOCALEATHENS.COM
Birdman
Birdman is inspired by Japanese listening bars, where connoisseurs used to go to hear the latest jazz records. Here, the soundtrack is more eclectic – running from Japanese jazz to Nigerian funk – and the drinks list has had an update too. There’s craft beer and natural wines offered alongside the sake highballs. If you’re settling in, the chef-owner cooks yakitori skewers over an open fire.
Visit BIRDMAN.GR
Alexander’s Bar
On the off chance you’re not staying there, the Grande Bretagne is the stately property to your left as you’re watching the changing of the guard on Syntagma Square. It’s as old money as they come, and it happens to have one of the great hotel bars. An 18th-century tapestry hangs behind the bar of Alexander’s, where the clubby atmosphere seems to suit short drinks best.
Visit MARRIOTT.COM
Walk In Athens
Edgy Exarcheia was once a hotbed of anarchism. It’s still got the graffiti to show for it, but a food and drink scene has emerged amongst it all. One of the key players is Walk In, a brutalist spot that uses floral arrangements, natural wines and all-vinyl DJs to soften its hard surfaces. It’s also the only place in town we know to grab a kumquat and mango blossom gimlet.
Follow @WALKIN.ATHENS
Anglais
Lit up at night, the Acropolis is a special sight. It’s one you can drink in from this rooftop bar in Monastiraki. If you can’t find the lift for Couleur Locale, think of this as your back-up option – though we wouldn’t put you off stopping in at Anglais during daylight either.
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WINE
Line
Taking over a high-ceilinged old gallery in the Petralona neighbourhood to the west of the centre, Line has become a bar worth travelling for. It’s where the pair behind the Clumsies have branched out into wine. They’re making some of the wines themselves – from pomegranates, from figs, from anything that isn’t grapes – and also bread, which means the bar snacks are good.
Visit LINEATHENS.GR
Drupes Spritzeria
Drupes started as a café-bakery but has now dedicated itself to the aperitivo-hour spritz – great news for anyone who’s just spent a warm afternoon wandering the Acropolis. Aperol is here, of course, but there are more unusual takes too, as well as a decent Italian wine list.
Follow @DRUPES.SPRITZERIA
Materia Prima
There are two Materia Primas around town: the original close to the Acropolis in Koukaki; the other behind the Panathenaic Stadium in Pangrati. Both are excellent modern bistros, where you can drink and eat indoors or out. The kitchen’s seasonal dishes are carefully designed to match the monthly changing wine lists.
Visit MATERIAPRIMA.GR
Epta Martyres
A good place to try Greek wine, Epta Martyres sits on a buzzy little square in up-and-coming Neos Kosmos to the south of the Acropolis. It tends to get busy later on, so book a table or be prepared to stand and wait for seats at the bar. There are no food menus to order from, but for a few euros a go the chef will deliver a snack to go with your latest glass.
Follow @EPTAMARTYRES
Eprepe
Kypseli is a locals’ neighbourhood to the north of the city’s tourist centre. It’s where the team behind the Seychelles restaurant (in our Eat section) chose to open Eprepe, which stands out not just for its neon sign and its alluring wine list, but also for the quality of its small plates. Accept any and all pairing suggestions you’re offered.
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COFFEE
There are two ways you can go to get your caffeine hit in Athens: old school or new. We like them both. For a taste of old Greece, there are some stalwart ‘kafenia’ around town: Mokka
in the historic centre, Oraia Ellas in Monastiraki and Mouria in Exarcheia all celebrated their centenaries in recent years. These are places to order an unfiltered Greek coffee in the traditional style. In Kypseli, Allios Kafeneio offers a modern take on the old ways.
If it’s a flat white you’re after – or one of the iced freddo espressos that are popular here in summer – you’ve got an array of options. Our favourites include: Third Place in Plaka, Dope Roasting in the historic centre, Williwaw and Kick in Kypseli, and ERE close to the Acropolis.
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