Guide to Athens: Where to eat, what to see and where to stay

In recent times, Athens’ rich culture was shadowed by the Greek government-debt crisis of 2009 that triggered a recession. Ironically, attention on the city piqued the interest of the world and tourists started arriving to find out what else it had to offer beyond its historical attractions such as the Acropolis and Theatre of Dionysus.
Today, Athens is one of the most vibrant European destinations. Projects like The Ellinikon – Europe’s largest urban regeneration projects being built near the coast – will accelerate its development (the €8 billion [US$8.87 billion; S$11.51 billion] master plan includes more than 10,000 homes and a two million-square-metre park).
“In the past decade, Athens has transformed significantly, blending its rich history with modern vitality. Economic reforms and urban projects have revitalised infrastructure and public spaces. A vibrant art scene has been created, drawing international attention with events like the Athens & Epidaurus Festival while tourism has surged, with many new hotels, new-age restaurants and a vivid nightlife,” observed Natalia Karantani, marketing manager of Greek hospitality and culinary products empire, Ergon.
A barometer of development is a city’s food scene, and Athens sets the bar high. Last year’s Michelin Guide listed 31 restaurants in the city. These modern eateries serve contemporary cuisine with traditional influences, as well as fresh rooftop restaurants offering innovative dishes crafted with locally sourced ingredients – all while providing stunning views of historic landmarks.
Here are 10 suggestions for your next trip to Athens. 
With New York, Kyoto and a host of other landmark cities covered, the hip hotel brand that originated in Seattle lands in the Greek capital with the Ace Hotel & Swim Club Athens. Opening officially on Sep 30, 2024, it is the second Swim Club aside from the renowned institution in Palm Springs.
Located in Glyfada just half hour drive from the city centre, the hotel nestles among marinas, seaside restaurants and beautiful beaches framed by lemon-pink sunsets. The 120-key building on the Athenian Rivera was designed by French architecture and interior design firm cigue. White walls, straw furniture, timber elements, and coral and indigo tones meld a modern 1970s coastal vibe with the Greek naturalist style.
Two pools and a rooftop bar will no doubt be on the radar of the partying set, with Ace Hotel standards like turntables and acoustic guitars in guestrooms turning up the party quotient. A dedicated gallery space and programme spotlighting the Athenian art scene add to the hotel’s already beguiling seascape and Athen’s winsome climate.
With walnut veneer-wrapped walls, bathrooms clad with Greek marble, and classic furniture like the LC3 armchair designed by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret and Charlotte Perriand, AthensWas is a design-lover’s dream. The hotel’s style pays tribute to its former life as a modernist apartment block in the 1970s.
A Design Hotels property, each of the 21 guestrooms and suites has a street-facing balcony. The grandest is the 55-sq-m Hellenic Suite attached to a 45-sq-m verandah facing the Acropolis. Combined with the Executive Suite, it becomes the capacious 110-square-metre Hellenic Grand Suite.
AthensWas is located centrally on the Dionysiou Areopagitou pedestrian street en route to the Acropolis. On the ground floor, people watch at Modern Restaurant. Come dusk, proceed to the rooftop Michelin-starred Sebse restaurant. Against the close-up view of the illuminated Acropolis, enjoy chef Charalambopoulos’ modern-Greek cuisine.
Having just opened its newest branch at Marina Bay Sands, Estiatorio Milos is now a known name in Singapore. Fans headed to Athens can book a stay at Xenodocheio Milos (Hotel Milos), housed in a refurbished 19th century building, with the Estiatorio Milos Athenian branch downstairs and 43 guestrooms upstairs.
The hotel, which opened last year, is a partnership between Estiatorio Milos’ chef Costas Spiliadis, the Intra Athinaiki company and Dimos Stasinopoulos – the CEO of Greek luxury boutique hotel management company Epoque Collection.
Guestrooms mirror the building’s elegance, with a cream-and-chocolate palette, wooden floors and Dionysus marble bathrooms. Custom curved bedheads and dark blue, bulbous Tom Dixon light pendants evoke the port city’s nautical history. In the restaurant, a fishnet sculpture by Greek artist Dimitris Fortsas emphasises the Mediterranean cuisine’s seafood focus. Top the stay with a culinary river tour that comes with a meal on board the Milos at Sea yacht.
Ergon is a Greek food and hospitality brand founded in Thessaloniki by two brothers in 2008 to promote Greek culinary heritage. More than 600 unique products are sold across its empire of 25 franchise delis, restaurants, markets and hotels across Greece, UK, Cyprus and the Middle East.   
Ergon Bake House at 27 Mitropoleos Street is its latest property in Athens celebrating all things sourdough and combining food and stay. The lobby is small and casual but full of character, surrounded by bakes and shelves of local produce for purchase. Twenty-nine guestrooms designed by Urban Soul Project exude Kinfolk vibe, with firebricks, linen curtains and stainless steel element.  
For sustenance, all-day diner 72 Eatery offers sourdough breads, biga pizzas and a very memorable sourdough koulouri (a local sesame bagel). You can also take away croissants and pastries from 72H Artisanal Bakery’s street-side window nearby. At the rooftop, +2H helmed by chef Panagiotis Xanthis showcases dishes like eggplant schnitzel paired with a cocktail of sesame-oiled gin, mastiha, Aegean vegetables and marinated tomato. 
A modern-day Greek tavern, Linou Soumpasis k Sia is a Michelin-starred restaurant set within the eclectic neighbourhood of Psiri. Meals start with the lighting of a candle in a silver holder to pay homage to the space’s former life as a candle shop. The atmosphere is casual yet chic with a minimalist decor, including soaring white walls, high ceilings, terrazzo flooring.
Food here is a modern riff on traditional Greek cuisine using fresh organic produce, such as Greek salad served with brie instead of feta, and veal cheek stew in a chickpea soup. The substantial Greek wine list is a bonus.
The open kitchen provides a buzzy atmosphere, coloured by the abstract paintings of Greek artist Tefra90 and sunlight washing in through glass walls on both ends. Cool evenings call for dinner under a lemon tree at the patio. Purchase a candle at the end to commemorate your meal.
In 2023, famed chef Tasos Mantis opened Soil in a neoclassical house within the Pangrati district. The Michelin-starred, farm-to-table restaurant celebrates Greek terroir. Think miso made from local chickpeas or lentils, and yuzu sauce from kumquats in the garden.
The seasonal tasting menu highlights the best and freshest ingredients available each season. For example, the summer menu offers shrimp paired with orange, pecan and marigold flowers. There is also a scallop dish enhanced with leek, yeast and coffee.
We recommend The Alepochori Experience, which starts with produce picking in the lush garden alongside chef Tasos Mantis and his father ‘Mastro-Babis’. Guests then enter the building to see their pickings turned into artful dishes at the Chef’s Table before leaving with the restaurant’s exquisite Little Book of Herbs.
Located in the affluent area of Kolonaki, Antiqua Gallery is a family-run business that started in 1952. It specialises in historical and 20th century furniture, lighting and ceramic design. Here, one can see pieces by Scandinavian and Italian masters such as Poul Kjaerholm, as well as Gio Ponti and Angelo Lelii.
This is also the place to find out more about Greek artists and designers, such as Philolaos Tloupas, Yiannis Moralis and Eleni Vernadaki. An upcoming exhibition running from Sep 17, 2024 to Oct 26, 2024 highlights the work of the late-Greek artist Kostas Paniaras (1934-2018).
Paniaras was known for labyrinth-shaped, elliptical sculptures made of hand-painted PVC – a technique he later applied to tables. His works will be placed alongside fixtures by the late-Italian lighting designer Gino Sarfatti (191201985) who founded Milan-based company Arteluce.
The famous Athenian artist Alekos Fassianos (1935-2022) is known for his distinctive style and iconic imagery that include cyclists with windblown hair and cupids. He drew inspiration from folk and classical Greek art but transported his protagonists into modern urban narratives.
A wonderful place to experience his genius is at the Alekos Fassianos Museum in Agios Pavlos. It was the site of his childhood home from the 1930s to the 1970s until his mother tore it down to build an apartment block for her children. Fassianos later collaborated with architect Kyriakos Krokos to create the museum, which was completed in 1995 and opened in 2023. 
Every corner of this museum is a design delight – from metal woven balustrades to the protruding bathroom skylight. Cement, stone, mosaic, brick and plaster, as well as a distinctive colour palette of bright red and ochre provide a rich backdrop for Fassianos’ art pieces, as well as archival pieces of his writings, stage work, costume design and even toys he built as a child.
Designed by the office of famed Italian architect Renzo Piano, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre is worth making the short cab ride out of town for. Located in Kallithea, it houses the National Museum of Greece, the Greek National Opera and the 210,000-sq-m Stavros Niarchos Park.
It is a public building with many spaces that can be enjoyed without a fee including multiple viewing spots at the tip. From this high point, one can amble down the sloped roof of the library with a sprawling garden, filled with indigenous plants and herbs like oregano, thyme and rosemary.  
The garden is so large one forgets this is a building’s roof until the plaza on the ground floor starts coming into view. A large water body with hourly musical fountain shows honours the area’s once-thriving ancient Phalerum port.
Lake Vouliagmeni (meaning ‘sunken lake’) is near the Ace Hotel & Swim Club. This small lagoon formed 2,000 years ago was formerly a large cavern that collapsed after an earthquake. It beckons swimmers with warm seawater that comes through a network of underground flooded caves.
The water’s comfortable temperature and rich hydrogen sulphide content has made it a natural spa destination since the 19th century. There are spa treatments available, against the backdrop of craggy stonewalls and sparkling azure waters.
Note that there is an entrance fee and seating is limited so arrive early and reserve a cabana on the website in advance. The waters are closed in the evenings, so another option is to come at dusk as the lake becomes an illuminated picture-perfect backdrop for the waterside restaurant Abraovata.