Tuesday, June 21, 2011

ATHENS

(includes Glyfada & Nea Ionia)

BAKERIES, COFFEE, ICE CREAM, JUICE & TEA

Skoufa 47 – 47 Skoufa (Kolonaki); 011-30-21-0339-2354; skoufa47.gr; espresso and wine bar; lounge by night.
Tailor Made – 2 Plateia Agias Eirinis; 011-30-21-3004-9645; micro-coffee-roaster by day and drink spot by night; outdoor tables.



BARS & NIGHTCLUBS
Art Foundation (TAF Athens) – 5 Normanou; 011-30-21-0323-8757; theartfoundation.gr; on gritty street, within seedy flea market; inside, hidden gem; oasis-like courtyard, strung with lights in lovely garden.
Diodos Taverna – 46 Pandrosou (Monastiraki); 011-30-21-0322-8651; lovely traditional cafeteria & favorite hang-out.
Dude – 14 Kalamiotou Street; facebook.com/theDUDEbar; bar that honors Big Lebowski.
Galaxy – 46 Vassilissis Sofias (at Hilton, on rooftop); 011-30-21-0728-1000; www1.hilton.com; panoramic city view at night.
Skoufa 47 – 47 Skoufa (Kolonaki); 011-30-21-0339-2354; skoufa47.gr; espresso and wine bar; café by day and lounge by night.
Tailor Made – 2 Plateia Agias Eirinis; 011-30-21-3004-9645; micro-coffee-roaster by day and drink spot by night; outdoor tables.
Tudor Bar – 2A Vassileos Georgiou (Syntagma Square, at King George II Hotel); 011-30-21-0322-2210; grecotel.gr; on rooftop; excellent city views.
Venue – 130 Peiraios; 011-30-21-0341-1410; venue-club.com; dance and nightclub.



HOTELS
Arion Resort & Spa – 40 Apollonos Street; 011-30-21-0890-2000; luxurycollection.com/arion.
Hera Hotel – 9 Falirou (Acropolis); 011-30-21-0923-6682; herahotel.gr; great Acropolis views from dining terrace; 4 star boutique.
King George II Hotel – 2A Vassileos Georgiou (Syntagma Square); 011-30-21-0322-2210 or 011-30-210-728-0350; grecotel.gr; among Athens’s great historic hotels; opulent and intense; only 102 rooms; feels like personalized boutique hotel; modern gym/health club; rooms individually designed with handmade furniture, silk and satin upholstery, and spacious, gray marbled bathrooms with sunken tubs and glass-encased showers; infamous 9th floor penthouse suite’s occupiers include Aristotle Onassis, Maria Callas, Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier, Marilyn Monroe, and Frank Sinatra.
Hotel Grande Bretagne – 1A Vassileos Georgiou (Syntagma Square, next door to King George II Hotel); 011-30-210-333-0000; grandebretagne.gr; legendary; among Athens’ most distinguished 19th Century buildings; exquisite Beaux Arts lobby; indoor and outdoor swimming pools; guests include Winston Churchill and Sting; prides self on service; ask for room with balcony overlooking Syntagma Square, Parliament building, and Acropolis.
Hilton Athens – 46 Vassilissis Sophias Avenue; 011-30-21-0728-1000 or 800-445-8667; hilton.com.
Margi – 11 Litous Street (Vouliagmeni); 011-30-21-0892-9000; themargi.gr; lovely.
New Hotel – 16 Fillellinon Street; 011-30-21-0628-4640 or 800-337-4685; yeshotels.gr; affordable; 79 rooms; high eco-style; bamboo-parquet floors, brass-clad wash basins.
Ochre & Brown – 7 Leokoriou Street (Psiri); 011-30-21-0331-2940; oandbhotel.com; affordable with elegant, minimalist rooms; good location.
Periscope Hotel – 22 Haritos; 011-30-21-0729-7200; periscope.athenshotels.it; former Athenian Inn; trendy boutique.



RESTAURANTS
Alatsi – 13 Vrassida (Ilissia); 011-30-21-0721-0501; alatsi.gr; dazzling.
Aristera Dexia – 3 Andronikou Street; 011-30-21-0342-2380; steel gray and minimalist décor; best wine cellar in town and tapas-style menu.
Balthazar – D. Soutsou & Tsocha Streets (corner); 011-30-21-0641-23009; balthazar.gr; housed in beautiful neo-classical buildings in city; gorgeous garden in back; hot spot near American Embassy.
Central – 14 Filikis Etairias Square; 011-30-21-0724-5938; centralfunkyrestaurant.gr; nice atmosphere, good music, overpriced.
Doris – 30 Praxitelous; 011-30-21-0323-2671; over 100 years old; Greek home-cooking in restaurant in crammed, central Athens neighborhood of narrow, slanting streets; make sure to have loukomades (doughnuts); everything good except Greek pasta; open 8-6:30.
Fuga – 1 Kokkali; 011-30-21-0724-2979; fugarestaurant.com; Mediterranean restaurant perched high above city at Athens Concert Hall; try cod in coriander and lemon sauce.
Karavitas – 35 Arktinou; 011-30-21-0721-5155; rough-hewn rebel in central Athens; thick, garlicky tzatziki; reknowned for grilled meats, for which you pay by kilogram; make sure to try meatballs.
Mamacas – 41 Persophonous Street; 011-30-21-0346-4984; mamacas.gr; delicious Greek food; lunch.
Margaro – 126 Hatzikyriakou (Piraeus); 011-30-21-0451-4226; paper-covered tables in flimsy setting; famous for mullet.
Melilotos – 19 Kalamiotou Street (off Ermou Street); 011-30-21-0322-24-58; melilotos.gr; hidden in “fabric district”; family-run kitchen; specializes in fusion cuisine, using produce from Greek islands; try fried Cretan feta laced with ouzo and watermelon, tangerine-infused pasta and/or squid-ink tagliatelle flecked with smoke trout.
Papadakis – 15 Fokilidou Street; 011-30-21-0360-8621; open since 1957; former journalists’ haunt; socialites throng here.
Red – 34-36 Kastorias Street (Athinais); 011-30-21-0348-0000; stylish complex in former silk factory; now houses Pierides Museum of Ancient Cypriot Art; great crab salad.
Skoufa 47 – 47 Skoufa (Kolonaki); 011-30-21-0339-2354; skoufa47.gr; during day, simple dishes like prosciutto sandwiches; lounge at night.
Tudor Restaurant – 2A Vassileos Georgiou (Syntagma Square, at King George II Hotel); 011-30-210-322-2210; grecotel.gr; power dining.
Varoulko – 80 Pireos (Gazi); 011-30-210-522-8400; varoulko.gr; creative dishes.
Vassilenas – 72 Aitolikou (Piraeus); 011-30-21-0461-2457; vassilenas.gr; lovely setting and foodie-magnet; excellent grilled squid; traditional Greek food with modern freshness.
Vlassis – 15 Maiandrou; 011-30-21-0725-6335; balanced refined and rustic atmosphere; traditional Greek food, some presented as tapas (mezedes); great desserts, too.



SHOPPING
Rebecca Camhi Gallery – 9 Leonidou; 11-30-21-0523-3049; rebeccamhi.com; modern Greek art.
Vassilis Korovessis – 7 Adrianou Street (Thiseion); 011-30-21-0321-7562; no signage – wooden boxes full of photographs, postcards, and prints; classical music plays
Thission Revisited 2 – 16 Vassilis Street; 011-30-21-0346-0096; thissionr2.com; concept design store; women’s designer-wear, largely designed by Georgios Carabellas.
Diane Von Furstenberg – 5 Xanthou Street; 011-30-21-0362-4004; women’s clothing.



SIGHTS & SITES
Acropolis Museum – 15 Dionysiou Areopaitou Street; 011-30-21-0900-0900; theacropolismuseum.gr.
Agora Museum – 24 Adrianou Street (northwest of Acropolis base); 011-30-21-0331-0963; agathe.gr; housed in Stoa of Attalos; exhibits connected with Athenian democracy, including bronze, clay, coins, glass objects, inscriptions, pottery & sculpture.
Benaki Museum – 1 Koumbari Street; 011-30-21-0722-9958; benaki.gr; Greek art collections, including costumes on 3rd floor.
Cycladic Art Museum – 4 Neophytou Douka Street; 011-30-21-0722-8321; cycladic.gr; among Athens’ great museums; magnificent Cycladic art artifact collection; founded in 1986 to house Coulandris’ collection; main building, erected in city center in 1985, designed by Ioannis Vikelas; in 1991, new wing opened in neo-classical Stathatos Mansion (at Vassilissis Sofias Avenue and Herodotou Street intersection).
DESTE Foundation of Contemporary Art – 11 Filellinon (Nea Ionia, at Em. Pappa Street); 011-30-21-0275-8490; deste.gr; arts foundation in Nea Ionia, northern suburb of Athens (about 20 minutes out); deste means “to see” in Greek; houses Greek businessman Dakis Joannou’s massive collection; organizes collection exhibitions and commissions new work by emerging and established international contemporary artists; foundation branch located on Hydra (open during summer, accessible by boat).
Hellenic Cosmic Cultural Centre – 254 Pierros Street; 011-30-69-8254-0150; Hellenic-cosmos.gr.
Monastiraki – in old city, beneath Acropolis; 011-30-21-0870-7000; flea market.
Mount Hymettus – southeast Athens.
National Archaeological Museum – 44 Patission Street; 011-30-21-0821-7724; namuseum.gr.
National Gardens – off Amalias Street.
National Museum of Contemporary Art – 19 Vasileos Georgiou Boulevard (at Rigilis Street); 011-30-21-0924-2111; emst.gr/EN.
Onassis Cultural Centre – 107-109 Syngrou Avenue; 011-30-21-0900-5800; onassis.gr or sgt.gr; 194K' square complex, decked in glass, gold leaf, and white marble; exhibition gallery, rooftop restaurant, and 2 theaters.
Parthenon – Dionysiou Areopayitou (Acropolis); 011-30-21-0321-4172; odysseus.culture.gr.
Pierides Museum of Ancient Cypriot Art-Athinais – 34-36 Kastorias Street; 011-30-21-0348-0000; athinais.com.gr.
Pnyka – near Acropolis.
Sts. Constantine & Helen Orthodox Metropolitan Church – 55 Leoforos Posidonos (Glyfada); 011-30-21-0894-3405; orthodox-world.org/en/i/22751/Saints_Constantine_and_Helen_Orthodox_Metropolitan_Church_Glyfada; beautiful.
Temple of Athenian Zeus – Leoforos Vas. Olgas & Amalias; 011-30-21-0922-6330; among ancient world’s largest temples.
Unification of Archaeological Sites Walkway – among most ambitious urban transformation plans ever conceived; walk to all major Athens’ sites.

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