Noming in Athens

When it comes to food, I personally think the Greeks have more to offer compared to a typical European country. Most probably because of their location, their food have a Mediterranean influence rather than very typical European cuisines, which is to me a very big plus point cos boy I love some spices and stuff in my food!

So during our short stay in Athens, we tried quite a lot of stuff. Obviously not all are perfect to my Asian taste buds but I'm gonna share with you some that I really like and would recommend you to try out if you are heading to Athens! :)

Lithos Restaurant
Just about a stone throw away from the apartment we stayed in Psiri, Lithos looks more like a humble but happening restaurant in the neighbourhood. We had our first dinner in Greece there and are very happy with our choice, which was based on Tripadvisor's recommendation.

Still very jealous of cold countries that you can dine outside without screaming of heat and mozzies.

First of all, I must point out that their service is of top notch - very friendly, professional and observant. As do quite a lot of other restaurants we went to in Greece, which is why I keep on saying Greeks are not that bad after all!!! :)
We were feeling really hungry after a post-long flight nap, so here are the starters:

Grilled Vegetables with Cheese, 6 Euro.

Calamari, 7 Euro.

The Grilled Vegetables wasn't too bad, but I would really prefer the vegetables to be a bit more cooked. As for the Calamari, although not looking very appealing, was simply one of the best Calamari I've ever tried in my life. Super fresh, juicy yet crispy on the outside! Yummeeeeyyyy!!! Ah yes, Greeks don't eat Calamari with any sauce so we had to get use to it too.

Grilled Fish, 15 Euro.

Grilled Lamb Shank, 13 Euro.

Complimentary fresh fruits! 

Our mains were pretty awesome too. The Grilled Fish (Dorato fish if I get the spelling right) was a whole medium size fish grilled with just salt, pepper and lemon with whole loads of chopped parsley, rounded up with sweet corns and snow peas. The fish has its original freshness, yet not fishy at all. And those (a little unusual to Asians) sides of corn and snow peas went pretty well with the fish! The Lamb Shank too was super tender and doesn't have the stinky smell that normally comes with lamb, at all! All I wished was to have a little greens and the dish would be perfectly perfect! :)

Together with a bottle of water (1.50 Euro), the bill came up to 42.50 Euro, which is still pretty affordable considering there were seafood and lamb on the table.

Lithos Restaurant
Aisopou 17,
Psiri Monastiraki,
Athens, Greece

Metro Cafe, Monastiraki Square
The next morning, we had breakfast at Metro Cafe, a cafe that is very easy to locate right at the Monastiraki Square. We picked the cafe very randomly, mostly because it was already opened quite early in the morning.

Spot the Metro Cafe just right at the left side of the picture. 

It is a very pleasant cafe to hang-out at in the morning, very quiet with a nice view of the square where people are busy either getting to the Metro or to the Acropolis.
So here are our lovely breakfast...

Breakfast Set.

Club Sandwich. 

The breakfast set I had was not too bad, especially the bacon! But the Club Sandwich was the bomb! I seriously have not tried any better Club Sandwich than this one here! And it's not even at a famous cafes/bakeries but a random cafes in Athens! Fine, I've not been too many countries yet but so far this is the best! Fresh and yummy bacon slices, lettuce and Greece's famous tomato tucked in an amazingly thin and crispy breads, the sandwich screams awesomeness! What I also truly enjoyed was the tomato sauce that came with it, they were superbly yummy and thick, nothing like what we have in Malaysia! I'm assuming that must be a locally made ketchup, since Greek tomatoes are so sweet and delicious. :) Anyway, that sandwich is definitely to-die-for!!!

I ended up eating more of the sandwich than the breakfast set. :p

I lost the receipt so I only can tell you with an orange juice and a cappuccino, the breakfast cost us 18 Euro.

Metro Cafe
5, Monastiraki Square,
Athens, Greece

Nom Cheap in Athens
I did some research and I know the cheapest meal you can get in Santorini is a Souvlaki, a Greek version of Kebab. It is considered cheap in Santorini at 2.5 Euro but oh boy in Athen it is only 2.1 Euro!

The shop looks just like a typical Kebab shop, like those in Australia!

So Deardo and I shared one as supper the first night and I was in lurrrrveeee... Unlike the Kebabs we have here, the pita bread is a bit thicker and smaller, almost like a Naan. Then the filling is either pork /chicken/beef or mix, then with Tzatziki (Greek yoghurt with cucumber), some tomato salsa, onions and fries. It smells and tastes awesome! Pork slices were so thin and tender while the mixture of Tzatziki and salsa gives your taste bud a twist of cool sensation!  And at less than RM10, I bet it is cheaper than any commercialised Kebabs selling in KL, which always come with lousy dressing like mayo or Thousand Island! Euw!

So yummy and tummy-filling yet so affordable! 

We liked it so much we had it again for dinner the next day, only this time, without the fries cos we just didn't like them getting soggy and all.

Blending in with the locals who also love eating their Souvlaki sitting at the Monastiraki Square.

Where did we get ours? Right across the street at Monastiraki Square, with a Greek name of course so I can't tell you exactly what's the name of the shop, but trust me, it's easy to locate! :)

And then as we were walking back to the apartment, we walked past this small shop where there were so many people so we got all curious. So apparently apart from Souvlaki, the shop sells hot dogs and the cheapest one is 1 Euro! Say what? Something cheaper than a 2.1 Euro Souvlaki???

Seriously, who say Europe is expensive when you can have a hotdog at 1 Euro? 

Well turned out its just a plan hot dog with pork sausage, mustard and tomato sauce but I thought I can just share with you guys just in case you are going to be eating cheap in your Athens trip. I'm sorry I didn't snap a picture of the shop though cos it was too dark anyway but it is also across the street at the Monastiraki Square, if you can find the street that has another exit of the Metro station then you will find the shop! :)

That's all for Athens, next up will be Santorini babey! Stay tuned! *wink~*

Note: Names of dishes and prices of each dish may differ since I only have receipts that are written all in Greek wordings.