Here I am again, writing from London. Spending a little longer than usual, it allowed me to explore the great food scene. London has amazing tasty nooks and corners where you can indulge yourselves in International cuisine. Greek restaurants in London rarely made it in the top of the list go to places. Luckily, this is no longer the case. Greek cuisine is on the rise, many Greek delicatessen offer products from small Greek producers and what’s more exciting original Greek dinners. The concept is all about sharing, plates will come out mezze style so that you can enjoy the delectable dishes in good company. So, here I am sharing with you my experiences of Greek restaurants in London. I visited the Modern Greek restaurants that have opened in the last five years or so. Judging from my experience, you should definitely put them on the list.
The Athenian
Souvlaki is what the Athenian is most famous for. The Athenian launched in 2014, from Efhymios and Neofytos. How it started? ‘’Doughnut worry, be souvlaki’’ was their first motto, a few years earlier when two vibrant foodies joined forces and their street market stalls to offer the best of Greek street food in London: Greek souvlaki and of course Greek honey doughnuts. This first venture seems dreamlike now, but it was the beginning of something much more permanent: The Athenian. At the Athenian, they prepare freshly made, authentic Greek fast food like no other. I visited their Box Park booth, both in and out of the kitchen, to savour their souvlaki.
My thoughts? As good as a proper Athenian souvlaki! You can either grab it on the go or get a portion and enjoy at the stalls of Box Park. Chicken gyros is certainly a favourite, followed by Greek salad for hungry office workers . What’s more, you can find a few new tasty additions to the menu: tomato and courgette fritters. Worry not about the queues, the Athenian has a cashless payment system, seamless with hardly any wait.
Where: Shoreditch Box Park +
Nearest tube: Shoreditch High Street
When: Lunch and dinner
Tip: they have Greek chocolates too!
Do they deliver? YES
Website: https://www.theathenian.co.uk/ check for more locations closer to you.
The Hungry donkey
Greek cuisine at its best. Ever missed the simple yet full flavours of homely food as served in Greek tavernas? You need to look no further. There is an excellent mezze menu as well as main dishes to savour. What dishes you can find? The menu is complete: from traditional moussaka to vegetarian gemista and lamb fricassee to great roasts, with locally sourced meat from British farms.
I enjoyed lunch at the Hungry Donkey with gigantes, slow cooked broad beans, crunchy spanakopita and bouyourdi, aka baked feta with peppers and tomatoes. Flavours that match, if not surpass the good old Greek taverns back home. What’s more, you will find a great selection of Greek Septem beers and an even wider selection of Greek wines. It makes a nice and quiet spot for lunch but do book for dinner.
Where: 56 Wentworth Street, London, E1 7AL
Do they deliver? Yes
When: Lunch and dinner
Tip: don’t ignore the wine list.
Nearest tube: Liverpool street & Aldgate East
Website: http://www.hungrydonkey.co.uk/
Mazi
Mazi restaurant opened its doors in 2012, one of the first Modern Greek restaurants in London. It brought in a fresh view of Greek cuisine, carrying the finesse of a low, key fine dining restaurant. The menu of Mazi is inspired by traditional Greek dishes and breathes new life into much loved favourites. You will find nothing mundane in the menu, forget all about pita bread and tzatziki, but you will enjoy authentic Greek flavours cooked to perfection.
Can you imagine tiropita in a jar? Just break the crispy filo triangles in the delicate, pleasantly spicy cheesy cream and share it by the spoonful. Incredible fish and seafood is also on the cards, including octopus with black beluga lentils and yuzu lemon oil. Another pleasant surprise was the feta tempura. Tempura makes a light, crispy shell for feta to melt in; nothing could match it better than the sharp and refreshing lemon jam. Mazi is about great cooking in a true sharing spirit. Although, I admit, I might be a little reluctant to share this delectable octopus next time I am around. Don’t forget dessert, there is galaktoboureko and of course loukoumades, Greek honey doughnuts with chocolate sorbet.
Where: 12-14 HILLGATE STREET, LONDON W8 7SR
When: Lunch and dinner
Do they deliver? No
Tip: There is a food book coming! Stay tuned!
Nearest tube: Notting Hill Gate
Website: http://www.mazi.co.uk/
Opso
A modern Greek restaurant with great vibes. Whether you want to walk in for brunch or go later in the evening, enjoy a drink at the bar and work your appetite for dinner Opso is the place to be. Located at Marylebone, Sherlock’s territory, there is nothing mysterious about this dining establishment except perhaps how fast they manage to serve out the dishes. It has been a huge hit with locals who storm in for brunch, lunch and dinner.
Do look out for the freshly baked Greek koulouri, served with goat’s curd and unrefined sea salt. Goat’s curd, i.e. staka, is just one of the rare Greek delicacies you can find. Great Greek cheeses make their appearance in the menu, along with the rare snails and chips –chochlioi bourbouristi, a Cretan favourite. Most favourite plates are the pancakes for brunch (obviously). As for dinner, guests compete between the classics: moussaka or youvetsi. What would you go for?
Where: 10 Paddington St, W1U 5QL, Marylebone, London
When: Lunch and dinner
Tip: Great for 3-course dinners
Do they deliver? No
Nearest tube: Baker street
Website: http://opso.co.uk/
Suvlaki
Suvlaki is, as the name goes, famous for suvlaki but also excellent mezze. The menu was put together by Elias Mamalakis, Greek chef and TV presenter extraordinaire. You will find exemplary mezze with great selection for vegetarians and of course sharing. It was quite hard to pick out just a few from their menu. Prawns saganaki made an excellent choice, freshly made courgette fritters complemented them greatly and you can never go wrong with ntakos, roughly crushed barley rusks with freshly chopped cherry tomatoes and a healthy dose of crumbled feta. You can pop find suvlaki in both Soho and Shoreditch. Great seafood and vegetarian mezze.
Where: Shoreditch
When: Lunch and dinner
Do they deliver? Yes
Tip: Great for sharing, mezze style
Nearest tube: Shoreditch High Street
Website: http://www.suvlaki.co.uk/ check for more locations
As you can imagine, I was very pleased to find these great Modern Greek restaurants in London. Each of them unique in their vibe and atmosphere, all of them true to the sharing experience for a great Greek meal. It even made me a little jealous I cannot enjoy them more often. My special thanks to Nick and Vassilis from the Athenian, Markos and Giorgos from the Hungry Donkey, Christina and team from Mazi, Savvina from Opso, Irene and Pooja from Suvlaki for sharing their restaurant journeys with me. I can assure you, you are guaranteed a very warm welcome, Greek style.
So, what are you going to go for? A good old suvlaki or are you launching into a mezze sharing adventure?
From London with love,
Eugenia
PS. This is not a sponsored post, I only write about places I genuinely enjoy. It would be quite silly to recommend them otherwise.
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Thanks for this; OPSO and Mazi look especially interesting.
Most welcome! They are all exemplary but yes, Opso and Mazi bring in new life into Greek cooking, it’s modern Greek cuisine through and through. Definitely worth a try. 😉