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Want to eat well, experience a cultural resurgence, and just maybe restore your faith in humanity? Head to the Greek capital, now.

Where to Eat in Crete, Greece, According to an Olive-Oil Expert

Wandering Sommelier: Jean K. Reilly in Greece

In Greece’s Peloponnese countryside, food is sourced from hillside to hearth.

Overview

Overview

Overview

A local landmark, Taverna Trilussa has been a Trastevere hangout for nearly a century. The ivy-covered entrance opens to a lively family-run trattoria where prosciutto and dried herbs decorate the walls alongside the usual trappings of vintage photos, books, and paintings. Taverna Trilussa is most famous for its tableside serving of typical Roman dishes like bucatini all’Amatriciana and cacio e pepe, theatrically tossed about in a frying pan or even a Parmesan wheel. Reservations are a must, or else expect to queue up alongside all the tourists waiting for a plate of mozzarella in carrozza.

Whether you’re sampling Spanish wine in a rustic taverna or sipping a cocktail in an airy, modern rooftop bar, you’ll find Barcelona’s variety of drinking options hard to beat. ¡Salud! —or as they say in Catalan—¡Txin txin!

In the past decade Athenian restaurant culture has upped its game. Along with the wonderful traditional family-owned tavernas serving local fare, Michelin-starred venues have been reinterpreting Greek favorites with creativity and aplomb to increasingly discerning crowds. Even Greek coffee (with grounds on the bottom of the cup) has branched out. Remember, dinner hour here is often 9-ish; and most of the year the action takes place outdoors under balmy skies.

Amanzoe was one of the first ultra-luxury resorts by a global brand in Greece when it opened back in 2012 in pretty Porto Heli, on the east coast of the Peloponnese. Since then, it has become a much-loved retreat with monumental architecture, all soaring columns and vast expanses of marble that call to mind Greece’s ancient heritage sites.


The resort’s beach club has four pools, cabanas, a Japanese restaurant, and a seaside spa, and it’s from here that water sports and island-hopping cruises set sail. Lavish guest rooms are divided into either pavilion accommodations or larger villas, all with private pools. The most lavish of all is the Ed Tuttle- and Marios Angelopoulos-designed Villa 20, which doubled as Miles Bron’s island home in British murder mystery Glass Onion; it includes 9 bedrooms, 11 pools, a private spa, 2 barbecue areas, and its own Greek taverna.

Cruise the Adriatic and Aegean in style, visiting Montenegro, Albania, and Greece along the way.

Put on some comfortable shoes and get a serious leg workout on the 350 steps that connect the cliffside town of Oia to the port at the base of Amoudi Bay. Visitors can grab a drink or calamari at one of the tavernas while watching fishing boats bring in fresh catches. There is a small dirt path that leads around the bend to a beautiful rocky, swimming spot that some fans may recognize from the movie, “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.”

Perched on the rocks above the limpid Libyan Sea, this seasonal seaside taverna isn’t easy to get to, but the journey is half the fun. It’s a four-hour hike along the E4 coastal path from Sfakia, or a 15- or 30-minute boat ride from Loutro or Sfakia to the pebbly bay of Marmara on Crete’s wild southwest coast. Chrysostomos Orfanoudakis has created the ultimate locavore’s dream. The bread is homemade; the vegetables family grown; and the lamb and goat, which roast in a wood-fired oven until the meat melts off the bone, were reared by the owner’s brother in the White Mountains. For dessert, order Sfakiani pitta, crispy phyllo turnovers filled with cream cheese and drizzled in honey. (+30 28257 72299)

Colour, music and dancing are an integral part of life in Andalusia, Spain. For a taste of the region’s Flamenco, head to El Patio Sevillano in Seville (Sevilla). A variety of dancers, in colourful traditional costumes, will whirl and stomp across the stage, while a band plays authentic Flamenco music. Catch an early show and then hit the town for tapas and drinks at a nearby Taverna.