Food gives you an insight into a place. However cosmopolitan a city may be, with the English language all pervasive and international brands on the high street, food is one thing that remains stubbornly local. You don’t have to wander far off the beaten track to experience the type of food that people have been enjoying for centuries. Yet people often find it difficult to engage with the local cuisine; they may be fearful about trying new things, or worry that they won’t know what to order in a restaurant. But you can’t experience a place fully unless you eat as the locals do. Which is why I found myself exploring Greek cuisine on the Savoring Athens tour, a culinary walk around the heart of Athens.
Sampling Greek cuisine – cheese, olives and jam
Understanding Greek Cuisine
Our guide was George, a lawyer turned tour leader, and he took us on a tour around shops and cafés, tasting as we went. We tried cheese and meats, olives and honey. It was the best of Greek cuisine, including a shop that specialised in Cretan foods, and one or two more unusual flavours, such as water buffalo salami (surprisingly tasty and not at all fatty). George was keen to give us tips about restaurants to try, and places to visit, as well as explaining the significance of what we were eating.
Owner Plias Mpitskias in his cheese shop, which makes its own feta cheese
Herbal remedies on sale at Elixir. Everyone was intrigued by the “Horny Goat powder”!
Family Owned Businesses
Most of the places we visited were long established, family-owned businesses, firmly rooted in traditional Greek cuisine. Like Ktistakis on Sokratous Street, a café that was established in 1912 and has only ever sold one product – loukouma, a crispy Cretan dessert of fried dough, cinnamon and syrup. Or the Polykalas liquor store, established by the current owner’s great grandfather, who owned a distillery and sold his own liquors in the shop. Even today some of the liquors are home produced.
Delicious crispy loukouma
Greek yoghurt with nuts and honey at the Stani Milk Shop
I’d learnt a lot about Greek cuisine. But I’d also learnt that it’s a good idea to skip the hotel breakfast before going on an Athens food tour!
I went on the Savoring Athens Food Tour as a guest of Dopios Premium Tours.
That Greek yogourt with nuts and honey looks delicious, as does the rest of the food. Food tours are a great way to learn about a culture.
I love how you appreciate the "city's relationship with food". It is so true! In the last couple of years, I have tried to always include a walking or riding (bicycle) food tour in every city we visit! Athens is on our list of destinations and I will include this tour.
I've taken very few food tours and plan to change that when I travel. Good idea about skipping breakfast – though I do find you walk a lot on these tours and that helps keep the pounds off. Looks like a lot of fun.
Nothing better than exploring and noshing! This looks like a delicious way to get to know the city. Great photos. 🙂
You're right about food giving you an insight into a country and its people. I can't think of a better way to explore Athens at the beginning of a trip than through a food tour where you can try new foods as well as learn about the culture.
If there's one thing I remember about Greek food is the honey. That bowl of Greek yougurt looks delicious. I'm quite jealous of all of you who did this fabulous tour. Your pictures are great as well.
I agree that a food tour is a grand way to get to know a culture. this Greek food tour looks delicious!
Looks like a fun tour with ample opportunities to get a "taste" of the city!