This is the second post in our series about Greece. Other posts include The Zillers Rooftop Restaurant
If possible, we like walking to restaurants when we can. However, Athens has been a bit of a surprise for us, as we’ve ended up in neighborhoods where we didn’t expect to find a Michelin-starred restaurant.
It wasn’t straightforward finding HYTRA. The restaurant sits at a roof top on top of an office building. If it weren’t for the tiny sign with the words HYTRA at the first floor, we’d probably still be circling the non-descript gray concrete building (situated on a busy road that is almost like a highway).
HYTRA’s dining space is magical. The open air restaurant only “exists” when the weather’s good. If there’s rain, the entire dining room moves indoors.
The space is beautiful and gives you 360 views of Athens, including the Acropolis, distant mountain, and the sunset.
I highly recommend trying to get a reservation that includes the sunset. It really adds such a vibrant and warm light to the entire room.
A Drink to Start . . .
We were extremely impressed with our server. He was especially observant and could “read” the table. I hesitated when trying to decide whether to do the wine pairing, and he quickly offered helping me pair a glass of white and maybe a red to go with the meal. Sold. When Bryan asked for suggestions on the cocktails, our server quickly sensed Bryan’s preferences for dry cocktails (because Bryan asked about the Negroni), and suggested something that Bryan would like.
By the way, HYTRA is known for their cocktails, and there are many very unusual and interesting ones on the menu. Bryan opted for a citrus-y one that was refreshing and “not sweet at all” (good in Bryan’s book).
The Food: 11 Course Tasting Menu at HYTRA Athens
HYTRA includes a la carte options as well as two tasting menus: an 11-course degustation (80 EUROS) and a 15-course degustation (95 EUROS). Add an extra wine or cocktail pairing for 115 EUROS.
We decided to go with the 11-course tasting menu. Bryan got the wine pairing (generous pours!).
Cheese Course
Bread . . .
The Meat Course
For our second to last main course, the “meat” course, we had pork cheek, pork belly, and baby gem lettuce.
Dessert + Other Sweets
Our palate cleanser was a blackthorne Greek yogurt “ice” served with a lemon verbena kombucha, which was refreshing. The dessert wine was MUSCAT DE LEMNOS.
General Thoughts – HYTRA Athens Greece
Like other Michelin starred restaurants in Athens, HYTRA was an insanely good value at 80 EUROS for the 11-course tasting menu. The restaurant certainly plays around with technically challenging dishes, and I enjoyed the food, especially the creativity of the dishes. The rooftop panoramic views are also fabulous. I highly recommend trying to book dinner right before sunset so that you can watch the sunset with 360 degree views of the city (and the Parthenon).
HYTRA Restaurant & Bar
6th/7th Floor OCC/STEGI
107/109 Syngrou Avenue
11745 Athens, Greece
Related Posts
Posts About Greece
The Zillers Rooftop Restaurant
Eating in the Greek Isles – Santorini
Sweets in Greece
