Greece Monocle
Athens and Thessaloniki
Art & Culture
1. Updating antiquity
As Greece experiences a modern lifestyle renaissance, the country’s two biggest cities have reasserted their position as vibrant cultural hubs with burgeoning fashion, retail and dining scenes. More than just crucibles of antiquity, Athens and Thessaloniki are also a key destination for contemporary art lovers thanks to world-class venues, creative communities and internationally acclaimed exhibitions.
Alekos Fassianos Museum
Athens
One of the great Greek artists of the 20th century, Alekos Fassianos has an inconspicuous museum dedicated to his works in the neighbourhood of Kolonos. Showcasing a lifetime of colour-saturated and humorous works, the museum is a fitting celebration of the late artist.
The Breeder
Athens
Previously an ice-cream factory in a rundown section of central Athens, The Breeder gallery has become one of the success stories of the Greek art world. Known for its cutting-edge contemporary exhibitions in the years since the financial crisis, the gallery has focused on creating a dialogue between Greece and the rest of the world.
Museum of Cycladic Art
Athens
Beyond the Parthenon marbles, look to the Museum of Cycladic Art for an impressive collection of marble sculptures and 3,000 other artefacts from ancient Greece and Cyprus. This private museum is a stroll away from the National Gardens and Syntagma Square. The collection spans four floors with rotating temporary exhibitions on ancient culture.
Momus Museum of Contemporary Art
Thessaloniki
Showcasing the evolution of Greek artistry over the past 40 years, the former Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art has been a bastion of the country’s creative community and now forms part of the five-museum Momus organisation. Proving that there is more to Greek culture than antiquity, the museum’s collection feature recent sculpture, painting and important installations created by contemporary artists such as Yannis Tsarouchis and Aggelika Korovessi.
Momus Thessaloniki Museum of Photography
Thessaloniki
At the end of a pier on Thessaloniki’s industrial port, the Thessaloniki Museum of Photography has been celebrating imagery and curating the internationally-renowned Thessaloniki Photobiennale since 1987. The museum houses more than 90,000 works, including the archive of Greek photographer Yiannis Stylianou, while recent exhibitions have included the work of prominent Athens photojournalist Yannis Behrakis.
Retail & Fashion
2. Sold on style
The flourishing scene of independent boutiques in Athens and Thessaloniki stock everything from contemporary Greek-made fashion to artisan crafts and curated design books. This is a retail success story, built on careful curation, bold packaging design and satisfying identifiable gaps in the market.
Hyper Hypo
Athens
Until Hyper Hypo came along, there was no dedicated space for art and design books or the queer community among Athens’ many bookshops. This space in Monastiraki now hosts weekly book signings, launches and events, hosting the likes of photographer Martin Parr as well as local authors and artists in its celebration of print.
Kopria
Athens
Kopria is one of the shops credited with greening the terraces of Athens’ Exarcheia neighbourhood. Part florist, part plant shop and events space, this corner establishment filled a long-open gap in the market to become the city’s destination for contemporary flower arrangements and lush plants for the home.
It’s A Shirt
Athens
Father-and-daughter duo Kostantinos and Christina Christodoulou founded Athens-based studio It’s a Shirt in the increasingly popular neighbourhood of Exarcheia. Dedicated to crafting unisex shirts out of vintage, dead stock fabrics sourced in Greece, the brand specialises in easy-to-wear tailoring including dresses, two-piece sets and, of course, shirts.
Yiayia and Friends
Thessaloniki
Inspired by the founder’s own yiayiá – or “grandmother” – this brand celebrates the history of Greek matriarchal cooking. The focus is on great produce, with extra virgin olive oil produced in Greece taking centre stage in bold, colour-saturated packaging that nods to the design talent behind the concept.
Para Todos
Thessaloniki
Founded by brother-and-sister design duo Tassos and Christina Tsadari, this Thessaloniki-based brand focuses on everyday wear that is completely designed and handmade in Greece. Collections are designed for unisex dressing, with simple lines and oversized shapes cut from all-natural fabrics forming the Para Todos aesthetic.
Drinking & dining
3. Refreshing tastes
Increasingly refined and revered by Greeks and visitors alike, gastronomy in Athens and Thessaloniki has truly grown up. From smart new tavernas to Michelin-recommended restaurants, the country’s culinary institutions are updating classic recipes and formats to entice a new generation hungry for fresh ideas crafted from great local produce.
Linou Soumpasis k Sia
Athens
In the heart of Psirri, Linou Soumpasis k Sia has a new menu each week that changes according to the best seasonal produce. With clever, contemporary twists on traditional Greek flavours, the open kitchen, terrazzo floor and stainless-steel interior are your first hints that Linou Soumpasis k Sia is no standard taverna.
Epta Martyres
Athens
In the bustling Koukaki neighbourhood, steps from the Acropolis, Epta Martyres takes inspiration from traditional kafeneion with its small marble tables and meze dining – the menu, however, is thoroughly modern. Dishes blur boundaries between Greece and the wider Mediterranean with options including fresh oysters, fish carpaccio and tiramisu.
Eprepe
Athens
Rub shoulders with the locals at Eprepe, a small-plates restaurant that exemplifies the transformation of Kypseli, a previously run-down area transformed into a thriving neighbourhood. At night, the trendy Athenian clientele spills out into the street, hovering over plates of delicate salads, cod burgers and the best negroni in the city.
Tiffany’s 3 1905
Thessaloniki
A takeover of a traditional Salonikan restaurant that has served locals since 1950, Tiffany’s 3 1905 brings together culinary talent from across Greece including Tinos, Kefalonia and Crete. The team’s combined creative know-how makes for surprising twists on classic dishes like oven-baked briam and poussin on a spit.
Ypsilon
Thessaloniki
Part café and bar, part co-working space and events hub, Ypsilon is a meeting place for the city’s creatives. Though brunch isn’t a traditionally Greek concept, the ground-floor venue serves up one of the city’s best, with dishes such as goat’s cheese and oregano-spiked eggs. At night, drop by Ypsilon for cocktails in the company of Thessaloniki’s brightest young minds.
