A coffee and cake crawl through Athens

Athens has been making coffee for a very long time, but it has been making specialty coffee for less than two decades. The city that introduced Greeks to the frothy iced frappe in the 1950s is now home to some of the most technically serious independent roasteries in Europe. This crawl runs from the upmarket streets of Kolonaki down through the graffiti-layered lanes of Exarchia, across the ancient heart of the city at Syntagma, into the bohemian market district of Psyrri, and ends in Thissio with the Acropolis looming above the rooftops. Every stop is independently owned, every roastery is Greek, and there is not a chain in sight.

1. Samba Coffee Roasters, Kolonaki

Start on Solonos Street in Kolonaki, where Samba Coffee Roasters has occupied the same address since 1979. Stefanos Kalafatas founded Samba and his son Kostas now runs it. Head Roaster Nikos Antzaras won the 2022 Hellenic Barista Championship, and the espresso at the bar reflects that pedigree: clean, precise and recognisably Greek in its intensity. Samba roasts in house and the retail bags on the counter are worth taking home. The neighbourhood is leafy and unhurried, and the bar makes a calm starting point before the route descends into livelier territory.

2. Taf Coffee, Exarchia

Walk or take a short taxi ride north-east to Exarchia, the neighbourhood of murals and bookshops that has long been Athens's most politically charged district. On Emmanouil Benaki Street, Taf Coffee occupies the address where brothers Yiannis and Ellias Taloumis opened the first genuinely specialty coffee bar in Greece in 2009. Taf has its own roastery and the brewbar serves V60, Chemex and cold brew alongside espresso. It has trained more Athenian baristas than any other operation in the city and its influence on the whole Greek scene is difficult to overstate. Order a V60 and take your time with it.

3. KAYA, Syntagma

Head south to the historic centre and step into Stoa Bolani, a covered 19th-century arcade just off Kolokotroni Street. KAYA is a stand-up espresso and filter bar run by three owners who have installed a Synesso machine and five grinders and rotate through Greek specialty roasters. It is compact, focused and entirely takeaway in spirit, the kind of bar that suits a double espresso on the move between sightseeing stops. Syntagma Square and the Greek Parliament are two minutes on foot.

4. Anana Coffee, City Centre

A few streets west on Praxitelous, Anana Coffee is the city's most distinctive vegan specialty stop. Panos Xilas founded it in 2019 and runs an in-house roastery in the Cholargos suburb, sourcing and roasting beans that are served here across espresso and filter. The food and cake menu is entirely plant-based, and the raw cakes made in house are the best reason to slow down and sit. For anyone who wants the full picture of what Athens specialty coffee has become, Anana is an essential stop.

5. Picky Coffee Roasters & Brunch, Psyrri

Cross into Psyrri, the neighbourhood of street art, antique shops and independent restaurants that runs along the northern edge of the ancient Agora. On Christokopidon Street, Picky Coffee Roasters doubles as a brunch house and roastery. The roastery sources from Colombia, Brazil and Guatemala, and a courtyard at the rear is shaded and unhurried. Order filter and the full brunch if you have not eaten; the kitchen handles both well and the courtyard is one of the better outdoor coffee spots in the city.

6. The Underdog, Thissio

Finish in Thissio, the neighbourhood that sits at the foot of the Acropolis hill. The Underdog has been roasting its own coffee since 2011 and the team holds multiple Hellenic Barista Championship and World championship placings. On Iraklidon Street, the venue serves espresso and filter alongside craft beer and a brunch menu, so there is no pressure to move on quickly. The Acropolis is visible from nearby streets and the Philopappos Hill walk begins almost at the door. It is as good a place as any to end a day's crawl through the Greek specialty scene.

All six stops are independently owned and every roastery on this route is Greek. The central stops at Syntagma, Anana and Picky are walkable from each other; Samba and Taf are easiest by taxi or the short Metro ride between Syntagma and Omonia. The Underdog in Thissio is a fifteen-minute walk west of the centre along the ancient Panathenaic Way. Athens's specialty scene is younger than Rome or Barcelona but it has developed with unusual speed, driven by a generation of Greek baristas who trained seriously and then built their own roasteries rather than leaving for other cities.

Common questions

Which Athens cafe is the most important for the city's coffee history?

Taf Coffee in Exarchia is widely credited as the pioneer of specialty coffee in Greece. Yiannis and Ellias Taloumis opened the roastery-cafe in 2009 and Taf has since trained more Athens baristas than any other operation. The brewbar on Emmanouil Benaki Street is where the Greek specialty scene began.

Is Athens specialty coffee comparable to other European cities?

Yes. The city now has multiple in-house roasteries of genuine international calibre. Taf Coffee and The Underdog have won Hellenic and World barista championships, and the density of independent roasters in Athens is higher than in many larger Western European cities.

Are all the cafes on the crawl walkable from each other?

The central stops, KAYA, Anana and Picky, are within ten minutes' walk of each other near Syntagma and Monastiraki. Samba in Kolonaki and Taf in Exarchia are best reached by taxi or Metro. The Underdog in Thissio is a fifteen-minute walk west from the centre.

Which stop is best for a full brunch alongside specialty coffee?

Picky Coffee Roasters in Psyrri offers the most complete brunch menu alongside its own-roasted coffee, with a shaded courtyard for outdoor seating. The Underdog in Thissio also serves brunch and craft beer, making both venues suited to a longer, slower stop.