Where to eat in Santorini Now
Written by Lena Harizopoulos
1 month of fine-dining reporting and 4 kilos later, I bring you Santorini’s Top Tables for August and September 2019.
The tables that are listed below constitute the creme della creme of fine dining on Santorini, they are not part of an advertorial and as an eternal restaurant critic at heart, I am 100% sure that all foodies are going to appreciate these particular dining and lifestyle experiences, once you set foot on the restaurants listed below.
May I say that Santorini is a place I love for its enogastronomia and I have always been writing that its poor and barren land produces the kind of raw materials that in the right hands could become gastronomic wonders that could tantalize the most trained palate
Having said that, I have been deeply dissapointed numerous times when dining in Santorini mainly because there are too many restaurants on the island that capitalise ONLY on their location NOT taking seriously the islands’ culinary and wine heritage.
Santoro Restaurant, Grace Santorini
The restaurants and chefs listed below I admire deeply for their relentless efforts over the years to make Greece a better place to eat.
- SANTORO RESTAURANT – Grace Santorini Hotel – Member of Auberge Hotels
Executive Chef: Jean Charles Metayer
An ode to culinary bliss made in France with Mediterranean references offering the “best located” table on the caldera cliff, literally touching the Skaros rock from your table.
Santoro restaurant has always been on the top of my list combining prime location, a very chic ambience and great chefs leading the restaurant.
This summer chef Jean Charles Metayer and a great team of cooks and chefs took over as part of many changes in the management of Grace Hotels and the culinary outcome is awesome.
My top picks are:
Starters:
The ROASTED FOIE GRAS IN VINELEAVES with Vinsanto and almonds.
The caviar with the black lentils and goat cheese.
From the Mains Go for the:
Three Ways Lobster and the Red Mullets
Finally before dining at Santoro you can sip your favorite champagne or coctail at the hotel’s 360 Champagne bar, the only champagne bar on the island gazing on the caldera. - DE PAUL RESTAURANT -Katikies Garden Hotel- Member of the Leading Hotels of the World
Executive Chef: Haris Nikolouzos
….”even the most discerning of diners will find their palates invigorated by De Paul’s masterly menu of Mediterranean delights and delicacies. Designed to express the full force of Santorini’s distinct character and culture, a delectable blend of tradition and innovation comes to life in every mouthful savoured at De Paul restaurant…..”
The recently opened hotel and restaurant guarrantee a one of a kind fine-dining and wine pairing experience curated by top Greek chef Haris Nikolouzos and top sommelier Alexandros Bouzikas.
You will find yourself dining in the spacious and very much atmospheric yard of a restored Catholic monastery, where the unique ambience goes hand in hand with the unique wine etiquettes paired in a sublime way with the finest flavors of the Mediterranean.
FELL IN LOVE WITH:
The Foie Gras dish paired with the passito di panteleria
The carre d’agneau with green apple puree and horseradish
LOOKING FORWARD TO: The champagne bar and the Canaves opening next season ! - THE VASILICOS TOUR DE FORCE DEGUSTATION MENUS – The Vasilicos Caldera Heritage Suites
Executive Chef: Yiannis Kourtesis
Unpretentiously Authentic, homey yet sophisticated real food cooking paired with some top-notch Greek wine etiquettes, the Vasilicos’ 3 different Tour de Force tasting menus, cost 95 euros each for hotel guests and 120 for visiting guests and are definitely more than worth it offering a true taste of local delicacies the way a very good chef would have cooked them at home for his friends and family.
A couple of days before my dinner I was sent the 3 different menus via email, I picked the Thalassa (SEA) Tour de force tasting menu WITH a couple of additions from the more earthy tasting menus.
Arriving at the very quaint courtyard of the hotel I met the chef, entered his very neat kitchen and then picked a table of my liking indoors due to the wind (the outdoor dining space by the way is ideal for honeymooners with a braethtaking view of the caldera from one of the highest spots of Imerovigli)
DISH OF SUMMER 19: Fried Calamari paired with Gentilini Robola from Kefalonia island
DECADENT Octopus, in balsamic vinegar reduction paired with Rose Xinomauro by Thymiopoulos Vineyards
Note: Whether you visit the hotel or restaurant, DO NOT leave Santorini without a visit to the Vassaltis Vineyard, sister to the hotel, one of my favorite vineyard, ideal for small parties or all day local wine sipping and nibbling.
Santoro_Grace_Santorini_lenasblackbook
Santoro Restaurant Grace Santorini
The Vasilicos_santorini_lenasblackbook
Fried Calamari – The Vasilicos –
The Vasilicos_santorini_lenasblackbook
De Paul Restaurant_ Katikies Garden
De Paul Restaurant, Katikies Garden
