A freelance culinary photojournalist based in the gastronomic melting pot Athens, Greece, Eleftheria Vasiliadi works as a food and travel correspondent, and contributor to domestic and international gastronomy and travel media. She has been an active member of the food industry for more than two decades, starting her career as a professional cook, then working with scriptwriting and directing culinary videos. She loves sharing her storytelling through her lens and words from the kitchen hideouts of chefs and pastry chefs.
Please introduce yourself to our members.
I'm a freelance culinary photojournalist based in Athens, Greece, a food and travel correspondent, and contributor to several domestic and international gastronomy and travel media outlets. I have been an active member of the food industry for more than two decades, starting my career as a professional cook, and have experience in scriptwriting and directing culinary videos among others. Sneaking into kitchens on Chefs' and pastry chefs' "hideouts", storytelling through my lens and words, and delving deep into the science of food are typical habits of mine. My keyboard and camera are constantly on fire.
Tell us about your current project.
I keep myself busy working on my new website which will host special culinary projects. A book, and a film project are also in the works.
Tell us about the restaurant scene in Athens.
Athens, where I'm based, is a curious melange of diverse and multicultural restaurants. A melting pot with bustling casual and funky eateries, tavernas where you have a kilo of the juiciest lamb chops with crunchy char-grilled fat, chubby "lahanodolmades", veal stifado stew with a hearty comfort tomato sauce, spicy tyrokafteri, tsipouro and ouzo shots, and "gastrotavernas" (places with usually daily-changing specials made with seasonally and locally sourced products), with minimalist but flavor-dense dishes. Athens is a destination to watch also for its thriving fine dining scene with great ventures worth being under the fine dining aficionados' radar. Believe me, Greek Chefs are ready to rock!
What are your three favorite restaurants in Athens and why?
I find the question a bit unfair, as there are so many great spots. These five places are just a pick of restaurants worth multiple visits-in my humble opinion- and not my absolute selections.
- *"*Asωtos", a brand new and promising arrival in Athens with entirely Greek character, delving deep into the national food traditions and working closely with selected producers. I find Chef Michalis Merzenis's approach to the Greek gastronomic heritage very interesting and the hearty taste profile of his dishes is a reason to return.
- For the same reasons I deeply appreciate "Aoritis Kritis thimises", where Chef Sifis Manouselis turns his memories from Crete into delicious culinary gems.
- "Akra" is an ode to simplicity, with a deep respect for the ingredients used. The owners, Chef Giannis Loukakis and Pastry Chef Spyros Pediaditakis focus on roasting, light smoking, and cooking over an open fire and the result is delicious.
- The spice of open fire is the main ingredient also at "Pharaoh", where Chef Manolis Papoutsakis shares his version of traditional Greek cuisine, served with a great selection of natural wines and upbeat music from vinyl.
- "Dopios", a modern Greek tavern, or gastro-tavern to be more exact, has a creative approach and the signature of Chef Christoforos Peskias who emphasizes local products and small producers from all over Greece. Here, creativity is wisely paired with local traditions.
What’s a new restaurant or hidden gem in Athens that you think is doing great things?
There is a number of spots keeping the Greek food traditions alive but if I had to choose one, this would be "To Mpakaliko tou Filippa", a hidden gem in Piraeus, a typical mpakalotaverna (taverna and grocery store) owned by the Skylodimos family since the 1950s. Groceries, an old-fashioned fridge with delicacies and a special place to enjoy heart-warming keftedes, and horiatiki salad made with the best feta cheese, will just "teleport" you to the Athens of the 1950's.
"There is a number of spots keeping the Greek food traditions alive but if I had to choose one, this would be "To Mpakaliko tou Filippa", a hidden gem in Piraeus, a typical mpakalotaverna (taverna and grocery store) owned by the Skylodimos family since the 1950s."
What’s your favorite kind of restaurant and why?
Modern and creative cuisine spots are definitely "my cup of tea" but I deeply appreciate old-school places because modernism is (more than) ok and a huge culinary chapter, but we should never forget our roots. Delving deep into food history and appreciating the fact that even the most simple dishes served at humble eateries require technique and knowledge, is very important if we want our stories (and choices) to matter. So maybe my answer, in brief, should be "traditional eateries".
What are your three favorite food cities and your favorite restaurants in those cities?
- Berlin – Café Frieda in Berlin, a fresh all-day fun concept that serves a small range of creative and deeply delicious dishes, made with high-quality ingredients, accompanied by a wide variety of natural wines and music on vinyl, is a place you want to squeeze into your Sport Billy's bag to take with you everywhere. The open kitchen is a pure delight to watch from the bar.
- Mazzorbo – Venissa in Mazzorbo, where Chiara Pavan and Francesco Brutto, as Venetian locavores, serve pure local flavors reflecting their deep concern for the environment in a remarkable “cucina ambientale” (environmental cuisine) concept, which depicts this “green” mindset. Through their menus, they narrate the stories that the special and fragile place of the lagoon has to tell while taking care of it. Culinary activism is claiming a foothold in more and more professional kitchens and laying a solid foundation for the future should be a major issue from now on. That's what they do and restaurants like that should have our full support. Venice isn't my favorite food city though but Venissa is included in my list of real destination restaurants.
- Lisbon – For now, I consider myself a "great carnivore" so Sala de Corte, an elegant meat-oriented dining destination in Lisbon, helmed by Luis Gazpar, is a personal favorite. Dry-aged meat cuts (from 30 up to 180 days) are licked delicately by the smoky charm of open fire ending up at the table as tender sublime masterpieces with a robust and mineral-tinged flavor. Yummy!
What is your favorite dish and where is your favorite restaurant to have it?
The leg of wild boar, slow-cooked with beer sauce, is a memorable rustic dish at Hiša Polonka in Kobarid. I could have it -if not every day- at least twice a week with a glass of beer if I was a local.
Who is an up-and-coming chef you are keeping an eye on?
Nikos Livadias (Tudor Hall), Tamara Rigo (pastry chef), Martina Puigvert (Les Cols), Davide Guidara (Tenerumi)
Who is a food expert whose restaurant recommendations you’d like to see?
If I am allowed to ask for 4, then: Lorraine Haist from Berlin, Gabriela Renteria from Mexico, Joao Grinspum Ferraz from Brazil, and Pia Salazar from Ecuador.
