Athens After Dark Food Tour: Monastiraki, Psirri and Dinner

Athens changes after dark, and this three-hour walk is built around that. It starts in front of a pastry shop on Athinas Street and works through Monastiraki and Psirri while the tavernas fill up.

Monastiraki comes first: Hadrian's Library, an eighteenth-century mosque, the Iridanos river still running under the square, and souvlaki or gyros at one of the oldest grill houses in the city. Psirri follows, around Plateia Iroon, one of the oldest squares in Athens, where the tavernas have live music and the walls have murals. The tasting there is puff pastry pie, in more than one version.

Then a charcuterie stop: Greek cold cuts, several cheeses, olives with Cretan dakos, red or white wine and a glass of tsipouro. Dinner is seated, a spread of meze and regional dishes with wine or beer, and dessert is loukoumades or baklava.

The central market does not open in the evening, so this tour does not go there. Up to fifteen people, guided in English. The route is wheelchair and stroller accessible, though the pavements of the old centre are narrow. Gluten-free, vegan, lactose-free and low-carb options are limited.