Psiri: Nightlife Center of Athens

Plaka is fun but Psiri is the place to be. It does not have the carefree Never On Sunday feel that the Plaka has. It is sort of a dark place that echos its underworld past. But if you want good food and nightlife there is no area as authentically Greek as Psiri, or as international.

History of Psiri

Psiri has always had a reputation of being anti-establishment. From the very beginning of the modern Greek State people from the provinces and especially from the island of Naxos, came to the area of Psiri. Many got jobs and became respectable citizens but some stayed and made up the underworld of Athens. They were known as mangas. Hash-smokers, petty criminals and people discontent with society their ranks were constantly replenished by new immigrants. One group called Koutsavakideswere known for their long mustaches, long sharp toed boots with high heels, tight pants, a broad sash which hid their weapons and their jackets worn with one arm out of the sleeve. They terrorized Athens using Psiri as their base for over 50 years. They literally governed the neighborhood and even the police were afraid to set foot in Psiri.

In 1893 Prime Minister Harilaos Trikoupis founded a new combination army-police to stamp out the Koutsavakides under the control of the tough Inspector Dimitrios Baoraktaris. His method was simple. He humiliated the Koutsavakides by arresting them and cutting off the toes of their pointed boots as well as the unused sleeve of their coats, shaved their mustaches and force them to break their guns, before sending them home embarrassed. It worked and the Koutsavakides faded away and Psiri became safe for everyone.

Unfortunately Baoraktaris did not stop there. He also ended the romantic custom of suitors serenading from the streets to their beloved in the windows and balcony above, by sending his police to break the guitars over their heads before arresting them and throwing them in jail for the evening.

Psiri was also known as the haven for the revolutionaries during the war of Independence as well as for a very odd sport that kept the lower classes entertained in the days before football. They would have 'stone wars' or what we as kids called 'rock fights'. At a prearranged time men from Psiri would meet the men from Thission, Metaxourgio or Petralona and insult each other until the rocks began flying. There were cheering spectators and those injured became neighborhood heroes. This went on until the end of the 19th century.

Psiri was also the home of the 'Maid of Athens' of Lord Byron fame who has been immortalized in his poem:

"Oh maid of Athens, ere I part
Give oh give me back my heart"

The subject of this poem who became something of a star was Theresa Makris, one of three sisters who lived next door to the boarding house where Byron stayed when he visited Athens in 1809. Though Byron never had a relationship with her (she was only twelve and he preferred the company of young boys) the mere mention of her in the poem inspired a sort of cult and nineteenth century tourists would visit the house and hope to witness the beauty that had inspired the great romantic poet. The house where Byron stayed was on the corner of Agios Theklas and Papanikolis street. Its just up the street where Stavros Melissinos the famous poet-sandal-maker of Athens has his shop.

During the 20th century Psiri was an area of tavernas and a place where you would find the rembetica musicians who sang their songs of love, exile, pain, poverty, heroin and hashish, the same songs you will hear in Psiri today.

Psiri is my home when I am in Athens.

A Visit to Psiri

Several years ago a wealthy landlord (who happened to be a government minister) was able to pass a law that made Psiri, a working class neighborhood that was full of leather workshops and small factories, into an area designated for nightlife. This of course would make real estate more valuable. The leather workers who had been there for generations were not too pleased, but the result was a neighborhood that was suddenly alive, not just during the day but all night too. Whether this is something positive or something that will one day lead to more misery (alcoholism, obesity, decadance and high rents) we will have to see but for now one thing is certain. Psiri is a fun place to visit and I would not mind living here either.

Walking through Psiri in the daytime is deceiving. The streets are filled with working class people and the former leather craftsman district still contains a variety of shops and businesses that might be described as practical or business oriented, from type-setters, to fixtures, and material goods for making clothing. The only clues that the area is a hotbed of nightlife are the cafes and restaurants storefronts that look like they have been closed for years and the new shops and boutiques. If you were wandering through the neighborhood you might stop and wonder what a state-of-the-art climate-controlled shop selling Cuban Cigars is doing in an area of workshops and small factories?

If you did not look close enough to see the signs that advertise them as restaurants you might think they are abandoned or not even notice them. In fact with the exception of the cafe Rebecca, a traditional mezedes cafeneon with a few tables outside, the only food you will find in Psiri in the daytime during the week is at the working class Taverna Psiri, a souvlaki from the shop next door or at Platia Iroon, a spanakopita in the pastry shop next door, a koulorakia (like a doughnut but not sweet) from the factory that supplies most of the downtown vendors, or a candy bar at the kiosk in Iroon square.But things are changing and by the time you read this there may be a dozen more places for lunch or to while away the afternoon with food, ouzo and wine.

Starting at around 6pm Psiri undergoes the transformation from working-class-light-industrial, to a mecca of cafes, bars, restaurants and ouzeries in a setting that reminds me of a scaled down version of New York's Soho district with the East Village tossed in. The streets are filled with tables and chairs and what were parking lots during the day become dramatically lighted outdoor dining areas for restaurants that look they have been built into a bombed out city. Each restaurant has its own style, from traditional Greek taverna or ouzerie-mezedopouleon to 60's style cafes that may remind you of a luncheonette in an old movie. Many are decorated with historic photos of Athens and some with relics of our modern society.

One of my favorite ouzeries is called Platia Iroon on Platia Iroon. They have a very large selection of mezedes (ouzo snacks) and main dishes, many traditional and some explorations on traditional themes. The prices are very reasonable, in fact they are cheaper then what you will find in the Plaka. The service is efficient which is surprising because the tables fill half the Platia. The waiters use small hand-held computers which send your order to the kitchen as soon as you place it. If you have children there is an entire platia to play in and plenty of kids from other tables. In the winter time this is a cozy place to be inside with tables and chairs packed so tightly the next table may as well be your own. There is a small band usually including Nikos, the owner, playing old rembetika songs. Unlike many of the other ouzeries and restaurants they play unamplified.If you are looking for the real thing get a table near the band and join in when the other people in the room clap their hands and sing along to the songs that everyone in Greece seems to know the words to.

The Rebecca cafeneon around the corner on Maoulis street is small and if you don't get there early you won't get a seat. But it is one of the few places that existed before Psiri became fashionable and if you are looking for an unpretentious place to have an ouzo and a meze, you can come here at any time of the day or night. They grill octopus on the little charcoal barbecue right on the sidewalk. The food is not the greatest but the atmosphere is and after a few ouzos everything tastes good. The Illiosporo next door is a little more sophisticated, playing jazz and swing rather than the old Rembetika songs played in Rebecca, and the snacks they serve are delicious. Both places have a look that seems to say "If you are a tourist-get lost", but you will find the service very friendly and if they did not want you there they would not have printed the menus in English.

Further into Psiri on tiny Evi Street is the Mezedopoulion Evi or what we call "The Elvis Costello Place". If you go you may understand why. It is very small and there are very few chairs and for that reason I am not going to give directions so that only the more adventerous will find it. It is right next door to an amazing home-made candle shop. Evi is the only place in Athens that I have found that carries Baba Tzim ouzo from Serres, one of my favorites. This is where I am most nights in Athens, starting off with an ouzo or two, some fried shrimp, or soupia (cuttlefish), and maybe a few more dishes before sending my wife home to bed and continuing my night at Platia Iroon listening to Nikos and the band.

Unlike the Platia Iroon most of the restaurants and clubs play amplified music and while in Platia Iroon the nights can last forever, with people at the tables singing along to their favorite songs, in other places you will hear singing and dancing and maybe even an occasional plate smashing. The Rodakio, right next door to the Iroon, shares the Platia and is also quite good and just as popular and is one of the places with amplified music. Further down the street called Agion Anargirion, there are more eating and drinking places including Embros, a hip, New York City style bar. If you are into Latin food, music and dancing there is the Cubanita Havana Club at 28 Kariaskakis. The Naxos on Kristokopidou street is the most unpretentious ouzerie in all of Psiri and specializes in local food from the island of Naxos, like cheeses, sausages and grilled octopus. It is kind of hard to find but if you walk around Platia Iroon and continue past the kouloria factory and Cubanita and make the second right you will find it next to the church. My favorite winter place is Taverna Psiri on Aisxylou Street. They also have a garden in the back for the summer. Right next door is a Psistaria (Grill House) called Odos Aisxylou at #14-16 and they have lots of frilled meats and some nice salads too. Both are less than a block from Iroon Square. There are techno-clubs, bars, live music clubs, sixties music bars...and I think you are getting the idea that Psiri is not just a place where people go and drink ouzo and listen to old Rembetika songs all night. Psiri is an all-ages party and it is not uncommon for there to be a traffic jam on Athinas street at 5am on a big weekend.

Be aware that when you enter Psiri, your first instinct will be to think "This can't be the place". The area seems dangerous and dark, but its neither. It's patrolled by rent-a-cops who keep the Omonia Square riff-raff from making inroads into the area and as you follow the small streets towards the center it gets livelier and more well lit until suddenly you realize you are here. The easiest way to enter Psiri is from one of the small roads between the Attalos Hotel and Monistiraki square on Athinas street. Walk in and make a right on Miaouli and you will pass Rebecca and Illiosporos on the way to Iroon square. If you are coming down Ermou pass Monastiraki Square and turn right on Themidos (turns into Miaoulis) or Kariaskaki and both will lead you to Iroon Square.The best time to be here is during Apokreas, Greece's Carnival Season when the streets are packed with people in costume and the night goes on forever.

There are numerous cafes and restaurants open on Saturday and Sunday, and very few cars to bother you though you should keep plenty of change on hand because the street musicians and the girls selling flowers come in a never-ending flow and the more you drink the harder it is to say no. There are also plans for the opening of many new galleries and theaters in this district and the bordering former gasworks area, many of which have already opened their doors. This area is for the explorer. Those who have tired of endless T-shirt shops and Mousaka signs and being danced to by men in evzone costumes while you drink domestika and look at a room full of people as foreign as you, this is the place to go. This area is for people who want to see what it is like to be young and hip and hang out in Athens.
Or even not so young and hip.

Or even the too young to be hip. Go and check out Gelatomania on the corner of Takis and Aisopou 21 for the best gelato ice-cream in Athens. My last week in Athens I probably put on ten pounds because we went here every night (mostly because of my daughter but we did not really argue against it). I think you will have a hard time finding a better selection of Italian ice-creams and special sundaes anywhere. Andrea gives them high marks for their espresso and coffees too. So it is a good place to begin or end a day in Athens. Say hi to Michalis who is very excited to be on the internet. Very convenient if you are staying at the Attalos or the Cecil hotels.

Starting the week before Easter Sunday Psiri plays host to the Naxos, Lamb and Cheese market. The streets are filled with Naxiotes who have come to Athens to sell the Easter lambs everyone roasts and the delicious Naxos cheese which the island is famous for as well as home made wine, all from the villages in the interior of the island. Read all about the Naxos Lamb and Cheese MarketSee also the famous Naxos shop of Kostas:Geniko Emborio Eklekton Proionton Naxos

If you happen to be in Psiri in the daytime go by the Antique store of Apostolis Sofialides at #15 Pittaki right off Kariaskakis. He has a nice collection of antiques including easy to carry home gifts like old photos and advertisments. Check out that candle shop too if you can find it, next to the Elvis Costello place. Also Stavros Melissinos, the famous Poet-Sandalmaker has moved to Psiri at #2 Ag Theklas Street. Also just down the same street is the workshop of artisan Tamara Schmidt and her shop Tamara's Creations where she makes colorful bags, hats, pillows and more.

For those who find Plaka too touristy at night Psiri is a great alternative. The nearby Attalos Hotel on Athinas street is clean, very professionally run and very inexpensive and by staying here you have access to Psiri as well as nearby Monastiraki, the Plaka and all the archeological sites.

For more on Psiri see my Psiri Photo Journey

See also Nightlife and Club listings and Alexia Amvrazi's Nightlife Guide to Psiri, Restaurants, The Poet-Sandalmaker of Psiri, Rembetika Music, Athens Nightlife

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