The best restaurants Thessaloniki

Over the past 45 years, the Kritikos family has established itself as one of the region's (and even the country's) benchmarks for Aegean seafood restaurants. With several establishments, including this one ideally located by the sea, on the port of Thessalonica, the brand is a guarantee of quality and freshness, with service to match the product. Mussels, fish, scallops: the best products are sublimated in dishes that evolve according to the chef's whims and the seasons. A pure delight (and so much the better, because it's not cheap).

An authentic address appreciated by the inhabitants of Thessaloniki, if we are to believe the crowds that are rushing there! In a setting that resembles a traditional grocery store with period labels, you can taste original Greek dishes with carefully selected local products. Sautéed mushrooms, cuttlefish stewed with small vegetables, salad with dried fruit and fresh goat cheese.... The dishes change regularly, according to the seasons and the cook's desires! A little off-centre, this restaurant is nevertheless really worth a visit.

This place - today modern and uncharted - has served fried cod since 1910. Yes, the fish and chips is also one of the specialties of Thessaloniki, an imported tradition of the Jewish Jews in Portugal at the end of the fifteenth century. Now made with unsalted and frozen cod of Norway, it is served with a very local skordalia (garlic cream). A little expensive, "Aristos cod" is very popular with people who often queue up here.

In the heart of Ladadika's tourist district, in a neoclassical house that escaped the great fire of 1917, everything here evokes the French brewery: the vintage décor (less gleaming), the professional staff (more friendly), the scoundrel dishes with a taste of yesteryear (sometimes as unoriginal as in Paris). Without breaking the bank, you can get a glimpse of the variety of Salonic cuisine: sausages from Macedonia, dishes from Asia Minor and the Black Sea.... The restaurant also has another address: Zithos Doré, Tsirogianni 9 (behind the White Tower).

An old recipe inherited from the Byzantines, bougatsa was brought back by refugees from Asia Minor in 1923 to become the specialty of Thessaloniki. Among the bakers who make it, Philippos Bantis is the most famous in the city. His family has been making it for generations and in his tiny store opened in 1969, he still makes the phyllo dough himself. Rolled and baked, it is filled with a choice of semolina and vanilla cream, mizithra (a goat cheese similar to ricotta) or minced meat with herbs.

Inside the Byzantine museum is this superb café-bar-restaurant. Held with an iron hand by Chryssoula, the service is of impeccable quality. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, or just coffee or a glass of wine, inside or outside, it's sophisticated here. The food is worthy of a gourmet, always well decorated on the plate. The menu is made according to the season and the arrival of local producers. Greek cuisine revisited in a fusion style. Nice selection of the best Greek and local wines.

Without being strictly speaking by the sea, Kati Ap' Ola (literally "a little bit of everything") is an interesting stop just a street behind the Paralia. You have to see the crowd rushing there on Sunday afternoons to understand that it is a meeting place for the inhabitants of the neighbourhood, to meet each other or for special occasions. As for the menu, a little bit of everything, indeed, but above all copious and cheap daily specials (soutsoukakia, gemitsa, chickpea soup, chicken and baked potatoes) with a warm team.

If you're looking to immerse yourself in the local Thessalonian culture, this is the place to be! This small bakery on the corner is full of local specialties, including an impressive range of bougatsa and kritsini. Established in 2005, everything here is homemade with love by Themis and her family. You can enjoy your freddo coffee on the terrace, eat small salty sandwiches or taste the various sweet treats... with a view on the White Tower! Or take it away for a tasty stroll.