7 Best Restaurants in Spetses Town, The Saronic Gulf Islands

Spetses's best restaurant has been morphing and evolving since it first opened 25 years ago, and the owner, Giorgos—a local who grew up on the island working in his father's taverna—still loves what he does and it shows! Everyone from fishermen to Hollywood headliners know him by his first name, and a meal here is not to be missed, not only for the innovative upscale Mediterranean dishes and thoughtful wine list, but also for the dreamy seafront setting and candlelit tables on a little pier jutting into the bay.

This highly regarded restaurant and music "boit" is right on the water in Dapia and is the all-time classic bar and nightclub of Spetses (running since 1975). The food in the restaurant is pretty decent, too, and it's probably one of the better choices on the island. Lounge in the veranda's comfy armchairs surrounded by maritime antiques and savor the predominantly Mediterranean cuisine and cool cocktails, accompanied by piano music and a romantic view of the yachts moored in the quaint old port.

Sit on the waterside veranda and savor seafood mezedes and fresh fish right from the sea in one of the more affordable restaurants on this sometimes overpriced (for Greece) island. As the very friendly waiters will tell you, the house specialties are the fish soup, astakomakaronada (lobster with spaghetti), and a kind of paella with mussels, shrimp, and crayfish. Magirefta (oven-baked dishes) include stuffed aubergines; oven-baked lamb; and roast scarpine fish with tomato and garlic. Expect to pay around €50 per kilo for the fresh grilled fish (compared to €60 in other fish tavernas). The chef makes a mean baked apple for dessert, but before you order, know that mini portions of baklava, karydopita, and spoon sweets with yogurt are on the house.

You don't get the swish, trendy, and inventive modern island styles here, what you do get though is a traditional Greek taverna with swift service and good value for your money, which more than make up for a lack of atmosphere. Pass up the grilled dishes for the goat slowly cooked in a clay pot and oven-roasted potatoes lightly flavored with lemon and oregano. Not to be missed: the small homemade cheese pies for starters and the fried kalamari.