Top 10 Restaurants in Hydra, Greece

Hydra is car-free, cliff-framed, and has just one proper town to its name, and its dining scene punches considerably above its size and geography. For an island reachable by ferry in under two hours from Athens that has no motor vehicles and relies on donkeys for transport, the range and quality of what is available at the table is genuinely impressive. The island has a two-century-old taverna whose square was made famous by Leonard Cohen, who was photographed there playing guitar under a white-painted tree in the 1960s and returned regularly throughout his years on the island. It has a renovated 18th-century fortress in Kamini where twin chefs apply Mediterranean technique to fresh daily catch. And it has a handful of waterside restaurants along the path between the port and the fishing village of Kamini that reward the walk with some of the finest seafood views in the Saronic Gulf. These are worth your time in no particular order.

Xeri Elia Douskos

The oldest restaurant on Hydra, run by the Douskos family for close to two hundred years in a shaded private square a few minutes up from the port that Leonard Cohen made famous when one of the most enduring photographs taken of him, which appeared on the cover of LIFE Magazine, was shot beneath the big tree outside the taverna where he would gather with friends to play guitar and sing, Xeri Elia Douskos is simultaneously a history lesson and a genuinely excellent meal. The setting has not changed much since Cohen's Hydra years and that is part of the appeal: tables under a canopy of trees hung with lights, live bouzouki and accordion music on weekends from old men who play and sing Greek songs, and a kitchen focused entirely on simple and well-cooked Greek classics whose authenticity cannot be manufactured. The kleftiko, lamb and potatoes wrapped in paper and slow-cooked until it falls apart, must be ordered early as only a few are made each day, the moussaka and octopus are flavourful and expertly prepared, the aubergine imam is delicious, the gemista roasted peppers and tomatoes stuffed with rice are excellent, the walnut cake for dessert is the best some visitors have tasted in all of Greece, and staff help you to choose your meals so that you will not over-order. The food cannot be faulted, as Leonard Cohen's favourite taverna should not be.

Téchnē Restaurant and Social

Lying on Avlaki Beach on the road toward Mandraki in a gorgeous renovated historic building with a shaded courtyard and tables by the promenade, Téchnē is the finest dining destination on Hydra and earns the hands down best dining experience we have had in Greece designation from visitors who praise the attentiveness of the team, the quality of the food presentation, the inventive cocktails, and the wine in equal measure. The kitchen serves New Greek cuisine with a creative and contemporary sensibility that sits comfortably at the upscale end of the island's restaurant spectrum without any pretension or inaccessibility, the Aegean Breeze cocktail with gin, citrus fruits, cucumber, and kitron liqueur from Naxos is a signature that earns its own following, the slow-cooked beef rib with olive gnocchi, the Aegean sea bass with wild greens, and the scorpion fish risotto in fish broth are all standouts, and the setting of a renovated historic building with the water immediately adjacent makes it ideal for a sunset dinner that someone is still talking about weeks after returning home. Reserve well ahead for dinner.

Omilos

Housed in a former fuel depot that once echoed with the footsteps of celebrities including the Beatles and the Kennedys, and reborn since 2006 under Kostas Acheilas and Lisa Bartsioka with Swiss-trained chef Dimitris Kantarakis at the helm, Omilos sits just above the water's edge at Hydra port with views of the bustling harbour from the balcony and commands one of the most beautiful locations for watching the sun set from a restaurant on the island. The shrimp tempura is excellent, the spaghetti with clams is a well-executed classic, the lobster pasta is a signature worthy of the setting, the galaktoboureko closes a meal properly, and the overall combination of seafood-centric dishes executed with clean flavors and elegant presentation in a minimalist whitewashed room with the soundtrack of gentle waves gives it a polished yet relaxed character that suits both an afternoon seafood lunch and a sunset dinner with equal ease.

Castello Hydra

In Kamini, a fifteen-minute walk or short water taxi ride from the port, Castello Hydra is a fully restored 18th-century fortress right by the water where twin chefs Spyros and Giannis Gavathas run a kitchen that balances historic setting with genuinely contemporary cooking, turning out saffron-scented catches, lamb with pasta, metsovone-cheese sauces, fish and beef tartare, carpaccio, crayfish and lobster, and even sushi with elegant plating and thoughtful sourcing. The multi-level operation includes a cafe that serves breakfast, coffee, and snacks through the day alongside the best apple martini on the island, sun beds for rent on the adjacent beach for a full day before dinner, and sunset views across Kamini Bay that make the overall experience feel special without tipping into self-importance. A reserved table here for sunset dinner is an evening that delivers on everything it promises.

Kodylenia's Taverna

A charming waterside taverna in a typical fisherman's house at the edge of Kamini harbour where the boats come and go from the terrace view and the fresh fish arrives directly from the water visible from your table, Kodylenia's is described by devoted visitors as their favourite taverna in Greece and earns the my favorite taverna in Greece, Marina and her family prepare everything from scratch designation from a regular who returns specifically for the cooking. The grilled feta cheese with red pepper is an excellent opener, the smoked eggplant is very good, the mussels in cream sauce are very delicious, the grilled fagri red sea bream and melanouria saddled sea bream hauled fresh off the boat are the signature orders, the homemade tzatziki is excellent with local bread from the baker, and the moussaka and lemon chicken reflect a kitchen that takes traditional Greek recipes seriously and executes them at a level that brings people back from the port specifically rather than eating closer. Accessible only on foot or by water taxi, which is exactly the right way to arrive.

Pirofani

Founded in 1994 in the village of Kamini and run by owner Theo who often hosts the evening personally in the white-washed intimate courtyard framed by blue wooden chairs, Pirofani is the hidden gem of Hydra that the island's most knowledgeable repeat visitors point toward when asked where the genuine local experience is without tourist fanfare. The almond-encrusted sea bass is a standout specialty that earns its own enthusiastic following, the hearty fava beans are excellent, the house wine is crisp and priced sensibly for the quality, the overall character of the cooking reflects genuine Greek homestyle food rather than a performance of it, and the combination of comforting fare with charming presentation and a sense of dining among locals rather than ticking off a tourist stop makes it one of the most honest and satisfying meals available on the island.

Il Casta

A family-owned Italian restaurant in a secluded courtyard in the lanes above the port, owned by the Corola family originally from Naples who welcome guests to dine in a traditional Hydriot courtyard with genuine southern Italian cooking made with the finest ingredients Hydra has to offer, Il Casta earns the kind of loyalty from visitors who return multiple times during the same trip because the pasta is that good. All pasta is made fresh on the premises each morning by chef Pietro and his brother, the salmon caviar gnocchi and saffron shrimp spaghetti and stuffed ravioli ragù are all exquisite, the tuna tartare and octopus carpaccio give off the right tones for a Greek island affair, the bruschetta with chopped celery is a genuinely refreshing twist, the décor with mismatched hand-painted plates is charming and stylish, and the wines are imported from Italy for a setting where the Italian character is complete rather than gestural. Book ahead.

Manna

A more polished and design-forward option than the typical Hydra taverna, Manna is quietly confident in its delivery and earns we ate at Manna the night before and it was worth every minute designations from visitors who compare it favorably across a stay during which they tried multiple restaurants on the island. The lamb baklava, aubergine dip, and calamari as small plates are an excellent way to approach the menu, the cocktails are unique, refreshing, and great mixtures, the garden is very pleasant, and the overall combination of elevated Greek fare with thoughtful design and a genuinely attentive service approach makes it a dependable and enjoyable option for a special dinner on the island.

Veranda

On a hillside above the harbour with a terrace covered in bougainvillea and fairy lights and a view over Hydra's rooftops that glows orange as the sun sets, Veranda is popular with couples and is described as one of my favourite restaurants in Hydra by visitors who came for sunset drinks one night and came back for dinner because it looked so good from the table and turned out to be that good from the plate. The menu mixes Greek and Italian dishes with grilled fish, seafood, pasta, and risotto across a kitchen that does not try to overreach but executes what it attempts with care and consistency. The staff are lovely and entirely without pretension, and the sunset terrace view is one of the most genuinely romantic settings available on the island.

Christina's Taverna

In Kamini, the family taverna now run by Christina's son Dimitris and his wife Maria after Christina and Manolis passed the baton to the next generation, with herbs and vegetables plucked from the family garden for the beetroot salad and the horiatiki loaded with large chunks of feta drizzled in oil, the saganaki buttery and excellent, and the grilled fagri and melanouria hauled fresh from the water alongside spoon sweets of yoghurt with cardamom and candied carrot, Christina's is the kind of unpretentious family-run eatery in Kamini where visitors and locals alike come for honest Hydriot cooking that has nothing to prove. Known locally by the family name rather than any official title, finding it requires asking someone at the port who knows the island well, which is the right approach.

Conclusion

Hydra rewards the visitor who walks. The island's most atmospheric table is in a private square where Leonard Cohen played guitar under a white-painted tree for nearly two centuries' worth of Douskos family cooking. Its finest contemporary kitchen is in a renovated historic building on the path toward Mandraki. And some of its most genuinely local seafood happens in the fishing village of Kamini, where family tavernas have been serving the day's catch to whoever makes the fifteen-minute walk from the port for as long as anyone on the island can remember. For a car-free island reachable from Athens by ferry before lunch, the depth of what Hydra offers at the table is one of the Saronic Gulf's most pleasant surprises.