Top 10 Restaurants in Santorini, Greece

Santorini earns its place on every traveler's list before they even think about the food, but the dining scene on this volcanic crescent of whitewashed villages and caldera cliffs is a genuine destination in its own right. The island has an anchor restaurant that has been shaping modern Greek cuisine since 1986, a tucked-away taverna in the inland village of Exo Gonia that the most knowledgeable Santorini guides call simply the best food on the island, and an Imerovigli fine dining terrace overlooking the famous sunset that couples have been booking a month in advance for anniversary dinners for years. These are worth your time in any order.

Selene

The gastronomic and cultural landmark of Santorini for over three decades and a name that appears on nearly every serious list of the best restaurants in Greece, Selene was founded in Fira in 1986 with a mission to champion local Cycladic ingredients and has never wavered from that commitment across its long and celebrated history, now situated in the quiet hilltop village of Pyrgos. The tasting menus are creative and technically refined, the Cycladic Spinialo with octopus, botarga, sea bass, and sea urchin is a signature that showcases just how seriously the kitchen takes the island's seafood traditions, the lamb with eggplant puree and black olive paste reflects the same level of intention applied to the land, the Santorinian Tomato Can with multi-colored mini tomatoes and tomato sorbet has become something of an icon, the dolmades are warm and perfectly soft and described as the best some visitors have ever had, the eggplant arrives rich and flavorful with creamy notes and perfect al dente texture, and the moussaka and lamb are so good one enthusiastic visitor carried leftovers on a hike the next morning to eat at the peak. Book a month ahead in high season, and consider Selene Meze and Wine downstairs for a more casual version of the same philosophy at a friendlier price.

Metaxi Mas

Located behind the massive Agios Charalambos church in the quiet inland village of Exo Gonia, with a terrace overlooking vineyards and the Kamari Beach coastline rather than the volcano, Metaxi Mas is named for the best food on the island by the writer behind the most comprehensive and trusted Santorini dining guide in circulation and is the destination that well-traveled visitors who have tried everything else on the island tend to point first-timers toward. The menu focuses on Cretan and Santorinian specialties cooked with genuine pride and consistency, the setting is relaxed and authentic in a way that caldera-view restaurants by definition cannot be, reservations are non-negotiable in summer, and the combination of exceptional cooking with a complete absence of tourist fanfare is exactly why it earns the praise it does. There is nothing fancy about it except excellent food, great location, and a fantastic atmosphere, as one regular puts it, and that really is enough.

Athenian House

An Imerovigli fine dining terrace that the best Santorini guides insist on booking a full month in advance in peak season and that earns a stay in Santorini is not complete without a dinner here designation from devoted visitors who have been for anniversaries, honeymoons, and milestone birthdays, Athenian House delivers one of the most romantic dining settings on the caldera alongside food that more than justifies the reservation effort. The lamb and baklava are perfection, the signature Lamb Chop Moussaka with smoked Santorini eggplant, minced lamb, tahini, and feta bechamel is a standout, the Octopus and Beetroot Risotto with Vinsanto and summer truffle is exceptional, the famous Athenian House Baklava with peanut butter, chocolate, salty caramel, and pistachio is its own event, the chicken skewers are amazing, the Tholoto salad is delicious, and the wine collection includes one of the largest vintage selections of Santorini bottles on the island. The view at sunset from the terrace earns the best sunset photos some visitors have ever taken anywhere.

Lycabettus

Set on a narrow rock point jutting out over the Aegean at Andronis Luxury Suites in Oia and featured by National Geographic Traveler for its exceptional location, Lycabettus is widely considered one of the most romantic dining spots in the world and offers the most dramatically positioned table on the island with a view that combines the caldera, the sea, and the famous Oia sunset in a single unobstructed frame. The tasting menu is the way to experience the kitchen properly, the cooking is imaginative and locally sourced, the Zeus cocktail earns wow-level responses from guests who had not expected the bar program to match the food, and a meal of three hours with dishes that kept arriving as delightful surprises is a standard evening here. On the expensive side, absolutely, but universally described as worth every cent for a special night.

Aktaion

A Firostefani restaurant with over a hundred years of history revolving around classic Santorini flavors and jaw-dropping views over the caldera, Aktaion is one of the oldest dining institutions on the island and a place that earns the best meal we had in Santorini designation from visitors who chanced upon it and came back a second time for dinner later the same trip. Denis and the front-of-house team earn extraordinary praise for attentiveness and warmth, the food is traditional yet executed with care at a high level, the caldera and sunset views from the main road between Fira and Firostefani are among the finest on the island, and the combination of century-old character with consistently excellent cooking makes it one of the most genuinely special dining experiences Santorini offers.

Ombra at Esperas

A small, intimate restaurant at the Esperas hotel in Oia with a perfect five-star rating that earns the single best place to have a romantic sunset date on the island designation from a travel writer who has eaten extensively across Santorini, Ombra is named for its bespoke and insanely fresh cooking built around the unique produce of the island and the surrounding Aegean. The wild-caught sweet and sour prawn appetizer dressed in mojito sauce with Santorinian herbs, two twists of lime, and fleur de sel is described as the single favorite thing to eat on the island by the writer who covers it most closely, the mezze dip trio of tzatziki, smoked eggplant dip, and beet yogurt dip with homemade pita chips and olives is an ideal opening, the mushroom gyros with avocado cream and baked Santorini cherry tomatoes is an inspired dish, and the fish courses are the recommended close. People go crazy over this place, and rightly so.

Ammoudi Fish Tavern

Located at the waterfront of Ammoudi Bay directly below the cliffs of Oia, reachable by a winding descent of steps from the village above or by boat across the bay, Ammoudi Fish Tavern is one of the most scenically situated seafood restaurants in the Greek islands and the place that locals and devoted repeat visitors point to first when fresh fish and the sea are the priority. The kitchen focuses on the daily catch grilled simply and honestly, the setting of fishing boats bobbing in the small harbor with the volcanic cliffs rising above gives a sense of Santorini before the crowds arrived, and the combination of fresh seafood and genuine waterfront taverna atmosphere earns its place on any serious Santorini itinerary.

To Psaraki

A well-loved Vlychada seafood restaurant in a simple, traditional setting overlooking the beach on the south coast of Santorini, far from the caldera crowds and the tourist footprint of Oia and Fira, To Psaraki is consistently named among the restaurants that should not be missed on the island by guides who take the food as seriously as the views. Greeks who know Santorini well consider this their favorite seafood taverna on the island, which on an island this size and with this much competition is a designation that means something. The freshness of the fish, the honesty of the cooking, and the unhurried pace of the south coast setting make it the kind of meal that resets expectations about what eating in Santorini can be.

Remvi

Located on the cliffs of Firostefani with one of the most cinematic caldera views on the island at sunset, Remvi is a restaurant that earns its praise equally for the setting and the food, with fresh-caught seafood, local Assyrtiko wines, and Mediterranean dishes built around island-grown ingredients arriving in an atmosphere that balances elegance with a genuine lack of pretension. The grilled octopus with a chilled glass of Assyrtiko as the sun drops over the Aegean is described as the kind of evening that defines why Santorini remains unforgettable, and the overall combination of quality cooking with one of the great caldera views makes it a worthwhile destination on the path between Fira and Oia.

Feggera

A Megalochori restaurant combining Santorinian and Cretan flavors in a beautifully decorated terrace setting in one of the island's quietest and most charming inland villages, Feggera is named among the hidden gems of Santorini that the best guides insist visitors should seek out rather than defaulting entirely to the caldera-view circuit. The cooking reflects a genuine connection to local ingredients and traditions, the terrace setting in the flower-filled lanes of Megalochori is beautiful in a way that caldera restaurants are not, and the overall experience of eating excellent Greek food in a village that feels genuinely inhabited rather than purely touristic is the kind of evening on Santorini that people talk about long after the sunset photographs have faded from memory.

Conclusion

Santorini is one of those places where the setting is so extraordinary that restaurants could probably get away with serving mediocre food and still fill every table every night. The best ones on this list do not take that shortcut. From an inland taverna in Exo Gonia that earns best-food-on-the-island praise from the people who know the island best, to a century-old Firostefani institution where visitors return for a second dinner before their trip is over, Santorini rewards the traveler who comes curious about what is actually on the plate, not just what is visible over the rim of the caldera.