Probably the most popular and innovative bar in Athens, The Clumsies is big, youthful and boisterous. Founding bartenders Nikos Bakoulis and Vasilis Kyritsis steered their downtown cocktail bar into fourth place in 2021 (19th in 2022) on the World’s 50 Best Bars list by always staying a step ahead of international trends. Their cocktails may look simple, but hours of R&D have gone into their creation. The drinks menu is dreamt up in a lab on the first floor, where they put ingredients through a rotary evaporator or sous vide. Adventurous palates should try the Clumsy Smash, a variation of the Basil Smash with dill instead of basil, vodka, vermouth, chocolate oil, matcha tea and lemon. You won’t believe how well chocolate goes with dill!

A feel-good name for a feel-good hangout. Upupa Epops (inspired by the bright birds with distinctive crowns) is run by the energetic Marfi Bali. She’s one of the few—if only—female Greek bar-preneurs in Athens. Drinkers spread out across a string of three small, 1930s houses. One used to sell sugar and salt; another was a brass pots workshop (it’s now home to a large bar and impressive array of distillates); the third, is the former residence of a Mr. Analabidakis (his name’s still on the doorbell). The flamboyant fit-out is down to Alexandros Petrakis, the designer behind some of Athens’ most original bars like 7 Jokers, Noel and Briki. Order the Art Brut with strawberries, lemon, balsamic cream, herbal liqueur, peach, and vodka. Or the Amnesia with rum, fresh pineapple, lime, ginger, maraschino liqueur, falernum and absinthe.

A cocktail bar where it’s always Christmas? It should be as tacky as a Mariah Carey festive special. But somehow it all works a charm. Many consider Noel to be the most gorgeous bar in Athens. Find it inside the Kourtaki arcade in the Historic Centre, named after the Kourtaki retsina family. (Urban legend has it that the patriarch of the family was married to a French belle who would park her Jaguar in the arcade and then ride her horse up to the Acropolis.) Made up of three interlinked spaces, it’s a showstopper of a spot to grab a coffee, cocktail or some food. Try the decadent Last Christmas cocktail with rum, ginger, lime, dark chocolate and brandy de jerez. Or go for the Spectacle with gin, mastiha infused with olives, lemon and white chocolate. This is a bar where you can bring the kids, too. They’ll marvel at the year-round decorations.

Just across from the Acropolis Museum, this down-to-earth tiki bar speaks of the 1980s—a decade held dear by owner Giannis Petris. With bamboo flourishes, leopard-print chairs and occasionally live music, it always feels like a tropical holiday in here. Zombies and Mai Tais are popular, as you’d expect. As you’re sipping your Deathwish or Hawaiian Room cocktail, don’t be surprised if Giannis pops out with a little snack that he just threw together in the kitchen. Come to chill out, dance, and maybe even flirt. Just like we used to in the 80s. 

Get in on the global trend for caffeine-activated cocktails at this tribute to the old-world vermouth bars of Turin. Their Hidden Pieces cocktail looks like an iced espresso, but has the added kick of vermouth and gentian liqueur. It’s a best-seller, but you’d expect no less from this city of coffee addicts. Located on a lovely cobbled square, beside a Byzantine church, Odori is busy from late morning until late into the night.  One of Odori’s perfect wood-fired pizzas makes the ideal drinking buddy. Favourites are the fungi and tartufo, spicy Vezuvio, or veggie Ortolana pizza. 

Small but stylish, this grown-up bar hums with the morning coffee and brunch crowd. But it’s also a hit in the afternoon for aperitifs and after-work drinks. Locals love it for the well-executed classic cocktails and unpretentious atmosphere. Most nights, the friendly face behind the bar is Mario Basso. He’s all about the famous Greek filoxenia (hospitality), although he was taught by his Italian grandmother at an early age how to brew his own vermouth. Mario also ages cocktails in little barrels, amongst them the Negroni. A great choice for solo travellers, who will feel comfortable enjoying a drink here on their own.