Best Cafes & Culture Neighborhoods in Athens

Athens is one of those rare cities where the cafe is not just a place to drink coffee but a genuine social institution, and where 2,500 years of cultural history means you are never far from something extraordinary. The Greek kafenion tradition blends seamlessly into the modern specialty coffee scene, and the city's archaeological and artistic riches provide unlimited material for cafe-to-museum days.

The Acropolis Museum on Makrygianni Street is the essential cultural starting point -- its glass floors revealing excavations beneath your feet and its top-floor gallery framing the Parthenon itself. The museum cafe has a terrace with one of the best views in the city. From here, walk through the pedestrian streets of Plaka to the Ancient Agora, where the Stoa of Attalos has been reconstructed to house a small but excellent museum of everyday Athenian life.

The National Archaeological Museum in Exarchia houses one of the world's great collections of ancient art. The gold Mask of Agamemnon, the Antikythera mechanism, and the bronze Poseidon statue are worth the visit alone. The cafes around Plateia Exarchia nearby are among the most atmospheric in the city -- cheap, intellectual, and unapologetically opinionated.

The Benaki Museum on Koumbari Street near Kolonaki takes you through Greek civilization from prehistory to the 20th century in a single elegant building. Its rooftop cafe is a refined spot for coffee with a view toward the National Garden. Around the corner, Taf Coffee on Emmanouil Benaki Street is widely considered one of the best specialty coffee roasters in Greece.

For contemporary culture, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre in Faliro houses the National Library and National Opera in a stunning Renzo Piano building. The B and M Theocharakis Foundation near Syntagma hosts excellent temporary exhibitions, and its ground floor cafe is a calm retreat from the busy square.

Odeon of Herodes Atticus under the Acropolis hosts performances during the Athens Epidaurus Festival from June through August. Watching a concert or drama in a 2nd century Roman theatre as the sun sets behind the Saronic Gulf is an experience that defines Athens.