Like a clock keeping time, the face of Athens is marked by the past, the minutes ticking by in ancient Greek ruins, remnants of Roman architecture and an assortment of gilded, Byzantine-era churches. But the city, so vigorously loved and lived-in — and which today braces against the strain of overtourism — is no open-air museum. Since emerging less than a decade ago from a brutal financial crisis, a story told in sprawling murals and tangled graffiti tags, Athens is finally eyeing its next Golden Age, fuelled by the fresh energy of locals and foreigners alike. With dozens of world-class museums and galleries, a refreshingly experimental food scene and innumerable buzzy bars, all set to a backdrop of music that courses through packed squares and leafy neighbourhoods, this age-old metropolis feels as alive as ever.FRIDAY2pm | Try a taverna with a twist
The tuna carpaccio at LS&Sia, a restaurant in Psyrri, is paper-thin and doused in Greek olive oil. (Photo: The New York Times/Camille McOuat)
Hidden behind the church of Agioi Anargyroi in Psyrri, a graffiti-clad neighborhood with a gritty charm and a long history, the restaurant LS&Sia offers a fresh take on the classic Greek taverna. While some dishes like kakavia (€18, around US$21 or S$27), a fisherman’s soup, skew traditional, others, like raw langoustines served with bone marrow (€26), surprise the unsuspecting palate. The tension between old and new extends outward from the plate, to the sleek industrial steel tables and the open-concept kitchen. The charming in-house candle counter offers one final nod to conventional customs with its natural beeswax tapers (20 pieces for €10), the likes of which you’ll see in churches around the city.4pm | Let ancient footsteps lead to antique treasures
