True neighbourhood joints do not come plenty in Athens, especially if one is also looking for top notch meze bites for lunch. Lesvion though is an exception with a decades long history in serving delicious seafood dishes paying homage to the island life of Lesvos.
Things were not always like this in this very cosy joint that is now getting traction with lots of foodies visiting from afar across Athens. Tucked away on a hilly street of Galatsi, where once locals from Mytilini decided to relocate, Lesvion started operating as the neighbourhood coffee spot. Locals, mostly men, used to play cards and backgammon, almost making it imperative that they find something to grill on the fireplace. And that’s how previous owners started serving a few meze dishes together with some ouzo.
In 2008, Periklis Kakaronis took over from his father Takis and decided to turn this into a fully blown taverna retaining though the original vibe and simplicity of this place.
The first time I visited was with another long time sworn foodie that loves the kind of places that serve real food made simple. So I was convinced this was going to be one of the books. We found ourselves there on a quick weekday lunch in search of the perfect grilled octopus. And Periklis exceeded expectations!
There’s a familiar saying here from locals that visit in groups: “for every additional guest at the table, we also add one more octopus tentacle on the grill“. And that’s how it should be cause one can never have enough of this charcoaled grilled, juicy specialty of the house!
They source the octopuses from Lesvos and after drying them out in the sun, they just grill them. No additives, no nothing. Just the fine art of grilling.
But before making it to the main dish (that’s the octopus that is usually served last), we were lucky enough to feast on other delicious bits. Periklis served us a warm potato salad, some tangy marinated anchovies, a thick fava srpead, a portion of juicy grilled sardines and a few fried red mullets. So our lunch quickly turned into a fully blown meal. We tried to stay away from alcohol even though I’m sure this place would hit differently after a few glasses of tsipouro or raki.
We asked for the bill as we were on the clock and were ready to leave when Periklis came around with two portions of yoghurt topped with preserved cherries. Oh what a treat – sweet yet slightly tangy, cleansing our palette and making this just about the perfect send-off!
As we walked out a few locals were being served yet another portion of fried meatballs with fried potatoes – another iconic dish of their apparently. We’ll sure be coming back to try that too!
