Aegina Ouzeri o Skotadis Restaurant in Town

Location: Town

Ouzeri o Skotadis is a must when visiting Aegina! Its traditional flavors, albeit with a modern twist, along with its stunning view create a Greek island memory like no other! This ouzeri (meaning tavern that offers small treats along with ouzo, in Greek) is located in the heart of the island’s capital, right across the harbor and the old port.

The decor of the restaurant is reminiscent of any traditional fish tavern in Greece’s islands. What sets it apart is the view across from it; visitors will catch glimpses of local fishermen as they prepare to sail to Aegina’s blue waters. They will also see the main harbor of the island as well as the floating fruit market of Nektaria, a fruit market that has been housed in the same spot for decades and passed on to generations, just like Skotadis!

The restaurant opened its doors in 1945 just after WWII, but it was not always a gourmet restaurant serving local delicacies and drinks. When Giannis Alifantis, its originator, set up shop, Skotadis was a simple traditional cafe. He offered coffee and fish soup for sailors who started their shift in the morning or came back home at night. Alifantis would wake up so early in the morning to catch fish for his soup, that it was still dark out. This practice earned him the nickname Skotadis (skotadi means dark in Greek) and that was how the locals called him. After his son-in-law, Stelios Lykouris, took over the business in 1980 he gradually transformed the cafe into a tavern. His son, Giorgos, turned it into today’s restaurant, after getting involved in 2002 and renovating it shortly after. Since 2008, Giorgos has been cooperating with his head chef Sotiris Lampadarios, who has managed to make the restaurant an internationally acclaimed gourmet restaurant.

This restaurant offers a large selection of dishes, from traditional ones, such as a Greek horiatiki salad, all the way to specialties that only Skotadis can offer. One of them is their unique urchin-ouzo shot, which is usually offered as a starter. It contains a sea urchin’s edible parts, two drops of ouzo and one drop of olive oil. Skotadis offers a multitude of small treats (known in Greek as mezes) to go with their locally produced aged ouzo or tsipouro, such as marinated anchovies or their Greek white cheeses with flakes from locally grown pistachio, a true delicacy of the island. For its main courses, the restaurant mostly serves fish dishes, with fish that the locals have supplied them, with their own twist and way of cooking. One of these dishes is the elusive katsoules, a local fish of the island. Lastly, for dessert, the restaurant’s traditional baklava with pistachio should not be overlooked!