Taverna

I like going to simple restaurants on Sunday afternoon, kids in tow, friends at the table, noise, a little wine and then, once sated to the gills, home to dose with the newspaper. It’s a ritual many of us share every weekend. That’s exactly what we did at Taverna, this sleek, modern new, well, taverna, in Neo Psychiko. The little kids ran around the back, the big kids huddled together in typical teenage collusion, and the adults indulged in wine and simple competent food that doesn’t aim either to reinvent the wheel or to break the bank despite its chi-chi address.

Taverna is modern, with lots of glass, wood, and metal, a contemporary look that belies the simplicity and hominess of the cuisine. Starters include classics like feta with a sesame crust, fava (yellow split peas purée), Keftedes (meat balls), melitzanosalata (eggplant salad). The melitzanosalata was good and smokey with bits of vegetables inside. We liked the soutzoukakia (fried oblong meat patties with tomato sauce) and the eggplant with manouri cheese. The hortopita (greens pie) was only OK, but I have long felt that pita (pie) should remain in the realm of the home kitchen, since so few restaurants manage to do it well.

I liked the fact that there are always a few well executed ladera (stews cooked with olive oil) on the menu, such as arakas (green peas) and briam (baked vegetable medley). The grill is a special section with 6 offerings, among which we sampled the bifteki (beef burger) and the bifteki galopoulas (turkey burger). Both were tasty. The regular bifteki is large and a little on the dry side but surprisingly the turkey bifteki was moist and redolent with the aroma of coarsely chopped onions.

Amidst a whole row of cooked meat dishes such as beef yiouvetsi (orzo in the oven), chicken with kasseri cheese and capers (pretty good), and fricassée, someone must have gotten a creative urge expressed in a plate of spaghetti with cooked spinach and katiki Domokou cheese. We liked the klephtico (meat baked in parchment paper) and the French fries, too.

Taverna is a simple, neighborhood restaurant that welcomes kids on Sunday afternoons, offers competent service, competitive prices and more than decent food. We liked it.

Cuisine: classic Greek taverna fare, traditional dishes

Athens Area: northern suburbs
Atmosphere: sleek and modern
Service: friendly

Wine List: small but right for this place

Prices: 20-25 euro a person

Address: 7, Perikleous str., Neo Psychiko, tel. 210 6716803