The natural-wine wave reshaped Athens's wine bars — these are the ten worth a Friday evening. The wine bars on this list span every neighbourhood worth a trip — the central districts all show up — and every price tier from a $5 local pour to a $25 hotel-bar tasting. Each bar earns its spot for a different reason. We have visited every one.

What unites the ten? The bartenders care. The rooms feel right at the time of night they are designed for. The drinks list reads clearly without showing off. We rate natural wine and small-format pours and the small things that turn a one-and-done visit into a regular's habit: an unhurried welcome, a warm room temperature in winter, a cool one in summer, and a bartender who remembers your name on the second visit.

Use this guide either as a single curated route through Athens or as a checklist to revisit over a long weekend. Reservations are flagged where they matter. Otherwise, walk in. Below: the ten wine bars that any serious drinker in Athens would tell you to put on the list.

The list

01

360 Cocktail Bar

MONASTIRAKI · $$$ · ROOFTOP BARS

360 Cocktail Bar draws a steady local crowd in Monastiraki. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: Tuesday and Wednesday before 9pm, when the regulars haven't filled the room yet. Best for sunset drinks or a slow first date. Saturday after 10pm gets crowded — book ahead or arrive early.

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02

360 Cocktail Bar Athens

THE CENTRE · $$$ · COCKTAIL BARS

360 Cocktail Bar sits on top of a Monastiraki building and delivers the most reliably packed Acropolis-view rooftop in Athens. The cocktail program is broad and. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: any weeknight between 7pm and 9pm, when the bar settles into its rhythm and the bartender has time to talk. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Friday from 8pm fills up; reserve a counter seat or a high table.

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03

42 Bar Athens

THE CENTRE · $$$ · COCKTAIL BARS

42 Bar opened in 2014 and has built itself into the Athens cocktail bar most committed to the classical canon. The room is small, low-lit, and built around a po. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: Sunday from 6pm, when it's the room's quietest premium night and the kitchen is unhurried. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Avoid post-match nights if the local team is playing — the upstairs gets loud.

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04

A for Athens Athens

THE CENTRE · $$$ · COCKTAIL BARS

A for Athens sits on top of the A for Athens Hotel and delivers the most direct Acropolis view in Plaka. The 7th-floor cocktail bar has floor-to-ceiling windows. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: Thursday late or Friday early, when you'll catch the room building toward its weekend tempo. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. First-Friday traffic in the district can mean a 20-minute wait at the door.

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05

Baba Au Rum Athens

THE CENTRE · $$$ · COCKTAIL BARS

Baba Au Rum has been routinely placed in the World s 50 Best Bars list since 2015 and remains the most internationally respected cocktail bar in Greece. The roo. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: Tuesday and Wednesday before 9pm, when the regulars haven't filled the room yet. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Saturday after 10pm gets crowded — book ahead or arrive early.

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06

Balthazar

AMPELOKIPOI · $$$$ · COCKTAIL BARS

Balthazar draws a steady local crowd in Ampelokipoi. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: any weeknight between 7pm and 9pm, when the bar settles into its rhythm and the bartender has time to talk. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Friday from 8pm fills up; reserve a counter seat or a high table.

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07

Bar Pirates

PLAKA · $$ · COCKTAIL BARS

Bar Pirates draws a steady local crowd in Plaka. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: Sunday from 6pm, when it's the room's quietest premium night and the kitchen is unhurried. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Avoid post-match nights if the local team is playing — the upstairs gets loud.

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08

Bibliotheke Cocktail Bar

PLAKA · $$$ · COCKTAIL BARS

Bibliotheke Cocktail Bar draws a steady local crowd in Plaka. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: Thursday late or Friday early, when you'll catch the room building toward its weekend tempo. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. First-Friday traffic in the district can mean a 20-minute wait at the door.

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09

Bios

KERAMEIKOS · $$ · COCKTAIL BARS

Bios draws a steady local crowd in Kerameikos. Booking is recommended on weekends. Walk-ins are usually possible early in the evening. Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: Tuesday and Wednesday before 9pm, when the regulars haven't filled the room yet. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Saturday after 10pm gets crowded — book ahead or arrive early.

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10

Brettos Athens

THE CENTRE · $$ · COCKTAIL BARS

Brettos is the oldest distillery in Athens — operating since 1909 in the same Plaka shopfront. The wall of 60+ backlit liqueur bottles is the most photographed . Order: the bar's house signature. Best time: any weeknight between 7pm and 9pm, when the bar settles into its rhythm and the bartender has time to talk. Best for cocktail-curious drinkers who want technique without theatre. Friday from 8pm fills up; reserve a counter seat or a high table.

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By neighbourhood at a glance

Ampelokipoi: Balthazar. Centre: 360 Cocktail Bar Athens, 42 Bar Athens, A for Athens Athens, Baba Au Rum Athens, Brettos Athens. Kerameikos: Bios. Monastiraki: 360 Cocktail Bar. Plaka: Bar Pirates, Bibliotheke Cocktail Bar. Most of these bars sit walking distance from each other within their districts. Athens's drinking neighbourhoods are compact — plan two or three bars in a single evening rather than racing across town.

Before you go

Reservations are recommended on Friday and Saturday evenings at any of the higher-priced rooms above. Mid-week before 8pm, walk-ins are usually fine. Tipping in Athens is appreciated; check our city guide for local norms. Cards are accepted everywhere on this list except where the bar specifies cash only — usually the older heritage rooms. Athens's last-call laws vary by district; plan your route from the strictest to the most relaxed.

"You'll know which of these ten wine bars matches your night within the first sip."

Want more Athens? Our full Athens bar guide covers every neighbourhood and every category. For the broader category index, see all wine bars worldwide. And if you have a recommendation we missed, tell us — our editors review every reader submission.