Not sure this place deserves two Michelin stars: Restaurant Spondi (22. June 2022)

The Spondi is located in an area I have never been to so far – and I must say, it seemed quite vivid and lovely, so, it was no wonder you would find a 2 Michelin star restaurant there. In any case, the place is not entirely Greek in terms of dishes, but definitely serves interesting dishes. To start, I went with one of their drinks, a “Orange Mechanic (premium vodka, orange juice, basil, honey, grapefruit soda)” (EUR 16.00) which was quite fine.

What you get at the Spondi is basically the “tasting menu ‘Discovery'” (EUR 170.00) and you can pick if you want the full “wine pairing with 6 glasses” (EUR 80.00) or a smaller version. Of course, I went with the bigger version, but it turned out to be way more than 6 glasses. So, frankly, in the end you’re quite lit when you’ve taken the full pairing.

The beginning was a “Niçoise salad made of ‘tomato meringue with basil gel, and Arseniko cheese from Naxos’ and “puffed bread with beef tataki and botargo”, so, basically a de-composed Niçoise salad. Frankly, I was not so aware of that, I would have combined the different elements differently in my mouth, but if you eat each by its own, which I did, then it isn’t really that amazing to get started.

The “traditional Greek bread, Japanese milk bread flavoured with nori, and filo pastry bread with olive oil from Kalamata” on the other hand was delicious. The different types of bread really brought out the best in each type of bread.

The “buttermilk ice cream, sorrel, shichimi spices and smoked eel” which was served in between was definitely interesting. I mean, who combines smoked eel with ice cream? I for sure have never tried that and I must say that I quite liked it – definitely something worth trying if you have the chance.

The “foie gras parfait with two bread sticks with pepper, dates and fermented strawberries” sounded amazing and was actually quite delicious in terms of flavour combination. The foie gras went super well with the strawberries – but the crisp which held it together was very fine making it easy to break apart, which wasn’t entirely optimal. But the flaovur and texture profile once you’ve had it in your mouth, was mouth-watering.

The next course, the “smoked potatoes with salicornia powder, green chartreuse, samphire and cockles” was quite fine as well. I mean, the whole dish was nice, but nothing I would vividly remember later.

The “toothfish wrapped in yuzu leaves, dashi with black sesame oil and green shiso, cucumber marinated in yuzu” looked definitely interesting. How often do you get a black dish? Definitely not very often, so I was intrigued. And, while the texture of the toothfish is somewhat dense, it is quite rich in flavour, and, therefore, especially in combination with the green shisho and black sesame oil flavour profile, enjoyable.

The next course didn’t really look appealing. I mean, the “beef cooked with corn and shimeji mushrooms, mustard seeds, and a sauce of oysters” looked somewhat unappealing really. The mushroom thingies on top of the meat did not really trigger anything positive in my mind, but it turned out to be great. The meat was rich, perfectly cooked, and the corn on the side added a bit to it (I love corn though to be fair). All in all, a solid dish.

Finally, it was time for one of my favourites – “cheese from the trolley” …

… and they offer quite a few Greek cheeses, so I was more than happy to try those. Delicious cheeses – besides maybe the ‘cheddar aged for 24 months’ since it really didn’t taste like anything.

The “green tea-citrus-atsina cress granita with lemon grass juice” was a great little palate cleanser before the actual dessert.

The “rice ice cream, milk of honey” was great. The combination of honey and milk and ice cream seems to be the flavour of the year. I have eaten in quite a few Michelin starred restaurants this year, and I have encountered a similar variation of this dish in Spain, France, Italy, and now Greece. But, it’s a combination which works, so I suppose one is not to complain about it.

The “coconut sorbet, sorbet of exotic fruits, mango crumble and milk chocolate” was a refreshing and light dessert which also worked to finish off the dinner.

Last but not least, it was time for some friandises. The “gold plated cherries” were actually fake cherries, so, they only looked like cherries, but it was quite a tasty bite.

The second type of friandises looked lovely, but didn’t imprint a lasting memory on my food brain.

The patio is lovely, but it’s also quite boiling hot when you’re not seated under a fan – which I wasn’t. So, all in all, it’s definitely a lovely place, but also one where you need to make sure that you are placed in the shadow.

The service is friendly and attentive, overall professional, but not everyone speaks English to a level of fluency which makes it easy to converse with the respective waiters and waitresses. A bit of a pity, but still, fine overall.

Does it deserve two Michelin stars? Frankly, I’m not sure. I mean, compared to the CTC Urban Gastronomy, which was somehow much more surprising, interesting, and much better in terms of price performance, I would probably not award the Spondi two stars. Sure, it’s good, and quite tasty overall, but it’s relatively expensive in comparison to the CTC Urban Gastronomy.

What I was personally a bit missing was the ‘local flavour’. Sure, on a 2 Michelin star level, it’s not a must or a need, but it is something I can truly appreciate and find quite appealing when trying a restaurant abroad. That being said, worth a visit, but would definitely prefer the CTC Urban Gastronomy.

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Contact Details:

Restaurant Spondi

Pirronos 5

116 36 Athens (GR)

Tel.: +30 21 07 56 40 21

E-Mail: reservation@spondi.gr

Homepage: http://www.spondi.gr

About the Author: Sven

I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org. Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City.