Ama Lachei on Kallidromiou: a Courtyard Taverna in Exarchia

Ama Lachei at a glance

🏫 The school that became a taverna

The neoclassical building housed the Exarchia primary school until the early 1980s. When the school closed, the playground became a courtyard with tables and the building became a meze restaurant.

Inside, the school is still visible. The dining room has high ceilings, a wooden floor and tall windows, and framed old black-and-white photographs hang on the wall. In the courtyard, a mural shows pupils at a school desk.

The name is a well-known Greek idiom: «ama lachei» means «if it so happens». On maps and in reviews you will also find it as «Άμα Λαχεί» or «Stis Nefelis» («Στης Νεφέλης»).

🌿 The courtyard

From Kallidromiou you go through the gate and down a few steps. The courtyard opens up below you: a paved floor, vine pergolas and plants over the tables, paper tablecloths, metal chairs. In the first photo of this article the light filters through the leaves and most people are sitting outside.

You do not have to wait for summer. The courtyard stays open in winter too, with patio heaters by the tables, and there is also the indoor dining room for rainy days.

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The courtyard and the dining room

The courtyard in winter and at night · the indoor dining room

🌿 Courtyard with vine pergolas 🏫 Former school 🔥 Heaters in winter

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What you will eat

The cooking is Greek, with many Cretan ingredients and dishes made for sharing. These are some dishes from the menu we photographed, with their prices:

• Dakos with sour Cretan mizithra and barley rusks — €8.20
• Legume salad with feta cream and sun-dried tomato — €7.90
• Fava «pantremeni» with pickled vegetables and capers — €6.90
• Zucchini fritters with feta, Cretan graviera and fresh herbs — €7.20
• Sfakian pie with mizithra, honey sauce and sesame — €8.10
• Smoked herring fillet from Lesbos with legume salad — €9.40
• Vinegar-marinated octopus with smoked paprika — €12.70
• Roasted cauliflower with hummus, sumac and lime yogurt — €9.10
• Shrimp orzotto with Kozani saffron — €15.30

The cheeses have their own section on the menu: Cretan graviera (€6.50), volaki from Tinos (€6.70), tsalafouti from Amfilochia (€6.40), oinosperitis from Ios (€6.90) and grilled mastelo from Chios (€7.80). Bread costs €1.70. The meze plates range from €4.80 for the fries to €15.30 for the shrimp orzotto.

For dessert, the chocolate «mosaiko» with chocolate namelaka and salted caramel sauce costs €6.20, and the cheesecake with lime and forest fruits €7.10. The drinks list has Greek spirits and wines from small Greek winemakers.

📋 The menu

We photographed the menu at the table; here is the English version. At the top it says «Στης Νεφέλης» («Stis Nefelis»), the second name of the place. Tap a photo to see it larger. The prices are those in the photo and may change.

The daily specials

The daily specials change and are only indicative. When we photographed the menu, the sheet had green beans (€8.90), free-range chicken braised in wine (€11.50), roasted pork knuckle (€14.20), a smoked pork chop with homemade BBQ sauce (€13.50) and grilled salmon fillet (€16.20). The dessert of the day was rice pudding with a caramelised sugar crust (€6.10). Ask at the table what is on that day.

📸 The dishes in photos

The photos show dishes and desserts from the restaurant. The menu changes, so the portion at your table may look different.

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Food at Ama Lachei

Meze plates, grilled dishes, stews and desserts

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☕ Brunch and coffee

Ama Lachei is not only an evening place. It serves coffee and brunch from early on, and the brunch has its own following in Exarchia. If you want more breakfast spots in the neighbourhood, we have a guide: breakfast in Exarchia: brunch and specialty coffee.

📍 How to get there from Ioulianou 50

The taverna is about 15 minutes on foot from the apartment, around 1 kilometre, with no metro and no changes.

The route in three parts

1. From Ioulianou 50 to Patission (about 5 minutes). You walk east and cross Patission.
2. On Metsovou (about 5 minutes). You continue along Metsovou, a little north of the National Archaeological Museum, as far as Spyrou Trikoupi.
3. On Kallidromiou (about 4 minutes). You turn into Kallidromiou and follow the street to number 69. The entrance is a gate, and the courtyard is a few steps down.

If you want your phone to guide you, search for «Ama Lachei Kallidromiou 69» in Google Maps and choose the walking route.

🎫 Useful information

• Address: Kallidromiou 69, Exarchia.
• Phone: +30 210 384 5978.
• Instagram: amalaxeinef.
• Price: about €15–25 per person, depending on what you order and drink. The meze plates on the menu cost €4.80–15.30.
• Hours: sources give slightly different opening times. Call before you go.

Go early, ask for a table under the vine pergolas and order slowly. We went, and we recommend it without reservation. 💙
— Kathy