Traipsing Through Thessaloniki
Our 24-Hour Layover in Salonica!
After a magnificent, albeit sweltering, summer in our beloved Athens, our 90-day tourist visa in the EU was finally up. So, we decided to vagabond our way to Skopje, North Macedonia and snuggle up there for the autumn. The question was — should we fly or hit the road?
After some diligent research, we decided that a train from Athens to Thessaloniki and a car from there to Skopje was the least stressful, most beautiful and ultimately less costly route in the end. After all, we’d done it before and it had proved quite pleasant — no airports, no security lines, why not?
Plus, it afforded us a chance for a 24-hour layover in another one of our favorite cities in Greece, Thessaloniki! Almost eight years ago, when we left the United States (for the 2nd time), our first mainstay in Europe was Thessaloniki (also known as Salonica) for a month in July/August of 2017. We were instantly smitten with this ancient city — its rich history, its beautiful ruins, its vibrant nightlife and its dynamic culinary scene (designated by UNESCO as Greece’s first gastronomic city in 2021!) captured our hearts. It was high time for another little traipse through tantalizing Thessaloniki!
Since our train was arriving in the evening and we were leaving for Skopje in the afternoon, we actually had less than 24 hours in Thessaloniki this time, so we opted to stay in the Ladadika District for easy access to one of our favorite places to dine, Full tou Meze [Full of Meze]. This is easily one of the coolest meze joints in town. Its sprawling terrace is always packed with locals and tourists alike, and inside their store carries a huge selection of local products, including bottles of Greek classics like ouzo and tsipouro. The brothers who own the restaurant are both charming and omnipresent and they conduct the attentive waitstaff like an orchestra. And the food . . . flawless every time. We opted for their perfectly fried calamari, gooey, crunchy tirokroketes (cheese croquettes), perfectly fried haloumi cheese and classic gigantes (giant beans baked in tomato sauce). It’s been exactly a week since we ate there and my mouth is still watering!
The next morning we didn’t have much time to explore, but we made sure to grab some of the city’s famed koulouria (rings of pastry covered in sesame seeds, with a crunchy texture somewhere between a bagel and a pretzel) for breakfast. Eat these on the street or you’ll be picking up sesame seeds for weeks! Learn how to make them at home here:
Sadly, that was all time permitted us on this journey. However, if one has the chance to spend more than 24 hours in Thessaloniki, here are some further sight-seeing musts:
The Arch of Galerius & Rotunda: These stunning Byzantine monuments were built by the Emperor Galerius in the 4th Century BCE and are located just a few minutes from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Grab a couple beers and a souvlaki and head there at night to get the low-down on everything from politics to economics to contemporary Greek society from some of the young anarchists, punks, and philosophers who can be found hanging out there. Some things never change!
The White Tower & Alexander the Great Monument: The White Tower was built during the reign of the Ottoman Empire sometime after the Sultan Murad II took Thessaloniki in 1430. It began as a fortress, then a garrison, and finally a prison, at which point it was known as “The Red Tower” due to its brutal executions. From the tower, it’s just a short stroll down to the nea paralia (the seaside promenade), where you can take in the impressive bronze statue of Alexander the Great riding his faithful horse Bucephalus.
The Archeological Museum of Thessaloniki: The museum boasts a collection showcasing “the entire history of ancient Macedonia in one museum.” This may be a slight exaggeration (it’s a modestly sized museum), but it’s definitely worth a visit to see their fascinating permanent collection of Greek art dating from prehistoric times to late antiquity. Currently only 8 euros admission!
The Roman Forum: You can’t miss it. It’s nestled right in the heart of the city, just off Aristotelous Square (which is another thing not to miss in Thessaloniki). And you shouldn’t miss it. Although not originally built during Roman times, it got a facelift by the Romans sometime during the 2nd century CE and the amphitheater was in use up to the 6th century! It’s only a couple of euros to get in and well worth a stroll around.
Kapani Market (Agora Vlali): The oldest market in Thessaloniki. The shops include fresh produce stands, spice stores, fishmongers, butchers, traditional coffee shops, bakeries, pastry and loukoumi shops, tavernas, meze and ouzeri restaurants, clothing shops and antiques. Do not miss this!
1) Rotunda of Galerius; 2) The White Tower; 3) Monument to Alexander the Great; 4) The Derveni Krater at the Archeological Museum of Thessaloniki; 5) Roman Odeon in the Roman Forum; 6) Kapani Market [Photo Attribution: #1: Holger Uwe Schmitt, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons; #2: CeeGee, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons; #3: Herbert Frank from Wien (Vienna), AT, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons; #4: Carole Raddato from Frankfurt, Germany, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons; #5: Kristie P., CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons; #6: Pixabay via Wikimedia Commons
And for some culinary delights, here are just a few of our favorite gems to check out:
Full tou Meze [Full of Meze]: Katouni 3, Thessaloniki 546 25, Phone: +30 231 052 4700
Our description above says it all! Cannot. Recommend. Enough.
Ergon Agora: P. Mela 42, Thessaloniki 546 22, Phone: +30 231 028 8008
One of our favorite restaurants is also a premium wine shop, deli and grocery store! Whether you wander in for a plate of their delectable savory version of bougatsa (pastourma pastrami pastry puffs with tomato marmalade, spearmint-flavored yogurt and oregano) or just pop in to pick up something to go from their incredible assortment of local products, their amazing delicatessen, their high-quality butcher shop or their fantastic selection of wines, plan a visit to Ergon!
Simply Falafel: Michail Ioannou 12, Thessaloniki 546 22, Phone: +30 231 022 2329
We’ve mentioned before on our Substack about what we consider to be some of the best falafel restaurants in Europe. There’s the amazing Falafellas in Athens and our favorite falafel in Paris, the infamous L’As du Falafel (recommended by Lenny Kravitz!). And now we have another place to add to the canon of great falafel — Simply Falafel in Thessaloniki! We didn’t think we could ever find another contender to stand up to the titans of falafel we love, but we did. This is Lebanese-style falafel at its finest. As their website accurately states, this is “the art of street food.”
Stou Mitsou: Vlali 11, Thessaloniki 546 24, Phone: +30 231 551 5504
We first ate at this kafenio (traditionally a place to have a coffee or a drink accompanied by appetizers or small plates) for our anniversary when we came to Thessaloniki seven years ago, and we fell in love with it. It’s relaxed, beautiful and the food is delicious. Also, Akis Petretzikis (our favorite dreamy Greek celebrity chef) makes a stop here on Season 2 of Akis’ Food Tour and loves it! The reel below is in Greek, but you’ll get the idea.
Pites tis Polis: Dim. Gounari 50, Thessaloniki 546 35, Phone: +30 231 020 9955
Have we mentioned we love pizza? We talked about Pites tis Polis in our newly updated version of Our Top 10 Favorite Balkan Pizzas in last Monday’s post, Did Somebody Say Pizza? Here’s what we said: Technically it’s called peinirli, a delicious little pizza boat that originated in Turkey (peinirli actually means “with cheese” in Turkish) but is sold across the Balkans and is especially popular in Thessaloniki. Pites tis Polis may just serve the best pizza boats in the city.
Oh, that was lovely to read. I still envy your vagabond lives so much. Except for having to move every three months.
Gorgeous food photos!
Perhaps we’ll spend a few days here before or after Tourlada. I must try every last thing in your meze dinner. Ideally three or four times.