The Bar in Front of the Bar (Athens)

Jon giving Alex a layback of his favorite juice at Li Tseri (Ionnina)

Angelos Bafas guest shift at Heads or Tails (Ionnina)

Thanks to Konstantinos Theodorakopoulos of The Bar in Front of the Bar, I finally made it back to Athens! My last visit was in 2012, before I even drank cocktails, so this was a whole new experience.

The trip started with a sunset cocktail at Taratsa, the Acropolis-view rooftop restaurant and bar co-owned by Konstantinos. It was a beautiful start to a trip organized by Konstantinos, Alex, Nikos, and the team at The Bar in Front of the Bar. They invited a few journalist friends, alongside bartenders Holly Graham of Tokyo Confidential, Jonathan Gabbay of Argo at Four Seasons Hong Kong, Angelos Bafas of Cato London, and Aineias Dimitris of Late Bloomers Zurich.

The Bar in Front of the Bar is, quite literally, a bar in front of another bar. Both spaces are powered by the same team and the same kitchen, functioning as two distinct rooms separated by a single wall. The front bar has no indoor seating; you order at the counter and drink on the street. At The Bar in Front of the Bar, the (delicious) cocktails change regularly and follow a closed-loop, zero-waste approach.

Around Athens, we also visited other bars, although my favorite was The Clumsies. This was in part thanks to the company—my high school friend Sophie, who now lives in Athens, joined me for Negronis at the high-energy bar.

From Athens, we flew to Ioannina, where the international bartenders participated in exciting pop-ups at Heads or Tails, Li Tseri, Route 66, and Spitaki. We spent two days in Ioannina, which allowed us to form special bonds with the other bartenders, connect with the locals, and experience the thriving bar scene. On the second day, we traveled to the outstanding Katogi Averoff winery in Metsovo, capping off the visit with an epic lunch.

A special thank you to Vikos and Patrón for sponsoring the event!

Lunch in Metsovo