Chess Cafe Panellinion — Restaurant in Athens

I'm a chess player (amateur) for some years. I travel to a lot of places and I usually try to play chess in these places( Europe, Asia, Africa, South America). Today, in this "chess coffee", my wife and I were mistreated by the owner, who does not speak English. Since I was confused, cause I tried to pay for the bottle of water I consumed, I kindly asked the only 2 Greek "players" to explain what was happening. To my surprise they did not help (maybe it was a fantastic match, that couldn't stop the watch to help us). At the end, the owner knows the English word "leave", and said that to me and my wife pushing us to the door (he did not accept my payment in cash, no cards). Very sad to experience this in Athens. Chess is more than a sport, some say it is a lifestyle, and this lifestyle overpasses race, color and language (if u follow chess history u know what I am saying). In my opinion and feeling, if you are not Greek do not go there. Only if you like to be mocked and sent to the street. I sincerely hope that these people one day really understand the meaning of chess, meanwhile let them move the pieces. AS YOU CAN SEE, MAINLY Greek POSTS SAY IT IS AN OUTSTANDING PLACE, HOPEFULLY THEY NEVER WENT THROUGH WHAT WE LIVED...

Extremely rude people. I love chess, and did almost one hour walking and after order, the people from the staff asked me where was I from and when I said from India they literally didn't let me play. Suddenly they pretend they were about to close and almost put us outside. After dinner we passed by to come back to our hotel and they were still open. Almost destroyed when of the things that let me more excited to...

A refuge from the harshness of the world, this café is perfect for those who love chess or simply wish to enjoy a Greek coffee, a cigarette and conversation. Run by real people in an it offers a warm and welcoming space where you can imagine an Athens before the ugliness of late capitalism....