Oinoscent — Restaurant in Athens

This wine bar came recommended by a wonderful local-led food tour and We decided to check it out after reading mixed reviews. To give some background we have been wine tasting in Greece for 2 weeks prior and come from a large wine-making region back home and have done many tastings. We walked in and sat down at the bar. I inquired about the wine tasting ( available until 20:00, we were there about 25 mins prior ) and the bartender informed us that this is very difficult because he cannot spend 45 minutes with us explaining everything. It was as if we had asked him to do us a favor, both his tone and slight outrage. He said the place was extremely busy ( it wasn’t ) and that this would be very difficult. We could do some half glasses if we wanted, he said. He turned around and talked to a couple in Greek, laughing. He never came back to ask what we may want, I called over and asked about half glasses, he seemed annoyed now saying I could have a glass but if I really wanted I could have a half glass. We wanted to give some leeway for a possible barrier in language but had never experience this sort of seemingly discriminatory anywhere in Greece. Then I asked about the red wines - again slightly annoyed and suggested something “ easy to drink” Maybe he had made some assumptions about us by that point. Never really asked if we wanted anything else after that. For the next 30 minutes he spent the entirely talking to a couple sitting next to us in Greek ( so maybe no quite that busy?). We left after a half glass went down to Heterocito and had a warm reception, wines were great. Try either Heterocito, wine by the glass of really any of the other wine bars, there’s a new wine shop by the church as well. This place is not about customer service, at least not for all patrons. Perhaps they have been featured in a couple thing and it’s gotten to...

5 stars is not enough to rate the experience(s) we had. We were in Athens for four nights and went here each night, typically before dinner, but did dine here on our final night. The team here is so clearly passionate about the world of wine, and to two winemakers traveling to Greece for the first time, we discovered paradise. We learned so much about greek wines, and they prepared blind tastings for us each night to compare/contrast Greek varieties with the world.

We had some local cheese and meats the first night that were incredible; then on our final night we had the green beans, the mushroom dish (spectacular!), the tartare and the flank steak. It was the best meal on our trip: flawless, detailed food, matched with the perfect wine pairings, and served by the most attentive and engaging team. When you consider that package for the price (€90 for 2 people including a lot of very high-end wine), this is a hidden gem. Just go.

Thank you to Kostas, Barbara, and Yannis for four exceptional visits. We will never forget this...

Food, service and wine is a solid 10/10! Quality of service, dishes and wine selection is that of a Michelin starred restaurant and the location allows someone to enjoy it in an urban-casual setting.

This is an ideal place for wine-tasting, business lunch or a night out with your significant other and friends. You can also purchase bottles from their impressive selection of wines and ask the staff to guide you and give you exactly what you need!

Food-wise we had the beluga lentils, the potato, and the octopus. Everything is fresh and all ingredients used in preparations are of great quality. We loved the lentils the most as they combine a mouthful of flavours with a flurry of textures.

The "potato" was very interesting in structure and surprisingly light and refreshing. And, an honorable mention to the red smoked pepper sauce in the octopus dish! You could literally taste the smokiness of a pepper's scorched flesh against fire. So well captured and preserved!!

Big bravo...