Simul — Restaurant in Athens

After spending a couple of weeks in Greece and desperate to have something that was not made in a Taverna - I was certain that Athens could not be the gastronomic desert that it was presenting it self to be. Surely there had to be high end restaurant quality food - the likes of which Australians can find everywhere - well thanks to the recommendations of the Michelin Guide - we found it in this cute terrace house in a suburb of Athens out of the tourist strip. We chose the a la carte menu and as a couple we shared 3 main courses and shared a dessert. This was mainly because we aren't big eaters - but the portion sizes - though small - are deliberately so - because they are meant to be savoured, and enjoyed - not gulped. We were not there to "feed" we were there to eat. Each mouthful was a burst of flavour with subtle undertones, We started with the Bonito - which was like a Tuna Tartare - mixed with matchstick size sticks of crunch from some vegetable - and a dashi sauce. Scrumptious. We then had the King of main courses - the chick peas cooked in bones and served with crayfish meat. That was superb. It had the overtones of traditional Greece with the use of chickpeas and the richness of the sauce was sublime. Our third main was the "Fish of the Day" which was grouper (170gms serve) with a corn and mussel beurre blanc. So velvety and divine. We ended with an Apricot pannacotta with a mop of real apricots and some breadcrumb crunch . It was served with a large glass of brandy and a non alcoholic pale straw coloured barely flavoured tea that was cool and soothing . The idea was that you had a spoon of the pannacotta, a sip of the tea, and then a burst of richness with the brandy. Seriously -this is the English equivalent of Blumenthal. For foodies - this restaurant is certainly a must try on your list of places to visit. For Australians looking for somewhere that is non-taverna - this is certainly a gastronomic joy. Plus, the service was superb. Attractive and attentive wait staff of all ages - checking in and advising on wine selections and instructions on how to best enjoy the food was a...

We visited this restaurant on June 22nd, a party of 3 people. After a long lockdown, I had high hopes that I would enjoy a good meal. Alas, little did I know. Let me start by saying that the meal was not bad, not bad at all. It was something worse. It was blunt. Let me explain:

1. The welcome breads and spread were a very nice touch. Good butter and delicious bread
2. Beef fillet tartare: Although the marinade was interesting, there was a base of rice (a first in any tartare dish I have ever had). This offered nothing to the taste of the dish (to the contrary it overpowered the beef) and I can only imagine it existed as a means to increase the quantity of the dish
3. Chickpeas with bone marrow and crayfish. The crayfish and the sauce were nice. I could not taste anywhere the bone marrow and the chickpeas if you tried them on their own, they were tasteless. This is supposed to be one of the signature dishes of the place
4. Beef tongue with peppers, eel and garlic sauce. We were warned that this dish was a bit "spicy". Maybe I have Covid19 and I cannot taste anything. That's why I could not identify this as spicy. Not by a long shot. The beef was well cooked but yet another dish with a blunt feeling
5. Rooster with trachanas and Naxos cheese (arseniko). I have tried a similar dish in Naxos and this had nothing to do with it. The trachanas was tasty, but the rooster was too fatty (with a lot of white fat- how???) and the arseniko cheese was again too weak. Another hit and miss
6. Ribeye with hollandaise sauce and french fries: The friend who had that was happy since it was medium and the meat was quite tasty. I tried some and I found it rather dry (disclaimer: I did try it after it had cooled down so this might have something to do with it)
7. Cacao creme brulee: Filling but too sweet. Why incorporate cacao into a creme brulee???

Overall, for the kind of food that it serves, the place is overpriced and overhyped. I would definitely not recommend. I am giving 3 stars only because the food was edible and the staff were very professional and attentive. At this price range you have...

Wow, this is what we can say about our taste experience here - and this is not all. We have been to a lot of pop restaurants and a few fine dining ones, but surely this was the best till now. The taste, the serving, the hospitality. We will take the dishes one by one: The bread and the butter. Very nice, we would recommend a bit of seasoning of the plain butter - maybe salt - but all was so qualitative. Beef tartar was like a story. The tastebuds were flourishing after the first bite. The cabbage: we never experienced this type of combination. It was a surprise, its sweetness was delightful. The grilled squid: the most tender and tasteful calamari. The taste of grill. The sauce. Great, our favourite. Iberian pork: like a beautiful and precious veal steak, so smooth and somehow crispy. This is where we should have stopped since we were full. But we continued :) The 🐓 rooster: it was not really my taste. But i can acknowledge the craft in it. My significant other was full, but he enjoyed it till the end. Sooo, once again we should have stopped, but we did not. We asked for some desserts and...we liked one of them the most: Creme brulee: was actually more of the crema catalana because of the creaminess. The top sugar was caramelized so well. The surprise was that it came with a "nest" full of camomile foam and a spoon of ice cream. Divine The chocolate mousse was ok, it was buttery. But nothing compares, as in the song, with the creme brulee. The cocktails were also very daring and tasty, especially φι.

For us it was a special dinner and we thank the chef and the team. We will come back here and hopefully Simul will get its Michelin star(s) - but please don't make it more expensive :))

P.S.: Sorry for the low quality of pics, they are not emphasizing the true look and greatness...