What About Restaurants?

One of the island’s most creative fusion restaurants, Funky Kitchen’s open kitchen serves up Mediterranean dishes with a twist on a secluded outdoor terrace along a tiny street. Standout dishes include seared tuna with eggplant mousse, rack of lamb with cumin fava beans, and octopus carpaccio with pink peppercorns. Their signature dessert, the appropriately named chocolate nirvana, is not to be missed. Evenings only; reservations suggested.

On the waterfront of Mykonos Town, this is one of several restaurants on the left side of the Marina, near the tiny chapel with a blue dome. Its imaginative menu makes Kadena stand out from its neighbors: expect dishes like risotto with leeks, topped with local goat cheese and apaki (dried pork, Crete-style) and orzo pasta with seafood, as well as superlative versions of lamb, pork, and chicken gyros and Mykonian sausage. Kids are made to feel very welcome and waiters will insist you save room for dessert – on the house.

With a couple of tiny white tables outside this friendly souvlaki joint and a few more tables inside, Pepper is perfect for a quick lunch or snack if you happen to be wandering through the tiny streets of Little Venice. It’s fast food with a difference: the chef uses only high-quality ingredients and everything is prepared fresh in the open kitchen right in front of you. The menu is short and sweet and their gyros and gourmet burgers are some of the best in town.

Widely agreed to be one of the very best restaurants on the island, M-Eating is all white-linen service on an outdoor terrace looking out onto a tiny, cobbled street, with soft lighting and attentive service. The chef transforms local ingredients into visual masterpieces and waiters are happy to suggest Greek wines to pair with your dishes. Choose from dishes such as lamb sous vide, slow-cooked veal on eggplant puree, tuna carpaccio with lentils and scallops on baked apple. Don’t miss out on their sweet specialty: Mykonos honey pie. Dinner only; reservations essential.

Mykonos Town is full of fancy restaurants, but sometimes, all you crave is a huge gyro overflowing its pita bread with tzatziki, tomatoes, french fries, and onions, or a nicely grilled lamb or chicken souvlakia, served on greasy paper. This lively joint attracts mostly young night owls; during peak summer season, it’s open around the clock to cater to pre- and post-clubbing munchies.

This casual, unpretentious taverna sits in the corner of the main square, a block from the marina. Still going strong after over 40 years, it’s haunted by a pink pelican that turns up every lunchtime to pose for photos and be fed fresh fish. The food? Greek standards, such as lamb kleftiko (slow-cooked in clay pot), and heaped platters of grilled seafood. Excellent quality and value.

Steps from the waterfront, past a shop selling icons in a tiny alleyway, Kounelas serves predominantly seafood dishes in an enchanted garden setting. The linguine with cuttlefish ink, the orzo dishes, the mussel risotto and a smattering of traditional meat dishes are good, but the catch of the day, octopus and squid, grilled to order on a charcoal grill, is even better. Dinner only; reservations are a good idea due to limited seating.

Set right on the beach, five minutes walk south of Mykonos Town, this unpretentious taverna is run by a hospitable Irish lady. Greek standards such as moussaka, lamb souvlaki, and grilled fish are the focus here, all done very nicely. Plenty of choices for vegetarians as well, including the delicious eggplant with feta and tomato sauce, and it’s an excellent spot for sunset-watching.