Neo Psychiko, a suburb north of central Athens, is just a 15-minute drive from the city’s busy central Syntagma Square, yet it feels like a world away. Residential and family-oriented, the area is greener and quieter than downtown. At its heart is Plateia Eleftherias (“Freedom Square”), a lively spot with a playground, a kiosk, cafes and restaurants – the usual for any decent Athenian plaza. People gather here from early in the morning to late at night.
One of those reliably busy all-day gathering spots is O Foititis, a non-assuming family-run fish restaurant that has been loyally serving locals since 2005, when resident Andreas Sfikas decided to turn his experience running a neighborhood snack bar into something more ambitious. Andreas (who passed away in 2020) spent most of his life in Neo Psychiko. The house he shared with his wife, Anna-Maria, and his three children is just a block from O Foititis, and the snack bar he ran with the help of his two sons was located in an athletic center near Eleftherias Square. The Sfikas family knows everyone in the neighborhood, and the neighborhood certainly knows them.
That’s why when Andreas first opened Foititis (pronounced “fetetes,” the name means “the student” in Greek and was the nickname of the spot’s previous owner), he imagined it as an all-day coffee and mezze place, where the locals he knew so well could collect. Gradually, at the request of his customers, O Foititis started offering more options. By 2017, the menu had grown significantly, with fish and seafood as the big draws. Those were the years in which Greece was just striving to get over the economic crisis – everyone was trying to live within their means and make a decent living. Andreas’s vision was humble and reasonable: offer fresh fish at low prices, even in a suburb that can afford higher prices. His place was always busy, and although the family had to work hard, it was rewarding to see their clients leaving happy.
When Andreas died, his wife and sons Dimitris and Panagiotis – who had been very involved with the business since day one – immediately took over, intent on continuing their father’s vision and, even in his absence, make him proud.
“We haven’t stopped working since” Panagiotis, the younger son, says.
“Covid came right after [Andreas passed away]. We made the grand decision not to close at all, which was extremely rare during the first lockdown,” he tells us. The staff didn’t want to stop working, and since customers could not sit at the restaurant during the lockdown, the waiters themselves started delivering.
“We didn’t know anything about delivery until then, and we were not at all prepared. Yet we jumped right in and started delivering food almost from day one.” Panagiotis explains. The restaurant had a rough couple of years, but they were able to work daily and managed to keep themselves creatively occupied during the long lockdowns. “It all paid off last May, when restaurants were finally allowed to reopen. The square here was packed all day and night, keeping our tables busy.”
O Foititis’s location is definitely attractive, and even more during spring and summer, when the weather lets up and everyone’s out in the streets. But the attraction here is not just the location – it is also the food. The menu includes a list of classic seafood dishes you’d find in a Greek fish tavern, such as grilled octopus, fried or grilled kalamari, steamed mussels, taramosalata, grilled sardines, fried anchovies and so on. A few meat dishes are available as well, for those who want to enjoy a glass of tsipouro, paired with meatballs made aromatic with the addition of fresh chopped mint. The potatoes are hand-cut and freshly fried – just like a Greek mom would make at home. Everything is prepared with care and love, and Dimitris and Panagiotis do the shopping themselves every single day. “We do it in shifts!” Panagiotis says, laughing.
They collaborate with a farmer in Marathonas (a suburb near Athens) from whom they buy 80 percent of their produce, ensuring high quality while supporting a young, local farmer. The salads at O Foititis are indeed exquisite, but the best thing we tasted on our last visit was, unexpectedly, the ceviche. Here, ceviche is always available, although it’s not listed on the menu as it depends on the daily catch. When we visited, they had a choice between langoustine, prawn or John Dory fish ceviche, each very well executed and extremely fresh. The taramoslata, the classic fish roe dip, was divine as a spread for the the fresh, crusty bread. Our meal ended with a shot of lemon liqueur alongside a refreshing yogurt cheesecake with sour cherries and a lovely lemon tart.
O Foititis is open all day and rarely empty. At nine in the morning, older customers come for their coffee and play backgammon until about noon, when they usually free up the tables for the lunch crowd. The tables then fill up with mostly locals who, in the late afternoon, are replaced by area moms who come in for a coffee while their kids are in the square’s playground. They stay until dinnertime, when the tables swell with hungry customers yet again.
This article was originally published on June 3, 2022.
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