A small Thessaloniki cheese shop where Christos Kontonikolas sells feta, mizithra, yogurt, kefir, butter, and aged cheeses made from milk sourced near his mountain village of Dryovouno.

In Thessaloniki, food is the city’s most vivid expression of history. Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman, Sephardic Jewish and refugee influences all remain on the table, shaping a dining culture built on long meals, strong local loyalties and a deep sense of continuity.

Like so many other Greek specialties, bougatsa has a long history, in this case one that stretches all the way back to Byzantine times. Bougatsa is mainly a breakfast pie with a phyllo pastry made of flour, softened butter and oil that requires a great deal of skill to prepare. This pie is made and enjoyed all around Greece, but particularly famous are those made in northern Greece, especially in Thessaloniki and Serres. Turkish börek is a close relation, and similar pies are traditional to many eastern Balkan countries that were formally part of the Ottoman Empire. The tradition of bougatsa making really took off around Greece in the early 1920s with the arrival of the Greek refugees from Asia Minor and Cappadocia.

A staple of Thessaloniki meze culture, bouyiourdi is a quick baked dish of feta, tomatoes and peppers, served hot and shared with bread at tavernas and home tables alike.

From the Bezesteni and Bit Bazaar to Kapani Market and Athonos Square, Carolina Doriti traces the commercial life of Thessaloniki through the markets, delis and specialty shops that connect the city’s past to its everyday food culture.

Chef, cookbook author and longtime Culinary Backstreets guide Carolina Doriti shares her ideal day of eating in Thessaloniki, from koulouri and Greek coffee to soutzoukakia, seafood meze and dessert stops that show off the city’s sweet tooth.

In Thessaloniki, food is the clearest expression of the city’s history. From refugee-rooted soutzoukakia and late-night patsas to bougatsa, trigona and old-school seafood, these are the essentials that define how the city eats.

One of the most popular kinds of restaurants in Greece is the mezedopoleio, which, as the name indicates, specializes in traditional local meze dishes (washed down with generous amounts of ouzo or other alcoholic drinks). Back in the day, mezedopoleia were the neighborhood’s meeting points. Men gathered there most of the day to drink, have a bite, talk politics and play backgammon, chess or cards. Today, the mezedopoleio remains a simple and very affordable place to eat, sometimes operating as a kafenio (cafeteria), and often offering traditional live music to add to the experience. Among Greek cities Thessaloniki is particularly famous for its numerous and excellent mezedopoleia, which makes it very difficult to choose just a few.

As the car crested a craggy hill, the first rays of golden sun peaked over the horizon, painting distant clouds the color of red wine. Tufts of gnarled olive trees and rows of grapes whizzed by the window as we approached the farm, outrunning the quickly approaching sun. We left Thessaloniki at 5:30 a.m. to beat the Greek summer’s heat, something of concern for both workers – and oregano plants, our destination’s star crop. Michalis and Anastasia, owners of Aetheleon, were prepared for the day’s harvest. With every rising degree, minuscule droplets of moisture and essential oils seep from the oregano in an attempt to cool them down. The plants’ sweat-like response can be easily smelled, the aromatic wafts upon the breeze a prelude to the frenzied buzzing of hordes of happy bees following the fragrant trail.