Tholos

Tholos is a traditional café-restaurant in Anafi's Chora, the island's only village, sitting high on the hillside above the port. It runs from breakfast through to the small hours — opening at 8:30 AM and closing at 2:00 AM every day of the week — which makes it one of the few places on this quiet Cycladic island where you can reliably find coffee in the morning and a drink late at night.

With 228 Google reviews averaging 4.6 stars, Tholos has earned its place as a focal point of daily life in Chora. On an island with a permanent population that can be counted in the dozens, a rating like that reflects repeat custom from locals and returning visitors, not just passing tourist volume. The place describes itself as a "traditional café-restaurant," and that combination — coffee and light refreshments through the afternoon, food and drinks in the evening — is exactly what a small, self-contained island like Anafi actually needs.

Anafi sits at the far eastern edge of the Cyclades, roughly an hour and a half by ferry from Santorini. Fewer than a handful of restaurants and cafés serve the whole island, so wherever you stay — whether that's Chora itself, down at Agios Nikolaos port, or near the beaches to the east — you'll pass through Tholos's orbit at some point during your stay.

What to Expect

Tholos occupies a position in Chora that lets it function as both a morning coffee spot and an evening gathering place. In the daytime session, running until 4:00 PM, expect the kind of Greek café staples that carry you through a warm Cycladic morning: freddo espresso, Greek coffee, cold drinks, and light snacks. The afternoon break is a common pattern for Greek island businesses, and Tholos follows it cleanly — closing for a few hours before reopening at 7:00 PM for the evening shift.

The evening session is where the café-restaurant side comes into its own. From 7:00 PM onward, the kitchen and bar take over, and the place stays open until 2:00 AM, well past the point when most establishments on a small island have wound down. On an island like Anafi, where the night sky is genuinely dark and the Chora's lanes empty out early, having a lit terrace or interior to return to matters.

The setting is in keeping with the village: whitewashed Cycladic architecture, a pace that doesn't rush you, and the kind of atmosphere that comes from a place that serves the same community day after day. Anafi's Chora is small enough that the café's regular clientele — fishing families, hikers coming back from the Monastery of Panagia Kalamiotissa, sailors anchoring overnight at the port — all tend to end up in the same few spots.

The source description notes drinks and light refreshments, but the Instagram profile positions it more fully as a café-restaurant with food service. Expect the offering to lean toward straightforward Greek dishes and mezze-style plates in the evening rather than an elaborate menu.

How to Get There

Tholos is in Chora, Anafi's main village, at the coordinates 36.3511°N, 25.7683°E. Chora sits roughly 2.5 kilometres from Agios Nikolaos, the island's main port where ferries dock. The road between port and village climbs steadily; it's walkable in around 30–40 minutes but steep in places and exposed in summer heat.

A small local taxi or occasional bus service connects the port to Chora, particularly around ferry arrival times. If you're staying in Chora itself, Tholos is easy to reach on foot within the village. Parking in Chora is limited to the small area at the village entrance — the lanes themselves are pedestrian. The address is Χώρα Ανάφης, Anafi 840 09.

Anafi has no airport. All arrivals are by ferry, primarily through the Piraeus–Cyclades routes that serve the smaller eastern islands. Santorini is the closest major hub with onward ferry connections.

Best Time to Visit

Anafi's main season runs from late June through early September. Outside those months, ferry connections become infrequent and many island businesses reduce hours or close entirely. Tholos's current hours reflect an active-season schedule; if you're travelling in shoulder season — May, early June, or late September — it's worth confirming hours via the Facebook page before assuming the full daily schedule applies.

Within the day, the morning session suits coffee and a slow start before hiking or beach time. The early evening opening at 7:00 PM catches the cooler part of the day when Chora comes back to life after the afternoon heat. Anafi sits in the southern Cyclades and temperatures in July and August frequently exceed 30°C, with strong meltemi winds providing some relief but also making exposed outdoor seating brisk in the afternoon.

For those wanting to eat without competing with peak summer crowds, late evening — from 9:00 PM onward — tends to be when Greek island restaurants reach their natural rhythm.

Tips for Visiting

• Call ahead in shoulder season. The phone number is +30 2286 061354. On a small island, hours can shift outside peak summer without the website being updated.
• Use the afternoon break for hiking. The gap between 4:00 PM and 7:00 PM aligns roughly with the hottest part of the day. It's a natural prompt to rest before the evening session begins.
• Arrive early for breakfast if hiking. The 8:30 AM opening suits hikers heading toward the Monastery of Panagia Kalamiotissa, about 8–9 kilometres along the island's spine. Coffee and something to eat before the trail is a practical reason to start here.
• Follow on Instagram for current updates. The account @tholos_anafi has over 3,000 followers and posts updates; it's the most reliable source for seasonal closures or changes to the evening menu.
• Don't expect a long menu. Anafi is not an island with large-scale supply chains. The offering at Tholos will reflect what's available locally and seasonally, which is not a shortcoming — it's the reality of eating on a genuinely small, remote island.
• Evening seating fills up on ferry nights. When a ferry arrives, Chora gets a brief influx of new arrivals and day-trippers. If you want a quiet table, either eat before 7:30 PM or later after 9:30 PM.
• Combine with a Chora walk. Tholos is a natural start or end point for a walk through Chora's lanes, which take in the kastro ruins, the church of Panagia, and the windmills above the village.

What to Order

The bundle and Instagram bio describe Tholos as a traditional café-restaurant. For the morning and afternoon session, the core café order on a Greek island is freddo espresso (iced espresso, not blended) or Greek coffee, alongside a pastry or light bite. If you want something cold and non-caffeinated, freshly squeezed orange juice is a standard café offering across the Cyclades.

For the evening session, traditional Greek café-restaurants typically offer mezze plates, grilled dishes, and local cheeses alongside wine, beer, and spirits. Anafi's own food culture draws on the broader Cycladic tradition: dried fish, local capers, island cheese, and simple grilled meat or vegetables. What Tholos serves specifically in terms of dishes isn't confirmed in the available information, so it's worth asking what's on that day — the answer will be more reliable than any printed menu on a small island where supply depends on ferry schedules.

For drinks in the evening, the standard Greek options — local beer, house wine, ouzo, and tsipouro — are a reasonable expectation in any traditional Cycladic establishment.