Levantis

Levantis sits on Gravari Street inside the Castro quarter of Parikia, the whitewashed medieval heart of Paros Town. The restaurant has been running for over 40 years, and its centrepiece is a two-century-old grape vine that spreads across an open courtyard, casting shade over the tables in summer and heavy with purple fruit by late August. It is not a taverna in the traditional sense — chef Giorgios Mavridis takes Greek and broader Mediterranean ingredients and applies a contemporary technique to them, so the menu reads differently from the grilled-fish-and-horiatiki places down near the port.

The address places it a short walk from the Frankish Castle walls, deep enough into the old town that you pass through narrow cobblestone alleys to reach it. That short detour filters out the most casual foot traffic. Most diners here have looked the place up beforehand, which sets a certain tone: the pace is unhurried, tables are properly spaced, and service is oriented around the meal as a sequence rather than a transaction.

Levantis holds a 4.5 rating across 250 Google reviews — a solid signal for a restaurant in a competitive island dining market — and is open Monday through Saturday from 6:30 PM to midnight. Sunday is a rest day.

What to Expect

The primary draw is the courtyard itself. The ancient grape vine overhead is not decorative in a token sense — it forms a genuine canopy, and on warm Paros evenings the combination of diffused light, stone walls, and green leaves creates an atmosphere that is earned by the setting rather than manufactured. For cooler or wet evenings, a sheltered indoor space adjoins the garden, so a booking is workable across most of the season.

The cooking is described by the restaurant as contemporary cuisine that combines traditional Greek dishes with modern Mediterranean twists. From the menu detail available, the approach is precise: starters include salt-cured mackerel with grilled cauliflower, potato caper and dill salad, and thinly sliced herb-encrusted beef with greens, onion marmalade, and wasabi oil. Neither dish is a standard Cycladic starter, and the flavour combinations suggest a kitchen paying genuine attention to contrast and balance.

Main courses follow the same logic: yogurt-encrusted rabbit ragout with olive and eggplant, and linguine with roasted cherry tomatoes and sardines represent the kind of cooking that sits squarely between a traditional Greek kitchen and a modern European one. The dessert menu extends to Greek thyme honey preparations, keeping the sourcing local even when the technique is not. Presentation is a stated priority of chef Mavridis, so portions are composed rather than abundant.

The indoor-outdoor split means the restaurant functions comfortably from late spring through early autumn. On a still August evening, the courtyard is the place to be.

How to Get There

Levantis is on Gravari Street in Parikia's Castro district, which is the old town built around and inside the ruins of a 13th-century Venetian fortress. From the main port ferry dock, walk inland along the waterfront and then turn into the old town — the Castro area is clearly signposted and lies roughly 10–15 minutes on foot from the port.

Parikia is the main town and ferry hub of Paros. Buses from Naoussa, Aliki, Golden Beach, and other parts of the island terminate at Parikia's main bus station, which is near the waterfront, making access straightforward from most parts of the island. Taxis from Naoussa or the airport take around 10–15 minutes.

Parking in central Parikia is limited. If you are driving from another part of the island, the most practical approach is to leave your vehicle near the port or on the road approaching the old town and walk the remainder. The narrow alleys of the Castro quarter are not navigable by car. The cobblestone lanes leading to the restaurant are uneven, which is worth noting for anyone with mobility considerations.

Best Time to Visit

Levantis is open from 6:30 PM, which aligns well with the Cycladic dining rhythm — most visitors to Paros eat later than they might at home, with the main evening meal sitting between 8:00 PM and 10:00 PM. Arriving at opening time gives you the best chance of securing the courtyard table of your choice without a long wait, and the light at that hour in summer — still golden and warm — is particularly good in an open-air setting.

The restaurant operates through the main tourist season, which in Paros runs roughly from late April through October. August is the peak month on Paros, when ferry traffic is at its highest and accommodation fills fast. Reservations are strongly advisable in July and August, and sensible in June and September. The restaurant is closed on Sundays.

Paros experiences the Meltemi wind in July and August — a steady northerly that cools the evenings considerably. The courtyard setting, sheltered by old stone walls, buffers this better than exposed seafront terraces. If the wind picks up significantly, the adjacent indoor space provides an alternative without requiring you to abandon the meal.

Tips for Visiting

• Book ahead in high season. The courtyard has limited covers and the restaurant is well-known. July and August bookings should be made days in advance; June and September ideally a day or two prior. Call +30 2284 023613 or check the website at levantisrestaurant.com.
• Request a courtyard table when booking. Specify that you want to sit under the vine canopy — it is the defining feature of the space and worth requesting explicitly rather than leaving to chance.
• Sunday is closed. Levantis does not open on Sundays. If your itinerary has you in Parikia on a Sunday evening, plan accordingly.
• Dress slightly up. This is not a casual beach taverna. Light smart-casual — linen trousers, a dress — fits the tone without being out of place on a warm island evening.
• The starters are substantive. The menu descriptions suggest starters are composed and filling. Ordering two courses per person is likely sufficient unless you have a very large appetite.
• The Castro is worth arriving early to explore. Give yourself 20–30 minutes before your reservation to walk the alleys around the Frankish Castle. The neighbourhood is interesting in its own right and the walk sets up the evening well.
• Getting there is part of the experience. The cobblestone alley approach is narrow and atmospheric. If you are visiting with small children in strollers or have significant mobility limitations, the uneven stone surfaces are worth factoring into your planning.
• Check for seasonal closures. Like most restaurants on Greek islands, Levantis operates seasonally. If you are visiting outside the June–September window, confirm directly that the restaurant is open before making plans around it.

What to Order

Based on the menu detail available, the kitchen's strengths appear to lie in its starters and its protein mains. The salt-cured mackerel with grilled cauliflower, potato caper, and dill salad is an inventive opener that signals the kitchen's interest in texture contrast — soft cured fish against roasted vegetable, sharp caper against mellow potato. The herb-encrusted sliced beef with wasabi oil is similarly composed around contrast, leaning slightly Japanese in its finishing oil, which sits unusually but not uncomfortably in a Greek island context.

For mains, the yogurt-encrusted rabbit ragout with olive and eggplant is the kind of dish that demonstrates what chef Mavridis is doing: rabbit is a traditionally Greek meat, yogurt a classic Greek ingredient, but the ragout treatment and the combination with brined olive and roasted eggplant moves it into contemporary territory. The sardine linguine with roasted cherry tomatoes is a lighter option that keeps the Mediterranean anchoring more explicit.

The dessert menu references Greek thyme honey, which is one of the more distinctive ingredients the Cyclades produce. Whatever form it takes on the menu, it is worth ordering if honey-based desserts appeal to you — Aegean thyme honey has a specific aromatic quality that differs noticeably from generic commercial varieties.

Levantis maintains a wine list; Paros itself produces wine — particularly reds from the local Monemvasia and Mandilaria grape varieties — so asking for a local Parian bottle is a reasonable and regionally coherent choice.