Notos Restaurant

Notos Aegean Restaurant sits in Naousa, the fishing-port village on the north coast of Paros, and runs every day of the week from noon through midnight. With a 4.8 rating across more than 1,100 Google reviews, it has earned a clear reputation as one of the more consistently regarded tables on the island.

The kitchen operates under a straightforward premise: Greek produce and homemade preparations, worked through a lens that draws on Asian technique and flavour. That means you might find octopus served ceviche-style, or a seabass carpaccio finished with sea urchin — dishes that are anchored in the Aegean but not confined by it. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus run across the full opening window, and the wine list focuses on Greek labels.

The restaurant was founded by Nevila, who spent years in professional kitchens and collaborating with established chefs before opening Notos as the expression of that experience. The name references the south wind of the Aegean, which carries some weight in the context of a menu built around local ingredients and a coastline that defines the cuisine.

What to Expect

The menu at Notos moves through a range of categories — salads, starters, mains — all built around fresh, seasonal sourcing from local producers. Representative dishes from the current menu include a shrimp and mango salad dressed with red pepper, ginger, coriander, and olive oil; cheese croquettes served with prosciutto, rocket, and homemade strawberry jam; sea bass sautéed with almyra (wild edible greens) and green apple; and portobello mushrooms with avocado chimichurri. The octopus ceviche and seabass carpaccio with sea urchin point to the more technically ambitious end of the menu.

The style is creative Mediterranean — not fusion in a vague sense, but specific combinations that respect the base ingredient while adding a second flavour register. Greek wines are a deliberate feature of the drinks offering rather than an afterthought.

Service runs from a team that has grown the restaurant to one of the most-reviewed tables in Naousa. The atmosphere in Naousa itself is conducive to a longer meal — the village has narrow lanes, waterfront light in the evening, and a pace that doesn't rush you out. Notos fits that rhythm. The capacity details on the website suggest a reasonably sized operation, though exact table counts are not published.

How to Get There

Notos is in Naousa, Paros 844 01, with coordinates placing it in the built-up part of the village rather than on the immediate waterfront. Naousa is roughly 12 kilometres north of Parikia, the island's main port and ferry hub.

From Parikia, the bus service runs to Naousa regularly during the summer season — journey time is around 20 minutes. Taxis are available from Parikia and the airport. If you are driving, parking in central Naousa can be tight in high season; there are small car parks on the approaches to the village, and walking the last few hundred metres is usually the practical option. The restaurant's Google Maps listing (linked via their website) gives the precise pin location within Naousa.

Naousa is a walkable village, so once you are there, the restaurant is reachable on foot from most accommodation in the area.

Best Time to Visit

Notos opens daily year-round, noon to midnight, which gives flexibility that many seasonal Cycladic restaurants don't. In July and August, Naousa is busy — the village draws a consistent crowd of Greek and international visitors, and the better-reviewed restaurants fill up. Reservations are advisable in peak season and can be made by calling +30 2284 055009 or +30 698 363 3306.

Shoulder season — late May through June and September into October — offers the same menu with a calmer Naousa around it. Temperatures are comfortable for eating outdoors (if the restaurant has exterior seating), and the light in Naousa in the early evening during these months is worth arriving for.

Lunch service from noon is less crowded than dinner across most of the season, which suits those who prefer to eat without competing for attention. Dinner from around 8pm is the more social hour and the one where the village is most animated.

Tips for Visiting

• Book ahead in July and August. The restaurant's rating and review count indicate consistent demand. Call or use the contact number listed on the website; online booking availability should be confirmed directly.
• Ask about the weekly specials. The website references special weekly menus alongside the main menu, which suggests the kitchen rotates dishes based on what's available locally.
• The Greek wine list is a selling point. If you want to explore regional and island wines alongside the food, this is the place to ask the staff for recommendations — the list is described as a curated collection rather than a standard offering.
• Breakfast is available from noon. If you are a late riser or want a substantial mid-morning meal, the restaurant serves innovative breakfast options, which is less common in Naousa than lunch and dinner service.
• The dishes with wild greens are seasonal. Almyra (the edible wild greens served with the sea bass) is a foraged ingredient — availability can vary, so dishes featuring it may change.
• Naousa is small and walkable. If you're staying in Naousa or nearby, you can walk to the restaurant. If you're driving from the south of the island, Naousa has limited central parking — arrive early or plan to park on the village outskirts.
• Check the Instagram account before visiting. The account (@notos_aegean_restaurant) posts current dishes and seasonal menu updates, which can give you a clearer sense of what the kitchen is focused on at the time of your visit.
• The homemade element is consistent across the menu. Items like the strawberry jam served with the cheese croquettes are made in-house — this is a deliberate part of the cooking philosophy, not a single novelty item.

What to Order

The menu at Notos is built around Greek seafood and produce handled with more technical range than most tavernas in the Cyclades. A few dishes stand out as representative of the kitchen's approach:

Octopus Ceviche — a dish that takes a standard Aegean ingredient and applies a Latin American acid-cure technique. The result is light and sharp rather than the braised texture you find in most Greek octopus preparations.

Seabass Carpaccio with Sea Urchin — sea urchin (echinos) is a seasonal Aegean delicacy, and pairing it raw with equally delicate raw fish is a confident move. This is one of the more refined starters on the menu.

Sea Bass with Almyra and Green Apple — sautéed sea bass with wild greens and fruit is a good illustration of the restaurant's flavour logic: a familiar protein, an earthy local green, and a sharp acidic counterpoint from the apple.

Shrimp and Mango Salad — the ginger and coriander dressing on this dish signals the Asian influence clearly. It works as a lighter starter in warm weather.

Cheese Croquettes with Homemade Strawberry Jam — the prosciutto and rocket add salt and pepper notes, while the homemade jam brings sweetness. A crowd-pleasing combination executed with house-made components.

For drinks, work through the Greek wine list with the staff's guidance — Paros and the wider Cyclades produce whites and reds worth exploring alongside this style of food.