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Greek Food — What to Eat and What It Costs

Greek Food — What to Eat and What It Costs

What to actually order, what it costs, and where to find it away from the tourist menus.

Greek food is simple, fresh, and genuinely cheap by Western European standards: a gyro wrap runs €3–4, a full taverna meal €12–20 per person, and a nice dinner with wine €25–40. Don't leave without trying moussaka, a real Greek salad (horiatiki — no lettuce, that's the tell of a tourist-trap version), souvlaki, spanakopita, and fresh seafood by the coast. Skip any taverna with laminated photo menus and a tout outside pulling in tourists.

Greek food gets slightly underrated internationally, probably because so many people's only exposure to it is a gyro from a mall food court. The real thing — grilled fresh that morning, dressed in olive oil that actually tastes like something, served on a plate that costs less than a fast-food combo back home — is one of the best reasons to come. Here's what to order and roughly what it should cost.

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Questions people actually ask

Is Greek food expensive?
No — it's one of the better value cuisines in Western Europe. A casual taverna meal runs €12–20 per person including a drink; you'd pay noticeably more for a comparable meal in most of Italy or France.
What is a 'real' Greek salad?
Horiatiki — tomatoes, cucumber, onion, olives, and a block of feta on top, dressed in olive oil and oregano. No lettuce. If a menu's 'Greek salad' comes on a bed of lettuce with a small feta crumble, that's a giveaway you've landed at a tourist-menu place.
Can vegetarians and vegans eat well in Greece?
Vegetarians do very well — Greek cuisine has a strong tradition of vegetable-based dishes (Lent alone produces dozens of naturally vegan ones). Vegans should specifically ask about ladera (vegetable dishes cooked in olive oil, usually vegan by default) and confirm feta/yogurt aren't added. Halal and allergy-aware options are more limited outside Athens and Thessaloniki, so ask ahead in smaller island towns.