Eklekti: Athens’ Pangrati Neighborhood Has a Sweet Spot

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Athens’ Pangrati neighborhood is constantly changing. New restaurants, bars and cafes open one after another, yet somehow, this lively corner of the Greek capital manages to hold on to something of old Athens. Perhaps it is the many small squares where generations gather every day, the independent shops that refuse to disappear, the familiar faces or the traditions passed from one generation to the next. Whatever the reason, Pangrati has a way of staying true to itself.

One of the neighborhood’s familiar gathering spots is Mesolongiou Square, a small, leafy plaza with outdoor tables and a lively atmosphere for much of the day. We know it well, in part because we love Bostani, the greengrocer known for its carefully selected produce. Across the square, on Astydamantos Street, Eklekti offers another reason to stop by: the increasingly rare pleasure of going out specifically for dessert.

Have you ever noticed how often characters in Greek movies from the 1960s meet at pastry shops? They arranged dates there, struck deals and gathered with friends. A pastry shop was a destination in its own right, a place to go out and spend time together.

Why not bring that tradition back today?

With its retro aesthetic, packed display cases and outdoor tables along the street, Eklekti makes a compelling case for doing just that. And the reason, of course, is the dessert. Behind the shop are four friends and a story that began about 12 years ago.

Four friends and a pastry shop called Eklekti

Konstantinos Floratos, Alexis Katsaros, Apostolis Antoniadis and Dionysis Kokkollias are the four friends behind Eklekti. They had long shared a love of good food, sweets and dining out before deciding to enter the food business themselves.

Their opportunity came when they learned that a small pastry shop on Mesolongiou Square was for sale. The business had already been part of the neighborhood for years, and longtime residents knew it as Eklektoula, an affectionate diminutive of the original name.

The four friends decided to preserve the name, making only a slight change, while creating something of their own without entirely abandoning the shop’s past.

They kept some of the original recipes, particularly those for ice cream, tsoureki and ekmek, while revamping almost the entire dessert selection. Some creations were refined, others replaced, and plenty of new additions filled the display cases.

The result is a pastry shop with a character of its own, bringing together Greek and Constantinopolitan traditions, classic European desserts and more contemporary creations.

Here, Constantinopolitan refers to the culinary traditions of Constantinople, the historical Greek name for present-day Istanbul, which have long influenced Greek pastry-making.

Four kinds of ekmek, countless temptations

Among Eklekti’s standout offerings is ekmek, a rich, syrup-soaked dessert with roots in the pastry traditions of the eastern Mediterranean. The shop makes it in four different versions, each with its own character.

The most popular is ekmek kataifi, topped with a soft, velvety cream. Then there is Constantinopolitan-style ekmek, made with a base of handmade tsoureki—a sweet, aromatic Greek braided bread—and scented with mastic, the distinctive resin traditionally used in Greek sweets.

Ekmek ravani offers a more granular texture and a hint of cinnamon, while the chocolate version combines kataifi pastry with a chocolate filling and fluffy cream.

Choosing just one dessert, however, quickly becomes a challenge.

The chocolatina is another crowd favorite. It layers three different mousses—white, milk and dark chocolate—with thin sheets of biscuit sponge and ganache, creating a dessert that is as indulgent as it sounds.

Equally popular is the profiterole, made with choux pastry puffs filled with pastry cream and generously covered in flowing chocolate sauce.

The display cases also feature red velvet cake, medovik (a layered honey cake popular across Eastern Europe), banoffee, American-style cheesecake, galaktoboureko, tiramisu and many other creations.

There is something for every kind of sweet tooth, from lovers of traditional Greek syrup-soaked pastries to those who cannot resist a rich, chocolate-filled dessert.

Kaimaki ice cream made with sheep’s milk and salep

Ice cream is another of Eklekti’s strengths. Some recipes date back to the pastry shop’s previous owners, and the four friends chose to preserve them as part of its heritage.

One standout is kaimaki, a traditional Greek-style ice cream made using sheep’s milk and salep, without mastic.

Salep is a thickening ingredient traditionally made from the ground tubers of certain wild orchids. It gives kaimaki its distinctive elastic, almost stretchy texture, while the sheep’s milk lends it a rich, full-bodied flavor.

The original recipes for caramel ice cream and strawberry granita have also survived. Over time, the selection has expanded to include many more flavors, from chocolate and pistachio to more unusual combinations.

For anyone nostalgic for the ice cream parlors of old, Eklekti also serves two classics that are increasingly hard to find on modern menus: the Chicago sundae and the banana split.

From a morning cheese pie to an afternoon dessert

Eklekti is not just an afternoon destination. You can stop by early in the morning for coffee accompanied by a slice of carrot cake, handmade cookies or a cheese pie that deserves a place on your must-try list.

The cheese pie is made in the shop’s own kitchen using a distinctive dough that is neither puff pastry nor kourou, a crumbly, shortcrust-style dough commonly used for Greek savory pies.

The dough contains a little olive oil and rests in the refrigerator for a full day before being filled with a generous mixture of cheeses and béchamel sauce.

As the day progresses, desserts and ice cream take center stage. Some customers stop in to pick up a box of treats to enjoy at home, while others settle at the outdoor tables, savoring their sweets as they watch the square go by.

Meanwhile, Eklekti’s reputation has spread well beyond Pangrati, and its following continues to grow.

The shop has become popular enough that its four owners have decided to take the next step, opening a second, larger location in Zografou, another Athens neighborhood.

It is one more address worth adding to the list for anyone who believes dessert deserves an outing of its own.

And if you need one final reason to visit, the team at Eklekti even prepared a special cake just for us.