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Paros is the Cycladic island that doesn't have to choose between sophistication and authenticity — it has both, sometimes on the same street. In Naoussa, the fishing harbor on the north coast, creative restaurants with genuine culinary ambition sit beside traditional fish tavernas where the waiter is the owner's son and the menu is whatever the morning boats brought in.
In Parikia, the capital, polished wine bars neighbor bakeries that have been selling cheese pies since the owners' grandmothers were young. And in the fishing villages of the south and east coasts — Aliki, Piso Livadi, Drios — the tavernas serve fresh-caught fish at tables overlooking the working harbors where the catches are landed.
This balance is Paros's great strength. The island has grown in popularity (it's now firmly in the top tier of Cycladic destinations, alongside Naxos and Milos), and the food scene has risen to meet the demand — but the authenticity hasn't been displaced. You can eat a €40 creative dinner in Naoussa's harbor and a €12 village lunch in Lefkes the next day, and both meals will be excellent in their own register.
For the full island guide, see our things to do in Paros. For accommodation, read our where to stay in Paros and best hotels in Paros guides.
Quick Answer: Best Paros Restaurants by Category
- Best creative Greek: Mario (Naoussa) — the island's most celebrated kitchen, Mediterranean-Greek, harbor-front
- Best traditional taverna: To Souvlaki tou Mimi — Parikia, a Parian institution, meze and grills since forever
- Best seafood: Taverna Glafkos — Aliki fishing village, the freshest fish on the island
- Best in Naoussa: Barbarossa — harbor-front, seafood, the view and the cooking aligned
- Best in Parikia: Levantis — Old Town, creative Mediterranean, intimate courtyard
- Best wine experience: Moraitis Winery — the island's most historic producer, tasting and pairing
- Best cheap eat: Ragoussis Bakery — Parikia, the cheese pie that defines the morning
Naoussa
Mario (Naoussa harbor)
The most celebrated restaurant on Paros — a harbor-front kitchen in Naoussa that has been evolving Parian cooking for years, applying Mediterranean technique to Cycladic ingredients with confidence and creativity. The fish is excellent, the pasta dishes (Paros has a stronger pasta tradition than most Cycladic islands) are well-made, and the overall execution places Mario among the top restaurants in the Cyclades, not just Paros.
The harbor setting adds theater — tables along the water's edge, fishing boats bobbing beside you, the sunset turning the white buildings pink. The wine list features Parian and broader Greek producers.
Cuisine: Creative Mediterranean-Greek, seafood
Price range: €35–55/person
Best for: Couples, food enthusiasts, the island's most polished dinner
Good to know: Reserve days ahead in summer — the harbor-front tables are the most sought-after on the island. The fish dishes and the pasta are the strongest categories. The tasting-menu approach (when available) is the most complete experience.
Barbarossa (Naoussa harbor)
A Naoussa harbor institution — the restaurant that most returning Paros visitors consider their annual essential. Barbarossa occupies a prime position on the harbor's inner curve, with tables overlooking the fishing boats and the fortified Venetian tower at the harbor entrance. The menu is seafood-focused — grilled fish, octopus, shrimp, meze — and the cooking is careful, consistent, and honest. Not the most creative kitchen on the island, but among the most reliable.
Cuisine: Seafood, Greek-Mediterranean
Price range: €25–40/person
Best for: The quintessential Naoussa harbor dinner, seafood lovers, returning visitors
Good to know: Reserve for a harbor-front table — the inner-curve position facing the Venetian tower is the most coveted. The grilled octopus is the signature. The sunset timing matters.
Siparos (Naoussa)
A wine bar and meze restaurant that has become one of Naoussa's most popular evening destinations — small plates designed for sharing alongside a well-curated wine list that features Parian, Cycladic, and Greek natural producers. The atmosphere is convivial and the food is a step more refined than the traditional ouzeri model, with dishes that reflect a contemporary approach to Cycladic ingredients.
Cuisine: Creative meze, wine bar
Price range: €22–38/person
Best for: Wine lovers, couples, groups wanting to share plates
Good to know: The natural-wine list is the star — let the staff guide you. Reserve for dinner. The atmosphere gets livelier as the evening progresses. Naoussa's bar scene is nearby for after-dinner drinks.
Soso (Naoussa)
A seafood-meze restaurant on the quieter side of Naoussa harbor — less scene-oriented than Barbarossa, more focused on the fish. The cooking is straightforward Greek seafood: fresh, simply treated, honestly priced. The setting is harbor-side but calmer — a good option for travelers who want the Naoussa harbor experience without the most crowded section.
Cuisine: Seafood meze
Price range: €20–35/person
Best for: Seafood-focused diners, couples wanting quieter harbor-side
Good to know: The quieter position means easier reservations. The fish meze plates (small plates of different preparations) are more interesting than ordering a single main.
Parikia
Levantis (Parikia Old Town)
A creative Mediterranean restaurant in Parikia's Old Town — set in a courtyard behind whitewashed walls, with a kitchen that brings genuine ambition to Greek and Mediterranean dishes. The chef's international background shows in the combinations and the technique, while the ingredients remain Cycladic. The courtyard setting is intimate, the service is personal, and the cooking consistently earns praise from visitors who've eaten well across the Cyclades.
Cuisine: Creative Mediterranean-Greek
Price range: €30–45/person
Best for: Couples wanting creative dining in Parikia, food enthusiasts, intimate courtyard atmosphere
Good to know: Reserve for dinner — small courtyard, limited tables. The Parikia Old Town lanes surround you. The cooking is more internationally influenced than the Naoussa restaurants — a different register, equally valid.
To Souvlaki tou Mimi (Parikia)
A Parian institution — the souvlaki and meze restaurant that locals and returning visitors consider non-negotiable. Mimi serves grilled meats, meze, souvlaki, and the Greek-taverna standards with the kind of quality that outlasts trends: well-sourced ingredients, honest portions, fair prices, and the confidence of a kitchen that knows exactly what it's doing because it's been doing it for decades.
Cuisine: Souvlaki, grilled meats, meze
Price range: €12–22/person
Best for: Budget eaters, meat lovers, anyone wanting the island's most reliable traditional meal
Good to know: Popular — can be busy at peak hours. The meze plates are excellent value. The souvlaki and grilled chops are the standards. Cash preferred.
Ragoussis Bakery (Parikia)
The bakery that starts every morning in Parikia — cheese pies (tyropita), spinach pies, sweet pastries, and bread, baked fresh before dawn and sold to the queue of locals and visitors who've learned that breakfast in the Cyclades should cost €3, not €15. The cheese pie — flaky, buttery, still warm — is one of those simple things that makes you question every fancy breakfast buffet you've ever paid for.
Cuisine: Traditional bakery, pies, pastries
Price range: €2–5
Best for: Breakfast, mid-morning snack, the best-value bite in Parikia
Good to know: Opens early. The cheese pie is the standard order. The location near the Parikia waterfront means you can eat while watching the ferry come in. Cash.
Fishing Villages & South Coast
Taverna Glafkos (Aliki)
The fish taverna that Parians drive across the island for — set in the fishing village of Aliki on the south coast, with tables overlooking the small harbor and a menu that's determined entirely by what the morning boats brought in. The fish is grilled over charcoal, the octopus is tender, the shrimp are sweet, and the prices are significantly lower than Naoussa's harbor-front. Aliki is a working fishing village — not a tourist destination — and the authenticity of the setting gives every meal an honesty that designed restaurants can't replicate.
Cuisine: Traditional seafood, fishing village
Price range: €18–30/person
Best for: Seafood lovers wanting the freshest fish on Paros, value seekers, authenticity
Good to know: Aliki is about 15 minutes south of Parikia by car. The village has a small beach and a second taverna. The fish is priced by weight — ask before ordering. Lunch is the best meal — the afternoon light on the harbor is beautiful.
Captain Kafkis (Piso Livadi)
A beachfront taverna in Piso Livadi — the small east-coast port from which boats depart to Naxos and the Small Cyclades — with fresh fish, Greek salads, and a waterfront setting that's more village than resort. The cooking is traditional and honest, the prices are fair, and the east-coast position catches the morning sun and the afternoon calm.
Cuisine: Traditional seafood, beach-front
Price range: €15–28/person
Best for: Beach-day seafood, east-coast visitors, families
Good to know: Piso Livadi is about 20 minutes from Parikia. The beach nearby is sandy. The ferry dock to Naxos and Koufonisia is adjacent — combine lunch with an island-hopping connection.
Mountain Village
Taverna Kafenio (Lefkes)
Lefkes — the hilltop village in Paros's mountainous interior — is the most beautiful settlement on the island: marble lanes, a domed church, panoramic views, and the quiet that the coast has traded for tourism. The taverna on the village square (often simply called "the kafenio") serves village food under a grape arbor: Parian cheese, salads from the garden, grilled meats, and the house wine. The prices are the lowest on the island.
Cuisine: Village taverna
Price range: €8–16/person
Best for: Road-trippers, village-atmosphere seekers, the most affordable meal on Paros
Good to know: Lefkes is about 15 minutes from Parikia on the inland road. The village is car-free in the center — park at the edge and walk. The Byzantine Road trail (ancient marble path to Prodromos) starts from the village. The church of Agia Triada is worth visiting.
Wine
Moraitis Winery
Paros's most historic winery — producing since 1910, working with the local Monemvasia grape and other Cycladic varieties. The tasting experience includes the estate wines (whites, rosés, and reds), paired with local cheese and charcuterie, in a setting of terraced vineyards overlooking the sea. The wines are genuinely good — particularly the whites and rosés, which suit the island's seafood-forward cuisine.
Cuisine: Wine tasting with meze
Price range: €15–25/person (tasting)
Best for: Wine lovers, couples, anyone wanting to understand Parian wine
Good to know: Appointment recommended. The winery is near Naoussa. The wines are available at restaurants across the island — order the Moraitis white with your fish. The experience takes about 1–1.5 hours.
Practical Tips for Eating in Paros
Naoussa vs Parikia. Naoussa for the most polished dining — creative restaurants, wine bars, the harbor-front fish dinner. Parikia for the most varied options — backstreet tavernas, the bakery, the souvlaki, and the creative Old Town restaurants like Levantis. Both are excellent. Eat in both.
The fishing villages. Aliki (south coast) and Piso Livadi (east coast) have the freshest fish at the fairest prices. They're 15–20 minutes by car from the main towns, and the fish-to-plate time is measured in hours rather than days.
When to eat. Lunch: 1–3 PM (best for fishing villages and Lefkes). Dinner: 8:30 PM onward in the towns. Naoussa's harbor restaurants fill for sunset — arrive by 7:30 PM or reserve. Parikia's backstreets fill by 9:30 PM.
The Paros wine. Order Moraitis at every fish meal. Visit the winery. The whites and rosés are among the best in the Cyclades and cost €5–8 per glass at restaurants — genuine value.
Combining with other islands. Paros is the ferry hub of the central Cyclades — connections to Naxos (40 min), Mykonos (40 min), Santorini, Ios, and the Small Cyclades. Let our AI trip planner build the route.
Exploring Paros? Read our [things to do in Paros](https://greektriplanner.me/blog/things-to-do-in-paros), [where to stay in Paros](https://greektriplanner.me/blog/where-to-stay-in-paros), and [best hotels in Paros](https://greektriplanner.me/blog/best-hotels-in-paros) guides. For the comparison, see [Paros vs Mykonos](https://greektriplanner.me/blog/paros-vs-mykonos).
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Athens-born engineer · Coordinates a 5-expert Greek team · 50+ years combined field experience
I write every article on this site drawing on real, first-hand expertise — mine and that of four colleagues who live and work across Greece daily: a Peloponnese tour operator, a transfer specialist across Athens, Mykonos & Santorini, a Cretan hotel owner, and a Northern Greece hotel supplier. Nothing here comes from a single visit or desk research.
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Every destination we cover has been visited and vetted by at least one team member — not for a review, but as part of their daily work in Greek tourism.