Sifnos has enjoyed a reputation as an island of gourmands ever since local chef Nicholas Tselementes wrote the first Greek cookbook in 1910. This tiny “fish bar” on the island’s liveliest beach, Platis Gialos, doesn’t look like much at first glance—just a handful of stools squeezed along driftwood counters and a succinct menu that fits onto a sheet of notebook paper. But molecular biologist–turned-chef Giorgos Samoilis’s sharing dishes are sensational: avgotaraho (Greek bottarga) with wild pear and fig syrup; sea bream ceviche with wild fennel and fava beans; and seasonal salad scattered with house-cured samphire, purslane, caper leaves, and olives. Most ingredients are foraged, grown, caught, or bought locally; even the stoneware dishes are made by Sifnian potters.
