The Best Greek Food in Chicago
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The best Greek food in Chicago, according to the experts: AAA, Esquire, and Michelin Guide have all weighed in, and their honors are what rank this list. Taverna Violi comes out on top.
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Andros Taverna and Kouklas Greek Eatery hold the next two places. Eater shows up on more of this list than any other guide, with AAA next.
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Rank 1. Taverna Violi
Modern Greek
The awards
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Rank 2. Andros Taverna
Greek
The wood-burning oven does most of the talking at this upscale Greek taverna just off Logan Square Park, kissing nearly everything on the menu with smoke. Warm pita arrives with a lineup of dips, lamb chops come in serious portions, and the baklava froyo with pistachio sauce is the kind of thing you didn't see coming. The wine list runs entirely Greek, from Macedonia to Santorini, which takes a certain confidence.
The awards
- Esquire Esquire: #29 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- Michelin Guide Michelin Guide: Selected Restaurant
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The flaming saganaki arrives tableside, and in Niles, Illinois, that feels correct and necessary. Kouklas is a big, boisterous Greek eatery in Chicago's inner-ring suburbs, with a menu to match: wood-fire grilled octopus, spicy tirokafteri, souvlaki, and a Greek salad that makes you wonder about the lamb's provenance. The New York Times put it on their 2026 Restaurant List, which tracks for a place this mission-driven about making suburban Greek food something people drive for.
The awards
- The New York Times The New York Times: 2026 · The Restaurant List
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Rank 4. Athenian Room
Greek
The awards
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The awards
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Complimentary valet parking at a Greek taverna in Lincolnwood is either a punchline or a promise, and Psistaria delivers on both. White tablecloths and a long menu of Mediterranean staples, from saganaki and gyros to grilled octopus and broiled whole fish, make it the kind of place that works for a birthday or a Tuesday. The wine list leans heavily Greek, the ouzo flows, and the servers know the menu well enough that you don't have to.
The awards
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Rank 7. Avli River North
Greek
This Greek restaurant started in suburban Winnetka and then crept into the city, which is the opposite of how chains usually migrate. The River North room is all plants and pale wood, built to feel like a long lunch on an island with a better ferry schedule than yours. The menu goes past the gyros-and-flaming-saganaki starter pack, though you should still order the saganaki. Eater lists it among the area's best.
The awards
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Rank 7. Naia
Greek
Naia is a Greek-leaning, see-and-be-seen restaurant on the Chicago River, and the view is good enough that the kitchen could have phoned it in. It didn't, which is how you end up with crab on the falafel and caviar offered for the potato fritters. There's a roving hummus cart and a cheese course that catches fire, so dress like someone who expects to be looked at, and be ready for the next yacht to steal your attention.
The awards