The best restaurants in Santorini are not confined to one stretch of caldera. Fira, Firostefani, Imerovigli, and Oia have the caldera terraces, sunset tables, and higher dining prices. They do not automatically have the island’s most convincing cooking.

Look inland, too, particularly to Exo Gonia, Pyrgos, and Megalochori. This is a selective shortlist, not a definitive ranking, balancing food quality, setting, occasion, and access: one serious fine-dining dinner, one romantic caldera booking, a traditional Firostefani table, an Oia dinner away from the main lane, a southern lunch, and Fira’s essential quick meal.

Santorini is strongly seasonal, and many restaurants close in winter. Confirm current opening dates before building a trip around a particular reservation. Our selections weigh cooking against setting, not simply the view. Read more about how we evaluate the places we recommend.

Metaxi Mas, the food-first choice worth the detour

Grilled octopus served with leafy greens and sauce at Metaxi Mas in Santorini. — A plated octopus dish at Metaxi Mas puts the focus on the food.

When dinner matters more than the caldera, Metaxi Mas in Exo Gonia is the restaurant we would prioritize. It serves Cretan and Santorinian food inland, away from the premium attached to sunset-facing terraces. For travelers who want one meal centered on regional cooking rather than Santorini’s most photographed backdrop, it is the strongest overall choice.

The menu follows the generous, shareable logic of a Greek table. Portions are substantial, making it more sensible to order across the menu than treat the meal as a sequence of individual mains. Getting there requires planning, particularly without a car, but that is a logistical trade-off, not a reason to remain on the cliffside circuit.

Not the place for a spontaneous late dinner after sunset in Oia. Book Metaxi Mas when the food itself is the occasion.

What to order: Cheese rolls, baked white eggplant, slow-cooked lamb, beef fillet with Vinsanto sauce, and seafood giouvetsi. Sharing is sensible.

Reservation reality: Reserve ahead. Exo Gonia is outside the main caldera walking route, so arrange transport in advance if not driving.

Selene, Santorini’s most serious fine-dining address

Sauce being poured around a carefully arranged dish at Selene in Santorini. — A dish at Selene receives its finishing sauce at the table.

Selene is the shortlist’s clearest choice for a long, refined dinner shaped by Santorini ingredients and culinary history. The Fira restaurant operates in the former monastery that now houses Katikies Garden, with a courtyard and a serious wine program.

Do not compress this meal between shopping and sunset. Selene suits diners ready to give the kitchen and wine list the evening. Its culinary focus makes it more compelling than a conventional view-first splurge, particularly for travelers seeking a special-occasion dinner without making the caldera the entire point.

We would choose Selene over a more theatrical terrace when culinary ambition matters most. The absence of a headline sunset table is not a weakness; it separates the restaurant from many of the island’s predictable luxury bookings.

What to order: Choose the current degustation menu, where available, or let the present menu guide the meal through Santorini ingredients and local culinary references. Menus can change.

Reservation reality: Reservations are essential. Confirm the current menu format and seasonal operation directly before committing to the evening.

Lucky’s Souvlaki, the essential quick meal in Fira

A pita wrap filled with meat, onion, tomato and fries from Lucky’s in Fira. — A gyro wrap from Lucky’s makes a quick meal in Fira.

Lucky’s Souvlaki belongs here for an entirely different reason. It is Fira’s practical counter-service stop for gyros and souvlaki, not a lesser version of the island’s fine-dining restaurants. The appeal is simple: a fast, inexpensive meal in central Fira when a formal lunch would interrupt the day.

Limited seating and counter ordering mean this is not a place for lingering. It works before a ferry transfer, after a long walk, or on a day when dinner is already reserved elsewhere.

It also corrects the assumption that every worthwhile Santorini meal needs a terrace, a sunset, and a reservation.

What to order: Pork or chicken gyros, souvlaki, and the souvlaki plate.

Reservation reality: Lucky’s is a counter-service stop with limited seating. Check current hours before relying on it for a late meal.

Roka, the Oia dinner we’d choose for food over spectacle

White tables and blue chairs on Roka’s outdoor terrace in Oia. — Roka’s terrace provides a relaxed setting for dinner in Oia.

Roka is the corrective to Oia’s main-lane dining culture. Away from the busiest pedestrian routes and without a caldera view, it is worth choosing precisely because it avoids both. The setting is cozy, the cooking is consistently praised, and dinner unfolds apart from the concentrated sunset crowds that shape much of Oia dining.

The choice is straightforward: go to Roka for food and a more relaxed Oia dinner, not for the postcard panorama. There is no shortage of places to see the caldera before or after a meal. Roka is the stronger pick when the restaurant needs to do more than frame a view.

It is especially useful for guests at one of the best hotels in Oia who do not want every dinner to repeat the same sunset ritual.

What to order: Grilled octopus, lamb chops, and fava with capers.

Reservation reality: Reserve for dinner. Its position away from the caldera should not be read as a guarantee of easy last-minute availability.

Athenian House, the strongest romantic sunset dinner

Tables set beneath a tree on a sea-facing terrace at Athenian House in Santorini. — Athenian House’s terrace pairs set dining tables with a caldera outlook.

Athenian House in Imerovigli is the list’s special-occasion caldera dinner. Its terrace pairs the view with refined regional Greek cooking, seafood or meat degustation menus, and wine pairings. Chef Dimitris Skarmoutsos is associated with the restaurant’s culinary direction.

This is a deliberate evening for a honeymoon, anniversary, or milestone, not a casual taverna that happens to face the water. Imerovigli suits travelers who want a caldera dinner without making Oia the center of the night. Athenian House makes the strongest argument for booking one view-led dinner, then looking elsewhere for the island’s more relaxed, food-first meals.

For couples planning a celebratory trip, it fits naturally alongside the island’s best honeymoon hotels. Book it as part of the broader trip plan rather than as a spontaneous final-night decision.

What to order: The seafood or meat degustation menu with a wine pairing is the clearest route. Earlier menu examples include slow-cooked octopus, lamb chop moussaka, and Athenian baklava, but individual dishes can change.

Reservation reality: Book ahead, particularly for sunset, and check availability for your dates rather than relying on a fixed lead-time rule.

Aktaion, traditional cooking with a caldera setting

Blue-and-white checked tables and white chairs on Aktaion’s terrace, with the caldera beyond. — Aktaion pairs a traditional taverna terrace with a caldera outlook.

Aktaion in Firostefani is the shortlist’s strongest traditional-view compromise. The same family has operated the restaurant since 1922, and its cooking remains rooted in local food. Tables spill onto the caldera path, creating a lively, informal setting rather than the more ceremonial atmosphere of a tasting-menu terrace.

Between Fira and Imerovigli, Firostefani makes Aktaion a sensible choice for travelers who want a caldera meal without making Oia the focus of the evening. We would choose it over a more formal terrace when traditional cooking matters as much as a setting that still acknowledges why Santorini’s western side draws so much attention.

It suits dinner with local character better than a carefully staged romantic occasion.

Reservation reality: Confirm current booking requirements directly before traveling, particularly for dinner or a table beside the caldera path.

The Cave of Nikolas, a southern seafood lunch with local context

Seafood pasta with prawns and shellfish on a white plate at The Cave of Nikolas. — Seafood pasta at The Cave of Nikolas suits a southern-coast lunch.

The Cave of Nikolas, near Ancient Akrotiri and Red Beach, keeps this list from becoming a caldera-only exercise. This family-run waterfront taverna serves simple cooking and generous portions, with much of its produce coming from the family farm.

Context, rather than luxury, is the appeal. Plan lunch after visiting Ancient Akrotiri or while exploring the southern coast, then return north later if sunset is part of the day. It is worth considering for travelers already in this part of Santorini, not because it competes with the island’s fine-dining rooms or caldera restaurants on their own terms.

For a southern itinerary, pair it with Calanova’s guide to the best beaches in Santorini.

Reservation reality: Confirm current booking conditions directly if lunch timing matters around an Akrotiri visit during the main travel season.

Considered but excluded

Lycabettus: This Oia restaurant is a credible luxury tasting-menu and caldera-view choice, with polished cooking and a cliffside setting. It missed the final set because Athenian House already covers the special-occasion, view-led dinner, and another hotel-based fine-dining pick would make the shortlist less decisive.

Lauda: Lauda is another persuasive Oia candidate, with seafood-focused tasting menus and a chef affiliation with Emmanuel Renault of the three-Michelin-starred Flocons de Sel in France. That affiliation does not establish Michelin recognition for Lauda or any Santorini restaurant. The detailed restaurant coverage for Lauda dates from 2022, too old for a confident current recommendation.

Ammoudi Fish Tavern: Ammoudi Bay is a credible waterfront seafood stop, but restaurant accounts conflict: one recommends Ammoudi Fish Tavern, while another reports poor value and a disappointing meal in the bay. We left it out rather than force a confident recommendation from conflicting experiences.

Frequently asked questions

What is a must eat in Santorini?

Look for fava, Santorini tomato fritters, grilled octopus, local eggplant preparations, and a quick souvlaki or gyro. No single dish is universally available, and menus change by restaurant and season. Metaxi Mas is the strongest choice for a broader Santorinian and Cretan table; Lucky’s is the practical stop for gyros and souvlaki.

Where do the locals eat in Santorini?

Look inland, toward villages such as Pyrgos, Megalochori, and Exo Gonia, where traditional cooking and less view-dependent dining are easier to find. We would use those villages as a direction for exploring rather than label any individual restaurant here as a definitive “locals eat here”’ address.

Are there any Michelin restaurants in Santorini?

None of the restaurants in this article should be presented as Michelin-starred. Lauda is connected to chef Emmanuel Renault, whose Flocons de Sel restaurant in France holds three Michelin stars; that distinction belongs to the French restaurant, not Lauda or Santorini.

Credits for media displayed in this article