Brettos in the Plaka of Athens

On our first night in Athens we found one of our favorite spots of the entire trip. Below is a synopsis from the website of Brettos:

the well known "BRETTOS". The unsuspected visitor of the historic center of Athens can not miss the hundreds of colourful bottles and lights that decorate the walls of "Brettos". They have many liqueur, brandy or traditional Greek spirits, such as ouzo and rakomelo.

“BRETTOS” is the oldest distillery in Athens. It started operating for the first time back in 1909 at the ground level of an Athenian old mansion in the heart of Plaka. At those premises, his founder Mr Michael Brettos, started producing ouzo, brandy and few liqueur flavors, from the old time classics like cherry and piperman to the most distinct ones like citrus and mastiha, using old family recipes from Smyrni. When demand started rising more that expected he had to relocate the distillery to Kallithea and operate the small shop on Kydathineon street only as a liquor shop and at the same time as a bar where tourists as well as local could taste and buy any liqueur they wished for.

Cindy and I tried a couple glasses of Greek Red Wine and found them to be incredible. I also liked the Kum Quat liquer that is popular in Greece. Unfortunately our bottle broke in the luggage on the way home. Our clothes while very Orange did smell nice.

The inside of the small shop is still as it used to be. The first thing you notice is the beautiful décor of a wall full of coloured bottles lit from behind that fill the entire back wall floor to ceiling, providing a colour spectrum in contrast to the 200 year old building. On another wall are the old barrels full of spirits that are still used. Around the shop there is a bar with about 15 stools where you can sample the famous homemade ouzo, brand or liqueurs. Finally, next to the door there is the very first, hand-made, ouzo distiller that Mr Michael Brettos once used.

After all these decades “Brettos” distillery and bar is still the best place to have a few drinks after work, after a good meal, or just before you go to sleep. Without any lifestyle codes, with soft music coming from a small radio forgotten on one of the wooden shelves, “Brettos” is the perfect place is you wish to get away form everyday life and have a chat with your friends. The only thing that could surprise you are the flashes coming from the cameras of all shorts of tourist that visit the store daily. The only thing you should be certain of is the fact that you can easily fall in love with “Brettos” for its special atmosphere, both low-key and attractive, the authenticity and the friendliness of its owners.