Fodor's Expert Review Varvakeios Agora

Athens's cacophonous Central Market runs along Athinas Street: on one side are open-air stalls selling fruit and vegetables, with a few stores selling mainly eastern European foods tucked at the back. Across the street, in the huge neoclassical covered market, built between 1870 and 1884 (and renovated in 1996), are the meat market next to the fish market, juxtaposing the surrealistic composition of suspended carcasses and shimmering fish on marble counters. The shops at the north end of the market, to the right on Sofokleous, sell the best cheese, olives, halvah, bread, spices, and cold cuts—including pastourma (spicy cured beef)—available in Athens. Nearby is Evripidou Street, lined with herb and spice shops all the way down. Small restaurants serving traditional fare and patsa (tripe soup), dot the market; these stay open until almost dawn and are popular stops with weary clubbers trying to ease their hangovers.