The Underdog – Athens (GR)

Housed in a gorgeous city villa, The Underdog defies every misconception you may have. This is a great coffee place with award-winning baristas.

Athens may still be suffering from the effects of the terrible financial crisis that cripple the country and put many people out of business, but when you walk the streets of the vibrant Greek capital, you notice there is a great sense of optimism and defiance, and this is nowhere clearer than in the city’s incredible specialty coffee shops.

Barista Michalis Dimitrakopoulos
Barista Michalis Dimitrakopoulos

In previous posts we already recommended some of the city’s finest spots, including Kaya, Peek-A-Bloom and XXX, and today, we’re proud to share our review of one of the city’s most impressive venues, The Underdog.

Window seating
Window seating

Located south of Monastiraki and slightly away from the hustle and bustle of this tourist-laden neighbourhood, The Underdog may sound like a tiny hole-in-the-wall, but its name couldn’t be more deceiving if it tried. Housed inside a beautiful city villa, The Underdog, like most other specialty coffee bars, doubles as an outstanding brunch and coffee place and a buzzing cocktail bar.

View of the coffee bar
View of the coffee bar

Its team of award-winning baristas include the charming Michalis Dimitrakopoulos, who is the 2016 World Coffee in Good Spirits Champion and the 2008 winner of the same award, owner Tasos Delichristos. It goes without saying that they take their coffee very seriously while their very casual coffee bar that offers plenty of front row seating invites you to observe the baristas at work.

Booze bar
Booze bar

The brunch menu consists of most of your general favourites like eggs Benedict and various pancakes and while I was sipping on a perfectly creamy flat white, I saw plates with generous portions of said dishes being delivered to hungry customers upstairs, downstairs and outside in their lovely covered patio.

Patio
Patio

The Underdog also roasts its own coffee on a Giesen roaster found in the downstairs part, coffee that is then consequently offered for purchasing upstairs. In addition, its bar has a great selection of local craft beers and cocktails that keep customers happy until the wee hours.

Glass ware
Glass ware

In northern Europe people have this assumption that specialty coffee anywhere south of the Alps is as hard to find as a great Mexican food this side of the Atlantic, but Athens is a perfect example of a city that is getting on with building an enviable specialty coffee scene that could very well serve as a great blueprint for other southern European cities to build their own. Rome take note.

Opening Times:
Mon - Sun: 9 - 23
Price Check:
Espresso: €2 / Flat White: €3,80 / Filter: €4
Machine:
La Marzocco Linea PB
Coffees On Offer:
various
Milk:
Baristas Gold

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Keith Parkins
6 years ago

The Underdog , excellent review of one of the ultra trendy coffee shops in Athens by someone who know what they are talking about.

I loved it.

Wander around Athens and all you find is awful coffee.

But there are rare exceptions.

The Underdog is one of those rare exceptions..

Reading the review made me miss The Underdog.

https://keithpp.wordpress.com/2017/10/21/the-underdog/

Jewels Solheim-Roe
Jewels Solheim-Roe
8 months ago

I am a digital nomad and have been staying in Thisseio for three weeks. I was recommended this place by several peeps. I have given them money 5-6 times. The first time I came I had a delicious premium angus beef burger. I don’t eat beef often but occasionally order one if grass fed, organic, or premium. I have ordered food and spent 10-20 Euros each visit. They are overpriced and pretentious. It is set up for a place for workers and peeps who enjoy coffee, but it’s ridiculous the mark-up. Literally 8 Euros for some of the premium coffee BY THE CUP!

There are several employees who are kind but some are also dismissive and rude. Like today me sitting at the bar for 10 minutes being ignored after sitting. This has happened before.

The biggest complaint I have is that I have often been given cold drinks meant to be served HOT like specialty brewed coffee, lattes, and today TEA> literally a LUKEWARM cut in porcelain and it was supposed to be yogi tea.. FURTHERMORE, I think it is super weird to serve a CUP of tea for 4 Euros! Usually eve in EXPENSIVE UK or ANY city like LA (who do tea brilliantly) – one is given a little teapot with either loose tea or bags…. And if one is a WORKER who is giving PREMIUM fees for a cup of tea, then one would be given the courtesy of refills of hot water into the tea cup. Today I said the tea was cold, and that it is often my hot drinks are cold. They apologised and gave me fresh cup that WAS hot…. Then after I had a few sips and my porcelain mug became lukewarm (the reason to serve tea in a stainless steel little teapot is so that you can top-up the cup with warmer water/ tea)…. They gave me some more hot water… but the second guy I asked this from again only put a SMALL amount of hot water LIKE IT IS A PREMIUM. I kept saying more more more and he would give another half inch. I said why don’t you serve it in tea pots and he said “this is the way we serve it here” and I tried to engage with him. HE JUST kept repeating that this is the way they serve it. DID NOT CARE to hear my feedback.. sigh sigh sigh bonny blighh bonnnyyyyyy…. So this is what sent me here! RUDE PEEPS!

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