Eating, drinking and sightseeing suggesttions for Patras, Greece?

July 18, 2008 3:42 AM

I'm off to a conference in Patras, Greece next week. Any suggestions for high-speed tourism (we'll be busy most of the day but might get a bit of free time), decent eateries, and decent drinking places, particularly late night?
posted by handee to travel & transportation (2 comments total)

we had a great time in greece a month or so ago. eating places are open very late, by usa standards, so i don't think that will be an issue.

the best food we had was in smallish places where you picked a variety of small dishes from a menu, a bit like tapas. this seemed to be common/traditional - you get a pen and paper and write down what you want yourself. however, we were with a greek friend who could translate, describe dishes, and write them down. so what i would recommend (and what we didn't have, stupidly) is a good phrasebook (where we were, some places had english menus, but they tended to be larger places).

if you manage all that, and find it listed, choose the pureed lentils. garlicky awesomeness. almost everything was delicious, although we preferred the veg, dairy and seafood to the meat (but meatballs in tomato sauce are pretty damn good...)

also, you buy wine by weight! so a small jug is a half kilo.

the food really was excellent. and the people were friendly, the countryside beautiful.. hope you can take some time off to explore. best holiday we've had for years, perhaps ever (thanks andreas!).
posted by not sure this is a good idea at 1:24 PM on July 20

OK Now I'm back so I'll put some info in for the archives...

Patras is not a tourist town. There are a few ruins up the hill, but they don't compare to the big sights in Athens. Food-wise, there are a few tavernas on the front towards the lighthouse (about 1km from the main centre) which are great and do traditional Greek food proper cheap. There are lots of burger/souvlaki places in the centre of town but they're not exactly nice sit down things. There are however loads of cool bars and squares where you can sit outside drinking till the small hours. The suspension bridge is quite a sight, down by Porto Rio (about 10km up the coast from Patra) and there are some nice restaurants up by that with great sea views across the strait. Swimming is best done by Porto Rio as the main port in Patras has caused too much pollution for you to want to get wet there. The beaches by Porto Rio are gravelly, but the sea is great.
posted by handee at 6:38 AM on July 28