Top Dinner Tables
La Maison de Catherine On Mykonos, popular does not necessarily mean new. One of the island's most buzzing upscale restaurants is also one of its oldest, having opened in the 1970s. You can see the owner, Katrina Vassilis, who's in her seventies, fashioning salads from local ingredients at a side table in the bustling dining room, surrounded by copper pots, bottles of oils and homemade specialties, such as moussaka and stuffed cabbage.
Tables covered in white cloths and decorated with bouquets of wildflowers lead to the small terrace, and in the high season all eighty seats are usually occupied — often by families and couples, as well as occasional luminaries, like Sandra Bullock and European royalty. Over the years the staff, mostly family, hasn't changed, and neither has the menu: classic Greek fare with a French twist and a focus on fresh ingredients. Ayios Gerasimos, Chora; 228-902-2169.
Aqua Taverna Since 2002, when charming hosts Nikos and Egidio opened this tiny Italian venue in Little Venice, they've drawn trendy folk. Most island restaurants don't get going until 10 p.m., but Aqua is already bustling at eight, in anticipation of the view of the sunset from the terrace (make sure to call ahead for a table). Try the penne with zucchini, ricotta and fresh mint or the spaghetti alla Norma, with eggplant, ricotta salata and cherry tomatoes. Little Venice, Chora; 228-902-6083.
Sea Satin Market Just beyond Aqua, near the famous windmills on Mykonos's western side, you'll find this favorite of stylish Athenians and in-the-know visitors. (You may recognize the setting: the final scene in the Matt Damon movie The Bourne Identity was shot here.)
Always packed, the all-white restaurant offers well-prepared Greek fare, such as the perfectly grilled fish with traditional condiments. The details bring it up another notch: wine bottles are presented in a bucket filled with flowers, and the homemade loukoumades (honey balls) with ice cream are out of this world. Near the Mitropolis cathedral, Chora; 228-902-4676.
