Every time someone visits Tinos, they mention to me, among other things, the cinnamon rolls made by two brothers in a beautiful cafe one street above the port.
Sol, the shop’s name, has made it onto the must-visit list for those travelling to the island. But during the winter, rumours emerged that these hearty and exuberant cinnamon rolls would appear in the centre of Athens.
And a week ago, this rumour was confirmed! Sol expanded to a bright corner of the Praxitelous bar.
Behind this bake and coffee project are Michalis and Vasilis Chalkias, and their friends Grigoris Kalogirou and Dimitris Kalogiannis.
In 2020, the first three decided to open Sol in Tinos. The reason was Michalis’s love for cinnamon rolls, but also an injury to Vasilis, a footballer, which kept him off the field.
“I’ve always loved pastries. However, we got to know each other relatively late. It was love at first bite, and since then, I’ve been trying them everywhere and trying to find the best recipe,” Michalis confides to me.
Their cinnamon rolls became known on the island, and queues outside the shop became a daily phenomenon.
“When the first ones come out at 11 in the morning, it is chaos,” he tells me.
Slowly, slowly, the move to Athens was also included in the plan.
They have been looking for a long time to find the place to set up the new Sol.
“But with this corner here in Praxitelous, I was obsessed. I had my eye on it, but it was taken. This is how we searched other areas: Kypseli, Pagari, and around the centre, until they suddenly informed us that this particular shop was available. We didn’t think much of it,” Michalis said.
It took them two months to build and open. They did everything themselves.
“Whatever you see is from personal work”, Michalis tells me.
Sol is simple in its decoration. It is in white shades with bare walls, marble – from the island, of course – and plenty of natural light.
Every day, they go from five in the morning to prepare the dough for the rolls they will make during the day. Everything is fresh. They currently have four sweet varieties and two savoury ones.
The four sweet varieties are classic, one filled with pistachio cream, another with chocolate Oreo, and the last is cheesecake flavour.
Among the savoury ones, which are made with another dough that also has turmeric—hence the characteristic yellow-orange colour—there is one filled with three different cheeses, figs, and pistachios, and another with mozzarella, pesto, and tomato.
What is characteristic with all of them is their exuberant, inflatable size.
In addition to the cinnamon rolls, they make cakes and other savoury delicacies. All of them have a vegetarian-vegan orientation since this is the philosophy of the owners.
As for the name… that’s the name of Michalis’ dog, a cute Jack Russell, “He’s the boss”, he’ll tell me while showing me his photo right in front of the cash register.”
11 Praxitelous St., Athens, tel. 210 3242 663
Vasilis Dimaras is a columnist for Olive Magazine.
READ MORE: Cookoovaya: The urban side of comfort food in Athens.
