Arriving at Ag. Pavlos in Peristeri, nothing foreshadowed what we would face as we crossed the restaurant's vestibule. The old Travolta was there and yet it wasn't. The change in the interior was universal.
Everything that had characterised Travolta for years, including decoration, had disappeared, giving way to an impressive new image—an image of a modern urban restaurant dominated by warm colours in blue and grey tones.
The natural wooden floor that has been installed beautifies the space, giving the feeling that you are boarding a boat, while large rotundas cover the interior of the restaurant.
The sea feeling is strengthened by the metal dividers with references to seabirds that fill the space with their presence, creating the necessary dividing lines in the single interior hall.
Even the crockery was replaced with brand-new linen towels embroidered with Travolta's boat logo.
Nonetheless, food is always at the centre of everything.
The sea and this almost obsessive hunt of Travolta to find and use prime raw material remain eternally faithful to the same orientation.
Anestis Lazai, the man behind Travolta, shows us around the renovated space before we sit down at our table. The satisfaction at this transformation is evident in his eyes.
We asked him to make our order. We start with taramosalata. The taramosalata from the whole cod roe deservedly holds a place among the best in Athens.
The carpaccio of pelagic sea bream with sea urchin eggs stood out—perfect management of the fish, subtle spice, and an iodised finale with sea urchin eggs.
Travolta's kitchen has many ways to showcase creativity without severing its ties to tradition.
The calamari, prawn, and mullet shortbread are great, as is the Schinousa fava with eel.
However, cuttlefish ink orzo and a generous amount of gruyere is a dish I will remember for a long time. The grouper with small okra in the oven was a real treat too, but the carbonara with smoked eel and roe that Anestis kept for us as a surprise was a revelation.
The buttery and musky kuneffe is a constant you can't easily pass up.
Dimitris Papaioannou, presents a list of drinks, from signature seafood Negroni and exotic compositions with Caribbean Rum to their cold brew coffee from Ethiopia and homemade lemonade from the peels of the fruit.
Info: Ag. Pavlou & Arkadias 33, Peristeri / 210 5719222 (60-90) without drinks
Grigoris Filippatos is a columnist for Cantina. Translated by Paul Antonopoulos.
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