Sifnos, the gastronomic Greek island (5) Chrysopigi Tavern, Faros, Vahti Bay and Manolis
Day 4. Ferries cancelled because of winds. A couple in our accommodation were somewhat distraught because they were due to leave. Complicated if flights are involved at the other end, but this is island life. You need to top and tail Sifnos with Athens, just in case, and this isn’t really a hardship.
Our destination was Chrysopigi, a lovely bay with a picture-perfect monastery stuck out on a promontory. This is the Monastery of Panagia of Chrysopigi (Virgin Mary of Chrysopigi), and it dates from 1523.
There we found a taverna right on the waterfront and snagged a prime table. This is the Chrysopigi tavern, and it turned out to be an excellent restaurant, and the food was spot on. We had a look at the bottled wine list, but nothing jumped out so we had the absurdly cheap and perfectly good house white.
After lunch, we took the clifftop path to Faros, a neighbouring bay. This is a breathtaking walk, especially on a bright, breezy day. Faros is also lovely, and has Pelicanos, the sister restaurant of Cantina, which we’ll have to check out next time. We swam here, and then walked back, checking out the monastery before heading to Vahti Bay, where we were staying for the night.
Vahti Bay is quite remarkable. The sea laps up to the front of all the tavernas and guest houses, and there’s no car access – you park in the car park a few hundred metres back from the sea. That evening, after another swim, we dined at Manolis. They had a wine list, and it was possible to walk into the cellar to have a poke around and see what was on offer.
SIFNOS GASTRO JOURNEY
- 1 INTRODUCTION
- 2 CHERINOSSOS AND FISH TAVERN FYSOSS
- 3 PLATYS GIALOS AND OMEGA 3; KASTRO AND LOGGIA
- 4 KASTRO AND CANTINA, LOGGIA REPRISE
- 5 CHRYSOPIGI TAVERN; FAROS; VAHTI BAY AND MANOLIS
- 6 VAHTI BAY AND TSIKALI; KEREMOS AND PARALIA BEACH BAR AND AGYRIS
- 7 BACK TO CHERINOSSOS; SIFNOS STONEWARE
