Pylia Restaurant

Pylia Restaurant occupies the best table position in Pylos, the small harbour town on the southern coast of Messenia in the Peloponnese, sitting on the historic Plateia Trion Navarchon — the Square of the Three Admirals, named after the French, British, and Russian commanders who won the Battle of Navarino in 1827. The square faces Navarino Bay, one of the most naturally sheltered anchorages in the Mediterranean and the site of the last major fleet battle fought under sail. Eating at Pylia means dining opposite this extraordinary panorama: the long bay enclosed by the island of Sphacteria, the outline of the Niokastro Ottoman fortress rising above the southern shore, and the entrance channel where the combined Ottoman-Egyptian fleet was destroyed. The kitchen serves Greek seafood and Mediterranean dishes calibrated for the mix of local residents, Greek holiday-makers, and international visitors that Pylos attracts. Navarino Bay grilled fish is the signature — the day's best whole fish, simply grilled with olive oil, lemon, and rigani. Stuffed cuttlefish with rice and herbs, braised in a wine sauce, is a more elaborate preparation that the kitchen executes with skill. Shrimp soup, a rich bisque-style preparation made with Messenian gulf prawns, is the warm-weather starter. Honey fritters (loukoumades) with Mani honey end the meal on the sweetest note.