We linger at the beach until the sun is well past its peak, then navigate back along the cliffside roads, arriving in Christos Raches just before it sets. But it’s Ikaria; our day is only beginning. There’s a gentle evening breeze blowing and, as we sit in the town square, the light dims and gradually there are voices of families coming out to take the air. In the warm night we sit beneath a splendid sea of stars and realize now how logical it is to live so much of your life after dark.
The Details
Staying There
Luxury hotels are nonexistent here, but clean simple rooms, a handsome restaurant, and a fine seaside pool may be found in Armenistis (Ikaria’s sole “resort” town) at Erofili Beach Hotel (011-30-22750-71-05-8; erofili.gr). Two neighboring alternatives, similar though not quite as pleasant, are Cavos Bay Hotel & Studios (011-30-22750-71-38-1; cavosbay.com.gr) and Daidalos Hotel (011-30-22750-71-39-0).
Or head for the mountains, to the ancient yet hip, highly nocturnal Christos Raches, and rent a pretty studio with balcony and view at Manetta’s (run by George Kavoutsos; 011-30-22750-41-04-4; enlist a native speaker to reserve).
Eating There
Taverna Platanos (22750-41-47-2), in Agios Dimitrios, serves excellent stewed goat, an unusual beet yogurt salad, and other local fare under the splendidly wide branches of the eponymous platanos (plane) tree.
There’s no menu at To Fytema (west of Evdilos; 22750-31-92-8), where you are invited to choose your meal from the day’s dishes on the stove and windowsills in the kitchen, then relish it in a garden under cascading grapes. The soufiko (Ikaria’s vegetable stew) was cooked to buttery perfection, and the zucchini cheese pie and a salad of crisp purslane with olives were truly sublime.
It’s the same kind of cooking at the very welcoming Anna (Armenistis; 22750-71-48-9; annanas@sam.forthnet.gr). This pretty taverna specializes in seafood—caught by Anna’s father—and has a large vegetarian selection (though Anna’s moussaka is wonderful, too).
Cooking classes at Diane Kochilas’s The Glorious Greek Kitchen include the hands-on creation of classic Greek dishes, as well as trips to local purveyors. ($2,446 per week; 011-30-6947-84-78-33; cuisineinternational.com)
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