Malanos — A Zakynthos Town Institution

There are restaurants that claim to have history, and there are restaurants that actually have it. Malanos, tucked into Agios Markos Square in the heart of Zakynthos Town, has been feeding the island since 1949. The current generation is the third to run it. The sofrito recipe has not changed.

The setting is modest in the best Greek way: white walls, wooden chairs, tables that go outside under the square’s plane trees in summer, a handwritten specials board that lists what the kitchen is doing today. There is nothing here to distract from the food, which is as it should be.

The Food

Sofrito is the dish that defines Zakynthian cooking — thin slices of veal braised in a sauce of white wine, garlic, flat-leaf parsley, and white wine vinegar until the meat is almost falling apart and the sauce is thick and intensely flavoured. It exists nowhere else in quite the same form. At Malanos, it’s made from the same recipe the founder brought from his own mother’s kitchen. Order it.

Octopus in red wine sauce — the octopus is tenderised properly (you’ll know it’s wrong elsewhere when it’s rubbery), braised with tomato, red wine, bay, and cinnamon until the sauce turns dark and sweet. Served with bread for the sauce.

Grilled sea bream — the fish changes with the day’s catch, but bream is the most reliable. Grilled simply over charcoal with lemon and olive oil. This is the test of a Greek kitchen: can they grill fish without destroying it? Malanos passes every time.

Cod with skordalia — a traditional combination: salt cod, soaked and fried until crisp, served with skordalia (a thick, sharp paste of garlic, potato, and olive oil). Unusual to non-Greek palates on first encounter; converts nearly everyone.

The Sunday Ritual

If you’re on Zakynthos on a Sunday, Malanos at 13:00 is one of the most purely Greek experiences available to a visitor. The square fills up, grandparents appear, children run between tables, and the kitchen works at full capacity. The noise level is significant and the atmosphere is warm in a way that has nothing to do with performance — it’s just lunch, which is important here.

Practical Info

Best time to go: Sunday lunch at 13:00 for the full Zakynthian atmosphere. Dinner from 19:30 onwards.
Typical spend: €18–28 per person including carafe of house wine.
Reservations: Walk-in works fine for lunch. For dinner in July–August, book 1–2 days ahead — the taverna fills by 20:00 on busy evenings.
Tip: Go on a Sunday — the square fills with local families and the atmosphere is unlike anywhere else on the island.