Grand Café d’Athènes opened its doors in June 2019. Chloé Monchalin & Benjamin Rousselet are its co-founders, who dreamed of a Parisian meeting place that would combine all their love for Greek cuisine and the art of good living.
They met each other 7 years ago at Cyril Lignac. Their first project was Filakia, a Greek, gourmet, street food canteen. Grand Café d’Athènes was designed by Studio Parisien in a way that combines perfectly French elegance with all the Greece-inspired colours and textures. The place can be described as something between a French bistro and an Athenian taverna, far from the blue/white Greek cliché. It is filled with Greek ceramics handmade by Lembesis family from Sifnos Island and objects bought from Athenian flea markets. The menu is inspired by Chloé’s Greek mother-in-law’s way of cooking; dishes to be shared, with fresh and seasonal ingredients, mezzedes and traditional recipes.
The main idea behind the restaurant is to suggest Chloé’s vision of Athens and its «art de vivre». Chloe is married to Philip Chronopoulos – a Michelin star chef in Paris. They met in France 15 years ago during their cookery studies at Institut Paul Bocuse in Lyon. Since then, Chloe travelled a lot to Greece and fell in love with the Greek cuisine. Grand Café d’Athenes is a tribute to the cuisine she loves: simple, tasty, a Greek cuisine with her own special twist.
