Hydra

The little town of Koronos is about thirty kilometers from the main town of Chora on Naxos. All this means is that Matina Taverna is a strictly local spot and getting there is an excuse to sightsee off the beaten track. Stavros—Matina’s husband—is a Naxian who grows his own vegetables, churns his own dairy, and—best for last—makes his own wine. All of the above is served at the restaurant, with plentiful portions of Stavros’s cheese to round off the meal. Be prepared—there’s no menu. Instead, the server lets each table know what’s cooking that day which is generally a pretty clear reflection of what was fished out of the sea and freshest on the market stand. Matina’s slow-cooked stews and meat braises—all simmered in traditional clay pots—and her flaky vegetable-stuffed pastries comprise the deeply nourishing, soul-satisfying food we all crave. Pick a handful of figs off the nearby trees for dessert.