This is where dad first met his in-laws, where granddad took us when we were kids on summer vacation in Nea Makri, where the first fish bone got stuck in my throat and grandma stuffed me with pieces of bread, where I came to love crispy fried red mullet, and where we now often end up with friends, years later, after a swim. If I had to choose one scene that most vividly evokes our summers in Athens, it would be “Akrogiali” on Zoumperi beach.

Operating since the 1940s, the historic fish taverna occupies a part of the beach which juts into the sea. “Isn’t it just like being on the deck of a ship departing for the Euboean Gulf?” Sotiris, the owner, likes asking guests. However, bucking the trend that sees many tavernas in privileged beachfront locations shirking on quality, here you eat well. Simply and well. Hearty seasonal salads, whitebait, and amazing fried squid, most definitely eggplant dip (with a smidgeon of mayonnaise that goes perfectly) and homemade spicy cheese dip, smoked European hake and pickle, shrimps, lobster spaghetti and freshly caught, charcoal-grilled fish. The red porgy we ordered last time, on the recommendation of the folks working at the taverna, who are always willing to help, was perfectly crisp on the outside and succulent inside. The olive oil and lemon dressing is for the uninitiated. The red mullet is a must, for old times’ sake, a good size with plenty of flesh, naturally served with a hearty quantity of fresh, fried potatoes because – well, it’s summer in Greece.