Issue1 TasteBound compressed - Flipbook - Page 113
SLUG IN HERE
Kimolos, Greece
CHRISTINA AKRITDOU
An Aegean island in the south-west Cyclades, Kimolos has
a raw and unfiltered character. Boathouses are chiselled into
the pumiced coastline, while Skiadi Rock is a gravity-defying,
mushroom-shaped boulder hewn by the wind over millennia.
Yet change is afoot. Earlier this summer, Espera Suites
opened as the island’s first five-star boutique hotel: a sanctuary
in the quiet village of Kalamitsi. Its 14 split-level suites each
have private patios and panoramic views, while chef Dimitris
Dimitriadis sends out elegant dinners – the likes of ekmek with
sheep’s milk ice cream, cherries, pistachio cream and crispy
shredded filo. Also enjoying its first full season is Anemolethe
Suites, a design-led base already gaining a reputation for its
sumptuous breakfasts, sea views and shaded terraces.
But this is no sweeping transformation. Chorio, with its mazelike alleyways, retains its slow-paced charm. Augustus Galanos,
who runs Bay Cruises, is also chef at the family taverna Meltemi,
just around the corner from Kali Kardia, where tables spill on
to the street and an optimistic cat tails waiters ferrying roasted
goat to diners. You’ll find local cheeses at Samplo’s Farm Shop,
and ladenia (a tomato flatbread) at bakeries all over. The closest
thing to a modern pulse might be Agora Cocktail, a bar serving
superlative drinks behind an innocuous blue door.
Kimolos’s tourism scene has long been led almost solely by
Aria Hotels, with options ranging from a converted windmill to
Elephant Beach House, named after a rocky coastal formation.
At heart, this is still an agricultural island. Its open-air cinema,
Cine Kalisperitis, is a case in point, run by volunteers who host
free screenings for locals and visitors alike. Stay long enough
and you stop feeling like a visitor – just another regular at the
bakery, the taverna and the cinema beneath the stars.
How to get there? A ferry connects Kimolos to Milos via Pollonia
(approx. 30 mins), running multiple times a day in high season.
The nearest airport is Milos National Airport (approx. 45 mins
from Athens), from where it’s a short taxi ride to the ferry.
Clockwise from top left: refined cuisine by Dimitris Dimitriadis at Espera; Elephant Beach House, by local stalwart Aria Hotels; despite a flurry of openings,
Kimolos retains its quiet charm; a sheltered bay; Anemolethe Suites’ poolside view; pull up a chair at an old-school taverna; or go on an island-hopping adventure
TA S T E B O U N D
111
