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This isn't your typical Greek restaurant.
Anassa Taverna's new location in Battery Park, at 104 North End Ave., serves upscale, Modern Greek cuisine that eases the pain of currently not being in Greece, but will likely make you want to book a trip stat.
The 7,000-square-foot restaurant is full of light, and aims to replicate the energy of taverns in Athen's popular and historic Plaka neighborhood.
Created by first cousins Nick Tsoulos and Nick Pashalis, Anassa is a sibling restaurant to their Astoria and Midtown East eateries, which amplifies the founders' Greek roots via homestyle dishes with a glitzy New York twist.
Anassa Taverna's downtown location focuses on a menu full of Greek seafood, plus innovative cocktails in a high-end yet approachable space, designed to settle into any night of the week.
Diners at the new restaurant can select their catch of the day from an icy fish display, showcasing seafood flown in from the Mediterranean. Each diner's pick, which is priced by the pound, is then grilled and served whole with lemon and olive oil. If you prefer to skip the grill, a full raw bar offers a selection of clams, oysters and other crustaceans, which are all available as a seafood tower.
Starring on the menu is Anassa's lobster spaghetti, served in a whole lobster. Fan favorites, like Greek salad with feta from a small farm South of Athens and Cretan olive oil, charbroiled octopus and a tower of thinly sliced zucchini and eggplant chips served with tzatziki are also served.
Designer Demetris Charalambous helped design a space evoking the Greek Goddess Anassa. Hanging wines and natural woods transport diners to Greece, while art on the walls featuring women in power and Greek celebrities such as Maria Collas and Jackie Onassis celebrate feminine power.