Vinyl & Wine
Vinyl and Wine combines a record shop and a wine bar in a single room on a quieter Valaoritou side street. The owner, a former music journalist, stocks a rotating selection of roughly 2,000 records across jazz, soul, funk, disco, Greek folk rock, and experimental electronica, alongside a wine list that focuses exclusively on Greek natural and low-intervention producers. The turntable sits on the bar counter at eye level, and the playing record gets announced verbally when guests ask. Wine gets poured by the glass in generous measures, and the owner pairs bottles to whatever is on the deck. Assyrtiko from Santorini, xinomavro from Naoussa, malagousia from Drama, and a handful of orange wines from smaller Greek projects rotate through the by-the-glass list. The room holds maybe twenty-five people between the bar, a few stools, and a pair of small tables. It fills early on weekends with a crowd of wine nerds, music obsessives, and older couples who prefer a conversational evening to the shouting matches happening three blocks away on the main Valaoritou row.
What to Expect
A wine bar where the records are as much the point as the drinks. The owner narrates what is on the turntable, the wine list skews natural and Greek, and the room stays quiet enough that you can actually hear what is playing.
Considered and warm. The kind of bar where conversations last three glasses and nobody checks their phone.
Jazz, soul, funk, disco, Greek folk rock, experimental electronica, all from vinyl
Smart casual. Polished jeans, nice shirts, dresses. Not formal, but a step up from the T-shirt crowd.
Wine drinkers, vinyl fans, couples wanting a calmer Valaoritou evening
Card and cash, contactless works
Price Range
Wine by the glass 6-10 EUR, bottles 25-80 EUR, small cheese plate 10 EUR
Wine by glass ~$6.50-10.90, bottles ~$27-87, cheese plate ~$10.90
Hours
19:00-01:00 Tuesday through Sunday, closed Monday
Insider Tip
Ask the owner to play a specific genre and he will pull a record to match. The natural-wine selection rotates weekly so the menu you see today will not be the one next week. Arrive before 21:30 on Saturday or expect to stand.
Full Review
Vinyl and Wine is one of the more particular bars in Valaoritou, in the sense that it has a clear point of view and commits to it. The room is narrow, deep, and lined with record bins along one wall, a bar counter along the other, and a pair of tables wedged into the back. The turntable, a Technics SL-1200 restored to working order, sits on the bar so the owner can flip records without leaving his position. A handwritten list taped to the counter notes what has played over the evening so far.
The wine list is the other half of the proposition. Greek natural and low-intervention producers dominate, with bottles from Ktima Ligas in Pella, Domaine Karanika in Amyndeo, Glinavos in Epirus, and a growing number of smaller projects from Crete, Santorini, and Naoussa. The by-the-glass list runs eight to twelve options at any given time, and pours are honest rather than stingy. The owner will talk through the list if asked, and he pairs bottles to records with the same care a sommelier might pair to food.
Compared to the cocktail bars and dive bars that dominate Valaoritou, Vinyl and Wine is a different category. The crowd is older, the volume stays low enough for actual conversation, and the rhythm of the evening is slower. Guests tend to stay for two or three glasses rather than bouncing between venues. The cheese and cured meat plates are functional rather than elaborate but pair well with the wines.
The records get played in full sides, not mixed or blended. The owner does not DJ; he curates. A Pharoah Sanders side might follow a Greek folk rock album from the 1970s, which might follow a disco twelve-inch. The selection is deep enough that regulars come specifically to hear what is on the deck that night. It is not a bar for a pre-club warmup. It is a bar for staying put.
The Neighborhood
Vinyl and Wine sits on a side street in the Valaoritou grid, slightly off the main bar row. The Modiano market is three minutes walk north, and the Ladadika warehouses are eight minutes south toward the port. Aristotelous Square is a six-minute walk east.
Getting There
Agias Sofias metro station is a seven-minute walk from the bar. From Aristotelous Square walk west along Tsimiski Street for six minutes. Taxis drop on Syngrou Street or Valaoritou.
Where to stay in Thessaloniki
Compare hotels near the nightlife districts. Free cancellation on most properties.
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Beerhouse
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Koo Koo Bar
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