Greek coffee (ellinikos kafes) is a strong, unfiltered coffee made by gently heating very finely ground coffee, water, and optional sugar in a small pot called a briki until a thick foam called kaimaki rises. It’s served in a small cup, grounds and all. You wait a minute for them to settle, then sip.

My grandpa Thanasis took his coffee metrios, always in the late afternoon. When I was with him on the weekends, he’d pour just a little into the saucer and hand it to me to drink. I couldn’t have been more than four or five.

Below I’ll show you exactly how I make it at home. The ratio, the one moment you must pull the briki off the heat, and how to order it like a local.

Two white cups with Greek coffee on black saucers, a glass of water and partial view of another. At the bottom are two Turkish delights.

Overview

What is Greek coffee?

Greek coffee is a strong brew prepared with very finely ground coffee beans in a small pot called briki. You don’t drink the strong coffee immediately after serving. One must wait a couple of minutes for the grounds to settle at the bottom of the cup to enjoy the velvety texture.

Greeks drink a lot of coffee and see the whole process as an excuse to meet with a friend, take a long break from work, or just to wake up in the morning. In Athens, every block has at least one café, typically busy and full of people. Although Italian coffee has dominated the industry in recent years, the love for Greek coffee remains strong.

Every home has a briki and small cups with saucers, usually made from thick porcelain to keep the drink hot. In the past, women drank it at home while the men enjoyed the beverage in coffeehouses, kafenia, places of social life and political/sports discussions. In today’s Greece, traditional neighborhood cafes have started to disappear, and specialized coffee shops are everywhere in big cities with customers of all genders and ages. Lattes and macchiatos are everywhere, and homes have fancy espresso machines, yet a briki still sits on almost every Greek stovetop.

A spoon with very finely ground Greek coffee on a white plate.

Is Greek coffee the same as Turkish coffee?

Yes and no. It’s the same brewing method — Greece learned it during centuries of Ottoman rule, and for generations everyone here simply called it Turkish coffee. The Greeks of Constantinople, Thessaloniki, and northern Greece knew it first; in the 1700s Thessaloniki alone had more than three hundred coffeehouses. The name “Greek coffee” took hold after 1974, when the Turkish invasion of Cyprus made the old name politically uncomfortable — and by the ’90s coffee ads were proudly calling it Greek.

The traditional method for this coffee is to simmer over hot charcoal ashes (hovoli) in a copper pot. Now it is made over the stove, sometimes over a portable gas camping stove many have in their kitchen. That does not mean it can’t be made over any other type. In fact, at home, I make mine over induction.

Differences between Greek and Turkish coffee

It has a different taste, and the consistency is thicker. The method Greeks use to make this coffee differs from the Turkish. It rises once and is served immediately, while the Turkish may be allowed to rise a second and third time before serving. However, the most important difference is the variety of coffee used.

Greek coffee is mainly Brazilian beans, two varieties from Rio and Santos, and Ethiopian beans. The beans roast in a specific process, which makes them blonde. After roasting, they are very finely ground. Greek coffee is blonder than Turkish or Arabic, unflavored (Arabic coffee is often spiced with cardamom), and more concentrated.

*Source: lifo.gr

What you need to make Greek coffee

A copper pot, two small coffee cups, a bowl with greek coffee, and a spoon, on a wooden surface.

Small pot, ideally with a narrow mouth. In Greece, we call it briki. The traditional ones are made of copper. It is not necessary to have a copper pot. Actually, most people use stainless steel or aluminum. Also, a small milk warmer will do the trick. You can find a variety of small coffee pots at Amazon and Greek supermarkets.
Greek coffee. The beans are ground very finely, like powder. Major brands of this coffee are Loumidis and Bravo, both available at Greek grocers around the US and on Amazon. Don’t use espresso grind — it needs to be powder-fine. Look for packages labeled Greek coffee.
A demitasse or espresso cup (about 2 fl oz / 60 ml) — it’s also your measuring cup for the water.
Sugar. This is an optional ingredient.

Greek coffee sweetness guide

How you order it	Water	Greek coffee	Sugar
Sketos (plain)	¼ cup / 2 fl oz (60 ml)	1 heaping tsp	none
Me oligi (a little sugar)	¼ cup / 2 fl oz (60 ml)	1 heaping tsp	a pinch on the tip of the spoon
Metrios (medium)	¼ cup / 2 fl oz (60 ml)	1 heaping tsp	½ tsp
Glykos (sweet)	¼ cup / 2 fl oz (60 ml)	1 heaping tsp	1 tsp

Single or double? In a Greek café, after asking how sweet you want it, they’ll ask monos or diplos — single or double. A double (diplos) is twice the water and coffee, served in a bigger cup.
“Making two? Double everything and use a two-cup briki.”

How to make Greek coffee

Four images. Greek coffee, sugar, and water stirred together in a briki before heating
Creamy foam starting to rise, and kaimaki foam reaching the top of the briki, ready to pull off the heat

Pour 60 ml of water into a small pot with a narrow mouth.
Add 1 full teaspoon of coffee and sugar, or adjust to your preference.
Stir until everything is well mixed — some people keep stirring until the coffee starts to warm. Then stop and let the foam rise. Stay right next to the stove: if it boils, it foams up and over the top, and you’ll be cleaning coffee off your stovetop.
As soon as the foam reaches the top (images 3 and 4), remove the small pot from the heat. Do not let it boil!

Pouring Greek coffee from a briki into a demitasse cup

Serve the coffee, slowly pouring it into the cup and finishing with the creamy foam on top. The creamy foam is called kaimaki. Greek coffee is considered successful when the kaimaki is preserved during serving.

Don’t drink this hot coffee immediately after serving. Wait a couple of minutes for the grounds to settle to the bottom of the cup before drinking.

Greek coffee on black saucer, and partial views of another cup and a glass of water . At the bottom are two Turkish delights.

Serve Greek coffee with a glass of iced cold water, a couple of pieces of Turkish delight, or cookies.

How to make Greek coffee without a briki

No briki? Use the smallest saucepan or milk pan you own. The foam won’t climb as high in a wide pan, so watch even more closely and pull it the second the foam starts to rise. A small butter warmer works almost as well as the real thing.

What you can’t do is skip the stovetop. A microwave, an espresso machine, or a moka pot won’t give you Greek coffee. It has to be heated slowly in a pot until the foam rises — there is no other way.

What to serve with Greek coffee

Greek coffee always comes with a glass of cold water, and almost always with something small and sweet. Loukoumi is the classic. In winter, it’s the cup I put next to a plate of melomakarona and powdery kourabiedes; at Easter, it’s koulourakia. A slice of karidopita or a square of pistachio baklava never hurt anyone either.

FAQ

One heaping teaspoon of Greek coffee to ¼ cup (2 fl oz / 60 ml) of water — roughly one demitasse cup per serving.

No. Let the cup rest a minute or two so the grounds sink, then sip slowly and stop when you reach the thick layer at the bottom.

Traditionally it’s made with water only, and never with milk in the briki. But plenty of Greeks drink it with milk. We always did when I worked in an office in Athens: make a double Greek coffee, put a splash of cream in a mug, and pour the hot coffee over it. It mixes itself. Let the grounds settle, then drink it from the mug like filtered coffee. Prefer it iced? A frappé is the way.

Not really. Greek coffee is ground to a powder; regular or even espresso grind won’t foam or settle properly.

Usually too much heat, too much stirring after it started heating, or a pot that’s too wide. Keep it on medium (never high), stir only at the start, and use a briki sized for your cups.

More Greek drinks

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If you tried this recipe, I’d love to know how you liked it — drop a comment below or tag me on Instagram @thegreekfoodie__.

How To Make Greek Coffee

by Jenny Skrapaliori Graves

Learn how to make Greek coffee the traditional way: very finely ground coffee heated in a small briki until a thick foam (kaimaki) rises.

5 from 4 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 3

Total Time 4

Course Drinks

Cuisine Greek

Servings 1

Calories 4 kcal

Equipment

Briki (small Greek coffee pot),
Demitasse cup

Ingredients

▢ ¼ cup 2 fl oz / 60 ml water
▢ 1 heaping teaspoon Greek coffee, such as Loumidis or Bravo
▢ 1 teaspoon sugar, optional (see notes)

Instructions

Pour the water into a briki. Add the coffee and sugar (if using) and stir well until there are no dry lumps.
Set over medium heat. Keep stirring if you like until the coffee starts to warm, then stop and let it be. Watch as a creamy foam (kaimaki) forms and starts to rise, it'll look like cocoa warming on the stove.
The second the foam reaches the top of the briki, take it off the heat. Do not let it boil — it will overflow and make a mess of your stove!
Pour slowly into your cup so the foam lands on top. Let it rest for 1–2 minutes so the grounds settle, then sip. Serve with a glass of cold water.