The Meaning of Vios
Vios (‘βίος’) means ‘life’ in Greek, and brothers-owners Constantine and Philippos certainly have a lust for it. They’ve dived right into Brighton Square with a stripped-back, light, and airy café bursting with all the right stuff. When the sun shines in the morning, you’re transported to a breezy patch of Mediterranean warmth, thanks to its large east-facing windows and their view of the Italianate façade of Donatello. The friendly, family-run vibe is just the ticket.
The menu isn’t exclusively Greek (nor written in Greek, thankfully), as the team caters to breakfast and brunch. During our visit, diners were tucking into Nutella & hazelnut croissants, pancakes, and ham & cheese toasties. Naturally, the pancakes come with Greek yoghurt, and the yoghurt bowls are also Greek-inspired. But we’re here to talk about their newer lunch menu offerings, as Team Vios rolls out more meze items to entice Greek food lovers.
Meze-Ready
Stuffed vine leaves are a go-to for a Mediterranean vibe, so we opted for some of the Vios dolma: bulging with lemony-herby rice and onion, glazed with pomegranate, and served with a Greek yoghurt side dip for smothering.
We paired this with a Greek white wine – the brothers curate a rotating wine list that highlights their homeland while including other juicy Mediterranean delights. The wine also paired beautifully with the Greek Giant Baked Beans (who can resist?), a homemade speciality at Vios. These beans swim in a rich tomato and oregano sauce, topped with Greek feta. They’re so moreish that we recommend ordering two portions—you won’t regret it.
Loaded Sourdough
The ever-trendy sourdough bread gets the Vios treatment, topped with those Greek Giant Baked Beans. But since we’d already devoured a bowl (or two) of those, we went for the avo smash version instead.
This one sports Greek feta, mixed seeds, paprika, and a refreshing chilli and lime dressing. The textures hit all the right notes, with creaminess collaborating with crunch and sweetness complementing spice.
In short, Vios is a lovely, low-fuss, laid-back kind of place that brings a little extra shine to The Lanes.
