Nikos Skrempos: The bon viveur of small, big pleasures
At Vibo Bistrot in Glyfada and Piraeus, owner and entrepreneur Nikos Skrempos introduces us to the philosophy of Vita Bona – the art of living every moment through everyday pleasures and experiences that connect people.
- 30/07/2025, 18:31
Co-owner of the Michelin-starred Hytra, Nikos Skrempos has transformed the “special occasion” into an everyday affair at Vibo Bistrot in Glyfada and Piraeus. In the following interview, he shares the philosophy behind the “Vita Bona” concept, the art of creating all-day experiences, and the significance of local entrepreneurship in contemporary dining. A narrative about spaces that live and evolve alongside the people who visit them.
• While at Hytra we create award-winning culinary moments for special occasions, with Vibo I wanted to make the “special occasion” an everyday affair. “Vita Bona” is the art of living every day to the fullest. It is the glass of wine that becomes a memory, the coffee that turns into a conversation, the meal that connects people. I created Vibo as a diary of daily pleasures written among friends.
• Local entrepreneurship is the fabric that connects the past with the future of a city, without eliminating its special identity. When a restaurant opens, it does not simply occupy a space; it converses with a neighborhood. We did not come to Piraeus as a foreign body but as the continuators of a story that has been written for centuries. Ports have always been meeting points of ideas and flavors. In Glyfada, the seaside character that hovers everywhere in the air gave us the freedom to create.
• Instead of dividing the day into compartments – morning for coffee, lunch for dinner, evening for drinks – we create a continuity in the experience. At 8 am the space breathes differently than at 6 pm. Instead of «secrets», we have empathy: we listen to what the moment they chose to visit us means to someone. Balance comes when you recognize that your space lives and grows with the people who visit it.
• Wine is history in liquid form. Each bottle is a narrative that starts in a vineyard, passes through the hands of a winemaker and ends up on our table. Wine Stories was born from the realization that these narratives are often lost in impersonal consumption. When you share a wine in the presence of its creator, something magical happens: the winemaker becomes a fellow diner, the aromatic notes gain a voice, and knowledge is transformed into a living experience.
• For me, the members of our team are fellow travellers on a personal adventure. The chef tells us about his relationship with gastronomy. The bartender plays with the senses. Our waiters convey the story behind each taste. Success is not just a matter of talent, but of coordinating people who share the same aesthetic perception of what hospitality means.
• The southern suburbs are a paradox that enchants me – so Greek yet so cosmopolitan. However, the inspiration does not come from the region but from its people. When I say «inspired by you», I mean the unpredictable dialogue with those who visit us. Every comment, every look of satisfaction, even every complaint, becomes an element of growth.
Published in “White Paper: The Big Business of the South”, NouPou Media’s special edition spotlighting the current landscape and future prospects of the Athens Riviera.