PLATOO STUDY · 2026

The most searched Greek dishes abroad

Name: The most searched Greek dishes abroad
Creator: Platoo
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

We measured how often 32 Greek dishes are searched on Google each month in the UK, the US, Germany, France and Italy — five of the biggest markets for Greek tourism. Gyros comes first, but every country has its own favourite.

Published: 3 October 2026

2.08Mmonthly searches for 29 Greek dishes
Gyrosthe most searched dish: 544,400 a month
87%of all bifteki searches come from Germany
×3.8more searches in Italy in August than in December

Key findings

01
Gyros, tzatziki, moussaka: the big three abroad
Gyros (544,400 searches a month), tzatziki (423,100) and moussaka (321,100) account for 62% of all searches. Souvlaki (219,600) and spanakopita (150,100) follow.
02
Every country has its own favourite
The British search for tzatziki first, Americans for gyros, Germans for souvlaki, the French for moussaka, and Italians for tzatziki and moussaka equally.
03
The French love moussaka
In France moussaka is searched 110,000 times a month — more than in any other country in the study and almost twice as often as tzatziki.
04
Bifteki for Germans, kleftiko for the British
87% of bifteki searches come from Germany (49,500 a month). Kleftiko is a British love: 60% of its searches, and taramasalata 51%.
05
In Italy and France, Greek food means holidays
Italians search for Greek dishes 3.8 times more in August than in December, the French 2.3 times more in September. In the US and Germany interest stays flat all year.
06
Taverna favourites nobody knows by their Greek name
Chtapodi (octopus, 70 searches a month across all five countries), kalamarakia (590), garides saganaki (960) and paidakia (1,680): tourists order them only if the menu explains what they are.

The ranking: 29 Greek dishes

Average monthly searches for the Greek dish name in Latin letters, September 2025 – August 2026.

#	Dish	Total	UK	US	DE	FR	IT
1	gyros Γύρος	544,400	60,500	368,000	74,000	27,100	14,800
2	tzatziki Τζατζίκι	423,100	74,000	201,000	60,500	60,500	27,100
3	moussaka Μουσακάς	321,100	49,500	74,000	60,500	110,000	27,100
4	souvlaki Σουβλάκι	219,600	33,100	74,000	90,500	9,900	12,100
5	spanakopita Σπανακόπιτα	150,100	22,200	110,000	5,400	8,100	4,400
6	saganaki Σαγανάκι	72,400	12,100	27,100	22,200	4,400	6,600
7	bifteki Μπιφτέκι	56,990	1,900	3,600	49,500	390	1,600
8	taramasalata Ταραμοσαλάτα	35,200	18,100	12,100	1,600	1,000	2,400
9	galaktoboureko Γαλακτομπούρεκο	34,000	3,600	14,800	12,100	1,600	1,900
10	dolmades Ντολμάδες	28,800	5,400	18,100	1,900	1,000	2,400
11	loukoumades Λουκουμάδες	28,100	4,400	14,800	5,400	1,900	1,600
12	kleftiko Κλέφτικο	24,800	14,800	3,600	2,900	1,600	1,900
13	pastitsio Παστίτσιο	24,700	6,600	18,100	—	—	—
14	stifado Στιφάδο	18,190	6,600	1,900	8,100	1,000	590
15	skordalia Σκορδαλιά	15,500	1,600	9,900	2,400	880	720
16	dakos Ντάκος	10,800	1,600	1,600	3,600	2,400	1,600
17	keftedes Κεφτέδες	10,490	2,400	5,400	1,000	1,300	390
18	tiropita Τυρόπιτα	10,360	1,000	6,600	1,000	880	880
19	melitzanosalata Μελιτζανοσαλάτα	9,690	1,300	5,400	1,300	390	1,300
20	giouvetsi Γιουβέτσι	8,660	2,900	1,600	2,400	880	880
21	gemista Γεμιστά	8,580	1,900	2,900	1,900	880	1,000
22	fasolada Φασολάδα	6,420	880	2,400	2,400	480	260
23	horiatiki Χωριάτικη	6,400	480	4,400	480	720	320
24	kolokithokeftedes Κολοκυθοκεφτέδες	5,390	880	1,600	1,600	720	590
25	kokoretsi Κοκορέτσι	4,460	880	1,300	1,300	390	590
26	paidakia Παϊδάκια	1,680	210	590	720	50	110
27	garides saganaki Γαρίδες σαγανάκι	960	140	320	390	40	70
28	kalamarakia Καλαμαράκια	590	50	170	320	30	20
29	chtapodi Χταπόδι	70	—	20	50	—	—

searches / month. «—» = no data.

Not ranked

Three names also mean something else, so we don’t compare them with the rest:

baklava Μπακλαβάς — 562,000 (also a Turkish dessert)
gigantes Γίγαντες — 48,620 (also Los Gigantes (Tenerife), San Francisco Giants)
fava Φάβα — 36,300 (also fava beans)

Each country’s favourite dish

The three most searched dishes in each market.

United Kingdom
1. 1tzatziki74,000
2. 2gyros60,500
3. 3moussaka49,500
Kleftiko and taramasalata are more popular here than anywhere else.
United States
1. 1gyros368,000
2. 2tzatziki201,000
3. 3spanakopita110,000
The biggest market: almost half of all searches in the study (47%).
Germany
1. 1souvlaki90,500
2. 2gyros74,000
3. 3tzatziki60,500
Bifteki (49,500) is a German phenomenon.
France
1. 1moussaka110,000
2. 2tzatziki60,500
3. 3gyros27,100
Moussaka at 110,000 — the study’s record for the dish.
Italy
1. 1tzatziki27,100
2. 2moussaka27,100
3. 3gyros14,800
Tzatziki and moussaka tie at 27,100.

When people search for Greek food

Searches for all dishes per month. 100 = the month with the most searches in each country.

United Kingdom
peak: Jul · low: Dec (54)
Almost twice as much interest in July as in December.
United States
peak: Jul · low: Feb (78)
Flat all year — Greek food is an everyday thing.
Germany
peak: Aug · low: Jan (77)
Flat: gyros and souvlaki around the corner.
France
peak: Sep · low: Dec (43)
Peaks in September, right after the holidays.
Italy
peak: Aug · low: Dec (26)
Almost four times higher in August: Greek food means holidays.

Data as a table

	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug
UK	90	78	63	54	70	63	72	77	91	92	100	93
US	92	91	82	83	91	78	92	94	99	92	100	93
DE	98	94	80	86	77	80	88	83	94	88	96	100
FR	100	72	51	43	44	43	58	64	76	78	90	96
IT	63	39	30	26	33	29	34	35	47	59	92	100

Dishes nobody knows by name

Some of the most ordered taverna dishes are hardly ever searched by their Greek name:

Tourists don’t know what “chtapodi” or “paidakia” means. If the menu only shows the name, they order gyros and souvlaki — the dishes they already know. One line of description in their language is enough. Pastitsio gets no searches at all under this name in Germany, France and Italy.

Descriptions for 33 dishes in 4 languages →

Χταπόδι chtapodi70
Καλαμαράκια kalamarakia590
Γαρίδες σαγανάκι garides saganaki960
Παϊδάκια paidakia1,680
searches / month · UK + US + DE + FR + IT

What it means for your menu

Put the famous dishes up top
Gyros, tzatziki, moussaka and souvlaki are what tourists already search for before they arrive. Give them a photo and a good spot on the menu.
Explain the unknown ones
Octopus, lamb chops, squid, stuffed tomatoes: one line of description turns an unknown name into an order.
Speak your guests’ language
Where Italian and French guests come in summer, Italian and French on the menu are not a luxury.

Your menu in 11 languages, with photos

In Platoo every dish has a photo and a description that is translated automatically into 11 languages. Tourists see the menu in their own language on their phone.

Try it free

Methodology

Source: average monthly Google searches (Google Ads data, via OpenRush), September 2025 – August 2026. Collected October 2026.
Markets: United Kingdom, United States, Germany, France, Italy — five of the biggest markets for Greek tourism by arrivals and spending in 2025 (Bank of Greece).
We measured the exact Greek name in Latin letters (e.g. “moussaka”) in each country’s language. Spelling variants (e.g. “zaziki”) and translations (e.g. “Greek salad”) are not counted.
Searches include recipes, restaurants and travel — they show interest in the dish, not only from tourists.
Three names with a second meaning (baklava, gigantes, fava) are shown separately and excluded from totals.

For journalists

You are free to use the data and charts on this page with credit and a link to this page.

Source: Platoo, study “The most searched Greek dishes abroad”, 2026.
https://platoo.gr/en/guides/most-searched-greek-dishes/

Download the data (CSV)

Questions and interviews: [email protected]

FAQ

What is the most popular Greek dish abroad?

Based on Google searches, gyros: 544,400 searches a month across the UK, US, Germany, France and Italy. Tzatziki (423,100) and moussaka (321,100) follow.

Which Greek dish do Germans search for most?

Souvlaki, with 90,500 searches a month. Then gyros (74,000), tzatziki and moussaka (60,500 each) and bifteki (49,500).

Which Greek dish do the British search for most?

Tzatziki, with 74,000 searches a month, then gyros (60,500) and moussaka (49,500). The British also search for kleftiko and taramasalata more than any other country in the study.

Can I use the data in an article?

Yes, freely, with the credit “Source: Platoo” and a link to this page. The full data is in the CSV file.

A menu that explains every dish

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	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug
UK	90	78	63	54	70	63	72	77	91	92	100	93
US	92	91	82	83	91	78	92	94	99	92	100	93
DE	98	94	80	86	77	80	88	83	94	88	96	100
FR	100	72	51	43	44	43	58	64	76	78	90	96
IT	63	39	30	26	33	29	34	35	47	59	92	100

	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug
UK	90	78	63	54	70	63	72	77	91	92	100	93
US	92	91	82	83	91	78	92	94	99	92	100	93
DE	98	94	80	86	77	80	88	83	94	88	96	100
FR	100	72	51	43	44	43	58	64	76	78	90	96
IT	63	39	30	26	33	29	34	35	47	59	92	100

The most searched Greek dishes abroad

Key findings

Gyros, tzatziki, moussaka: the big three abroad

Every country has its own favourite

The French love moussaka

Bifteki for Germans, kleftiko for the British

In Italy and France, Greek food means holidays

Taverna favourites nobody knows by their Greek name

The ranking: 29 Greek dishes

Not ranked

Each country’s favourite dish

United Kingdom

United States

Germany

France

Italy