Announcing The 50 Best Bars Sustainable Bar Award Winner 2026

Line offers an imaginative fermentation-led menu that showcases the enormous potential for creativity in sustainability-led food and drinks. By sourcing as much as possible from Greek growers and producers and producing their own fruit wines and beers in house, Line proves that a bar menu can provide a real sense of place. Preservation and creative reuse make the most of every ingredient, reducing food waste and demonstrating the team’s commitment to treading lightly on the environment. This commitment is also evident beyond the menu, through efforts to reduce energy and water consumption.

Overall, Line’s holistic approach to sustainability made them the clear winner of this award. As our CEO, Juliane Caillouette Noble, said, “Congratulations to Line Athens! Their submission showed a clear and well-rounded approach to sustainability. We loved the circularity embedded in their menu design, including their Why-In fruit wines made with secondary ingredients and by-products, and their active support for the local hospitality industry. Line has also deliberately worked to build long-term, direct relationships with Greek farmers and producers, focusing on mutually beneficial cooperative partnerships rather than simply transactional purchasing. This means improved traceability and better access to seasonal Greek produce, while clear purchasing agreements give the people behind the food greater visibility and value from their harvest. Athens is clearly having a moment, and Line is leading the way in demonstrating how hospitality can create a positive impact. Well done!"

Read more about Line’s thoughtful approach to sustainability below.

Responsible sourcing at Line

Line’s procurement strategy prioritises fostering strong, long-term direct relationships with Greek farmers and producers. This supports seasonal purchasing and gives them full visibility over their supply chain. Where possible, order quantities are agreed in advance and sometimes amount to a large portion of a harvest, helping local growers to plan ahead and providing them with the security of guaranteed income. Working closely with these small producers and guided by seasonality, Line also makes and bottles its own fruit wines on-site, offering a unique alternative to the standard wine list.

Preference is given to organic produce or produce grown to a high environmental standard, while purchasing ingredients with lower commercial value for aesthetic reasons (so-called “wonky veg”, for example) helps to reduce food waste along Line's supply chain.

Hosting tastings, discussions and events — such as Artisan Line Up — provides an opportunity for Line to shine a spotlight on the producers that they work with.

Social sustainability at Line

Thorough staff training at Line goes beyond the activities of day-to-day service, offering rich educational opportunities that include sessions on spirits, classic cocktails, fermentation, production techniques and R&D. Team members are encouraged to apply this knowledge through contributing ideas and develop their own drinks.

Line collaborated with VISION by Metron Ariston, an initiative working to improve inclusivity for blind and visually impaired individuals in hospitality settings, to improve accessibility in the bar. This has included creating a QR code-accessed audio menu and 3D printed tactile placemats. Staff are also trained to follow specific procedures to verbally guide guests through their experience. 

Overtime is paid in full, and working weeks are capped at 48 hours or fewer by contract — simple rules, but unusual in the bar industry. This ensures a good work-life balance for members of the team.

How Line tackles environmental impact

Circular principles are built into Line's menu development, preventing food waste before it happens. Secondary ingredients are transformed into new products rather than wasted; for example, coffee grounds and fruit skins are used to make non-alcoholic kombucha-beer. A meaningful proportion of the menu showcases this deliberate reuse, extracting as much value as possible from the raw ingredients used. At the time of assessment, 10 out of 14 cocktails had at least one component made from leftovers or by-products from another preparation. 

Line's drink menu heavily draws on fermentation processes. These techniques require little to no energy input and minimal refrigeration, while at the same time extending the usable life of ingredients and offering guests unique, exciting flavours. They favour the creation of drinks that require fewer cooked elements, lower-temperature methods or minimal refrigeration, reducing energy consumption where possible.

Located in a former factory building, the physical space that Line occupies offers another example of creative reuse and supports energy efficiency by maximising natural daylight through large, high-level windows. Regular inspections of plumbing and water systems serve to quickly identify and resolve leaks, inefficiencies or higher-than-usual water use. Meanwhile, the team reduces single-use packaging by working with suppliers to receive deliveries in reusable crates or containers.

Interested in how your own sustainability work measures up? Take our free, five-minute Food For Thought quiz to find out, or get in touch to learn how The SRA can support your progress.    

Read more about Line Athens on their website. You can learn more about our work with The 50 here and discover previous winners of the sustainability awards here.    

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Lead photo from the Line Athens Instagram page.