Ioannina has 25,000 students from the University of Ioannina, and the bar and café scene is what you'd expect — lively, late, and not too expensive. The two main hubs are the Mavili lakefront for sunset drinks and the streets between the central market and the university campus for late-night student venues.
For traditional Greek café culture, look for kafenia in the lower castle quarter, where elderly men still play tavli over endless tiny cups of coffee. Tsipouradika — small bars specialising in tsipouro and small plates of meze — are the local equivalent of the Spanish tapas bar and a defining part of an evening here.