Cuisine of Crete for gourmets. Places for dinner - best restaurants

Many travelers associate Cretan cuisine, primarily, with excellent wines. Indeed, local drinks deserve the highest praise. You can taste popular wines literally at any restaurant and bar of the island; the resort has also lots of attractive liquor stores. Cretans are very fond of their national drink, and can use it literally every day. The wine is diluted with water and drunk like a normal soft drink; even local children are allowed to drink such mix. Some varieties of wine are quite light-bodied, and if they are diluted with water, you get almost a soft drink.

Going on a trip to one of local wineries with children, don’t be surprised when they would be offered to taste specialty wines too. And if you warn the guide in advance and ask him not to offer children any wine, he'll wonder why they are punished so severely.

Speaking of national dishes, first of all it is worth to mention their naturalness. All products used for meals undergo very gentle heat treatment; chefs prefer to use only seasonal products for cooking culinary delights. It would be difficult to find a hot vegetable salads and stews in local restaurants, but the choice of light vegetable soups and fresh salads is surprising. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

Those, who can’t imagine a meal without fish dishes, would become real fans of local restaurants. The fish is often cooked over an open fire or steamed; soup with seafood and fish broth is also very popular among foreigners. In addition to fish, you can order fresh vegetables or rice in restaurants - they are the most common side dishes.

Meat dishes reside a smaller place in local cuisine, but this fact doesn’t diminish the taste of meat treats. Meat is stewed in wine sauce and baked on the coals; it is a basis of moist steaks and nourishing soups. Foodies have to taste the most popular variety of local cheese, feta. Cheese and olives are among the most popular snacks, without these any lush feast doesn’t exist. Cretan cuisine can be safely called a model of healthy eating.

Each resort of Crete is ready to offer travelers a rich choice of restaurants, most of which represent regional cuisine. A very popular restaurant is famous To Pigadi where you can try the most common Cretan dishes. The house specialty is crispy hortokeftédes patties, here you can also taste original seafood dishes along with traditional ones. The restaurant always presents a rich selection of desserts and is famous for its extensive wine list.

In Paleochora, you can visit Methexis, another famous restaurant specializing in regional cuisine. Here they serve wonderful dishes from goat meat and mutton, and seafood lovers can try stuffed octopus. Unlike many other restaurants in town, this one is open all year round. In winter, a special covered terrace with heating is set up here.

Adherents of healthy food might be interested in visiting Bakaliko where chefs prepare a lot of healthy and incredibly tasty dishes from locally grown products. The menu always contains a huge selection of salads from seasonal vegetables, seafood specialties, fruit desserts, and smoothies. The founders of this restaurant are two Hungarians who liked Crete so much that they decided to move here to live.

Agistri is a family tavern that will appeal to those who prefer simple and hearty dishes. It serves wonderful dishes from fish that is caught by the tavern owner himself throughout the day. In this tavern, you can try authentic family dishes of local people, as well as enjoy special wines, which are also made according to family recipes.

One of the most unusual restaurants in Crete is Tamam that worked as a vegetarian snack bar for the first years after its opening. However, in recent years, the restaurant's menu has expanded significantly, and today it serves wonderful seafood and meat dishes, offering special desserts and excellent regional wines to guests.

Rakodikeio is a cozy cafe popular with local students and budget travelers. That's where you can try fresh crayfish and other types of seafood, drink a glass of cold beer or taste popular local wines. Despite the huge popularity, the price level remains quite affordable in this cafe.