English
Mietwagen Location de voiture Noleggio Auto Auto Huren Kreta Прокат автомобилей Wynajem auta Kreta Půjčovna aut Kréta Ενοικιαση Αυτοκινητου
My Booking Blog +30 2810 240120

Best Tavernas in Crete: 9 Oldest and Most Authentic Picks

Oldest and Best Taverns in Crete

Crete’s best tavernas are its oldest ones. Places like Sarandavga Cafenion (established 1924), Mylos tou Kerata (1960), and Avli (1987) have earned their reputation over decades of authentic Cretan cuisine – still cooked with wood-fired ovens, farm-sourced ingredients, and handmade pasta. This guide covers nine family-run tavernas across Chania, Rethymno, and Heraklion that combine historical longevity with outstanding food, a genuine gastronomic experience, and full practical visitor information. Most also cater to vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free diets, and several offer some of the island’s best views.

The 9 best tavernas in Crete at a glance:

Why these are Crete’s best tavernas

These nine tavernas made the list because they combine four qualities that define authentic Cretan cuisine: historical longevity (all have operated for at least 15 years, several since 1924); quality recognition (TripAdvisor ratings of 4.5+, Greek Tourism Organization awards, or the Quality Label of Cretan Cuisine); authentic sourcing (locally grown ingredients, slow food and wood-fired methods, and handmade products); and accessibility (all welcome international visitors and accommodate vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free diets). Together they range from fine dining to mountain home cooking, so there is a best taverna here for every kind of traveler – including those after a sea or mountain view.

Best tavernas in Chania

Chania’s best tavernas spread from the coast west of the city up into the mountain villages to the south – each a distinct take on authentic Cretan cooking.

Mylos tou Kerata – Platanias

Mylos tou Kerata opened in 1960 around a 14th-century Venetian water mill in Platanias, 11 kilometers (6.84 miles) west of Chania – founded by Dimitris Kavros as both a tavern and a community gathering place, its walls famously adorned with animal horns. In 1999 the Greek National Tourism Organization named it the finest restaurant in Crete and one of the top four in Greece, a reputation it has held locally ever since. It serves authentic Cretan and Mediterranean cuisine built on virgin olive oil and carefully selected ingredients.

O Milos tou Kerata

Tavern of Dounias – Drakona (White Mountains)

Stelios Trilyrakis founded the Tavern of Dounias in 2004 in Drakona village, 22 kilometers (13.67 miles) from Chania, cooking every dish over wood stoves and open fires using vegetables from his own fields and meat from his free-range livestock – true slow food and farm-to-table dining. Guests watch the meals bubble in clay pots over the fire from the open-air courtyard, high on the slopes of the White Mountains.

Dounias Restaurant in Chania

Best tavernas in Rethymno

Rethymno has some of Crete’s most celebrated dining, from the award-winning Avli in the Venetian Old Town to a 37-year-old family taverna hidden in the mountains at Vizari.

Avli Restaurant – Old Town

Avli Restaurant has been defining fine Cretan dining since 1987, serving high-quality traditional cuisine from a restored 16th-century Venetian mansion with stone walls, arches, and a bougainvillea-filled courtyard in Rethymno’s Old Town, near the Fortezza fortress and the Venetian harbor. It has earned multiple accolades: the Greek Cuisine Restaurant Award four years running (2017–2020) and the Historic Hotels of Europe Gourmet Award in 2020.

Avli Restaurant

Kapsaliana Village Hotel Restaurant – Kapsaliana

The Kapsaliana Village Hotel Restaurant, known as Elaia Bistronomie, serves refined seasonal dining in a historic stone village set among centuries-old olive groves, 12.9 kilometers (8.02 miles) from Rethymno city center near Arkadi Monastery. Diners sit on a terrace lit with lanterns or indoors among stone walls and wooden beams.

Elaia Restaurant in Kapsaliana Village

I Strofi tis Gefsis – Vizari

I Strofi tis Gefsis is a family-run taverna in the mountain village of Vizari with over 37 years of tradition, cooking sizzling goat, braised rooster, and lamb with greens grown in the owners’ own garden – honest, wood-fired Cretan home cooking.

Strofi tis Gefsis

Best tavernas near Heraklion

The villages around Heraklion – Skalani, Archanes, Anogia – hold some of Crete’s most traditional tavernas, most within 20 minutes of the capital by car.

Elia & Diosmos (Olive and Mint) – Skalani

Olive and Mint, known locally as Elia & Diosmos, is a family-run taverna 9 kilometers (5.59 miles) from Heraklion in Skalani that has cooked with fresh, locally sourced, farm-to-table ingredients for over 15 years. It holds a 4.5-star TripAdvisor rating across 300+ reviews.

Olive and Mint - Skalani

Kritamon Restaurant – Epano Archanes

Kritamon earns a 4.6-star TripAdvisor rating in the wine village of Epano Archanes, 16 kilometers (9.94 miles) (20 minutes) from Heraklion, with reviewers consistently citing the handmade pasta and warm hospitality. Its rustic decor and lush courtyard make a cozy setting for creative takes on Cretan dishes.

Kritamon Archanes

Sarandavga Cafenion – Heraklion center

Sarandavga Cafenion, established in 1924 on 1866 Street in central Heraklion, is one of the oldest traditional cafés (kafenio) in Crete and a long-standing social hub. It serves high-quality traditional Cretan food in a warm, nostalgic setting, with outdoor seating in the market surroundings.

Sarandavga Cafenion

Skoulas Café – Anogia

Skoulas Café, also called “I Plateia tou Syntagmatos”, is one of the oldest and most historically significant cafés in the mountain village of Anogia on the slopes of Psiloritis, its walls lined with photographs and clippings of the Skoulas family’s role in Crete’s revolutionary struggles. It focuses on raki, drinks, and light meze rather than full meals.

Best food in Crete

Cretan cuisine is built on a handful of iconic dishes that reflect the island’s history and the Cretan diet – every visitor should try them at least once. The most famous Crete food include dakos (a barley rusk topped with grated tomato, mizithra cheese, and olive oil), gamopilafo (a celebratory rice dish cooked in meat broth), fried snails (chochlioi boubouristi, sautéed in olive oil), kalitsounia (sweet or savory cheese pies served with honey), and lamb with stamnagathi (tender lamb with wild greens). For dessert, bougatsa – a semolina custard pastry – is iconic. All showcase Crete’s reliance on fresh, local ingredients: olive oil, herbs, goat cheese, and honey.

Do you need to rent a car to visit Crete’s tavernas?

Yes – most of Crete’s best tavernas sit in mountain villages or small towns that buses don’t reach (Drakona, Vizari, Anogia, Kapsaliana), so a rental car is the most practical way to reach them at your own pace. Public transport covers the main cities like Heraklion and Chania, but not the back roads where the best food is found.

Explore Crete with a Rental Car!
Explore Crete with a Crete Car Rental!

When choosing a car, consider your budget, group size, and the terrain: a compact car is ideal for the cities and coastal roads, while an SUV handles the mountain routes to villages like Drakona and Anogia more comfortably. Check the rental company’s insurance for comprehensive cover without hidden fees, and book early in peak season for better availability and pricing. Rental cars in Crete typically cost €25 ($28.61, £21.31)–€35 ($40.05, £29.83) per day for a compact, rising to €40 ($45.77, £34.09)–€100 ($114.42, £85.23)/day for SUVs and luxury models. Rental Center Crete offers vehicles from €25 ($28.61, £21.31)/day across the island.

Rental Center Crete Large Hero