I love Greek gastronomy and after my food tour of Athens a few years back, I was already salivating at the thought of exploring Crete through my taste buds.
I was told before arriving in Crete that Cretan food was something special and I’m happy to report back that these claims are resoundingly true.
In the spirit of travel, I indulged without regret, without guilt, and without reservation all in the name of cultural immersion and now I’m here to share with you my findings.
In this foodie guide I will take you through a selection of local dishes, and reveal the best places to eat in Chania, the island’s second largest city.
Food is not rational. Food is culture, habit, craving, and identity
What makes Cretan cuisine so special?
Climate, geography, flora and fauna are very important elements in shaping the Cretan diet. Traditional cuisine reflects the landscape itself: fresh, fragrant and wild. Cretans use their close proximity to the land and sea to distill seasonal produce that burst with flavour.
Befitting its reputation as a fiercely independent island, Crete is self-sufficient in year-round fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as in seafood and meat. As a result, this island nation has cultivated a smorgasbord of Cretan delicacies and specialities that are unique from mainland Greece.
Portions are plentiful and dishes are hearty and healthy (I mean, cheese is healthy, right?). There’s nothing pretentious about Cretan food, even if you do treat yourself to some fine dining. More often than not, the best food in Crete is the very simplest food.
Cretan specialities to try in Crete
Expect to see lots of the same dishes that you will find in mainland Greece, but there are also a variety of recipes that are distinct.
Depending on availability of ingredients, some dishes might be more popular to specific regions. As you would expect, generally mountainous regions consume more meat in their diet, and coastal regions consume more seafood. It might be one island but the landscape is diverse just like the cuisine!
Be sure to try a few of these local dishes below to experience a taste of Crete. If you’re in the mood for a tipple, marry them up with a glass of locally made wine or raki.
1. Dakos (Kritharokoula)
Dakos is a traditional Cretan appetiser also called ‘Greek bruschetta’. It consists of a barley rusk soaked in olive oil and topped with finely chopped tomatoes, crumbled feta or mizithra cheese, oregano and fresh basil. Tangy, crunchy, and creamy all at once. You will find them served in a variety of sizes, but bite-sized morsels are arguably the best (and certainly leave more room for the main dishes!).
2. Fried snails (Chochlioi boubouristi)
Nope you’re not in France, snails are also a Cretan delicacy. They are often fried with olive oil and coated with rosemary before being served. If you’re not up for trying them, but still curious to know more, be sure to head to Saturday Food Market on Minoos Street in Chania where you’ll see them being sold by the bag load.
3. Pies with wild greens, cheese and meat
Cretan pies are the definition of comfort food – homemade, crumbly and warm. They are commonly filled with a mix of wild greens, local cheeses and meat. The use of local herbs, however, is where the magic lies. These pies are not just food; they’re a piece of Cretan culture, baked to perfection.
4. Cretan cheeses
It seems that almost every Cretan village has its own signature cheese. They are usually made from sheep or goat’s milk, or a combination of both and each cheese variety has its local interpretation.
Of the legion of delicious cheeses, look for graviera, a harder cheese that’s sweeter when new, but nutty and flavourful after aging.
Perhaps most famous, however, are the soft cheeses of Crete. Be sure to try pichtogalo Chanion, or myzithra, a young whey cheese with a lovely mild taste and found in many dishes including the well-loved snack, bougatsa.
5. Antikristo (Cretan barbecue)
Antikristo is a traditional technique of cooking meat originally used by shepherds that means ‘opposite’ as in ‘opposite the fire’. As you might have already deduced, lamb or goat is prepared and then placed on large wooden skewers arranged around a fire.
This technique lets the meat cook in its own fat and salt with the heat coming from the flames rather than the coals. The meat is really slowly cooked, sometimes up to 6 hours to achieve incredible depths of flavours.
In the past, antikristo was common in the villages of Psiloritis mountain, but nowadays it can be found anywhere in Crete.
Chania food guide
My recent trip to Crete with Jet2 focused on Chania. It’s a cosmopolitan city with old-world charm that offers an array of restaurants, speciality shops and stores dedicated to Cretan cuisine and local ingredients. If all this food is whetting your appetite, be sure to check out Jet2’s last minute holidays.
There’s no denying that Crete unleashed my inner food demon, but in a battle between Shing V. Food, food won almost every time. Now this rarely happens, and I can only say that it speaks to the generous portions bestowed upon diners.
We’ve all been in a situation where you’ve just had a meal and immediately needed to dash off to the nearest fast-food joint to satiate your appetite afterwards. It’s a sad affair, but rest assured, you’ll never leave a restaurant still hungry in Chania. Never. Mark my word.
Where to eat in Chania
To make things easy for you, I’ve included two options each for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I’ve also added in places to grab a lovely glass of wine and an aperitif to really experience the relaxing pace of life in Chania.
Breakfast
Option 1 - Bougatsa Chania
A much-loved breakfast staple all over Greece is bougatsa but different regions offer variations of the dish. Before being stuffed with cheese (in Chania local mizithra cheese is used), the dough is tossed in the air to ensure the phyllo is as thin as possible to get that all important light, crunchy texture. Once it is taken out of the oven it’s typically sprinkled with sugar or cinnamon before served.
Option 1 - Kipo Cafe
If you want to start your day somewhere leafy, head to the municipal garden. Inside is Kipo Cafe a lovely historical cafe, where you can soak up the morning sun over a coffee or mountain tea. Alternatively, the cafe interior is particularly charming if you prefer to be seated indoors.
Lunch
Option 1: Carte Postale
The views from this restaurant are unbeatable, located about 30-minutes away from the centre of town by car, you’re blessed with panoramic views of the bay while you dine at Carte Postale. If even you’re not particularly hungry, I recommend visiting for a drink an snack just to admire the view.
Hopefully you will be hungry, as this place offers exquisite contemporary dishes that look divine and taste just as good.
Option 2: Fourogatos
Newly open and guaranteed to put a smile on your face with their high quality ingredients and attentive service. If you want to sample some of the best cheeses Crete has to offer, look no further than Fourogatos. It’s another place with a picture-perfect view overlooking the promenade and sea.
Dinner
Option 1 - Arismari
Treat yourself to dinner at Arismari. It was one of the best restaurant I went to, and not only for the seafood gnocchi. Their style is contemporary Cretan cooking made with traditional local ingredients.
Option 2 - To Stáchy
A great introduction to traditional Cretan cuisine. While the setting is low-key the surprising combination of ingredients are a revelation. Recommended dishes are the homemade Cretan pies, lamb with white wine sauce mixed with french fries (!), lamb with artichoke, and don’t miss the side dish of fried feta drizzled in honey. For dessert? Baklava, of course.
Add wine tasting to your culinary adventures
Vineyards are ubiquitous to the Cretan landscape so you’d be missing out if you didn’t squeeze in an afternoon of wine tasting.
Within the cellars of Agia Triada Monastery, visitors can satiate their inner Bacchus by enjoying an exceptional wine tasting experiencing. All the ohhs and ahhs and expressions of pure delight expressed by my fellow friends certainly spoke to the wine’s quality.
The bread, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar stole the show for me, and I bought what my small travel bag would allow me to stuff inside. I think the difference between the olive oil you get in the UK compared to Greece is incomparable, and at a fraction of the price.
Don't forget the raki
Raki, the island’s national drink. I’m made to believe that you haven’t really been to Crete if you haven’t tried the raki.
This Cretan drink is a symbol of friendship and nobility and a sign of social communication. Cretans are happy to offer this drink to tourists and guests after any meal and accepting is a rites of passage for anyone visiting the island to say they’ve really been. Speaking as someone who rarely drinks, I had no other choice but to raise my glass if I wanted to pass this test!
Explore the Farmers' Market
Finally, perhaps the best way to feel the heartbeat of Chania is at the local farmers’ market every Saturday on Minoos Street. Located along the historic Venetian wall, this street comes alive with dozens of stalls, each offering a slice of Cretan flavours.
All the produce sold here are freshly picked, dug-up, caught or independently made. Fruit, vegetables, eggs, cheeses, honey, live stock, stalls cooking souvlaki on charcoal grills and even snails are on offer.
Just as important as the food to any farmers’ market are the jolly stall owners themselves. They bring their personality and tug on their vocal cords to drum up excitement about their signature products. Some of them really are the stars of the show, shouting out and promoting their wares for you to sample.
I spotted one stall owner in particular who really brought the passion to his fresh produce. Beckoning you fourth to smell, try, and buy. There’s an old Irish saying that goes, “Laughter is brightest in the place where the food is” and he had one of the heartiest laughs I’ve ever heard.
Want to plan your own foodie trip to Chania?
How to get there: I flew to Chania with Jet2 from London Stanstead Airport. However, if you don’t live near Stanstead, you can find flights to Chania with them from a wide range of local airports in the UK. You can purchase single flights for as little as £50 depending on when you go, or you can travel with them on an all inclusive holiday. Take a look at their options.
Transport: I recommend hiring a car if you want to explore the surrounding nature of Chania.
Food tours: You will find a range of exciting food tours available in Chania. I recommend taking a look at what’s on offer with Eatwith.
Further reading: For more Greece-inspired articles, browse through my archive.
A big thank you to Jet2 and Chania Tourism Board for showing me the diverse flavours of Chania. My trip to Chania was a complimentary PR press trip, but all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
