Gianni's Taverna — Restaurant in Municipality of Heraklion

Do NOT skip this place! If you are visiting Crete this is a must add to the itinerary. The most incredible and so far still relatively hidden spot in Crete. We paid 20€pp for an absolutely smorgasbord of food, and everything was absolutely incredible. Like a proper taverna, there is no menu and you are given the days offering - and can ask for more of whatever dish you enjoy (you won’t need to! It’s a lot!)

The setting in the old taverna is incredible, built at the start of the 1900’s the current taverna has been around ~30 years and you truly feel like you are stepping back in time surrounded by wine barrels (to help yourself to the wine you choose!) and dimly candle lit room.

The road is windy in and out of the hilltop, but well worth it. If you plan on enjoying the wine - perhaps arrange transport to and from Heraklion or wherever you are staying.

The venue has no name outside, so remember the outside from the photos, and enter through the kitchen to ask for a seat. We booked ahead but at 8pm on a Sunday we were the other ones there.

To start, we had fava, lettuce, beetroot, chickpeas and vegetables in a light broth, tzatziki, dakos, horta, pilafi. This was followed by tsigariasto (Cretan goat and with spaghetti), Kotopoulo Kokkinisto (chicken in tomato and red wine), some pork on the bbq, and the most delicious hand cut crispy potatoes we’ve ever eaten.

We of course were offered some raki and a dessert of peaches in a creamy gelatin, and some...

When i first heard about it I was excited to go. When we finally found it we realised that not only it uses electricity but the 'old fasion, no lights' theme was extremely poorly executed. The menu is very limited and depended on when you go which wasnt a problem that much. We ordered some food that took forever to come and it was not that great overall. The payment method in that restaurant is around 23$ per person no matter how much food you get BUT they literally s* on you, making you wait for those small portions AROUND AN HOUR and if you order something again it takes the same and even longer or they dont bring it to you at all. So if youre planning to eat your moneys worth you have to be there for like 10 hours. Also to clear things, the kitchen is fully running with electricity and enough to make the food quickly, they just dont want you to get more than one plate... The stuff was completely unwelcoming and ignores you even if you ask for a glass of water. In conclusion if you want an old times experience go to a park or cook something in your house and eat with the lights closed. I guarente that its going to be a 100%...

This place was one of the coolest dining experiences I’ve had, and we were lucky enough to hear them play some sort of live folk Cretan music on a Saturday when a large German tour came.

We noticed several local guides that came by (you could tell because they had a group accompanying them) who had a great time. They obviously know a great spot! Read the reviews and you will see many local guides highly recommend!

Amazing candle lit stone taverna with endless food and wine on tap from their barrels for $20. They have 16 different barrels of wine you tap yourself, which alone is probably worth it. We had 12 different dishes from their kitchen which they continuously bring out (there is no menu, simply ask for more of what you like and don’t eat what you don’t care for).

Overall we did technically have some better Cretan food on the island so gave them a 4 for food but definitely a...