Petousis Tavern — Restaurant in Municipality of Heraklion

SCAM Restaurant - AVOID

This restaurant is a joke. Food is okay, but very overpriced. They charge for a bread and even twice if you are two people, which is INSANE as it’s free in every other restaurant in Crete. However the biggest joke is their understanding of „reservations“. We came around 19.00 without a reservation. The restaurant was 70% empty, but most tables had „reserved“ signes on it. They told us we can’t get a table for two. I asked them if they were joking, as more than half of the restaurant was empty, while all other restaurants around were busy. After a 5 minute discussion we got a table for two. We got a table in the outside area with a view to the only entrance from the street. During the 45-60 minute where we ate for approx 50€, the restaurant refused several groups of people (from 2 to 4 people) who wanted to eat as „they were fully booked“. The restaurants understanding of being booked is reserving tables with large amounts of people (10-30 people) and not being flexible to the situation. We left the restaurant after 1h with the same level of occupancy (70% empty). I have never seen such inflexible handling of customer requests in the restaurant industry - what a waste of revenue.

Last but not least, we got the invoice for the wrong table, which we claimed immediately. It’s hard to understand how this is possible when only 30% of the restaurant is eating.

There are so many amazing restaurants in Heraklion - do yourself a favour and eat...

English for the tourists (please try to avoid places that sell a catered image of a sophisticated place for grilled meat, it is inauthentic and after your money with no regard for hospitality, quality and culture): Arriving at this "restaurant" from camping with bags apparently consists an offence to its image, as we were forced to carry our bags upstairs. The servers were rude at best with very overt classism and how could they not be as the place is a tourist trap with overpriced and mediocre food. After managing to order and waiting for a long time the food was mid at best. When we tried to pay separately, we faced all sorts of issues in order to pay separately: we had to pay either all by card or all by cash, the server that got us bread wanted us to imagine on our own that two miniscule breads were two portions of bread and he was offended and hostile when we pointed that out. Bonus negative points for another server that followed us to surveil us when we brought our staff upstairs and went to the restroom to wash our hands. Apparently we would steal the banal and hipster decor in their mind??? Overall a gentrified classist tourist trap that harms the neighbourhood and the...

When I first saw the menu — Antikristo and goat stew — I felt a surge of excitement. But then I saw the photos of the restaurant — clean lines, modern touches, a polished aesthetic — I became skeptical, almost disappointed, before even setting foot inside.

But I went. And I’m so glad I did.

What followed was an unforgettable experience. The Antikristo was everything it should be — rustic, tender, kissed by fire and time. The goat stew was a revelation: rich, balanced, profoundly comforting. This was not an interpretation of tradition — it was tradition itself, honored and perfected.

Then there was the service. Lena and Giorgos weren’t just excellent at their jobs — they embodied hospitality. Warm, attentive, and deeply knowledgeable, they added a human depth to the experience that matched the quality of the food. They reminded me that being a waiter, is an ART

Petousis doesn’t just serve meals. It delivers the essence of Cretan cuisine with quiet confidence and respect. A place that surprised me in the best possible way — and reminded me never to judge a restaurant by its pictures.

Thank you for this...