Castelo Restaurant — Restaurant in Municipality of Rethymnon

Left here very disappointed and hungry. We visited here on Thursday 7th July, I had booked it for our wedding anniversary, and had very high expectations after reading so many amazing reviews and seeing all the photos of the fabulous food.

Our experience did not start very well at all. We arrived on time for our reservation and was told our table was at the very top. We was not shown to our table so we proceeded to the very top where we found a couple of tables with 'Reserved' signs on them so we assumed we had a choice. We sat down, the waiter came along and we ordered a bottle of prosecco. We literally just started drinking our first glass when a different waiter came and said we was going to have to move tables. When I asked why, he responded and told us that a couple have reserved this table but their reservation wasn't until in 1.5 hours time but they have arrived early. I didn't understand why we had to move when the table we moved to was literally one table behind! The couple that arrived early could have just sat there! We reluctantly moved, but to make matters worse the couple sat down for 5 minutes, looked at the menu and got up and left and never came back!

This is not good customer service and completely ruined our experience right from the start.

As for the food and why I left here hungry, perhaps I have just been spoilt in the past and had some amazing food all around the world but here the food just seemed to be lacking that je ne sais quoi. My partner had the burrata salad to start which was nice and fresh, although the burrata was not as creamy as I would have expected, it was more just a ball of mozzarella. I ordered the minced meat dumplings and although the flavour was nice, there was hardly any filling. They just looked so deflated and underwhelming. Mains my partner had the lamb shank which came with mashed potato and a balsamic jus, it was nice, but there's not an awful lot you can do wrong with this. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for the Ossobuco. I was so excited for this as it's one of my favourite dishes I like to cook and eat. Firstly there was hardly any meat around the bone, and I'm talking literally just a tiny meat morsel about the size of a golf ball. The rest was just fat and completely inedible. The risotto while it looked tasty with the saffron through it, it was so bland. I explained the issues to the waiter and he took it away. When he came back he was very apologetic and said he would get it taken off of the bill which they did.

After this we really wasn't interested in having a dessert and promptly asked for the bill. The waiter brought us a panna cotta as a way of saying sorry which was very nice of him, and that's the only reason I've given 2 stars.

Unfortunately I can't say I would ever return to this restaurant nor could I recommend it to friends / family. The only thing I could say is It is very picturesque so definitely go there to grab a quick snap but...

Had a dinner with friends. Ordered piquant chickpeas with cauliflower, almonds and creamy feta sauce for starter. The dish tasted weirdly. First, the chickpeas were tough like undercooked. Cauliflower florets were fried and dryish. So, basically every ingredient was tough and dry. Yhese were combined with the salty feta cream. No balance in this mixture at all. I hoped that the main course would smooth out the impression. But the oxtail with gnocci was extremely salty. In fact, the meat was salty, gnocci we okay. But they couldn't balance huge amount of salt in the oxtail. I had to return the dish to the chef. The waiter suggested that I pick up something else, which I didn't want to do because I had already had bad experience with two dishes. However, the waiter and my friends convinced me to take something else. I ordered the simplest thing one can imagine: mozzarella with piperies florins, (traditional greek baked peppers) sprinkled with olive oil. What, seemingly, could have gone wrong? The peppers came in a form of creamy puree! And were sweetened. Boy, I'd gladly have a simple caprese instead of that.

Not to mention that these food experiments are quite pricey (Greek salad for 10.50, and bread for 2 Euro per person). The service was friendly and nice, but little does it mean when you practically can't eat. My friends, however, liked the food. That is why I put 2...

Great restaurant in the old town. Although might seem touristy because it attracts so many, this restaurant is also well loved by the locals. We were recommended by our Airbnb and a local boutique owner. Fresh products guaranteed! Rita, their women Chef, is simply on point. Attentive to details, presentation, all ingredients are chosen with care and extremely well associated, portions, texture, smell, everything was lovely. To top the great food experience, the location is charming and glamorous, situated in the heart of the old town, you can enjoy your meal in the animated street under an arcade of trees or a little more remote and calm on the terrasse of the old Phoenician house. However, the place wouldn't be the same without the friendly staff. From the waiters, waitress, chef, sous-Chef, manager and owner, everyone was more than friendly, from the beginning until the end. We were the last ones in and the last ones out. We had the luck to be treated with a very helpful Raki digestive, sweet wine for me and the best panna cotta hands down! We rolled ourselves back to the Airbnb, make no plans to go out after this one! We'll be back, and our friends...