Chef and food writer Georgina Hayden takes a culinary tour of Crete, focusing on the Lassithi region in the island's far eastern corner. Known for its exceptional produce—including Sitia extra virgin olive oil, creamy xigalo cheese, mountain honey, and excellent tavernas—Crete offers a deeply authentic Greek experience.
First Evening at Karnagio
Hayden and her husband check into the Sand Suites, a new adults-only retreat with seven suites and direct access to Almyros beach. For their first evening, they dine at Karnagio in Agios Nikolaos, a 10-minute drive away. Despite a warning from hotel manager Dimitri, they order too much food, starting with Cretan classics: dakos (barley rusks with tomato, olive oil, and mizithra cheese), mizithropitakia (mizithra-filled pies), fava with spring onions, tender horta (wild greens with lemon), and melt-in-the-mouth sautéed lamb with local pasta and torched anthotyro cheese. The meal ends with complimentary sweets and raki, shared with the waiter.
Bakery Visit and Ancient Olive Tree
The next morning, they drive to Evotry, a roadside bakery run by Stefanos and his wife Maria. The bakery offers cakes, biscuits, and trahana (fermented cracked wheat with yogurt). Stefanos uses petimezi (grape molasses) from his homegrown grapes to sweeten kalitsounia (Cretan sweet cheese pies), avoiding refined sugar. They also buy cookies. On the way to Mochlos, they detour to see a 3,000-year-old olive tree, sitting beneath its branches to eat the kalitsounia.
Lunch at Ta Kochilia and Cookery School
In Mochlos, they lunch at Ta Kochilia, a waterfront taverna, enjoying grilled squid, horiatiki (Greek salad), and bread with local olive oil. The meal ends with halva dusted with cinnamon and strong Greek coffee. Later, they visit Nektaria's Kitchen, an open-air cookery school in the hills above Mochlos. Nektaria, who left finance four years ago, offers four-hour classes ranging from vegetarian and meat menus to olive oil tours and wine tastings. They sample kalitsounia with orange blossom, spiced melomakarona, and almond honey patouda, and are invited to stay for a slow-cooked pork meal.
Last Full Day: Kritsa and Olive Oil Tasting
On their last full day, they explore Kritsa, one of Crete's oldest villages, visiting the women's cooperative where biscuits and cakes are prepared for restaurants. They buy skioufichta (rolled Cretan pasta) to recreate the lamb dish at home. They then attend an olive oil tasting at family-owned Mourello, where Eleni guides them through the growing, harvesting, and pressing process. The Vedema oil is described as peppery, punchy, and silky.
Final Dinner at Xatheri
For their last evening, they dine at Xatheri in Kroustas, a village 520m above sea level with views over Mirabello Bay. Chef Konstantinos uses recipes from his parents and grandmother. They start with dolmadakia (stuffed vine leaves), followed by goat stew with spaghettoni and aged graviera cheese, and gamopilafo (wedding rice). Dessert is galaktoboureko (vanilla cream in syrupy filo), accompanied by dessert wine and raki.
