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Popular with Chania’s locals as well as holidaymakers, Tamam has a menu that takes in cuisine from right around the shores of the Eastern Mediterranean. Good choice for vegetarians too (see Tamam, Chania).

One of Chania’s most popular restaurants, set within the ruins of a Venetian mansion. The menu is wide in scope, combining traditional Greek dishes with international favourites, as well as a few more authentically Cretan offerings. (see Ela, Chania)

Dino’s is the oldest and best of the clutch of restaurants around Chania’s picturesque inner harbour. The predominantly seafood menu ranges from whitebait and octopus to langouste, sea bass and red mullet (see Dino’s, Chania).

Also on Chania’s Venetian harbour is Karnagio. It offers a good range of traditional dishes, as well as grilled chicken, pork and lamb, huge peasant salads and a slender range of fish dishes. Pleasantly set in a walled courtyard (see Karnagio, Chania).

This elegant courtyard restaurant is, arguably, the best in Rethymno. A pretty garden provides the setting for the traditional grilled and roasted meat dishes, served alongside traditional Cretan favourites such as apatzia (smoked sausages) and roast goat (see Avli, Rethymno).

The 13th-century vaults that house the Veneto once contained a refectory for monks living in the cells above. The Veneto’s menu features a number of Cretan specialities, and service is excellent (see Veneto, Rethymno).

A friendly little taverna on a quiet alley in Rethymno’s old town, near the famous Rimondi fountain. Kyria Maria serves village style dishes and is usually bustling in the evenings but quieter at lunchtime (see Kyria Maria, Rethymno).

The most sophisticated restaurant in Crete’s capital city. As its name implies, Giovanni serves Italian dishes, plus an array of Cretan treats and reinvented traditional Greek dishes (see Giovanni, Irakleio).

The most luxurious dining on the Elounda Peninsula is in the gourmet restaurant of the Elounda Mare hotel.

The menu is fabulous, combining the best of Greek cooking with world-class cuisine, and dining is accompanied by piano music. There are only 20 covers, so booking well ahead is essential. Dress code formal (see The Old Mill, Elounda).

Porfira brings Cretan cooking to gourmet heights, serving a selection of uniquely Cretan dishes. The waiters are happy to guide you through the menu and will gladly explain some of the less recognizable ingredients. Set on a terrace overlooking the beach (see Porfira, Makrygialos).