Peskesi cooks Cretan recipes from its own farm at Haraso inside a restored stone mansion in central Heraklion. Book ahead, the room fills nightly.
Signature: Sfakiano lamb, Dolmadakia, Carob mousse
Order: Sfakiano lamb, then the carob mousse to finish
Tip: Ask for the olive oil tasting. The kitchen is supplied by its own farm at Haraso, and the oils are poured alongside rusk.
Parasties runs an open wood fire opposite the Historical Museum in Heraklion, turning out smoked steak, big pork fillets and long-cooked Cretan plates.
Signature: Smoked steak, Pork fillet, Snails
Order: Smoked steak straight off the open wood fire
Tip: Sit where you can see the open kitchen. Staff will walk you through a mostly Cretan wine list if you tell them what you ordered.
Merastri has cooked over a wood oven in Heraklion since 1998, closing lamb in the fire for hours and finishing pork fillet with staka and oven potatoes.
Signature: Arnaki ofto, Apaki, Sarikopites
Order: Arnaki ofto, milk-fed lamb held in the wood oven
Tip: Dinner only from 18:00, and the courtyard tables go first at weekends. The Cretan list is worth an extra glass.
The Walls plates crab samosas, duck and sea bream in a garden inside the Venetian walls of Heraklion, the city's most composed modern Greek cooking.
Signature: Crab samosas, Duck, Potato rosti
Order: Crab-stuffed samosas, then the duck
Tip: The dining room sits inside the Heraklion Tennis Club grounds by the Venetian walls, so allow time to find the gate.
Athali cooks traditional Cretan food on the corner of Kydonias and Kapetan Charalampi in Heraklion, running from lunch through to one in the morning.
Signature: Wood-oven meats, Wild greens, Cretan cheeses
Order: Whatever the wood oven is holding that day
Tip: Kydonias meets Kapetan Charalampi here, two minutes from Peskesi, so it is a useful fallback when that room is full.
Apiri Greek Eatery reworks Greek standards on Agion Deka in Heraklion, grilling octopus and sea bass and charring a wild greens pie over coals.
Signature: Char-grilled greens pie, Grilled octopus, Smoked sea bass
Order: The char-grilled wild greens pie
Tip: Small room, so book for dinner. Lunch is quieter and the same kitchen is running the grill from 13:00.
Erganos has fed a mostly local room beside Kazantzakis park in Heraklion since 1986, with goat, meatballs and a long list of Cretan vegetable plates.
Signature: Sfakianopita, Goat, Keftedes
Order: Bite-sized sfakianopites with cheese and honey
Tip: The taverna sits beside Kazantzakis park, a short walk uphill from the Archaeological Museum.
Arismari & Varsamo cooks lamb over open fire on the seafront side of Heraklion, with bean soup, tzatziki and a menu built on Cretan farm produce.
Signature: Arni ofto, Tzatziki, Fasolada
Order: Arni ofto, lamb marinated in herbs and cooked over fire
Tip: The terrace faces the sea by the Historical Museum square, which makes it a better sunset table than a midday one.
Lola works Mediterranean small plates with a fusion streak on Kydonias in Heraklion, running from lunch to one in the morning six days a week.
Signature: Small plates, Fusion mains, Wine by the glass
Order: A spread of small plates and a glass of Cretan white
Tip: Closed Mondays. The room is small and popular with locals, so book if you want a table after 21:00.
Pagopoieion took over a former ice factory on Agios Titos square in Heraklion, serving breakfast, ethnic-tinged plates and a deep Greek wine list.
Signature: Mushroom risotto, Beef tartare, Cretan wines
Order: Mushroom risotto, with a glass off the Cretan list
Tip: The old ice factory on Agios Titos square works as breakfast room, lunch stop and wine bar, so time your visit to the mood you want.
Herb's Garden runs the Lato hotel roof in Heraklion from April to October, looking straight at Koules over fish, Cretan cheeses and seasonal salads.
Signature: Fresh fish, Cretan cheeses, Seasonal salads
Order: Fresh fish with a Cretan white, watching the fortress
Tip: Rooftop of the Lato Boutique Hotel, and seasonal: the team moves downstairs to Brillant from November to March.
Chalali is a plain Greek and Cretan taverna on Strofadon in Heraklion, cheap enough that the room stays local, open six days a week from lunch.
Signature: Cretan mezedes, Grilled meats, Raki
Order: A mezes spread with a carafe of raki
Tip: Closed Mondays, and prices sit well under the old-town average, so the room stays local rather than filling with cruise traffic.
Kouzeineri is the steak address in Heraklion, working charcoal near Agiou Titou square with pork hock, chicken wings and a long Greek wine list.
Signature: Steaks, Pork hock, Chicken wings
Order: Pork hock, or a steak off the charcoal
Tip: Tables sit out on Agiou Titou square, and those are the ones worth a booking.
Peskesi is the Cretan kitchen Heraklion gets judged by, rebuilding near-lost island recipes with produce grown on the restaurant's own farm.
Signature: Sfakiano lamb, Dolmadakia, Carob mousse
Order: Sfakiano lamb, then the carob mousse to finish
Tip: Ask for the olive oil tasting. The kitchen is supplied by its own farm at Haraso, and the oils are poured alongside rusk.
The Walls is the most technical cooking in Heraklion, a garden dining room inside the Venetian ramparts, run as a modern Greek gastrobistro.
Signature: Crab samosas, Duck, Potato rosti
Order: Crab-stuffed samosas, then the duck
Tip: The dining room sits inside the Heraklion Tennis Club grounds by the Venetian walls, so allow time to find the gate.
Herb's Garden is the Heraklion rooftop for an occasion dinner, plating contemporary Greek food above the Venetian harbour from April to October.
Signature: Fresh fish, Cretan cheeses, Seasonal salads
Order: Fresh fish with a Cretan white, watching the fortress
Tip: Rooftop of the Lato Boutique Hotel, and seasonal: the team moves downstairs to Brillant from November to March.
Brillant is the winter dining room of the Lato hotel in Heraklion, running Mediterranean and Cretan cooking from November until the roof reopens.
Signature: Cretan diet plates, Seasonal fish, Greek wines
Order: The winter Cretan plates the kitchen builds each season
Tip: Brillant is the winter half of the Lato hotel operation. From April the same team moves up to the Herb's Garden roof.
Merastri is the wood-oven address in Heraklion for an unhurried Cretan dinner, from lamb closed in the fire to a long list of island bottles.
Signature: Arnaki ofto, Apaki, Sarikopites
Order: Arnaki ofto, milk-fed lamb held in the wood oven
Tip: Dinner only from 18:00, and the courtyard tables go first at weekends. The Cretan list is worth an extra glass.
Parasties has cooked Cretan food over live fire in the centre of Heraklion since 1999, and is one of the city's steadiest special-occasion rooms.
Signature: Smoked steak, Pork fillet, Snails
Order: Smoked steak straight off the open wood fire
Tip: Sit where you can see the open kitchen. Staff will walk you through a mostly Cretan wine list if you tell them what you ordered.
Lola is the sharpest small-plates cooking in central Heraklion, a compact room on Kydonias where Mediterranean technique meets Cretan produce.
Signature: Small plates, Fusion mains, Wine by the glass
Order: A spread of small plates and a glass of Cretan white
Tip: Closed Mondays. The room is small and popular with locals, so book if you want a table after 21:00.
Kouzeineri is where Heraklion goes for a serious steak, a charcoal kitchen near Agiou Titou square with a Greek wine cellar to match the meat.
Signature: Steaks, Pork hock, Chicken wings
Order: Pork hock, or a steak off the charcoal
Tip: Tables sit out on Agiou Titou square, and those are the ones worth a booking.
Erganos is the taverna Heraklion locals default to, a 1986 dining room beside Kazantzakis park with goat, keftedes and honeyed sfakianopites.
Signature: Sfakianopita, Goat, Keftedes
Order: Bite-sized sfakianopites with cheese and honey
Tip: The taverna sits beside Kazantzakis park, a short walk uphill from the Archaeological Museum.
Athali is an easy all-day Cretan taverna in central Heraklion, cooking wood-oven meats and wild greens from lunch until one the following morning.
Signature: Wood-oven meats, Wild greens, Cretan cheeses
Order: Whatever the wood oven is holding that day
Tip: Kydonias meets Kapetan Charalampi here, two minutes from Peskesi, so it is a useful fallback when that room is full.
Apiri Greek Eatery is a good-value Heraklion dinner, grilling octopus and sea bass and charring its wild greens pie over open coals every night.
Signature: Char-grilled greens pie, Grilled octopus, Smoked sea bass
Order: The char-grilled wild greens pie
Tip: Small room, so book for dinner. Lunch is quieter and the same kitchen is running the grill from 13:00.
Chalali is the cheap Cretan taverna on Strofadon that keeps central Heraklion honest, with mezedes, grills and raki for well under a tenner.
Signature: Cretan mezedes, Grilled meats, Raki
Order: A mezes spread with a carafe of raki
Tip: Closed Mondays, and prices sit well under the old-town average, so the room stays local rather than filling with cruise traffic.
Pagopoieion is the all-day room on Agios Titos square in Heraklion, an old ice factory pouring coffee from nine and serving through to dinner.
Signature: Mushroom risotto, Beef tartare, Cretan wines
Order: Mushroom risotto, with a glass off the Cretan list
Tip: The old ice factory on Agios Titos square works as breakfast room, lunch stop and wine bar, so time your visit to the mood you want.
Krasas is the Ikarou grill house that Heraklion falls back on, running gyros and skewers until three in the morning at prices well under a tenner.
Signature: Gyros, Grilled meats, Chips
Order: A pita gyros with everything, eaten standing
Tip: Open until 03:00, which makes it the default stop after a long evening on Ikarou.
Chagiati is the backstreet Heraklion mezedopoleio on Erotokritou, grilling sardines and pouring raki for a room that stays stubbornly local.
Signature: Grilled sardines, Dolmades, Mixed grill
Order: Grilled sardines with a carafe of raki
Tip: Dinner only, and closed Sundays. The room is small enough that a walk-in after 21:00 usually means waiting outside.
Dish Bar has worked its corner of Agios Titos square in Heraklion since 2007, running Mediterranean plates early and a busy cocktail room late into the night.
Signature: Beef carpaccio, Cocktails, Mediterranean plates
Order: Beef carpaccio with truffle mayonnaise
Tip: It sits a few metres from Agios Titos church, and the room turns from restaurant into a cocktail bar later in the evening.
El Sur brings Mexican food and sushi to Arkoleon in central Heraklion, a loud multicultural room pouring margaritas and mojitos to Latin music.
Signature: Tacos, Sushi, Margaritas
Order: Tacos and a margarita, or the sushi for a change
Tip: One of the few kitchens in Heraklion doing Mexican and sushi under one roof, a short walk from Lions Square.
626 All Day runs a garden lounge off Idomeneos in Heraklion, serving brunch plates and comfort food from nine in the morning until midnight.
Signature: Brunch plates, Comfort food, Wine
Order: A brunch plate, eaten out in the city garden
Tip: It sits on the corner of Meramvelou and Idomeneos beside the Olive Green Hotel, with a garden that stays cool in August.
Granary is the all-day eatery and espresso bar in central Heraklion, pouring Taf Roastery coffee alongside Mediterranean plates and Greek wine.
Signature: Specialty coffee, Mediterranean plates, Greek wines
Order: Specialty filter coffee and whatever is on the day plate
Tip: Named for the Venetian grain store that once stood opposite the Ducal Palace, and it keeps a wide Greek wine list.
Alla ki Alla is the Kagiampi kitchen in Heraklion that locals fall back on, sending out stuffed mushrooms, fried zucchini balls and meat platters.
Signature: Stuffed mushrooms, Fried zucchini balls, Mixed meat platter
Order: Stuffed mushrooms, with the fried zucchini balls
Tip: On Kagiampi a minute from Peskesi, with stuffed mushrooms and fried zucchini balls among the plates worth ordering.
Hovoli works the charcoal on Daskalogianni square in Heraklion, an unfussy grill house with Cretan salads and prices that stay entirely reasonable.
Signature: Grilled meats, Cretan plates, Salads
Order: Grilled meats off the charcoal with a Cretan salad
Tip: On Daskalogianni square, which is a useful place to eat when the Lions Square terraces are all full.
The Whistler Espresso Bar sits on Agiou Titou in Heraklion, pulling specialty espresso through the day and mixing cocktails deep into the night.
Signature: Espresso, Cocktails, Small plates
Order: An espresso by day, a cocktail after dark
Tip: On Agiou Titou, so it doubles as a coffee stop between the church and the Venetian Loggia.
Think Tank is the espresso and wine bar of central Heraklion, a neoclassical room on Idaiou Androu with specialty coffee and Cretan bottles.
Signature drink: Specialty espresso
Order: The house espresso, then a glass of Cretan white
Tip: Book the terrace in advance. The room hosts wine tastings, and the same team runs both counters.
Granary pours Taf Roastery coffee in the heart of Heraklion, an espresso bar and eatery serving Mediterranean plates and Greek wine by the glass.
Signature drink: Filter coffee
Order: Filter coffee and a plate off the day menu
Tip: One of the few Heraklion rooms that genuinely works as a cafe, an eatery and a wine stop in turn.
Hacienda works a third-wave coffee programme in Heraklion, with homemade sweets and avocado toasts served beside Agia Ekaterini square in the centre.
Signature drink: Third-wave espresso
Order: An avocado toast and a long black
Tip: There are several Hacienda branches across the city. The Agias Ekaterinis room is the one in the old town.
Central Park is the all-day cafe on Arkoleontos in central Heraklion, running from an eight in the morning espresso through to a half eleven last order.
Signature drink: Espresso Guatemala
Order: Central Breakfast for two, with bread and village sausage
Tip: The two-person breakfast comes with homemade bread, croissants, village sausage and eggs, and stretches to three at a push.
Frankly My Dear is the specialty coffee and brunch room on Karterou in Heraklion, doing freddo espresso, salmon toast with avocado and fresh juices.
Signature drink: Freddo espresso
Order: Salmon toast with avocado, and a freddo espresso alongside
Tip: It sits on Karterou beside Agia Aikaterini square, five minutes uphill from the Agora.
ML Espresso Bar is a third-wave coffee counter on Eleftherias Square in Heraklion, rotating single-origin beans through espresso and filter.
Signature drink: Ethiopian filter
Order: A filter coffee, whichever origin is on that week
Tip: A takeaway-first counter on Eleftherias Square, open from seven in the morning until eleven at night.
Crumb Healthy Living Lab bakes gluten-free and sugar-free for a health-minded Heraklion crowd, with specialty coffee and a plant-heavy brunch.
Signature drink: Specialty coffee
Order: A gluten-free bake with a flat white
Tip: The kitchen labels sugar-free and gluten-free bakes clearly, which is still rare in Heraklion.
The Whistler Espresso Bar is the Agiou Titou coffee stop in Heraklion that turns cocktail bar after dark, where free snacks arrive with every drink.
Signature drink: Espresso
Order: An espresso and a plate of nibbles
Tip: Small pavement terrace on Agiou Titou, busiest in the hour before dinner when it switches to drinks.
626 All Day is the city-garden cafe off Idomeneos in Heraklion, open from nine for coffee, brunch plates and a glass of wine after work ends.
Signature drink: Filter coffee
Order: Brunch in the garden, with a filter coffee
Tip: The garden is the reason to come. Ask for a table outside rather than in the indoor lounge.
Pagopoieion serves coffee under old ice-factory beams on Agios Titos square in Heraklion, with art shows and poetry readings through the week.
Signature drink: Greek coffee
Signature: Mushroom risotto, Beef tartare, Cretan wines
Order: Mushroom risotto, with a glass off the Cretan list
Tip: The old ice factory on Agios Titos square works as breakfast room, lunch stop and wine bar, so time your visit to the mood you want.
Queen Boulangerie bakes through the day on Agiou Titou in Heraklion, a patisserie counter that runs late into the evening for pastries and cake.
Signature drink: Filter coffee
Order: A pastry from the counter with a filter coffee
Tip: On the corner of Agiou Titou and Evropis, open late enough to work as an after-dinner stop.
Savoidakis bakes right across Heraklion, and its kalitsounia are the ones food tours stop for, alongside a long counter of sweets and gelato.
Order: Kalitsounia, the Cretan cheese pie
Tip: A Heraklion chain with several city branches. The Dikaiosinis counter is the handiest one from the Agora.
Worth the queue: Kalitsounia
Artopoiio Christoforos Veneris bakes bread, pies and tsoureki on Evans in central Heraklion, with the oven working directly beneath the shop.
Order: Tsoureki, plain or with chocolate
Tip: The bakery works below the shop, so the pastries come up warm. At Christmas it bakes a chocolate panettone.
Worth the queue: Tsoureki
Veneris Bakery & Coffee is the neighbourhood bakery on Meandrou in Heraklion, where the owner still makes the breads and the pastries himself.
Order: A savoury pastry straight off the tray
Tip: Family-run and far enough from the tourist streets that the queue is almost entirely local rather than visiting.
Worth the queue: Savoury pastries
Queen Boulangerie is the late-opening patisserie on Agiou Titou in Heraklion, baking through the day and still selling pastries at eleven at night.
Order: A pastry from the late-night counter
Tip: The counter runs late into the evening, so it covers the gap after the tavernas stop serving.
Worth the queue: Pastries
Costis Patisserie bakes on the Knossos road out of Heraklion, selling cakes, sweets and coffee to take away from morning through to late evening.
Order: A slice from the cabinet with a Greek coffee
Tip: On the Knossos road, so it works as a stop coming back from the palace rather than a city-centre errand.
Worth the queue: Cakes and sweets
Crumb Healthy Living Lab is the Heraklion bakery to know if you avoid gluten or sugar, with clear labelling and a plant-leaning brunch menu.
Order: A gluten-free cake with specialty coffee
Tip: One of very few Heraklion bakeries that labels gluten-free and sugar-free clearly on every item in the cabinet.
Worth the queue: Gluten-free cakes
Think Tank is the specialty coffee benchmark in Heraklion, a neoclassical espresso and wine bar on Idaiou Androu with its own resident barista.
Order: The house espresso, pulled by the resident barista
Tip: A sommelier works the wine side of the same room, so a coffee visit can easily turn into a Cretan tasting.
Sources from: Ethiopia, Colombia, Brazil
How they serve: Espresso, Filter
ML Espresso Bar pours third-wave coffee on Eleftherias Square in Heraklion, rotating single origins through espresso and hand-brewed filter.
Order: A filter of whichever Ethiopian is on that week
Tip: The counter is small and built for takeaway rather than sitting down with a laptop.
Sources from: Ethiopia, Kenya, Colombia
How they serve: Espresso, Filter, Takeaway
Granary is where Heraklion drinks Taf Roastery coffee, an espresso bar and eatery in the old town pairing it with Mediterranean plates and wine.
Order: A filter coffee made with the Taf Roastery beans
Tip: Granary buys its beans from Taf Roastery rather than roasting in-house, and serves them alongside breakfast, brunch and lunch.
Sources from: Sourced through Taf Roastery
How they serve: Espresso, Filter
Hacienda follows a third-wave brief across several Heraklion branches, opening at half past six for espresso, filter and a full brunch menu.
Order: A long black, with an avocado toast alongside
Tip: Several Hacienda branches operate across the city, so check which one you are heading for before you set out.
Sources from: Brazil, Ethiopia, Colombia
How they serve: Espresso, Filter
Frankly My Dear is the Karterou specialty coffee bar in Heraklion, working freddo espresso and filter alongside a full brunch and cocktail list.
Order: A freddo espresso, with a fresh juice alongside
Tip: The Karterou room is a five-minute walk uphill from the Agora and much quieter than the square cafes.
Sources from: Rotating single origins
How they serve: Espresso, Freddo espresso
Think Tank is the wine bar Heraklion drinkers name first, a neoclassical room on Idaiou Androu pouring Cretan and Greek bottles by the glass.
Signature pour: A glass of Cretan Vidiano
Wine focus: Cretan and Greek growers by the glass
Food: Brunch plates and snacks
Order: A Vidiano by the glass, with whatever snack is out
Tip: A sommelier picks the list and the room hosts tastings, so ask what has just been opened.
Pagopoieion keeps one of the widest Greek wine lists in Heraklion, poured under the beams of a converted ice factory beside Agios Titos church.
Signature pour: A Cretan red with the mushroom risotto
Wine focus: Wide Greek list, strong on Crete
Food: All-day kitchen
Order: A Cretan red, with the mushroom risotto to match
Tip: The ice-factory room is large enough to find a quiet corner even when Agios Titos square is full.
Manjar Wise Food, Coffee & Wine Bar pours a long list on Dimokratias in Heraklion, with staff who explain every glass and send out bites with it.
Signature pour: A Cretan white with small bites
Wine focus: Health-minded Greek and Cretan labels
Food: Wise food plates and small bites
Order: A glass off the Cretan list with the small bites
Tip: Staff talk you through each pour and send out nibbles, which makes it a good first stop for Cretan grapes.
Granary turns from espresso bar into wine room as the evening arrives, pouring Greek bottles with Mediterranean plates in the heart of Heraklion.
Signature pour: A Cretan white with a mezze plate
Wine focus: Greek wines by the glass and bottle
Food: Mediterranean all-day menu
Order: A glass of Cretan white with a mezze plate
Tip: Wine service runs from late afternoon, once the coffee crowd thins out and the kitchen switches to the evening menu.
Merastri keeps a serious Cretan wine list behind its wood oven in Heraklion, and the reds it pours are built to stand up to three-hour roast lamb.
Signature pour: A Liatiko red with the wood-oven lamb
Wine focus: Cretan list built around the wood oven
Food: Full Cretan menu
Order: A Liatiko red alongside the wood-oven lamb
Tip: The Cretan list is the reason to linger. Ask what is open by the glass before committing to a bottle.
Parasties runs a Cretan-leaning wine list beside its open fire in Heraklion, with floor staff who match bottles to whatever the oven is cooking.
Signature pour: A Cretan red with the smoked steak
Wine focus: Mostly Cretan producers
Food: Live-fire Cretan menu
Order: A Cretan red poured to match the smoked steak
Tip: The floor staff will steer the list if you tell them what is coming off the fire.
Kouzeineri backs its charcoal steaks with a Greek wine list, which makes it the Heraklion address for red wine and grilled meat in one sitting.
Signature pour: A Greek red with a charcoal steak
Wine focus: Greek reds for charcoal cooking
Food: Steakhouse menu
Order: A Greek red chosen against the charcoal steak
Tip: The cellar leans on international labels as much as Greek ones, so ask the floor to match a bottle to the cut you order.
Xalavro pours Greek wine spritzers in a roofless old house on Milatou in Heraklion, with an open kitchen working beside the bar until very late.
Signature pour: A Greek wine spritzer in the courtyard
Wine focus: Greek wine spritzers and by-the-glass pours
Food: Open kitchen
Order: A Greek wine spritzer, drunk in the ruined courtyard
Tip: The bar sits in the shell of a 1900s house on Milatou, and the open kitchen runs alongside the drinks list.
Xalavro built a bar out of a ruined 1900s house on Milatou in Heraklion, and its courtyard is the most atmospheric drink in the whole old town.
Signature drink: Jungle Bird
Food: Open kitchen
Order: A Jungle Bird in the open courtyard
Tip: A seasonal, open-air room running roughly April to October, with an annual summer cocktail festival that brings in bartenders from abroad.
The Bitters Bar works a 1920s speakeasy brief on Idis in Heraklion, mixing from a deep bitters shelf and its own jars of homemade marmalade.
Signature drink: Yellow Prince
Food: Homemade marmalades with the drinks
Order: The Yellow Prince, made with house marmalade
Tip: Behind Lions Square on Idis, with jazz and blues on the speakers and homemade marmalades beside every glass.
Swing Thing sits near the Venetian Loggia in Heraklion, pulling espresso by day and building retro-leaning cocktails once the sun has dropped.
Signature drink: Cinnamon Treasure
Signature pour: Greek-yoghurt pina colada
Food: Coffee by day
Order: The Cinnamon Treasure, or the yoghurt pina colada
Tip: It works as an espresso bar in daylight and switches to cocktails after dark, with a takeaway drinks list too.
Beer O'Clock is the rock bistro on Parodos Minotavrou in Heraklion, stocking more than a hundred beer labels and grilling burgers to drink alongside them.
Signature drink: Cretan Charma lager
Food: Burgers and bistro plates
Order: A Cretan lager with one of the burgers
Tip: Over 100 beer labels are stocked, and happy hour runs in the late afternoon before the kitchen gets busy.
Dish Bar holds a corner of Agios Titos square in Heraklion, pairing Mediterranean plates with a cocktail list and its nineties dance nights.
Signature drink: Tom's Temptation
Food: Full Mediterranean menu
Order: Tom's Temptation, passionfruit, caramel and lime
Tip: The room is known for its nineties dance nights, so check the socials before planning an evening around one.
El Sur is the Latin-leaning resto bar on Arkoleon in Heraklion, mixing margaritas and mojitos beside a kitchen doing Mexican food and sushi.
Signature drink: Margarita
Food: Mexican and sushi
Order: A margarita, with tacos to keep it company
Tip: Arkoleon is a two-minute walk from Lions Square, and the kitchen runs as late as the bar does.
La Brasserie stacks a terrace, a bar, a gallery and a club into one Korai Street address in Heraklion, and runs from lunch until the early hours.
Signature drink: Cocktails on the terrace
Food: Restaurant menu until late
Order: A cocktail on La Terrasse before the club opens
Tip: Closed Sundays and Mondays. The club floor opens at 22:00, with Latin nights and karaoke through the week.
Toucan Skybar takes the fifth floor above Plateia Eleftherias in Heraklion, the highest cocktail terrace in the city and the best sunset seat.
Signature drink: Cocktails with a city view
Food: Small plates
Order: A cocktail on the terrace, facing the harbour
Tip: Fifth floor on Plateia Eleftherias, so it catches the light long after the street below has gone dark.
Stylvie Bar is a Heraklion dance floor off Tagmatarchou Tzoulaki, running music, cocktails and late nights in a small room that takes bookings.
Signature drink: Spirits by the bottle
Food: No kitchen
Order: A bottle to share, once the dance floor fills
Tip: Reservations are a must here, on +30 697 153 9300, because the room is small and fills on a good night.
The Whistler Espresso Bar works both shifts on Agiou Titou in Heraklion, specialty coffee through the day and cocktails with free nibbles at night.
Signature drink: Espresso martini
Food: Snacks with every drink
Order: An espresso martini, once the coffee shift ends
Tip: Free nibbles arrive with the drinks, which is a habit more Agiou Titou bars could copy.
Think Tank is the quietest drinking option in central Heraklion, a neoclassical espresso and wine bar that turns into a rooftop cocktail spot after dark.
Signature drink: Cretan Kotsifali by the glass
Food: Brunch and snacks
Order: A glass of Kotsifali on the terrace
Tip: Reserve the terrace in advance. It is the calmest drinking terrace in the old town and it fills fast.
Thraka Grill turns out gyros on Daskalogianni square in Heraklion until midnight, the local answer to where to eat well for about five euros.
Try: Gyros
Order: A pork gyros pita with everything on it
Tip: On Daskalogianni square, and it is the gyros stop the local food tours use rather than the seafront chains.
Krasas grills on Leoforos Ikarou in Heraklion until three in the morning, the default late gyros stop for anyone heading home from the east.
Try: Gyros and grills
Order: A gyros pita on the way home from Ikarou
Tip: Open until 03:00, and there is a second Krasas near the airport in Nea Alikarnassos.
Savoidakis sells kalitsounia right across Heraklion, and a warm bag of the Cretan cheese pies is the best two euros you can spend near the Agora.
Try: Kalitsounia
Order: Kalitsounia, eaten warm out of the paper bag
Tip: The Dikaiosinis branch is the handiest for the Agora, and the pies come out through the morning.
Krasas is the cheap grill on Leoforos Ikarou that keeps Heraklion fed after midnight, with pita gyros and skewers priced well under a tenner.
Try: Gyros and grills
Order: A pork gyros pita, with chips added in
Tip: Open until three in the morning, which is why the queue builds long after the tavernas close.
Thraka Grill is the cheapest proper meal on Daskalogianni square in Heraklion, Crete, with gyros wrapped to order and served through to midnight.
Try: Gyros
Order: A pork gyros pita with everything in it
Tip: On Daskalogianni square, and it is the gyros counter used by the local walking food tours rather than a seafront chain.
Chagiati is the Erotokritou mezedopoleio where Heraklion eats cheaply and well, with grilled sardines and dolmades shared over a carafe of raki.
Try: Cretan mezedes
Order: Grilled sardines and dolmades, shared across the table
Tip: Dinner only and closed Sundays. Order two or three mezedes each and the bill still stays under twenty euros.
626 All Day is the garden brunch address in Heraklion, Crete, open from nine in the morning for eggs, comfort plates and a first glass of wine.
Order: A brunch plate, eaten out in the city garden
Tip: Ask for the garden rather than the indoor lounge. It sits on the corner of Meramvelou and Idomeneos.
Granary pours Taf Roastery coffee alongside a Mediterranean brunch menu in central Heraklion, from early breakfast through to a very late lunch.
Order: Filter coffee and whatever is on the day plate
Tip: An espresso bar and eatery in one, so a slow brunch works here as easily as a coffee stop.
Frankly My Dear is the specialty coffee and brunch room on Karterou in Heraklion, doing freddo espresso, salmon toast with avocado and fresh juices.
Order: Salmon toast with avocado, and a freddo espresso alongside
Tip: On Karterou beside Agia Aikaterini square, five minutes uphill from the noise of the Agora.
Central Park serves the biggest Greek breakfast in central Heraklion, a shared spread of bread, croissants, village sausage, eggs and tomatoes.
Order: Central Breakfast for two, with village sausage
Tip: The two-person breakfast brings homemade bread, croissants, village sausage, eggs and tomatoes, and it comfortably feeds three people.
Think Tank serves brunch under the specialty coffee programme in central Heraklion, on a neoclassical terrace that fills up fast in high summer.
Order: The house espresso with a plate of pancakes
Tip: Book the terrace ahead. Brunch runs alongside the wine list, so a late one can drift into an afternoon glass.
Hacienda works a third-wave brunch in Heraklion of avocado toasts, pancakes and protein plates, served beside Agia Ekaterini square in the old town.
Order: Avocado toast and a long black
Tip: Several branches operate across Heraklion, so confirm which one you are meeting people at before you set off.
Krasas grills gyros and skewers on Leoforos Ikarou in Heraklion until three in the morning, which makes it the default stop on the way home.
Try: Gyros and grills
Order: A pita gyros on the way home from Ikarou
Tip: Open until three in the morning, and there is a second branch out towards the airport.
Xalavro keeps its open kitchen going with the bar on Milatou in Heraklion, Crete, so a late drink in the courtyard can still come with real food.
Try: Open kitchen plates
Order: A late plate from the open kitchen with a spritzer
Tip: In season the kitchen runs alongside the bar, which is rare in the old town once the tavernas have stopped serving.
La Brasserie runs a terrace, a bar and a club on Korai Street in Heraklion, with a kitchen still sending food out while the dance floor fills up.
Try: Restaurant menu until late
Order: A late plate on La Terrasse before the club starts
Tip: Closed Sundays and Mondays. The club floor opens at 22:00 and the kitchen keeps going alongside it.
Dish Bar keeps its Agios Titos square room going until four in the morning in Heraklion, with Mediterranean plates running alongside the cocktail list.
Try: Mediterranean plates and cocktails
Order: Beef carpaccio with truffle mayonnaise, late
Tip: The kitchen and the bar share one room on Agios Titos square, so a late plate is still possible after the tavernas close.
Stylvie Bar is the Heraklion, Crete dance floor off Tagmatarchou Tzoulaki, a late room for music and cocktails where booking ahead is expected.
La Brasserie keeps a club floor on Korai in Heraklion, opening at 22:00 with Latin nights, karaoke and a terrace to retreat to between sets.
Toucan Skybar takes the fifth floor above Plateia Eleftherias in Heraklion, Crete, the highest cocktail terrace in the city and its best sunset.
Herb's Garden is the Lato hotel roof in Heraklion, open from April to October with cocktails and a view straight over to the Koules fortress.
The Bitters Bar hides behind Lions Square in Heraklion, Crete, a 1920s-styled room with a deep bitters shelf and homemade marmalades on the bar.
La Brasserie is the gay-friendly bar and club on Korai in Heraklion, Crete, running salsa nights, karaoke and a late floor most of the week.
Krasas is the Ikarou grill house that doubles as a late-night stop in Heraklion, serving gyros and cold beer until three o'clock in the morning.