- Raki and Wine. Tsikoudia or Raki is Crete's fiery traditional tipple, and is served neat in tiny glasses.Cretans rarely drink more than one sitting; nor should you.Wines include pine resin flavored Retsina(sold straight from the barrel or in 500ml bottles) and drinkable red and white wines from Crete and elsewhere in Greece.
- Giros stands or ''Souvlatzidiko''. The ubiquitous giros is Greece's own greasy and delicious fast food, silvers of veal, pressed into a vertical cylinder and cooked on a revolving grill, shaved off and served in flat pitta bread with onions, tomatoes, yoghurt and a dash of cayenne pepper.Giros stands are strategically located in most towns and larger villages.
- Beer.Local brands including Mythos and Fix( the first beer brewer in Greece, introduced by a Bavarian brewer in the 1840s) in 500ml bottles. Charma , Brink's, Lafkas, Lyra and Notos are the most well known Cretan Beers that you should taste.
- Traditional cafes.The old fashioned kafeneion is a hub of village and town life, where local people gather to play backgammon and talk politics.They usually serve only Greek coffee , frappe( iced coffee), ouzo and raki. Greek brandy, bottled beer and a limited range of soft drinks.
- Cafe-Bars. Neon-lit, gleaming new cafe-bars cater to holiday crowds in main resorts and to younger Greeks in towns such as Heraklion ,Rethymno and Chania.They serve coffee, expensive imported lagers, cocktails, soft drinks and a lot of them fast food, hamburgers or pasta.
- Fish restaurants. The psarotaverna (fish tavern) serves every imaginable kind of sea food, from tiny whitebait to whole sea bass shrimp, octopus, squid etc.Fish is officially classed category A (the most expensive) through E and is priced by weight.
- .The zacharoplasteion (patisserie) is evidence of the Greek love of all things sweet.You will find honey-soaked baclava and an array of pastries stuffed with raisins and nuts and powdered with sugar and cinnamon, cream-filled pies and chocolate gateaux.The zacharoplasteion also serves coffee and sometimes a range of liqueurs and spirits.
- Mezedopoleion and Rakadiko. These are the Greek equivalent of the Spanish tapas bar, serving ouzo or raki and a range of snacks(meze) to accompany your drink.In mezedopoleion you can order a complete meal of a dozen tiny dishes.
- Grill restaurants. Those are carnivore's delight and a vegetarians nightmare.The typical menu comprises chicken, lamb and pork, spit-grilled and served with chips and salad.
- Water and soft drinks. Greek tap water is perfectly to drink, but many visitors and Greeks themselves prefer the taste of a bottled mineral water.Virtually every resort shop has a fridge stuffed with mineral water, cola, lemonade and other soft drinks.
