Minoan Experiences

With Minoan Tastes, you’ll get a hands-on taste of authentic Crete from renowned scholars in Minoan food and culture. We make each experience as rich as possible, bringing in historians, potters, chefs, and archeologists for Ph.D-level expertise combined with organic farm-to-table cooking and an outdoor meal overflowing with food and wine. We welcome you to our table.

We offer four standard experiences, but are happy to craft a custom itinerary or event for you or your group.

Minoan Tastes Cooking Class & Meal

In our most popular culinary experience, you’ll learn how to cook in Minoan-style ceramic pots over an open hearth fire. We’ll prepare (and then greatly enjoy!) a three course meal paired with a local wine and Cretan tea. We’ll begin with a tasting of local artisan cheeses and olives, and then we’ll prepare two dishes in ceramic pots. While the dishes simmer, you’ll learn to make homemade pita and bake it over the fire until soft and toasty, perfect for dipping into plates of local olive oil. We’ll serve a seasonal wild green salad with the meal and a light dessert to close.

The meal takes place in the shade of a private garden, handcrafted mobiles swirling above and beach rock covering the ground below—a given, since we’re just steps away from the sea. Bring your suit and a towel, and take a dip if you like. You’re welcome to rinse off in our outdoor shower.

Menu: The menus vary according to the season, but here are the types of menus you might see.

• Lentils simmered with crushed coriander, sweetened with honey, & topped with sea salt & fresh olive oil

• Chicken simmered with grape leaves & figs

• Just-caught fish selected from local fisherman, grilled, baked, or poached with fresh herbs  

• Braised honeyed pork with leeks & cracked wheat

• White wine–poached octopus with onions, garlic & fresh herbs

Meal: 3-course meal, including 2 dishes in Minoan-style pots, seasonal wild green salad, fresh-baked pita bread, cheese, olives, olive oil, light dessert, and wine and tea

Time: 3-4 hours, for lunch or dinner

Location: Ierapetra. Participants will receive directions and a map upon booking.

Cost:
€125/person for 1-2 guests
€100/person for 3-5 guests
€75/person for 6+ guests

Minoan Tastes Light

For those looking for a little shorter experience, we offer a one-course meal with homemade pita making. The class takes place at the same beautiful location as the flagship class. (Bring your suits for the nearby beach!) You’ll learn to cook in Minoan-style ceramic pots over live fire, preparing a single Minoan dish and learning to make pita bread from scratch, all served with a glug of spicy olive oil, a seasonal salad, and plenty of local wine and Cretan tea.

Menu: The dishes we cook vary according to the season, but here are examples you might prepare.

• Lentils simmered with crushed coriander, sweetened with honey, & topped with sea salt & fresh olive oil

• Chicken simmered with grape leaves & figs

• Just-caught fish selected from local fisherman, grilled, baked, or poached with fresh herbs 

• Braised honeyed pork with leeks & cracked wheat

• White wine–poached octopus with onions, garlic & fresh herbs

Meal: One dish prepared in a Minoan-style pot, seasonal salad, fresh-baked pita bread, olive oil, and wine and tea

Location: Ierapetra. Participants will receive directions and a map upon booking.

Time: 2 hours, for lunch or dinner

Cost: €65/person

Market Shopping, Walking Tour of Ierapetra, Cooking Class & Meal in the Minoan-style pots with Wine Pairing

Ierapetra is one of the sunniest places in Europe and one of the loveliest places to explore. We will take a short walking tour under the blue skies of Kato Mera, Ierapetra’s old town, to better understand life on the south coast of Crete. This portion of the Mediterranean is known as the Libyan Sea, and it has a vibrant and distinct culture from the rest of Crete. We’ll visit “the lonely mosque,” the Venetian fort, the Roman harbor, and Napoleon’s home before he sailed to North Africa.  

After the walking tour, we’ll visit one of our favorite street markets and grocers to shop for our meal. Once we’ve collected our ingredients, we’ll head to the garden to prepare your meal. As with all Minoan Tastes experiences, our meal takes place just steps from the sea. Feel free to bring your suit, a towel, and enjoy a dip. You can rinse off in the outdoor shower in our garden.

For the meal, we’ll have a tasting of cheeses and olives that we picked up at the market from local producers, prepare a 3-course Minoan meal over hearth fire, and make pita bread from scratch, all served with seasonal salad, light dessert, and local wines and Cretan tea. 

Meal: Late lunch/early dinner, and snacks and refreshments

Time: 5-6 hours, with an ideal start time of 9:00-9:30 am because of market hours

Location: Ierapetra. Participants will receive directions and a map upon booking.

Cost for 1-3 guests: €225/person with wine pairing
€200/person with house wine & Cretan tea

Cost for 4 or more guests: €195/person with wine pairing
€175/person with house wine or Cretan tea