Agreco Farm - An organic farm on the Greek Island of Crete for visits, meals and weddings. 13 mns.

This farm is centuries old but has become a tourist destination especially for those who want a fabulous place to have an event or a memorable wedding. The old buildings have been meticulously restored with just enough modernization to make them comfortable yet all the while keeping the ambiance of centuries of Crete life. It is open for those individuals who want to see and experience and have lunch but does not seem to be really set up for that anymore. Groups seem to be more catered to. All the fun and interesting things to do really need to be organized according to their programs in advance.
We had heard of this farm from friends and looking at the website just had to go there. It looked like we could play with the animals as they ran around, wander through the vineyards and olive groves, visit the winery and the attached Raki distillery (made from the crushed grape skins, seed and stalks after harvest), see the old olive oil mill and hopefully pet the donkey that used to turn the giant stone crushing wheels. Then have a great Crete Greek lunch on the covered patio as we quaffed their own wine, eat a meal sourced from their own fields, all the while entranced by the view out over the vineyards and see all the way to the Mediterranean. Then finish with a great little cup of Greek coffee before our trip back to, in our case, our cruise ship.
Much of this we were able to do. We were their in the spring of 2024 and the sun was hot but the breeze was chilly. Much like California used to be. In fact like California, they now have avocado thriving on the island and as they say, they often use it crushed like butter but never make Guacamole. They seem to take pride in that although I cannot for the life of me figure out why. Guacamole is a gift from the Gods but perhaps Zeus like to keep if for himself. And indeed, we enjoyed a meal in the shaded patio all sourced from the farm. Only with its popularity and a business model shift away from just a simple family organic farm to a larger organization, much of its production is done on a more modern, yet still organic, patchwork of other properties with more modern production methods. Does not change the experience as a visitor.
I wish we could report that the food was fabulous. Some of it like the bread, the olive oil, the really pleasant wine (rose in our case), the olives and the baked eggplant with Feta and tomatoes were tasty. Sadly, the lamb chop was waaaaaay over cooked, tough and mostly tasteless while the ribs were covered mostly with grizzle and fat. The home fries were good. The rice stuffed eggplant was OK if you like that but the Greek salad way course and unappetizing. We are not experienced in rustic Greek food so perhaps that is what it is supposed to be so we are exercising personal preferences here - not at all objective. We finished up with traditional Greek coffee which like Turkish coffee is boiled with the coffee grounds and really should be drunk, so I am told, with loads of sugar. Being diabetic these days (damn it) I don't get to have sugar which spoiled my enjoyment of the coffee. I should have brought some Xylitol with me. Next time. So the meal was less than we expected but eaten in a lovely environment with a view to die for.
The little farm store, “Kafenion”, was just across the open courtyard right next to the romantic little pale pink chapel right out of a story book and perfect for weddings. And that is primarily what the farm is used for these days - events like weddings with several places for wedding parties, mainly held from 6.00 PM (18:00 hours) on with farm tours, entertainment, music, singing and dance with wine flowing and fun as the sun slowly sets over the vineyards and the see in the not so far distance. A magical place for such events. Just not so great for a lunch visit.
As mentioned above, we expected to at least be able to pet a goat, donkey or sheep, but they were all penned up behind chain link fencing and the other animals seemed to be too. No farm yard chickens pecking their way around at all. So to our mind, while their website projects a lovely experience, don't expect that everything shown or how it is shown will actually be available to you. I could not find the bread bakery at all for example yet we had their bread for lunch which was indeed lovely basted in the olive oil.
They talk about beehives, threshing floors, wood burning ovens, a water mill and so on, but even after a lovely walk around the property, none of those were in evidence. I think much depends on what time of year you visit like Fall/Autumn is grape picking time, not sure when olive harvest is, bees would be in early spring and on.
So a marvelous location for evening and night events that will be memorable. Just check out the food first.
For reservations / information:
Tel: [phone],
Fax: [phone],
Mobile: [phone],
e-mail: [e-mail]
Site: www.agreco.gr

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