Recommendations
Previous guests at our villa have suggested that we have a page dedicated to our recommended places to eat, drink and visit. These recommendations are from ourselves and people who have stayed at the view or have visited Rhodes in the past and have been delighted with the service or the places visited. You will have to make up your own minds.
Table of Contents
- Where can we get a cooked breakfast?
- Where can I find a reliable and reasonably priced hire car company?
- Where is a good place to eat in the evening?
- Where do we shop for provisions i.e. food?
- What amenities are close to the villa?
- Where can we buy holiday gifts for friends and families?
- Where can I get Internet access?
- Want somewhere smaller
Where can we get a cooked breakfast?
Arguably the best breakfast on Rhodes is served at Jack's in Haraki; it is a 10 minute car journey from the Villa but worth the trip. You can have a full English breakfast of various sizes and included in the price, which is reasonable, is orange juice, toast and unlimited tea and coffee. You can have your breakfast in the sun on the promenade in the old fishing village or in the cafe's enclosed area. There is always a smile and good service at Jack's and they do something that a lot of places don't and that is give you English sausages and English bread.
In Lardos there is a small cafe ran by an English couple just off the main square which serves a decent breakfast but a lot cheaper than some other places unfortunately tea/coffee etc is extra.
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Where can I find a good car hire company?
We recommend M&S Car Rentals in Haraki and use them ourselves all the time. They are cheaper than the big firms and are extremely reliable being a small family concern run by Mary and her husband Paul who both speak perfect English.. The cost of an Astra Sport is €30 a day, a Fiat Punto automatic €40 per day and a 7/8 Seater people carrier €50a day but that includes fully comprehensive insurance and unlimited mileage. There is no charge for any additional drive which is extremely unusual. The bonus of using this firm is that if you book a car from the duration of your holiday they will pick you up from and return you to the Airport at the end of your stay. When they pick you up they take you directly to the villa to off load your cases and then the driver is taken to their offices in Haraki to fill in the paperwork. This means that after your flight to the island you don't have to worry about finding your way to the villa or driving on strange roads and you can enjoy the beautiful views en route from the airport on your first day. Paul apparently does a commentary concerning the towns and sights en route. Do not forget your driving licence as without it you cannot hire a car anywhere. Our recommendation is an honest one and we do not get any commission if you use M&S cars; they don't even give us a discount unfortunately. Mary & Paul can be contacted on 0030 2244 051701 or 0030 2244 051495
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Where is a good place to eat and have a drink in the evening?
Lardos is full of bars and restaurants but the one we and some of our guests keep returning to is Valentina's restaurant on the square. The food is very good both in quality and price and we can heartedly recommend the Lamb Shank and Kleftika, both are mouth-watering. Every one who has been there is full of praise for the service and food. You just have to have at least one meal there. If you would like a drink before your meal or come to it afterwards then try Yamas and Julie's Cafe Bar. We went to Julie's Cafe bar with some friends who had been there a couple of evenings later and they were given the 1/2 carafe of local wine they couldn't drink the last time...now that is what I call service!
Haraki is a small ex-fishing village with the promenade now full of small bars, cafes and restaurants but is still well worth a visit as it still maintains its quaint Greek village character. The Specials in the small Hotel, the Haraki Sun Hotel, at the end of the promenade represents excellent value for money. Afterwards you can enjoy a drink in one of the many bars on the waterside including the ever popular Cocktails & Dreams where there is always a warm welcome. The Italian Restaurant on the main road on the Square is extremely popular with the locals and tourists alike but we haven't eaten there yet so a personal recommendation is a little difficult to make.
Pefkos also a small fishing village many years ago is now a bustling resort in the height of the summer but there are still good family restaurants which provide good value for money. The Hellas Restaurant received the following comments from one guest "It's right on the main road directly opposite the Emproki Cash machine, right in the fork in the road, suppose that's a good place for a restaurant, eh? fork in the road!!!" ..."they looked after us well that night, the meal was excellent although a wee bit pricey, but you have to pay for quality! We did get a complimentary sweet/coffee, or liqueur," Flyers Tavern at the side of the beach in Pefkos serves excellent “brunch” at a very reasonable price and good quality. The Greek House on the road to the Beach and very close to it, is a small family run restaurant/cafe also has been recommended. The Tsambika Restaurant above The Bakery in Pefkos is said to provide excellent food, at a reasonable price and you eat whilst enjoying a beautiful view. It claims to have the best food and the best view of Pefkos. Other places in Pefkos which have had guests' recommendations for an evening drink are Enigma, Nostalgia and Coliseum which is said to have an excellent atmosphere. On the main road through Pefkos Zorba's is also said to have a good atmosphere for an evening out.
Lindos is full of lively bars and eating places or varying quality and prices to match. Many of the restaurants have roof top areas with views of the Acropolis which would put romance into any relationship whether it was needed or not. The waiters will entice you into all of the eateries as you walk past but we would strongly recommend that you look at the menu prices before going in as some people have complained at being ripped off in some restaurants.
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Where do we shop for provisions i.e. food?
The nearest decent sized Supermarket is probably no more than 7/8 minutes by car from the villa. Head in the direction of Lindos, go through Lindos (you are half way there at this point) on the main road and continue on the main road heading towards Kalathos. Just before Kalathos and immediately after the left hand turning for Lardos the Supermarket is on the left. Here you can buy 500cl of Mythos bottled beer for 68c and the shop has a good range of local Greek food/ingredients and UK food and drink of all descriptions. If you run out of necessities then the mini-markets at Lindos Top or Pefkos will usually have what you want and are just 3 minutes or so by car from the villa. Larger Supermarkets can be found on the road to Rhodes Town just after Afandou and the largest of all A&B Supermarket is on the outskirts of Rhodes Town itself on the left as you travel into the new commercial 'out of town' area of Rhodes Town and conveniently for some is next to LIDL where drinks are particularly cheap.
There are excellent butchers in both Lardos and Kalathos where the meat is very good and very cheap compared with the UK. Try their special sausages which are excellent. Apparently the meat is fresh on Tuesday morning and there is therefore a wider selection then than on Saturday and Monday. You will not regret buying meat in these establishments because it really tastes as meat should taste. The villa has a Greek style brick BBQ ideal for cooking the fresh meat so you can BBQ by the pool at the villa and enjoy your meal on the patio.
The town of Archangelos about a 20 minute drive from the villa in the direction of Rhodes Town is a typical Greek village with small coffee shops and bars and is relatively untouched by tourism and therefore tourists. We travel to Archangelos to buy fresh fruit and vegetables in the little shop by the tiny church on the main street, to enjoy the many flavours of ice cream in Mikes again on the main road and a coffee with the locals in the small cafes everywhere in Archangelos.
The following comment was received concerning a chemist in Pefkos. "We found a fantastic Chemist in Pefkos that saved our bacon and supplied baby formulas when we ran out. The chap was most helpful and spoke great English. Location: The road leading to the beach has a T junction at the top, turn left and the Chemist is about 200m on the left" This is obviously worth knowing should you need a chemist for some reason!
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What amenities are close to the villa?
The villa has everything, we hope, to make your stay enjoyable and has its own pool. If you fancy swimming and sunbathing in a much larger pool with food and drink close at hand, we suggest you try the small hotel complex at the top of the road. The owners are the brother and sister in laws of Moira who looks after the villa for us in the summer and winter. If you fancy a cooked breakfast but don't want to drive then they do serve a very reasonable cooked breakfast. They have a very small shop on site but it is more expensive than the local shops of Lindos, Pefkos and Lardos and obviously the supermarkets but that is only to be expected. You can phone home or for a taxi in the foyer of the reception area and have a drink while you are waiting for the taxi to arrive. Lindos, famous for its Acropolis, narrow streets, shops and nightlife, and Pefkos are very close by, a mere €3/4 by taxi or 3 minutes by car and both have a number of restaurants and bars. Lardos is 10 minutes away and is a town which probably has more local Greek people than tourists.
There are pharmacies in both Lindos and Lardos while in Lardos you will also find a dentist, butchers, fresh fish shop and a hairdresser.
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Where can we buy holiday gifts for friends and family?
Really the answer to this question is, it depends what you want. Lindos has lots of shops selling the usual touristy things that people take home e.g. tee-shirts, caps, fake designer clothes, perfumes, ceramics etc and the same goes for Rhodes Old Town both of which you will have to visit at least once on your holiday. The first visits will educate you to which is best and the cheapest. Rhodes New Town has a number of designer shops and other similar outlets; it even has a tiny Marks & Spencers and if the children are missing McDonalds there is one there as well. The Greek McDonalds is better than what you have learned to expect here. For those of you with some additional money to spend there is of course the famous Rhodos Gold on the left hand side just before you get to Rhodes Town. Rhodos Gold is worth a visit anyway even if you don't want to spend a lot of money as the displays are fantastic and it has a small museum.
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Where can I get internet access?
There are three places close to the villa where you can get internet access and these are Fuges Bar/Snackbar in Pefkos, Lindianet, an internet cafe close to the small church in the centre of Lindos town and Cocktails & Dreams, a bar in Haraki.
Want somewhere smaller
We met Alwyn Griffith at M&S cars one day and discovered he rented out an apartment close to the fishing village of Haraki. It is a comfortable single bedroom apartment on the road to Haraki. So if you are looking for a small apartment rather than a villa we suggest you have a look at his site
