{"id":109,"date":"2026-07-09T08:06:53","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T08:06:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost:10113\/?page_id=109"},"modified":"2026-07-09T08:30:40","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T08:30:40","slug":"about-us","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/flexible-charcoal-sparrow.5-9-254-201.cpanel.site\/el\/about-us\/","title":{"rendered":"About Us"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\"Rakidio\n
<\/div>\n
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\nHome<\/a>\n\/<\/span>\nAbout<\/span>\n<\/div>\n

\nA family courtyard,
\nopened to guests.<\/em>\n<\/h1>\n

\nThree generations of Papadakis have kept the same table, the same still, the same welcome. This is the story of how a private courtyard became a place travellers now call home.\n<\/p>\n

\n
3<\/span>Generations<\/small><\/div>\n
1960s<\/span>First Mitato<\/small><\/div>\n
50<\/span>Acres Today<\/small><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Scroll<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n
\n
\n
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\n\"The\nEst. 1960s \u00b7 Sellia<\/span>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/span> Our Story<\/div>\n

It started with a single still
and a handful of olive trees.<\/h2>\n

\nIn the village of Sellia, twenty minutes above Plakias, the Papadakis family has lived on the same mountain for three generations. What began as a private courtyard \u2014 a copper kazani for raki, a few olive trees, a stone mitato for cheese \u2014 was never meant to be shared.\n<\/p>\n

\nBut the table was always too full, the raki always too good, and the door always open to whoever came up the mountain. Slowly, neighbours became guests, and guests became family.\n<\/p>\n

\nToday, Rakidio is that courtyard, restored and opened \u2014 still private in spirit, still family-run, still exactly what it always was.\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

\n
\n
\n
<\/span> Three Generations<\/div>\n

The hands that built it,
the hands that keep it.<\/em><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
\n
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\n1960s<\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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The Grandparents<\/h3>\n

Manolis's grandfather built the first mitato from stones gathered in the fields. His grandmother shaped the tyrozouli recipe we still use \u2014 the same one, unchanged, every morning.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n1990s<\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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The Parents<\/h3>\n

Manolis's father kept the kazani burning through every autumn, and planted the olive groves that now shade the long table. His mother tended the gardens and taught the children that nothing good happens in a hurry.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\nToday<\/span>\n<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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The Family Now<\/h3>\n

Manolis and his family have restored the stone buildings, opened the courtyard to travellers, and kept every ritual exactly as it was. The raki is the same raki. The cheese is the same cheese. The welcome is the same welcome.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

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\n
<\/span> What We Believe<\/div>\n

Four quiet promises
to every guest.<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n\n\n\n<\/svg>\n

Nothing Staged<\/h3>\n

What you see is what we live. The raki, the cheese, the bread \u2014 all of it is what our family eats every day.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n\n\n\n<\/svg>\n

Nothing Rushed<\/h3>\n

Good things take time. Our cheese ages for weeks, our raki distils for hours, our meals last for afternoons.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n\n\n\n<\/svg>\n

Nothing Imported<\/h3>\n

Everything on the table comes from within sight of where you're sitting \u2014 our groves, our gardens, our neighbours.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n\n\n\n\n<\/svg>\n

Nothing Forced<\/h3>\n

You're not a customer here. You're a guest. Come when you like, stay as long as you like, leave when you're ready.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

\n
\n
\n\"Manolis\n
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\n\"<\/span>\n

We don't perform tradition.
We just didn't stop doing it.<\/p>\n\nManolis Papadakis\nFounder \u00b7 Rakidio<\/span>\n<\/cite>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

\n
\n
\n
<\/span> The Estate Today<\/div>\n

Fifty acres of
slow Cretan life.<\/em><\/h2>\n

Stone courtyards, copper light, olive terraces, and a long table that's never quite empty \u2014 a quiet preview of what's waiting up the mountain.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n\"The\nThe Kazani at Dawn<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
\n\"Farm\nThe Farm Animals<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
\n\"Stone\nStone Courtyard<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
\n\"The\nThe Folklore Museum<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
\n\"The\nThe Long Table<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
\n\"Local\nLocal Products<\/span>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n
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\n
<\/span> Visit Us<\/div>\n

The table is set.
Come up the mountain.<\/em><\/h2>\n

\nRakidio sits 20 minutes above Plakias, in the village of Sellia. Visits are small, hosted, and best booked a few days ahead \u2014 especially during harvest season.\n<\/p>\n

\nReserve Your Visit<\/a>\nAsk a Question<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n