Our Story
A love story, three decades in the making.
It all began in 1986, when two young students — Kastriot and Teuta — met at the Industrial High School of Durrës. In an era when Albania was still under communist rule, their love blossomed quietly over four years of shared dreams and stolen glances. By 1990, when they graduated, a long-distance relationship was unthinkable. So, at just twenty years old, Teuta made the brave choice to marry Kastriot and move to his hometown of Krujë, where they began their life together under one roof with his parents.
After the fall of Enver Hoxha's dictatorship, their first daughter Daniela was born. Kastriot worked at a historic restaurant in the Old Bazaar, while also crafting traditional llokum at home — a small enterprise born out of love and necessity to help the family through Albania's turbulent transition years.
In 1997, amid civil unrest, Kastriot and Teuta made the difficult decision to seek a safer life for their young family in Italy. A year later, their son Ermal was born. For nearly two decades, both parents worked in Italian kitchens, where they fell deeply in love with the art of Italian cuisine — while Daniela and Ermal excelled in school and sport.
The family later moved to Germany, where they embraced the German work ethic and added it to the treasure of experience they had gathered over thirty years abroad.
In 2024, Kastriot and Teuta returned to their roots. They transformed their family property near the Bazaar into Villa Castriota — a place where Albanian warmth meets European professionalism. Today, Daniela and Ermal support their parents from afar, managing the hotel's online presence, while Kastriot and Teuta welcome guests in person with the same love that started their journey decades ago.
To see how this story continues, come visit us in Krujë — at our beautiful Villa Castriota.
