Revealing mistake: When Hook is down in the pit, trying to escape the undead Maleficent, after he says, "Maleficent. Love you in earth tones", there is a wide shot of Hook and Maleficent where you can see the face of Colin O'Donoghue's stunt double. The stunt double's face can also be seen in the shot where Hook stands up after climbing on top of the rock. (00:22:20)
Continuity mistake: When Regina is standing in front of Rumpelstiltskin's mirror at the end of the episode, as he asks, "What are you gonna do now, then?", the cloth that was used to cover the mirror is lying on the floor. When he transforms her back to her normal form, it is gone. (00:38:45)
Answer: He knows who she is because he knows that the fairy tales are true. He was also shown to sneak out to go see Emma or someone else. Sometimes he succeeded, sometimes he didn't. This is how he knew to look for her despite his strict mother.