Meals were always an important event at traditional Latvian farmsteads, with entire families gathering around large tables to discuss the events of the day and to enjoy an unhurried meal of various porridges, legumes, vegetables and – on special occasions – meat and fish. Bread always held the place of honour, because it symbolised wealth. This can be seen in the following Latvian folk song:
Today, too, rye bread is a particular favourite in Latvia.
Selection of food has historically been closely related to the seasons and to the basic occupation of the family – agriculture, livestock breeding or fishing.
Annual traditions which have played an important role in festive meals have survived to this very day, and in a very pronounced way. At Christmas, the traditional meal includes grey peas, pork snout and meat pasties. At the Midsummer’s festival, you will always find a wheel of special cheese and lots of homemade beer.
Riga’s lovely cafés and restaurants turn the city into a gastronomic paradise of Northern Europe. The large number of cafés and restaurants in the city will satisfy every visitor’s tastes and desires.
Riga wakes up to a cup of coffee and some wonderful bacon-stuffed buns, pies, which have been baked overnight. There are also other pastries, including apple bread. No one will look at you strangely if you accompany these treats with a small glass of Black Balsam liqueur. It will help you to wake up or to feel better if you are suffering.
The people Riga most often arrange rendezvous at the Laima clock, and then they head off for Old Riga, where we find the largest number of cafés and restaurants, with cuisine from many of the world’s countries.
A businessman called Gunārs Ķirsons owns a series of restaurants under the “Lido” brand name. In the city centre and out along the river, his eateries are ones where employees wear stylised folk costumes and offer modern interpretations of traditional Latvian cuisine. Also very much respected are restaurants which offer buffets of Latvian food, allowing people to make their own selections. Most visitors taste a little bit of everything.
There are several restaurants at which the fish of the Baltic Sea come to the table smoked, baked or sautéed. Some feature lovely aquariums of live fish.
If you feel a bit dodgy about local foods, you can choose from amongst several dozen international restaurants in Riga.
Thought has been given to the kids. There are often play areas and rooms with child-friendly design.
Asian cuisine can be found in Riga – Korean, Japanese, and Thai, and Vietnamese, Chinese and Indian food. There are restaurants, which offer the warm tastes of the Mediterranean and of Morocco. Surely there are few cities in the world, which offer a tastier range of delicacies than Riga does. Particularly rich is the cuisine of the Caucasian Mountains, complete with the region’s famous wines.
Irish pubs in Old Riga are usually crowded with hockey and football fans, and Irish festivals and holidays are properly celebrated. The pubs are popular among young people, because their atmosphere is less than formal. There are, of course, Italian restaurants with – of course – Italian food. Pasta and pizza dominate, and real Italian ice cream is widely available.
Many restaurants have chefs who respect the tastes of vegetarians and are delighted to prepare dishes of ecologically pure and seasonal produce.
Many restaurants offer home delivery of sandwiches, pizzas or more exotic fare.
The interiors of restaurants and cafés will often reflect the architecture and design of Riga or the cuisine that is being presented, thus creating a nice and appropriate atmosphere. Guests can enjoy cocktails and fine wines at bars with shimmering glass or tropical design. Some restaurants offer a good view of crowded city streets, the towers of Old Riga or the flow of the Daugava River.
Information about restaurants in Riga:
www.lvra.lv
www.uzkartes.lv
www.kontakti.lv
notikumi.delfi.lv