Riga Restaurants

My wife and I went there recently on a trip to Riga. The restaurant looked nice and quiet. We were ushered to a table and had to wait ages for someone to, rather sullenly, take our order. After an HOUR!! - we still had not been served. No explanation was given, no excuse or reason for the snail's pace so we just left. As we left no-one seemed to be at all bothered.

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This place is awesome: you have the most spectacular view over Riga, because the Skyline Bar is on the 26th floor of the Hotel Latvija. The Skyline Bar has different faces: if you go there in the afternoon, it is more like a panorama café, but in the evening it is a nightclub sort of place (please see my nightlife tip). The seats next to the windows are of course the most wanted ones and we were lucky to get the last available table, when we got there at 3.15 p.m. (The place opens at 3 p.m.!!!). Service is very friendly and the cocktails are delicious!

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When visiting a country, we always try to taste the local specialities - and boy, did we enjoy that in Latvia as well:

the most unusual speciality was birch juice! We had heard about it in German TV and had asked our wonderful tour guide, if she could help us find some. Since the freshly made birch juice is only available in spring, we had to get it in a bottled version! Interesting taste!

Other specialities in Latvia are cabbage soup, sorrel soup, peas with bacon, definitely the dark rye bread, good beer and many more. Do have a look at the very interesting link below!

Oh, and you better like caraway seeds - it seemed to me that about every bread we tasted had some in it!!! (Luckily I love it!!!)

Having read rave reviews about this local Armenian/Georgian restaurant, I went with a friend to check it out. The Good: Ambience is low key and a bit funky. The head chef (and owner?) greets you and takes your order, (charming and eccentric). The food...all very good.

The Bad: Overpriced to be sure. Service was very poor..downright bad. However, they add a 10% service charge to your total. BE AWARE...You pay for EVERYTHING...if they ask you what kind of sauce you want, etc..do not assume it's gratis (free). You will be charged a bit of a steep price for these little condiments. And lastly..read your bill carefully. We had a few mistakes on ours. (I'm giving them the benifit of a doubt here).

Favorite Dish: The Lamb Shashlik.

A nice quiet place with good, simple, moderately priced, food.

Like all of the steak places I have eaten at in the Baltics the beef was very good tasting but tough by American standards, but the pork and chicken was excellent and all of it was perfectly grilled to our specefications.

Favorite Dish: I would probably choose the pork dishes over the beef.

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These small chocolate "boutiques" are out of this world!

There are three of them in Riga (and a couple more throughout Latvia):

right next to the Hotel Latvija (Elizabetes 55)
in the old city center (Tirgoņu iela 8)
at Bergs Bazaars (K. Barona iela 7/9-16)

Although this is a chain, you feel so very comfortable there. The interior is so cozy with dark wood panelling, dried cocoa fruits as decoration and the most wonderful pralinés you could possibly dream of.

And then their hot chocolate - nothing that you have ever tasted before! It is not the type of hot chocolate that you mix with two spoons full of cocoa powder and milk - no, it is pure dark chocolate melted and served in a small cup.

While I am writing this, my mouth starts watering again..... We went to two of their cafés and both were absolutely wonderful.

Be sure not to miss this when you are in Riga!

This Irish pub is located in a street of old Riga which is full of pubs and restaurants. Beside the usual pub food, you will find a hand full of more traditional irish and latvian dishes. But as usual for a pub, it focuses on beer. There’s a choice of 27 different beers, local ones and Irish (although no more than a dozen are really available at the same time). During daytime, this place is not as crwoded as the restaurants, but still the place is OK to get some food. At nighttime, it becomes part of Riga’s active nightlife with a lively pub atmosphere.

Favorite Dish: I had the shepherd’s pie together with some beer. Perhaps it wasn’t perfect, but it was surely good and tasty.

The Lidon chain fo restaurants offers a bfuffet of local food for a fair price. You can choice between different, fresh-prepared meals, pick some from this a little of that and try some of the basic latvian cuisine. The food and the atmosphere is rustical, the interior of the reaturant is kept in dark colours with wood being the dominating material. You'll surely get not haute cuisine here nor dishes which require hours to prepare. Just food you would probably expect at someone's home.

The branch in old Riga is one of the best known restaurants in town. It has a large seat capacity, but seems to be full always. As it is also popular with tourists and recommended by many hostels and hotels, most of the staff members speak english.

Favorite Dish: I had pork with cabbage and carrots, raspberry juice and a mug of beer.