3 fantastic restaurants in Riga

Writer: Helena Bergström

Today we're going to tell you about three really good restaurants in Riga. The restaurants in Latvia's capital really surprised us, and we had some fantastic dining experiences. You don't visit these restaurants just to fill your stomach, but to enjoy an experience that's out of the ordinary.

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Good restaurants in Riga

There is a wide and fantastic selection of excellent restaurants in Riga. We dined at several establishments that offered innovative and exciting dishes, often using local ingredients in new and creative ways. Here are three restaurants you will not want to miss during your visit!

1. Kalku Varti Restaurant

Restaurant Kalku Varti is located in the Old Town of Riga and offers a stylish yet warm environment. The head chef is relatively young, but has already made a name for himself. He appears on a Latvian TV show and the restaurant has cooked for many famous guests, such as 26 presidents during a NATO meeting and the Swedish royal family.

We were served five absolutely fantastic dishes and were truly in food heaven during our visit. The chef himself came out and talked about each dish, making the experience even greater. This is what we ate:

• Appetiser: Cheese and ostrich biscuits with pickled pumpkin and soya beans
• Entree: Cauliflower sorzotto (like risotto but with grains) with raclette cheese and black trumpet mushrooms
• EntreeSorbet with wild berries
• Main course: Fillet of venison with beetroot pastry, parsnip crisp and porter sauce
• Dessert: A fantastic creation with different types of pastries, ice cream and crème.

2. Elements Restaurant

Restaurant Elements is located in the Tallink Hotel in Riga. Chef Svetlana Riškova serves creative European food made from Latvian ingredients. We ate a 5-course menu and must say that all the dishes tasted fantastic, which is perhaps not surprising given that Svetlana is both a judge in cookery competitions and has served many famous guests, such as the President of Latvia.

Before we started the meal, we had a small "cooking class" where Svetlana showed how some of the dishes on the menu were prepared. Very interesting, even if we only got to watch... This is what we ate:

• Appetiser: Sliced venison fillet with celery puree and baked apples, pickled onions, crumbled capers and bread rolls.
• Entree: Creamy cauliflower soup with char fillet, dill emulsion, broccoli fondant and turnips
• Main course: Suckling pig cutlet with sweet potato mash, pea and grain salad, themed marinated plum and cookie crumbs
• Entree: Beetroot and rosemary sorbet with warm blackcurrant foam
• Dessert: Hazelnut bar with apple cake, pine syrup, rowanberry marmalade and acorn ice cream

3. Kolonade Restaurant

Restaurant Kolonade is centrally located, very close to the Opera and the Freedom Monument, in a small house with columns. When you walk in, it feels a bit like entering an outdoor pavilion, but at the same time it's cosy and comfortable. Chef Māris Jansons is behind the exciting menu of modern Latvian cuisine. This is what we ate:

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• appetisers: Small blueberry yoghurt
• AppetiserCreamy tomato soup with mozzarella cheese
• EntreeFruit sorbet with granola
• Main course: Pressed pork belly with red cabbage purée, pickled onions and thyme sauce
• DessertCrème brulée with cranberries

More to see and do in Latvia

There is, of course, more to see and do in Riga and Latvia. You can check out Sights of Riga, shop at food market in Riga or perhaps test the spa. Click on the image below for even more tips.

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