Why do so many great new restaurants fail? The answer is simple. Everyone wants to be assured a good meal, and there are few things more annoying than paying a lot of money for food you could have cooked yourself. So you usually stick to your old haunts. When it comes to trying new places, most of us are true conservatives. So herewith are our picks for some sweet new digs that have opened up recently in Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn. (There are some old ones as well). Some of these places have good food. Some just have a good sense of humor. But we think they're all worth your time.
Eesti Maja
In quite a few cities around the world, you can find Eesti Maja (Estonian House), a great restaurant with authentic Estonian cuisine.
Luckily for me, expatriate Viido Polikarpus decided to establish one in Tallinn, just across the street from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Where else would I take my foreign friends if I wanted to introduce them to Estonian food?
From the outside, the restaurant looks like nothing more than a small stairwell with a little canopy bearing the title, Eesti Maja. Upon entering you find a to your right a pub and to the left an adequate and comfortable dining area. The walls are decorated with paintings, patriotic wartime photos and the warmth of traditional greenery. A sense of romance and low-key energy rises from the candles burning on the tables.
The music is peaceful and relaxing. Polikarpus has given his heart to this place. Sometimes he takes a guitar out to entertain guests with live music.
I tell my friends to order Saku Originaal, a fine Estonian lager, or the traditional non-alcoholic drink Kali. Since it is a cold winter day, I decide on the Mulgi kapsad, a folksy sauerkraut stew with pork. My companion orders the Mulgi puder pekikastmega (southern regional potato porridge with bacon sauce), also an authentic dish. Carrot shavings, tomatoes, oranges, and parsley made for a beautiful picture on the plate. Unfortunately, the combination of bread, entrees, and drink left no room for what looked to be delicious desserts.
Eesti Maja is a good place to meet friends. It's quiet and light enough to chat. Unlike most city pubs, the air is good and clean. The service is faster than most restaurants and the prices are reasonable. The cozy environment and the homey dishes also make it a comfortable place for a modest birthday party. (K.K.)
Eesti Maja
Lauteri 1
Bestsellers Restaurant
As someone who loves reading but has no talent for learning languages, my great nightmare is to be banished to a library filled with great books written in impenetrable and obscure foreign languages. I'm thinking of a giant library of Tolstoy, Proust and Faulkner, translated only into Cherokee and Farsi.
So you really have to wonder about the genius who came up with the Bestsellers Restaurant, the high-end dig at the new Alberts Hotel. An entire wall is set aside for books that lone diners are welcome to read while waiting for their meal (which takes no short time to prepare). Besides the odd English mystery, most of all the "good" books were in Russian and Latvian.
That's fair enough, considering the country where we all live, but this is a five-star hotel that caters to wealthy foreigners and well-off businessmen (the restaurant offers a five-euro business lunch on weekdays). It's like they're punishing you for not learning the local language. Maybe it's all just part of the new-age irony that gives this place its character. The hotel's front desk has novelty clocks that advertise "Unreal Time," and "Lost Time." There's a quotation from Albert Einstein on the wall: "Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute and it feels like an hour. Sit next to a pretty girl for an hour and it feels like a minute. That's relativity!"
Be that as it may, Bestsellers was a relaxing treat with its subdued reds and oranges, faded light and the softest, most comfortable couch I had sat on in months. They were playing world music and my blonde waitress was friendly and very pretty.
It's a world fusion restaurant. For an appetizer I ordered tiger shrimp tempura with tartar served on a white napkin, every piece of which I managed to eat, including, though I'm not sure I was supposed to, the deep-fried parsley.
I had steak for the main course, mounted on a potato gratin and placed, quite artistically, next to a nice splotch of red wine sauce. It sounds better than it actually was, but it was still a good sweet meal. It all cost about 15 lats (22 euros)
Not bad at all, really. It reminded me of Tribeca, that wonderful neighborhood in lower Manhattan filled with fusion food and over-indulged coolness. (P.M.)
Bestsellers Restaurant
Albert Hotel
33 Dzirnavu St.
Riga
Red Fred
I couldn't help thinking that Red Fred was some sort of sleazy and horribly cheesy strip club after seeing the embarrassingly bad advertisement currently running at Forums Cinema. This is hardly surprising given that the spot shows the naked butt of a woman being hoisted over a burly fireman's shoulder. But happily it turns out that Red Fred is nothing of the sort. It's just another stylish new restaurant that happens to be themed around firemen and everything those manliest of men symbolize.
Red Fred is certainly a good-looking place. The sleek interior is spacious and atmospheric and has inevitably attracted a young trendy crowd. The place presents itself as a beer restaurant due to its unusually varied choice of beers but the choice is only impressive by Riga's poor standards. The 20 or so beers on offer are all well-known brands that would be on tap in most other European cities.
The food is basically superior kafejnica grub but for three times the cost. There's a good choice of meat dishes which are cooked on a charcoal grill behind the bar but it doesn't come cheap. Many of the best dishes, including the sizeable steaks, run at around 8 's 9 lats (about 12 euros) which is a hefty sum by any standards.
But it's the sort of food which tastes good with a good glass of beer and some manly conversation to go with whatever sport is being shown on the gigantic TV screens.
Red Fred will certainly be a huge hit with locals and tourists alike. It's just that sort of place. But frankly I found it all a bit ridiculous. As soon as you walk in there's a fountain made out of a fireman's helmet. And then there are the dangling lights that have been made out of fire hoses. And then there are the waitresses wearing their sexy fireman's accessories. And there's loads of other fireman paraphernalia hanging on the walls. It certainly didn't light my fire. But even if it did, the last people I would want to come and rescue me are the Latvian fire service given their recent track record. (T.O.)
Red Fred
62 Dzirnavu St.
Riga
Neringa
In Soviet times people had to wait for weeks to get a table in a restaurant where they could see waiters buzz by with plates full of delicious food. But now that McDonald's can be called a restaurant, I wonder if Vilnius still has anything truly unique. Upon a recommendation from a local, I decided to spend an evening at Neringa, located on Gedimino Avenue, one of the city's most important arteries.
Walking through the glass door is like walking through a time warp. Well, Neringa has been open since 1959. A cloakroom attendant reached out to take my coat.
The manager tells me there are no seats available in the non-smoking section, leading me to think, "I don't want to smell like smoked ham." But the ventilation system is good enough so that I don't have to be too bothered by the customers smoking at the next table.
Just when I have some time to enjoy the white embroidered tablecloth (a waitress chang es it after the clients at the other table leave), the menu lands in front of me. I choose smoked salmon rolls stuffed with tuna and served with an interesting but delicious combination of kiwi and tomato. The famous Neringa cutlet has more butter than any other I've had and the mascarpone cheese dessert with raspberry sauce to go with my caffe latte is refreshing apart from the sprinkles of what looks to be instant cappuccino on top.
Had I noticed the wine price was designed per 100 ml, I could have saved 6 litas (1.7 euros). When the waitress smiled as I ordered white wine, I thought she was telling me I looked young, but she probably thought I needed a whole glass. The Neringa time machine, together with its excellent food, cost me 54 litas 's not bad for an enjoyable night on the town. (J.K.)
Neringa
Gedimino Avenue 23
Vilnius
Cafe Zebra
Don't be surprised if you haven't heard of this hot, new dining venue. When it opened in January, Cafe Zebra quickly became the destination for true gourmands, but among the Tallinn masses it's still relatively unknown. The reason is simple: the restaurant's facade is blocked by scaffolding, making it almost impossible to spot from the street.
That said, Cafe Zebra, or rather "Elite Cafe Zebra" as one waitress told me I should call it, is definitely one to seek out. Following what seems to be a growing local trend towards "casual gourmet," the restaurant offers original choices like grilled quail with honey apple, duck breast with sweet beetroot, pastas and whole fresh fish, all in a polished, warm atmosphere.
Cafe Zebra deliberately straddles the line between cafe and restaurant, meaning diners can either settle in with a menu and order a la carte, or just head straight for the back counters to try out the little sushi bar, salad bar, ice-cream bar or the freshly baked pastries and desserts. Specials of the day, like soups or the 195-kroon sea bass, are written on chalkboard signs, in keeping with the overall casual feel of the place.
I decided to go for the full treatment, so I sat down and waited for the waitress. Or rather, the waitress waited for me. In this town where restaurant managers love to cut corners on staffing, it was refreshing to find service that was so attentive. In fact, I noticed that there was a whole group of staff, standing like a little commando unit in their kitchen whites, hovering in back, ready to cook and serve on command.
The fish dish I ordered turned out to be excellent, and the dessert the waitress recommended, chocolate-raspberry cheesecake, might be the beginning of a dangerous habit.
There is the problem of the price. With most mains in the 130 's 200 kroons (8.3-12.7 euros) range, it's going to be more expensive than your average workday lunch. But if your wallet is fat enough, you'll be able to appreciate the huge difference that comes with paying a bit more. (S.R.)
Cafe Zebra
Narva mnt. 7
Tallinn
Pas Rudolfa II
The Czechs have a long tradition of savory comfort food, and at Pan Rudolfa II you'll feel right at home, especially if your home is a medieval castle.
Suits of armor, torch-shaped lamps, and shields painted with fantasy art make the interior interesting, but not overbearing. There's nothing dusty about the place, and it does seem a little cheeky. You can get up and give the armor, helmets, and swords (brought from the Czech Republic) a good close look if you like.
Inspired by the warrior motif, I decided to try the "pork tongues and hearts brown 's Tlacenka" at nine litas (2.6 euros). Other temptations were the "blue mold," "mashed salmon," or "drowned." Tlacenka turned out to be slices of various delicious meat bits gelled together and sprinkled with raw onions. I was almost to the end when I discovered a small pitcher of vinegar to pour over it. Much of the dish consisted of ordinary cold bacon, not tongues and hearts, but the combination of onion, vinegar and meat gave quite a bite.
Next was the guliasova polevka, at seven litas. It was the thickest, most filling beef soup I've ever tried. It had a nice mild tang that I hadn't tasted in any other dish in town.
I had the duck (26 litas), which was slightly over crisp but delicious nonetheless, with that wonderful dark richness that just makes you grateful that it isn't chicken.
For women who want to rationalize that they're eating light while still keeping up with their dates, there's the "large ladies roast chicken." The salmon fillet under green pepper sauce looked promising, as well.
If you're accustomed to eating bread with your meal, you'll find the Czech dumplings fill the need with a slightly different texture and taste than you're used to. The flour for these delicious slices of lightly springy steamed bread is supplied from the Czech Republic. It seems all Czech restaurants in the world get their flour from back home when it comes to making dumplings.
I ran out of time before I had a chance to try the "pear in wine sauce." I hope to next time. And maybe some more of those dumplings, too. (T.H.)
Pas Rudolfa II
Gedimino 46
Vilnius
Joujaam
If you've ever wondered whether Estonians have a sense of humor, a visit here will provide some clues. The name of Old Town's newest eatery translates as "Power Station: High Tension Bar and Restaurant," and on its menu you'll find "switching station specials" (light meals from 40 's 70 kroons or 2.8-4.5 euro), "hydro power" (soups) and the "full force Manhattan Project" (mains ranging 95 's 145 kroons).
As Tallinn's first and only electrically-themed restaurant/bar, Joujaam carries its off-beat motif even further with rows of insulated lines hanging above the windows and framed photos of generators.
Beyond that, the interior falls in line with the standard Old Town bar set-up 's whitewash, fireplace and hanging TV.
Unexpectedly, there seems to be a touch of Americana running through the menu. It offers "the best burger in Estonia" as one of its choices. You can also opt for "stuffed chicken the way Ben Franklin liked it" (with rice and French fries, evidently), pasta with meatballs, pepper steak and the like.
I decided to go for the fish and chips, which somehow managed to come out of the kitchen as corn chips covered in melted cheese. Except for this little mix-up, the service was fine. The fish and chips were delightfully heavy, and had I had a hangover, they would have been the perfect cure.
Don't expect anything too fancy here. It's a place aiming for pub quality and pub prices …at least for the moment. A chat with the friendly proprietor revealed that Joujaam is something of a work in progress, with possible changes to the menu in the offing. He also explained that the unusual name comes from the Power Station gym, which the same company owns. Now it begins to make sense.
With this level of creative energy (forgive the pun) going into the place, it'll be interesting to see how it shapes up. I have to admit though that I see something sinister about his plan to offer customers a free day pass to the health club for every four beers they buy. Maybe Estonians have a sense of humor, but it's an evil one. (S.R.)
Joujaam
Vaike-Karja 8
Tallinn
