Riga is underrated as a food destination, but it is worth exploring and ready to be found.
More than a hundred direct flights bring you here, as well as trains and buses from nearby countries.
Michelin's claim that its three-star restaurants are worth making a separate trip is decades old. During this time, Michelin has not yet reached Riga with its Restaurant Guide, but there are nevertheless restaurants here that are worth making the trip.
Max Cekot Kitchen has established itself fashionably in former factory premises. Herbs important to frequently changing dishes are grown in the restaurant's own urban garden. The new pioneer of Latvian fine dining started small, with only five dining tables in a restaurant, but quickly grew to double the number of tables. All dishes are prepared on site. The restaurant offers a fixed tasting menu three days a week, from Thursday to Saturday.
The current giant of the Latvian hospitality world is, of course, Raimonds Tomsons - the reigning sommelier world champion. Previously, he worked with Martins Ritinš in the Vincents restaurant, now he is associated with the Barents restaurant. Therefore, Barents is known for a very good drink menu and is the best food and drink matcher in Latvia. The chef of the restaurant, Dzintars Kristovskis, is one of the best experts of local ingredients in Latvia. The restaurant staff thoroughly introduces the story of each dish. For those who consider the prices of a noble restaurant too expensive, there is a bar next to the restaurant. The bar's dishes are simpler than those of the restaurant, but they are prepared by the restaurant's chefs in the same kitchen and at the same time as the dishes prepared for the restaurant.
These three restaurants are leaders in Riga among providers of less festive everyday food. 3 Pavaru Restorans, or Three Chefs Restaurant, is a well-known introducer of Latvian cuisine to the rest of the world. If there is an event in your country where Latvia is presented through food, the chefs of that restaurant will most likely make the food. However, any food is best prepared in a home kitchen. For those interested in Latvian food, the Three Chefs Restaurant in Riga is a must-visit every time.
The Catch: There is also a restaurant with the same name in Berlin. This is not a coincidence, the restaurant opened in Riga four years ago turned out to be so successful that a year later a similar one was opened in Berlin. The Catch is a Japanese Izakaya where most of the food is based on self imported seafood and the cocktail list rivals the better bars in Riga.
Snatch is the second restaurant of The Catch family in Riga. Also, offering very good flavors at an affordable price, the restaurant represents traditional Italian cuisine, the dishes of which have been modernised using newest cooking techniques.
Those who want to compare the best burgers and pizzas in Riga with the best in their hometown must admit that Riga's competitiveness is world-class. BOO The Burger has developed the minced meat blend for its burgers by itself, and they also value the meat with wet aging. The result is a burger that isn't ashamed to serve champagne, and that's exactly what they do.
Two Latvian pizzerias can attest to being among the top 50 pizzerias in Europe. PEPPO's Pizzeria is on the list this year, Street Pizza was last year.
A hotel room in Riga is worth taking with breakfast, they are of a good standard and often local cuisine delicacies are also available. However, if you want to have a breakfast that you will remember for a long time, Kukotava offers it. Cafe is known among the locals as a place where to order cake for home party table. But also the bakery products here are some of the best in the city, and you can find different salads for every taste.
Mikla Bakery offers a Nordic breakfast experience with very good coffee, self-baked sourdough bread and mouth-watering cardamom pastries.
