Thank you so much for such a positive and delicious representation of Latvian food! I am glad you are open to try different dishes that foreigners are usually a bit scared of.
In my experience, the best garlic bread I tried was in Folk Ala in Riga. Lido obviously is great, and cheap, but it is so so basic, I would suggest people try different places :) In Latvia, we call it just Cold Soup - aukstā zupa, not borsch, if every soup with that red vegetable we start calling a "borsch", we are in trouble :)
Dear Mark, Thank you very much for such nice and correct review of Latvian foods! You almost nailed all of it! 😄 As a native from Riga really enjoyed your video.
Mark, i ordered pigs ears in a traditional Latvian restaurant. I thought they would be presented sliced/fried/in a sauce or something but NO! My big white plate arrived with two whole freshly prepared pigs ears. The term when in Rome do as the romans do came to mind. I tucked into them thanks to the dutch courage provided by two glasses of the local alus! You mentioned Kvass. That is my favourite non-alcoholic refreshment. Much better tasting than the root beer I’ve come across. I am off to Latvia next week and aim to try the soup and cheese you mentioned. As for black balsam it is great in hot chocolate. On its own all Id say is it grows on you. Good video!
If you wander a little bit outside the Old Town, the best karbonādes can be found at Lienes iela 10 - a place literally called Karbonādes. Follow up with some great local bear, there are several wonderful spots on Avotu iela!
Oh, yeah! As a Latvian, I must say I love cheese a lot. One particular is Jāņu siers. It is soft cheese with grainy texture. It is available in markets around summer solstice.
Gosh, took me back 12 years when I was last there ... good to see the Central Market and fantastic food at Lido - I always went for the sausages and sauerkraut but plovs is good as well! Nice one - subscribe to all the recommendations for tasting! 😀
Those are good observations. As a native, I have actually never tried many of the items you are presenting. I suggest foreigners try desserts with kissel, as, in my observation, they really like it. Kissel is a sour Eastern European gel that goes well with sweet cake. Kvass was a popular summer drink in the Soviet Union. We could not get any other soft drink. There was no Coke, only Pepsi, and only in very few places, so we had to go to Tallinn to buy it as it was a model town where everything was available. It was also open to foreign tourists. I think most people switched to Coke when the Iron Curtain fell. I can drink Kvass, which one can buy in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and China, but it still has sugars in it. If I take my sugar, I would drink Coke.
speaking of tallinn that vana tallinn drink is one of the best alcoholic drinks that i and my girlfriend have tried, its also available in shops in rīga. in rīga there is rīga black balsam in tallinn there is vana tallinn but both are available in each of the countries
With kvass I like Valmiermuiža which is really kinda more smokey and thick and Tērvetes Godu for a cheaper option. They do not have as much sugar so not that sweet, rich taste and also I like the do not have acidity as Ilguciems / Ilgezeem products have. Dzeltenā muca / Yellow barrel or Porteris from Ilguciems are good but as I said I do not like the acidity they add with citrus juice/acid? But people like different kinds of kvass. I would say to avoid Ulmaņlaiku as it sometimes costs the same as Tērvetes Godu, but tastes very weak. And avoid ''kvass drink'' which are very cheap but not really brewed and it is kind of a soft drink with kvass flavoring, it is not the real thing
Pelmeņi is chinese. At least I have been told that. If your traveling Latgale of the country, try the Liepkalni bakery, their bread and garlic bread is heavenly.
One of the best ways to enjoy Black balsam - just add a teaspoon of it into cup of black coffee. Also black currant balsam is fine. Since 1700's recipe has slightly changed. Original one contained some 40 different herbs and spices. By the way Queen of England each year received a box of Black balsam which I suppose she had for the night-cup . Don't be frightened by the taste if you ever have tasted Yagermeister too :) Thanks for nice video !
However I must say that the soup options are limited in lido and other restaurants may be better for that. In addition it's in a coffee cup, so the soup portion in lido is very small. And only two available and those two get circled around it seems. They rarely offer other soups apart from the 3 or 4 that they constantly offer depending on the day
And remember always, we love our southern brothers and sisters Lithuanians and northern neighbors Estonians we have a lot in-common in history. My granny was Estonian. We ought much to Estonians. We also have warm feelings towards Swedes, but we don't trust the Muscovites (The Russians).
If we talk about Latvian drinks, then the first place should not be Riga Black Balsam, but local wine. Latvia has one of the northernmost open-air vineyards in the world. In addition to grape wine, they make excellent wine from apples, various wild berries, and even dandelion wine!
Maybe not as much distinctive dishes, but we have a lot of Slavic inspired food and food from Soviet era (like shashlik, pelmeni dumplings) or sauerkraut from Germans etc., with our own spin on it sometimes. Also we have great black/brown bread. Not a fan of ''brown'' bread as much, I like if it is really black looking... as we have the really dark/black rye bread (I think molasses give it the dark color) and sourdough bread with cumin which is more brown...
Dairy heaven too. just like Mark said - don't come to Latvia if you're lactose intolerant 😅 and it's true, Latvians put sour cream on almost everything.
Why afraid? Latvian food is amazing! Yes, Latvians like to eat heavy foods (perhaps to keep themselves warm during the winter 🤔), but it's tasty nonetheless.
Instead of kvass better try Veselības dzēriens or Bezalkoholiskais Porteris (both these malt drinks are produced by Bauskas alus) or even Latviešu Kola (Latvian Cola; produced by Ilgezeem)
In Latvia is not called Borsch , it's simply Cold soup. And pelmeņi definitely need to add a little drop of vinegar. Shnitzel in Latvia is always made of minced meat , similar to meatballs . Karbonāde for Latvians is a plain piece of pork served in many different ways .
I wonder if it's the crap that's in u.s foods that lead to lactose. I heard other countries outside of the u.s don't have that crap in it.I just read a story of a lady who said her and her husband went to Italy and ate what they wanted and had no side effects. When they came back home to the U.S. BAM, they couldn't eat those foods.
What you call cold borscht is not just any borscht. It's a cold beetroot soup. And NOTHING else I allow you to call it! No need for banal tourist slack. NOTA BENE!
Yep, I agree. Also would be good to mention - borscht and Latvian beetroot soup (hot one) are two completely different things. :) E.g. I didn't like borscht up until I was in my 20s, on the other hand beetroot one was one of my childhood favorites. ;)
That rat's tail on the back of your head was putting me off. Why do bald men try to hold on to the little bit of hair they have left . Embrace and accept you bald
The LIDO on the krastas iela next to the highway is the big one. Pipars was the best budget friendly option for local food.The central market is the best one to try the sreet food and also Imanta has the best Street food too.
The only thing that looked like Russian food was pelmeni, but again, those kind of dumplings are in all kinds of cultures around the world not just in Latvian or Russian.
"Don't be lactose intolerant when you come here to Latvia" - so hilarious and so true!
Thank you so much for such a positive and delicious representation of Latvian food! I am glad you are open to try different dishes that foreigners are usually a bit scared of.
In my experience, the best garlic bread I tried was in Folk Ala in Riga. Lido obviously is great, and cheap, but it is so so basic, I would suggest people try different places :)
In Latvia, we call it just Cold Soup - aukstā zupa, not borsch, if every soup with that red vegetable we start calling a "borsch", we are in trouble :)
Dear Mark, Thank you very much for such nice and correct review of Latvian foods! You almost nailed all of it! 😄 As a native from Riga really enjoyed your video.
Thank You, sir, for showing my country in such a nice way.
Oh, the garlic bread! Mmmm.
🤤
Super healthy and super delicious snack 😍
Mark, i ordered pigs ears in a traditional Latvian restaurant. I thought they would be presented sliced/fried/in a sauce or something but NO! My big white plate arrived with two whole freshly prepared pigs ears. The term when in Rome do as the romans do came to mind. I tucked into them thanks to the dutch courage provided by two glasses of the local alus! You mentioned Kvass. That is my favourite non-alcoholic refreshment. Much better tasting than the root beer I’ve come across. I am off to Latvia next week and aim to try the soup and cheese you mentioned. As for black balsam it is great in hot chocolate. On its own all Id say is it grows on you. Good video!
If you wander a little bit outside the Old Town, the best karbonādes can be found at Lienes iela 10 - a place literally called Karbonādes. Follow up with some great local bear, there are several wonderful spots on Avotu iela!
Lovely reviews, Mark! I think Latvian cuisine is criminally underappreciated.
Thanks Mark In Latvia Riga for 2 days and find your videos so useful
4:11 First time hearing a non-latvian speaker pronouncing an "ie" diphthong properly. Great job!
Love other people perspectives of my country or its food.
Glad i discovered your content!
One dish missing from the video was salt pickles 😊 We love salt vegetables.
Oh, yeah! As a Latvian, I must say I love cheese a lot. One particular is Jāņu siers. It is soft cheese with grainy texture. It is available in markets around summer solstice.
Fufels ne siers, isto nevar nopirkt
I agree as a latvian i love jāņu siers
You absolutely nailed it!
Latvians put sour cream on sun burns as well
tried it, it helps. AND you get to smell like sour cream for a while.
Don't forget about Dill. Latvians love their greens as well!
Latvian-Lithuanian cold soup has become very popular, I have already seen it in Poland.
Gosh, took me back 12 years when I was last there ... good to see the Central Market and fantastic food at Lido - I always went for the sausages and sauerkraut but plovs is good as well! Nice one - subscribe to all the recommendations for tasting! 😀
Those are good observations. As a native, I have actually never tried many of the items you are presenting. I suggest foreigners try desserts with kissel, as, in my observation, they really like it. Kissel is a sour Eastern European gel that goes well with sweet cake. Kvass was a popular summer drink in the Soviet Union. We could not get any other soft drink. There was no Coke, only Pepsi, and only in very few places, so we had to go to Tallinn to buy it as it was a model town where everything was available. It was also open to foreign tourists. I think most people switched to Coke when the Iron Curtain fell. I can drink Kvass, which one can buy in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and China, but it still has sugars in it. If I take my sugar, I would drink Coke.
speaking of tallinn that vana tallinn drink is one of the best alcoholic drinks that i and my girlfriend have tried, its also available in shops in rīga. in rīga there is rīga black balsam in tallinn there is vana tallinn but both are available in each of the countries
@@dreamthedream8929 Vana Tallinn is one level up from Black balsam
@@travelvideos actually they are too different type of alcohol. Vana Tallin is a liquor, while Riga Black Balsam is a kind of strong apperitive.
With kvass I like Valmiermuiža which is really kinda more smokey and thick and Tērvetes Godu for a cheaper option. They do not have as much sugar so not that sweet, rich taste and also I like the do not have acidity as Ilguciems / Ilgezeem products have. Dzeltenā muca / Yellow barrel or Porteris from Ilguciems are good but as I said I do not like the acidity they add with citrus juice/acid? But people like different kinds of kvass. I would say to avoid Ulmaņlaiku as it sometimes costs the same as Tērvetes Godu, but tastes very weak. And avoid ''kvass drink'' which are very cheap but not really brewed and it is kind of a soft drink with kvass flavoring, it is not the real thing
I like to make garlic bread myself, put some cheese salad on top and sprat . It's really good when you're drinking
I don't know have you ever experienced Latvian midsummer or Līgo! But you must do that! I'm even willing to be a host for you... stay cool!
Everything looks sooo delicious..thank you for the video
most of these meals taste even better than they look like.
Mark.
As a Latvian i will remember you, visit Latgale sometime.
i am latvian we have good food
Pelmeņi is chinese. At least I have been told that. If your traveling Latgale of the country, try the Liepkalni bakery, their bread and garlic bread is heavenly.
Liepkalni is not from Latgale but it is on the way to Latgale so a lot of people stop at the bakery next to the main road to Latgale, so yeah :))
Great video👍
One of the best ways to enjoy Black balsam - just add a teaspoon of it into cup of black coffee. Also black currant balsam is fine. Since 1700's recipe has slightly changed. Original one contained some 40 different herbs and spices. By the way Queen of England each year received a box of Black balsam which I suppose she had for the night-cup . Don't be frightened by the taste if you ever have tasted Yagermeister too :) Thanks for nice video !
Stores are always fun in another country. I enjoyed this video. 😊❤
Traditional Riga Balzam - add a bit to your coffe, my grandmother did and my mother is doing. It helps when you got flu.
it is a remedy when I have a cold!
one more tip - try a shot of the Riga Black Balsam on your vanille ice cream portion ... you will be pretty surprised
Super!
Lido is great choice to sample all the Latvian foods I grew up with my Mom made!!
The menu is really big there from all sorts of drinks deserts salads and plenty of other food
However I must say that the soup options are limited in lido and other restaurants may be better for that. In addition it's in a coffee cup, so the soup portion in lido is very small. And only two available and those two get circled around it seems. They rarely offer other soups apart from the 3 or 4 that they constantly offer depending on the day
Try sauerkraut soup. Best with boiled and then pealed ( when cold) potatoes.
And of course, you can add sour cream in it as well.
And remember always, we love our southern brothers and sisters Lithuanians and northern neighbors Estonians we have a lot in-common in history. My granny was Estonian. We ought much to Estonians. We also have warm feelings towards Swedes, but we don't trust the Muscovites (The Russians).
If we talk about Latvian drinks, then the first place should not be Riga Black Balsam, but local wine. Latvia has one of the northernmost open-air vineyards in the world. In addition to grape wine, they make excellent wine from apples, various wild berries, and even dandelion wine!
Put that deep inside you and taste Latvia! ❤
The Latvian Latvian bread is sweet and sour breed '"saldskābmaize'' i love it @_@
That is just one of them (in my opinion the best).
But good black rye bread can also be very aromatic and full of after flavors.
ou. you did that. good.
I wish you would try homade cheese i miss it so much
Maybe not as much distinctive dishes, but we have a lot of Slavic inspired food and food from Soviet era (like shashlik, pelmeni dumplings) or sauerkraut from Germans etc., with our own spin on it sometimes. Also we have great black/brown bread. Not a fan of ''brown'' bread as much, I like if it is really black looking... as we have the really dark/black rye bread (I think molasses give it the dark color) and sourdough bread with cumin which is more brown...
Carb heaven.
and lots of vegetables
Dairy heaven too. just like Mark said - don't come to Latvia if you're lactose intolerant 😅 and it's true, Latvians put sour cream on almost everything.
this wall 😘
i hate you mark. you make me hungry every episodes...kidding. love you pointing out all those local foods I would be too afraid to try otherwise. :-)
Why afraid? Latvian food is amazing! Yes, Latvians like to eat heavy foods (perhaps to keep themselves warm during the winter 🤔), but it's tasty nonetheless.
Rigas Balzams can go in a coffee. The best way to have it is to pour a shot glass of it over a bowl of ice cream. You're welcome.
The cream in the borscht is what makes it pink
It's not cream, it's kefir (like a sour yoghurt).
The beet might play a small role in that too😂
Instead of kvass better try Veselības dzēriens or Bezalkoholiskais Porteris (both these malt drinks are produced by Bauskas alus) or even Latviešu Kola (Latvian Cola; produced by Ilgezeem)
Pelēkie zirņi are not black peas - they are grey! The best Lido is the one on way from the airport, not in the centre - better choice & quality.
You should try the rye bread yoghurt!
And could you do a video with Ukrainian food?
i like pelmeni dumplings.
Its not borch but cold soup . Don't confuse !
In Latvia is not called Borsch , it's simply Cold soup. And pelmeņi definitely need to add a little drop of vinegar. Shnitzel in Latvia is always made of minced meat , similar to meatballs . Karbonāde for Latvians is a plain piece of pork served in many different ways .
Vinegar? Nope, but definitely another Latvian staple horseradish!
I wonder if it's the crap that's in u.s foods that lead to lactose. I heard other countries outside of the u.s don't have that crap in it.I just read a story of a lady who said her and her husband went to Italy and ate what they wanted and had no side effects. When they came back home to the U.S. BAM, they couldn't eat those foods.
Crap, crap crap
What you call cold borscht is not just any borscht. It's a cold beetroot soup. And NOTHING else I allow you to call it! No need for banal tourist slack. NOTA BENE!
Yep, I agree.
Also would be good to mention - borscht and Latvian beetroot soup (hot one) are two completely different things. :) E.g. I didn't like borscht up until I was in my 20s, on the other hand beetroot one was one of my childhood favorites. ;)
"Don't be lactose intolerant when you come here to Latvia" If only I had that choice 😒
its not borsh
Lido is latvian food temu
That rat's tail on the back of your head was putting me off.
Why do bald men try to hold on to the little bit of hair they have left . Embrace and accept you bald
Thats absolutely not a popular cheese in Latvia, not even a known one to be honest, i would say the most popular one probably is Talsu Ritulis
Its not Latvia its Latvija and ur in rīga
These are not latvian foods, we daont have any true latvian food
To be fair, no one puts sour cream in cold beetroot soup
The LIDO on the krastas iela next to the highway is the big one. Pipars was the best budget friendly option for local food.The central market is the best one to try the sreet food and also Imanta has the best Street food too.
Is there anyone there
Looks like Russian food
but it is not. Latvian food is closer to old style German cuisine.
Some of it is, some is more Slavic... All kinds of influences from the region
Yo sound so Swedish
The only thing that looked like Russian food was pelmeni, but again, those kind of dumplings are in all kinds of cultures around the world not just in Latvian or Russian.
i am 667...got your back