Food & Drink in Bulgaria

Gourmets have long since appreciated the merits of Bulgarian cuisine with the verdict that it is tasty, spicy and varied and appeals to everyone. Indeed, who would not like the abundance of fresh vegetables and fruits, juicy meat, grilled or served with piquant sauces, mouth-watering vegetarian dishes, simmered slowly on low heat, the banitsa (cheese pie) which simply melts in your mouth.

The Bulgarian "culinary" geography abounds in delicious specialties and exotic dishes: Bansko-style kapama (meat and vegetables stewed in an earthenware dish), Rhodope cheverme (lamb roasted on a spit over an open fire), Thracian katmi (a special type of pancake) and Dobroudjanska banitsa, Danube fish soup and Sozopol-style mussels.

The typical Bulgarian folk style restaurants will tempt you with Shopska salad and chilled grape brandy, stuffed vine leaves or peppers, kavarma the Miller's Way, monastery style hotchpotch, moussaka and kebab. Thinly sliced loukanka (flat dry sausage) from Smyadovo, pastarma, feta and yellow cheese are temptingly arranged on plates.

Coffee is often served with sweet jam, pancakes with honey and walnuts or baklava.