September 1, 2018 – Thefoodiefetish

Stockpot is a cozy little establishment offering affordable, quick, and healthy meals. The restaurant is owned by a British man and his Latvian wife. This is a great place for a cheap meal that is not fast food. The seating is mostly communal. Inside, there are two big communal tables and two small tables by the window, along with two tables outside (6 per table). It was awkward for me, in the beginning, to eat in the presence of strangers. However, seeing that everyone was comfortable with it, the awkwardness did not linger for long.

The menu changes daily, serving mostly Asian / Eastern dishes. There is a detailed menu on their website, which is really helpful to decide if you want to have the food offered for that day. They also have lactose-free, vegetarian, and vegan dishes. There are two portions available – full or half. For me, the half portion with a bowl of soup was sufficient.

The restaurant gets very busy during lunchtime, so either go early or after the lunch rush.

I had dinner at Stockpot for two consecutive days. Both times I went, I really enjoyed the food. It tasted like home-cooked food. Both meals cost me less than € 5, which was really cheap, considering that this was not a fast-food restaurant.

Stockpot

Website: http://www.stockpot.lv/en/

Address:Ģertrūdes iela 6, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1010, Latvia

Opening hours: Monday – Friday (11:00 a.m. – 20:30 p.m.)

Telephone: +371 27 832 165

Cesu Maize is a small bakery located next to the St. John’s church in the Cesis old town selling handmade traditional bread. The bread is baked from Latvian organic whole grain wheat and spelt wheat whole grain flour. Made with natural leaven (sourdough), without the addition of bread yeast (turisms.cesis.lv, 2018).

It is a tiny bakery tucked inside a building. There is a big sign outside the main entrance, you can’t miss it. When I entered the bakery, the smell of freshly baked bread had enveloped the whole place. The owner/ baker was friendly; he spoke some English. There is a poster on the wall at the entrance with information on the different bread available. There are also bread samples. The price is based on weight. I bought the spelt wholegrain wheat sweet bread with nuts, raisins, and dried apricots for €2.40. It had a dark hard crust, and the inside was dense and semi-soft.

When I had my first bite, I did not think much of the bread. Then, I started to taste the fragrant flavors of the bread on my third bite, and I was like, “Wow, this bread is delicious”! After that, I could not stop eating it. It was mildly sour, sweet with a nutty flavor.

I highly recommend this bakery if you are traveling to Cesis. It is one of the best bread I have tasted, and I am certain you will not be disappointed.