When you go to a foreign country, you usually want to try something traditional food. Bulgaria has a great local cuisine and here you will definitely have a rich variety of such choices. Being the homeland of the yogurt, many of the dishes are related to it and to the white cheese as well.
Starting from the breakfast, the most famous Bulgarian one is called banitza, which is a pastry with white cheese. With it, you can also choose between two typical local drinks. The first one called ayran, is something like a salty yogurt and it is very refreshing in the summer season. The other one, called boza, is a lightly fermented sweet drink made usually from wheat.
For lunch and dinner, the options of course become much more. If you want a soup, I have two main suggestions for you, depending on the season. During the hotter days, you can try tarator- it is similar to the drink ayran, but it also includes cucumbers. In the winter you can opt for a chicken soup- yes, it is not something only Bulgarian- but almost everywhere here it is cooked very deliciously. There is also a third option of a popular local soup, but you should try it on your own risk. It is called shkembe chorba (tripe soup), which means that it is made from tripe and with some savory spices. It is considered to be very helpful after a heavy drinking night.
The traditional Bulgarian salad is called shopska salad- it is made mostly with tomatoes, cucumbers and white cheese (yes, here we like a lot our white cheese). It is also a good side for different main dishes. Speaking of main dishes, here you will be able to find different types of barbecues. The most famous local ones made from pork are the so called meatballs- kufte and kebapche. In almost every restaurant here is offered something like a homemade bread (in Bulgarian we call it parlenka)- which also goes well with the main dish.
In the mountain regions, near the rivers, it is definitely a good choice to try the trout fish which is very fresh and tasty. Also another meal, which is a little bit more typical for the mountain areas and more suitable for colder weather, are the pots- usually they are made with meat, cheese (again), some vegetables and eggs.
Of course, you cannot have a main dish without a good drink. If you like beer, there are a lot of good Bulgarian beers that you can try- you can ask directly at the restaurant for a suggestion. And in the winter season, you should definitely try some of the local red wines- the tradition of wine production on the Bulgarian lands has been established since ancient times and nowadays we have among the best red wines in the worlds. My personal favorite is Mavrud.
Finally, we have come to the desserts. Here you can also choose between several popular options. Yogurt with fruits will be a good choice in the summer season and during the winter days you can try baklava, which is probably more of a Turkish thing, but also often consumed in Bulgaria. And if you like cakes, in many of the restaurants here you will also be able to find different types of the so called home style cakes.
You can check our culinary experiences here: http://bit.ly/bG21FoOD
City Tour Sofia - since 2002, Stara planina 6, Sofia, Bulgaria
