Bratislava, Slovakia

We sadly had to leave Poland, but don't worry.  Bigger and better things are coming!!  We packed up and headed out to Bratislava, Slovakia.  After Bratislava, we are going to Lake Bled, Slovenia and then Locarno, Switzerland before heading on to Bulgaria for August.  But, more on those stops later.

Like many of the places that we have visited, I didn't know what to expect from Bratislava.  I was really surprised.  The people there are as friendly as can be.  The city is very manageable and it is really cheap.

The first night we were there, we headed down to eat on the Danube.  They have really built up the river area, so there is a new mall and tons of different restaurants.  Lynn chose a sushi place for dinner.  The sushi was good, but the rest, no so much.  Sorry, I didn't take pictures, but it wasn't a picture-worthy place.

The next night we headed to the UFO for dinner.  It's a Space-Needle style place where you can dine in comfort and style.  Or you can head to the observation deck if you aren't that hungry.  Just a word of warning.  I rarely get motion sick.  However, it was raining and windy that night.  In addition, the way the building is designed made me somewhat ill.  I had to take something for it.  After that, I was able to enjoy the meal.

The view over the city was amazing.  Sadly, the food, while interesting, had a few flaws to it.  It had an Asian twist to it, with French style cooking.

We started with Terriyaki-marinated mango with lemongrass foam and port reduction.  Amazing.  I would never have thought to marinate mango in terriyaki sauce.  The lemongrass foam with light and added the right amount of heat to the dish.

Then came the actual starters that we ordered.  I started with the sous vide pate of foie gras with apple and basil jelly.  Lynn got the grilled calamari with artichoke puree.  The portions were huge.  And I don't know anyone that can eat a lot of foie gras.  If you can, let me know.

Both dishes were very well done.  The calamari was cooked perfectly.  If you have eaten overcooked seafood, you know that one second to long on the grill and you are wishing that you had ordered something else.  The puree also had a great flavor.  The jelly on the foie gras didn't add anything and the bread was better from the bread basket with it than the bread that it came with.

For the main courses, I got the rabbit schnitzel with potato puree and comte cheese and coconut sauce.  Lynn got red snapper with curry sauce, potato dumplings and radishes with cashews. 

The schnitzel was good.  It was a bit greasy, as if it hadn't been drained properly.  The rabbit was a bit tough, but overall, good.  The potato puree was potato puree.  I really enjoy potatoes, and this didn't disappoint.  The coconut sauce was a good dipping sauce, but didn't add much to it.  The fish, I was told was just ok.  Keep in mind that we are from Texas and we got some of the best red snapper locally.

Of course, we did go for dessert.

I got the caramelized cheese and cocoa cake with poppy seed ice cream and pineapple puree.  Lynn got the maple flan with pomegranate granita and cola foam.  The cake was good.  It wasn't overly sweet.  The ice cream was terrible and the puree was good.  The flan tasted like this: if you have ever taken a can of sweetened condensed milk and boiled it for a while, then opened it and eaten it- that's what you had here.  Don't think it's disgusting.  It's actually amazing.  The flan was excellent.  The granita was just ok.  There wasn't a lot of flavor.  The foam tasted like Coke- good, but not a flavor that I enjoy too much.

The final verdict on the UFO- good food, great view, but super-expensive.  It cost nearly $200 for the whole meal and a bottle of wine.  The thing is, for Slovakia, that is outrageous.  Yeah, $200 is expensive anywhere, but when you can get a sushi dinner with the freshest fish in town for $30 for two...well, you get the idea.

Our last meal in Bratislava was at our hotel, Merrol's Boutique Hotel.

Slovakia is on the Euro (just fyi), so we were able to get a two course meal at our hotel for 12.50 euros.  I started with some tomato soup that was notable in that you could actually taste fresh tomatoes.  Lynn and I both got pork chops with green beans and potatoes.  It was better than the meal at UFO and a lot cheaper.  The meat was tender and juicy and the green beans were done perfectly.

As for wine, Slovakia produces some great wines.  We found luck with their alibernet wines.  Once again, they don't export their wines since they only produce enough for local consumption.  If you are lucky to find one in the US, let me know!

Sadly, we have to leave and head on to Lake Bled, Slovenia.  More on that tomorrow.