So, here we are in Bulgaria. Enjoying the sun, sea and sand. Before I get to far into the blog here, let me just say that we have been in this country since August 6. It is now 8/27. I can cover (and will) all of the food here in two blogs. One of the first meals that we ate here on the Black Sea was at Happy- a chain of restaurants that serves pretty much everything (sushi included).
I opted for the meatballs while Lynn got the grilled calamari. The meatballs were very good- lots of cumin and paprika. They were served with a tomato salsa, although it wasn't spicy- just chunky. The calamari were cooked properly and weren't chewy. Always a plus. However, all good things must come to an end. This was one of the few good meals that we have actually eaten in Bulgaria.
Every meal that we eat out, Lynn always gets optimistic. I have learned not to expect much and not to get disappointed. So, we haven't had that much luck eating out. It's a true shame though- Bulgaria has some great natural resources when it comes to food. The soil in mineral and nutrient rich so that the fruits and vegetables are some of the best that we have had. They just lack the know-how to prepare meat and fish. Take our advice- eat meat on a stick here. That's what they are known for and even if we don't take our own advice, we highly suggest that you take it. Even TripAdvisor has failed us, when in the past, they have been spot on. Three of the restaurants that we have tried in Nesebar have been either really disappointing or one of those meals that's good but not something you want to really blog about.
All that being said, they do have some fantastic wines. It's a shame that Eastern European wines aren't that well known because they are great. We have visited two wineries so far and we have one more to go see. The first was Edoardo Miriglio in Elenovo. We stopped there on our way back from Plovdiv, which has some of the best ancient Roman ruins outside of Italy. We bought several bottles (OK- 8 bottles, you happy?) to bring back with us since we have somehow run out of wine at home. The next day, we went to the winery that we can see from our back yard. We had no idea of the name of it, only that it is down a dirt road. Turns out, it is the Dives Estate, which I have been seeing signs for all over. Shear dumb luck there. We bought 6 more bottles of wine and were even given a 2009 bottle of wine (his first) as a present. We haven't tried them yet, but we will get there. The last winery we are going to see is the Black Sea Gold, which is about 20 minutes away. We have tried their wine before at restaurants, and we like it so far.
Ok, back to some of the more edible food. As I said before, they have some fantastic fruits and vegetables here- the tomatoes and cucumbers are great on their own and the peaches. Oh my goodness the peaches!! We ate at a small restaurant in Aheloy that has no name, but the only thing that I can tell you is that they treat their veggies right- plain and full of their natural flavor.
As I said before, Nesebar has kind of been our place of choice. Its Old Town is all cobbled streets that wind around with various Churches around that have been there since the 5th Century. My recommendation is to eat on the water. Plankamoto is a good choice. The fish there was fresh and prepared as well as could be. I got the sea wolf (sea bass) with coconut and almonds. TONS OF FOOD. Just be prepared. And maybe split a salad with someone if you want greens. The salad had a bit to much salt in the dressing, but it was still edible.
Like I said, huge portions. For dessert, we opted for their house made tiramisu and chocolate cake. Both were very good and tasty.
As for actual eating on the beach, we haven't yet found a spot to do that, but our favorite beach spot is in Pomorie. They have a great bar in front of the Grand Hotel that serves great drinks to you on the beach.
Anyway, stay tuned for post two in which I finish Bulgarian food.
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