Expatriates Forums in Azerbaijan

FOOD & DINING IN AZERBAIJAN

GENERAL

Azerbaijani food combines Turkish and central Asian elements. Rising pollution levels have given rise to alarm about falling fish stocks, but sturgeon is still widely available at a price. Baku has a reasonable selection of Western style restaurants which have opened recently. In the chai khanas (tea houses), men linger for hours drinking sweet black tea out of tiny glasses. A special place in the cuisine belongs to salads prepared from fresh vegetables. Salads are served together with main course. The national cuisine includes more than 30 kinds of soups.

Although the majority of Azeris are nominally Shia Muslims, alcohol is widely available.

National specialties

• The much celebrated plov is a delicious, spicy specialty made with pine nuts, vegetables and dried fruit, in addition to rice and mutton; certain types of plov use chicken instead of mutton and include chestnuts.

• Grilled kebabs of various kinds are popular, including lyulya kebab made from spiced, minced lamb pressed onto skewers.

• Meals often start with rich, heavy soups: piti is a mutton soup bulked out with chickpeas and slowly cooked in individual earthenware pots in the oven and served in the same pots; dogva is a sharp, yogurt and spinach-based soup containing rice and meatballs.

• Sturgeon is served both smoked and fresh.

• Caviar has traditionally been fished from the Caspian Sea.

• Kutab pastries are stuffed with spinach or pumpkin and are similar to Turkish birekas.

• Kutum Lavangy is stuffed fish with cherries, walnuts and raisins.

• Dolma is minced mutton flesh with onions.

• Badimjan Dolmasi is mutton served with plenty of aubergine and tomatoes, basil, sour cream and butter.

National drinks

• Wines and brandies are produced locally.

• Sherbets are popular soft drinks made of sugar, lemon, saffron, seeds of mint and basil and other fruit.

• Tea is often served accompanied by various jams such as quince, fig, apricot, white cherry and plum. Sometimes dried leaves or flowers of savoury, clove, cardamom and other spices are added to tea. Tea made of cinnamon (darchin) and ginger is popular. Sometimes rose water is added.

Legal drinking age: No minimum age.

Tipping: Expected by waiters and doormen in restaurants – sometimes in advance to ensure service.

PLACES TO DINE

Absheron
Azadlyg Avenue,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 498-9273

Anadolu
Pushkin Street 5,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 498-8758

Anna Belle
Mardanov Gardashlary Street 9,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 493-5546

Circus
Kirpichnaya Street 35,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 494-6597

Dionis
Iskenderov Street 22,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 497-1090

Dragon Baku
Neftchilyar Avenue 36,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 492-6709

Dolce Vita
A. AIiyev Street 8,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 492-7608

Gyulistan
Neftchilyar Avenue 81,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 492-0379

Hollywood
Tolstoy Street 154,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 494-8326

Lux Bay Oglu
28 May Street 54,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 493-0158

Mangal
Fountain Square,
Jagiyev Street 2,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 493-1822

Muller Brau
Nizamy Street 93,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 493-2512

Ocean
K. Karayev Street 102,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 474-2013

Paradise Club
U. Hajibeyov Street 26,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 498-7411/ 493-7386
Fax: (+994 12) 493-7386

Ragin Cajun
M. Rasulzadeh Street 5,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 498-9857

Teatral
Khagany Street 10,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 492-5256

Zumrud
8th Microdistrict,
Akhundov Street 6,
Baku
Tel: (+994 12) 461-5979