Address:39 Tsar Ivan Shishman Street;
Telephone:981 2727

I have walked past this restaurant many times. But I was never tempted to enter it. On one particularly dreary and rainy afternoon I was however taken there by a friend and her colleagues for lunch. Looking at the sky that morning I didn't expect it to rain, depending on my Dutch genes to predict rainfall. So I went out in my new summer shoes, I know it's ridiculous, but I am an optimist, and of course without a brollie, because they are yet one more thing to carry. I was making my way, trying not to get my precious shoes wet, jumping over puddles and at the same time trying to keep under the umbrella that one of my friend's colleagues was gallantly holding out. It was quite a trip. Relieved, we wobbled up the stairs to the restaurant. I was in for a surprise, because the inside of the restaurant seemed to have nothing in common with the very plain signboard outside. It looked modern; dark browns and off white making it look quite stylish. Nice paintings took care of the finishing touch. The tables are far apart, so the atmosphere is intimate. The music was soft and also people kept the number of decibels to a minimum. A waitress came to take our order. She was polite. But in retrospect I hardly remember her. I guess she knew the art of making herself invisible and still getting the work done.
The people I came with are all regulars here and they all seemed to unanimously decide that one particular dish was worth having. Hence, they all ordered the same. I got snotty looks when I said that I was going to order something else. "Suit yourself, but once you taste our dish, you'll regret it", they all said. I wasn't worried considering the fact that I had at least three plates to steal the amazing dish from. I flicked through the menu and came up with potatoes with blue cheese, Emmental, cream cheese, mushrooms and bacon, called Potatoes Fromagio (4.90 leva). They ordered the Guvetch (clay oven pot) Mamma Mia containing yellow cheese, peppers and chicken fillets with an egg on top, sprinkled with parsley (3.95 leva). We talked and played with the little wooden spoon that was meant to heave salt and pepper out of miniscule wooden barrels onto your plate. "This is new", said one of the regulars with great surprise. They all knew that their meal would take time and therefore were not surprised when my potato dish arrived much earlier than their dishes. It was nice and it came in boat-shaped pottery. The bacon wasn't really well represented though. But the potatoes were just right, not too soft, and tasty. With here and there some salt, it was a great lunch. Their meals arrived in similar contraptions. It looked good and no one could wait to dig in. The only comment I heard after a couple of minutes was that it could have used a little more time in the oven since some considered the egg on top a little on the soft side. "Yes, last time it was really perfect", the others agreed. But all in all everybody was content and with lunch hour coming to an end, we asked for the bill. It was 21.20 leva for four people including drinks. The rain had stopped and we all went back to our respective offices.