What stands out most positively about Club of the Architect is the feeling of walking into a story book, the result of being in the centre of a glass conservatory, where the world outside is clear and close enough to touch, but restrained by a protective shield.

You are inside, at a restaurant where white table runners dress dark wood, and saltillo tiles pave the floor, where the service is discreet and the clientele refined. Where there are kyufte on the menu, but also shrimp with Pernod, steak, or trout with walnuts.

Since it opened a little more than a year ago in the centre of Sofia, Club of the Architect – which is attached to the building that houses the Union of Architects in Bulgaria and which does attract real architects to its tables – has won the praise of many for its cuisine, including the nabbing of a nomination for best début restaurant in the 2008 Bacchus Restaurant of the Year awards. It has, yet, failed to inspire me.

The cuisine is best described as "European", with a focus on modern classics like green salad with apples, blue cheese and walnuts, or chicken with tarragon and garlic, presented with class and artistry. For the up-scale business crowd that it attracts, prices are reasonable – a dinner would run about 50 leva for two, without drinks – and the waitstaff aim to please.

I say aim to, because on three separate occasions I have made certain requests as regards preparation of certain dishes, and there seems to be either a lack of communication between waiter and cook, or a lack of understanding on one or the other’s part. That they take back these incorrect items and make amends earns them kudos.

As to the food itself, it is nice. Nothing has particularly impressed, and nothing has been offensive. The celeriac cream soup with chorizo is like drinking celery root-infused light cream, with the tiny squares of sautéed red sausage peeping out of its milky depths. A cold terrine of aubergine and roasted sweet pepper comes sliced, alternated with slabs of creamy white goat’s cheese. The salad of shredded lettuce with hard-boiled egg is fresh, and has salty little olives around the edge of the plate, with a pour of olive oil in the centre. Sautéed rabbit livers are mild, a bit overdone, but assisted by the homemade apple sauce on which they rest, and given a bit more zip with the mustard-grain aioli that rings the plate.

Grilled vegetables turn out to be strips of sweet green pepper, aubergine, courgette and onion, topped with a grilled mushroom and pesto. One time they were perky and piled up, another time limp and just lying in the plate. In any case, not a light dish.

The lyutenitsa relish is like homemade, its rich tomato and roasted sweet pepper base interspersed with chopped spring onions, forming an ideal complement to the grilled kyufte patties. These latter, too, taste made with love, the minced meat fresh and juicy, lightly seasoned with cumin. The kyufte were, however, a curious bright pink colour, despite being fully cooked.

But maybe pink is just the chef’s favourite colour – when we went for lunch the day before Valentine’s Day, the potatoes in the au gratin were pink: we took it for seasonal cheer. But long after that day had passed, the potatoes were still pinkish.

In any case, the au gratin potatoes seem to be one of the most popular items on the menu, with a dish of the rich, creamy-cheesy potato bake on nearly every table. The Eisbein is also in perennial demand.

While a few beers are on offer (with Tuborg on draught), where Club of the Architect really stands out is with its wine list, where the focus is on top Bulgarian wine cellars at prices for every pocketbook. This is a happy fact.

Large parties are accommodated with finesse; music does not inhibit conversation, though the echo of the hall might; reservations are recommended; a non-smoking section is not indicated.

Overall, Club of the Architect is a sturdy restaurant, with approachable food in a classy environment.

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Overall 3/6
Service 3/6
Atmosphere 4/6
Food 3/6
Price $$$
($ up to 12 leva a person for three courses; $$ 12 to 20 leva pp; $$$ 20 to 35 pp; $$$$ 35 and over pp)

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Address:
11 Krakra Str, Sofia
Tel: 088/ 888 09 79
Open: every day, noon to midnight
Credit cards: yes