Address: Village of Chernevo
Tel: 0515/ 37 656, 088/514 19 53
Open: every day, noon to night
e-mail: katelievi@mnet.bg
www.bulgaria-ecotour,
www.katelievi.com

Situated in a beautiful 1.8 hectare woodland setting only 30 minutes’ drive from Varna sits the rather grandly titled Ethnographical Complex Barite. I make no excuses for starting a restaurant review by talking about the setting because here it is the key feature.

Head along the A2 motorway and turn off by Devyna Cement, following signs to Suvorovo, and you will find the unassuming village of Chernevo. Directly opposite the train station (Varna-Dobrich line) is the first of a series of signposts simply pointing to Barite. Follow the direction through the village and up the winding hill out of town on the other side. About the time that you are convinced you have gone wrong, another sign should point you into a large car parking area in front of the large white walls. Hidden behind the imposing wooden gate sits not only a restaurant but what attempts to be, with some success, a family leisure experience.

There are three small lakes (apparently stocked with carp), canoes, an open-air museum of traditional crafts from the Chernevo area, an ethnographic collection, a small animal area (rabbits, peacocks, turtles, etc) and children’s play area complete with zip wire and a crazy golf course.

However, what makes Barite is the restaurant and the view. The restaurant has a large indoor seating area decorated in the usual traditional style, but it’s the outside that’s worth the effort of travelling. Barite makes the most its countryside location, surrounded by forested hills and green plains, by incorporating a covered outdoor dining area, part of which has roll-down polythene walls to protect dinners from the chillier winds.

And of course there is the food. Barite’s fare is unapologetically Bulgarian with an occasional speciality or twist. Expect large fresh salads (shopska 350g, 3.20 leva) and big portions of grilled meat cooked in full view, but also expect a few pleasant surprises. On a salad menu that includes tuna fish and crayfish salads along with the usual suspects, the Barite Salad (450g, 4.80 leva with lettuce, cherry tomatoes, seasoned croutons, sliced almonds and smoked chicken all dressed with balsamic vinegar) is a delight. For warm starters, there is a fine choice; soups like tarator (two leva), mushrooms in butter on a copper plate, pigs trotters, etc. I can recommend the Fried Eggs with Local Delicacy – the delicacy in question being the locally produced sausage.

The main menu keeps to this system, with chicken and pork dominating, but there is an interesting selection of fish including salmon, carp and trout on a tile. Chicken or pork shaslik (11 leva for 500g), kavarmas (stew baked in a clay pot) and the pork ribs are cooked well and presented well and are filling enough for anyone.

I can wholly recomend the dish Speciality of Hajdouk, served on a tile. It is basically a sizzling mixed-meat dish served in a tomato and vegetable sauce. Dishes can be accompanied with the usual side dishes; the stove-baked “purlenka” bread with garlic or cheese (from three leva) is a particular favourite.

For those with a particularly large appetite or whose sweet tooth persuades them to cut down on the main dish, there are a selection of desserts. Homemade cake, ice cream, creme brulee and crepes, alongside a Bulgarian version of rice pudding. There is also a good selection of wines and beer, although almost certainly somebody will be driving.

As far as service is concerned, all of the waitresses encountered speak at least some English, some, of course, better than others. There are English menus available (with the required quota of bizarre translations – lams capitulum, for instance) and it’s easy enough to compare the English and Bulgarian menus and point to what you want. The tradition of not writing any of the orders down is alive and well, but somehow things arrive in approximately the right order and without too long a wait. Additional service is prompt even in such a large space as there is a good staff to customers ratio.

When a restaurant is situated in a place that clearly demands effort to reach, it must be a good sign when it is busy. Barite gets busy; it is a popular destination for coach parties, and celebrations. Reservations are recommended especially at weekends. You may be lucky (or unlucky) enough to catch a special event or a wedding, where it is possible to experience some traditional dancing, listen to the music or just be amazed at the fashions. There is also accommodation available, in the form of chalets with en-suite and cable television.