Fitting in with the surrounding natural beauty, Aparjods is a hotel and restaurant with a rustic flare. The restaurant has a good mix of local comfort food and game along with sophisticated offerings. I was happy to be hosted to experience it!
This is the water I drank most of the time in Latvia. It’s smooth and thin bodied as waters go. I loved it!
Instead of an Aperol Spritz, I tried their Elderflower Spritz. It wasn’t sweet — it really had a champagne-like note to it, served on the rocks. Their drinks menu is quite extensive and very modestly priced.
In Latvia, what we call herb butter — and it’s not really that prevalent — is called “green butter” and it is beloved. Aparjods’ had a good hit of garlic.
I was quite happy with the fried tiger shrimp salad. It wasn’t overly spicy, just a hint. They were plated with heirloom tomatoes, tender baby lettuces, green and black olives, sun-dried tomatoes, avocado, micro herbs and a lime dressing. This salad would be at home in any major US city.
Though my server was not fluent in English, he did get across that he highly recommended the venison medallions with wine and lingonberry sauce. Venison is clearly as popular a form of meat in Latvia as pork. This was a unique preparation that I had never seen or heard of before. It was lightly breaded with a good crunch, while the meat was very tender. The portions were very generous. The lingonberry sauce had a deep, grape aroma. It balances the game meat very well and isn’t very sweet. It was served with roasted potatoes, red pepper, zucchini, squash and mushrooms.
The mashed potatoes had lots of fresh dill.
Though they have more complex and traditional desserts, I hankered for their creme brulee’, something simple and soothing. The sugar layer was torched just right and the creme part was rich and lovely.
Luxe & Down-Home Cuisine/Culture/Travel/Style 