Where to Eat in Tartu
If you wish to buy snacks and drinks for your room, there is a mall (Kaubamaja) with a very nice grocery store in it across the street from the Pallas Hotel.
Drinks can be purchased in the hotel at the front desk, but they will obviously be much more expensive. The Big Ben Pub restaurant is located on the first floor of the building the Hotel Pallas is located in and there are a variety of other restaurants within very close proximity.
The hotel staff is always ready and willing to help with any restaurant recommendations. As Estonians become more affluent and since Tartu is a university town, certain days of the week, especially Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings, are quite busy and can have very limited availability. Before leaving the hotel to go to an establishment, it is always good to ask the hotel staff to phone the restaurant you intend to go to in order to find out if tables are available. If you have a particular restaurant you wish to dine at, it is best to plan ahead and have a reservation. Otherwise, you may find yourself wandering from restaurant to restaurant, especially if you have a group of more than four people.
You will want to avoid pub style restaurants during the Sabbath because these tend to be louder and more boisterous than other more traditional eating establishments. Below is a short list of recommended restaurants that have English menus. You must be very inquisitive about every dish you order because it potentially may contain something unclean even though it is not stated in the description of the dish on the menu.
:
1. Big Ben Pub (British Pub) – soups, chicken wings, salads, simple chicken, beef and fish dishes, conveniently located downstairs from the Pallas Hotel
2. Wilde Pub (Irish Pub, named after the Irish poet Oscar Wilde) – a very popular venue, serving soups, chicken wings, salads, and more upscale meat, chicken, and fish dishes than found in the Big Ben Pub, can be very loud during evening hours and especially on weekends
3. Tsink Plekk Pang (Asian) – excellent variety of Asian dishes from China, India, and southeast Asia, can be very busy on weekends, reservations suggested, generally quiet during off peak hours
4. Georgian Embassy (Georgian) – excellent authentic cuisine from the country of Georgia, variety of meat dishes with eggplant side/appetizer dishes, very small in size with only a few tables, definitely call ahead or make a reservation, since it is small it is not noisy
5. Trahter Rasputin (Russian) – authentic Russian kitchen with variety of Russian style dishes consisting of beef, chicken, potatoes, cabbage, and a wide selection of Russian vodkas
6. Atlantis Club(European) – the nicest restaurant in Tartu, it is adjacent to the conference center where we have church services making it very convenient, excellent food, atmosphere, and service, but also the most expensive, noise level is at an absolute minimum, very conducive for eating in large groups
7. La Dolce Vita (Italian) – Italian kitchen, excellent authentic Italian cuisine owned by two brothers from northern Italy, variety of pizza and pasta dishes, big enough for larger groups and not usually noisy
8. Entri (European) – located inside the London Hotel (owned by the same group which owns and operates the Pallas Hotel), a variety of different dishes found throughout Northern Europe including herring and potatoes, salads, and chicken, beef, and fish dishes, past experience was that this location is rather quiet, although, it was a newer restaurant and basically unknown to locals when frequented during the last Feast in Tartu, things may have changed now
9. Café Truffe – (Coffee/Desert Café) – located on the beautiful Raekoja Plats (town square), excellent stop for a light lunch after church or after dinner dessert and coffee, excellent soup, seating area is small and a little cramped, difficult to find seating for groups of more than three or four
10. Ristiisa Pubi – (Estonian Pub) Estonian pub fare very similar to that found in the Big Ben Pub, including chicken wings, and simple chicken, beef, and fish dishes, best to avoid on weekend nights or the Sabbath due to the noise level
11. Taverna – (Pizza and Estonian) Although a large portion of the menu contains pizza, this is not the typical “pizza joint” you would find in the U.S., there are many other quality food choices which are quite good with an intimate and quiet atmosphere, one of the few places good for larger groups
While in Saaremaa you may wish to eat most of your meals at the very fine restaurant conveniently located in the Georg Ots Hotel. However if you would like to find dining outside the hotel, the hotel staff will be happy to assist you. In addition, you can find a more extensive list of restaurants located in Tartu online at: www.visittartu.com and on Saaremaa located online at: www.saaremaa.ee/eng.
August 1, 2007