Address:   46 Shipka Street, Sofia

Nr stars: ***

Phone:  +359 898 54 54 00

Website:  http://www.TroyanCite.com

Relationships are all about compromise and my long suffering girlfriend has to compromise more than most so it was quite nice for her to get her own way this weekend.

Hot, sunny days in Sofia lend themselves best to drinking ice cold beer in one of the many parks in and around the centre of the city and last Sunday was a perfect example of how I like to do this. I often drag “Beloved” with me who usually sits by my side wandering what the fascination is that we British men have about al fresco drinking in the middle of the day, but this time she chose the venue which was to be the lovely little park in the area close to the centre known as Doctors Garden.

She clearly had alterear motives which I was soon to discover were her plans for me to take her to an early dinner at one of her old university haunts just down the road from the park on Shipka Street.

The name of the restaurant is TroyanCite which I must have past hundreds of times over the years without thought to taking a look down the well-kept alley way that serves as the entrance to the restaurant.

After a few minutes of her deploying her “persuasive techniques” (she told me TroyanCite a. Had a garden b. Had better, colder beer and c. She was going anyway – with or without me) we walked down Shipka Street, found the entrance and headed into the small but pretty covered garden that appeared to double the seating areas of the restaurant which is housed in a beautiful but small two storey building.

We were the only ones there (it was 4.30 in the afternoon I guess) but were immediately met by a polite and cheerful waiter who let us pick a shady table and gave us menus as I gave him my beer order to continue my happy Sunday afternoon. Music was playing as we entered, not too loud but still, maybe this afternoon was not the right time for a heavy Guns’ n Roses track which was playing as we sat. Fortunately this was quickly replaced with the mellow tones of Buffalo Springfield and Bob Dylan which set the mood perfectly.

The Bulgarian version of the menu was well presented but the English version had obviously had less time in the designers studio but it clearly showed a good array of traditional Bulgarian dishes (mainly from the Troyan region) along with what I can only describe as more Mediterranean “fusion” options with interesting sounding sauces and side dishes.

I could tell Beloved was happy to be back at one of her favourite hangouts as she gave the menu a ten second glance and then reeled off an order as if she had memorised the chefs offerings years before. God knows what she had asked for but it took a couple of minutes for the waiter to get everything down. When my turn came I was much more inclined to ask for a recommendation to accompany my beer and he suggested a mixed grill. I didn’t ask further questions as it seemed sound enough advice and he disappeared to return with our drinks a few moments later.

I excused myself for a nose around the interior of the restaurant that comprises of one small room on the ground floor of the building with a set of narrow stairs leading up to a larger room with double the seating area. Wine bottles were on display with large price cards and I didn’t notice a bottle over 25 Leva and all the brands I saw were local and respectable. Based on the prices I saw on the menu, I could understand why this was one of Beloved’s favoured eateries whilst she was “tax dodging” at university!

I came back to our table outside where we sat and chatted for about ten minutes before the first of several dishes began to appear.

The first was a plate of mixed yogurt salad (4.20 Leva) accompanied by a plate of extremely fresh cheese which on the menu was described as Kashkaval (yellow cheese). It was however, certainly not the “standard issue” dairy product found in most restaurants in Sofia and literally melted as soon as you put it in your mouth.

Then came another plate. This time wedges of camembert cheese that appeared to have been fried before being covered in almonds and served with a homemade, tangy blackcurrant jam (7.40 Leva). These too were excellent and surprisingly light but I didn’t want to deprive beloved so I sat back and waited for the mixed grill. Before that however came a third plate for Beloved which was a ceramic dish, excellently presented (with cherry tomatoes) and consisted of a layer of mozzarella and egg which was still bubbling from the oven, under which was hidden a blend of spinach and scrambled egg (7.50 Leva). This was called “Zapikanka” for those wishing to order in the local tongue.

This alone looked like it could feed two people but I didn’t say anything about over ordering as my other half had been silent since the first plate arrived and seemed to be doing a good job of trying to prove my first impressions wrong.

A few moments later and after a re-fill of beer had been ordered, the waiter reappeared with my beer as well as a wooden platter complete with a steak knife stuck in the centre of the board surrounded by the mixed grill (12.50 Leva).

This consisted of what I would later find out to be homemade buffalo sausage (from a “local Argentinian herd” – really?!), a large chicken skewer, and a couple of “kofte” or hamburger shaped pork meat balls. It looked superb, smelt even better and was the perfect suggestion to accompany my “reason d’ etre”, the beer!

Beloved’s response to my questions about her food, it’s quality and taste were simply answered with the word “Excellent” as she shovelled in another fork full of salad and at the same time muttering something about how she had “missed this place”.

I got started on my wooden plate and headed straight for the buffalo sausages. They were well grilled, a little tough to cut into but had the most wonderful smoky flavour which I had never tasted before. I would suggest to anyone looking for beer snacks that a plate of these alone is ideal to share with friends. They really were superb and worth coming for alone.

The Kofte were also homemade and had the benefit of some unidentifiable spices and herbs which made the meatballs very unique which is fairly hard to do with such a staple of Bulgarian national cuisine but it was clear that whoever the chef in this place was he liked to do things with a certain unique flair.

The chicken skewer was also well seasoned and made from good quality meat (instead of the cheap, water injected poultry you find in so many low quality restaurants across the country).

I was certainly more hungry than I thought I was and I managed to get about two thirds of the way through my plate before admitting defeat, giving up and making a mental note that this option too could easily be shared between two hungry beer drinkers.

As I sat back and contemplated what was left of the large spread in front of us, Beloved finished too and sat back and sighed, clearly full but not defeated! Another beer was ordered as I watched her demolish the last of her meal before a complimentary desert was offered for us to share. I was stuffed but didn’t have time to refuse as Beloved readily agreed to some chocolate concoction which we were told was already being plated up for us.

This came a few moments later and was a seriously rich chocolate soufflé (4.80 Leva)which when cut open oozed an equally rich chocolate sauce complemented by a ball of vanilla ice cream. To be honest, a little too rich for my pallet but then again I rarely go for the dessert option which is why Beloved is so useful in situations like this! After my meagre spoonful (well, I had to try it!) she managed to demolish the rest in quick order and declared it “brilliant”. As it turned out, the waiter explained that this dessert was such a pride of the restaurant that the recipe was actually in the process of going through it’s own patent application! That was a new one on me!

The bill was brought shortly afterwards and despite the fact it was now only 1900, it was time to head “back to the ranch” to prepare for the working week ahead. It was also clear that or table was now in demand as the garden area of the restaurant was now completely full with diners, most of which seemed to be regulars based on the welcome they each received from the friendly waiter. It wasn’t surprising.

In Summary…

TroyanCite is hardly fine dining. What it is however, is a superb value restaurant in a lovely part of Sofia which seems to recruit regular clients because of the laid back atmosphere and traditional menu that has obviously been developed by the chef to make it as unique as possible. Service was attentive but informal which does not mean “too informal”. Considering the relaxing afternoon we had already had before arriving at the restaurant it was exactly what we wanted to finish our weekend on.

The garden certainly lends itself to summer al fresco dining but I could understand why the more affluent of the student population of Sofia chose this place all year round.
In short, great value, unique, quality food and laid back service makes this place a great choice for relaxed lunch meetings, social dinners or even just a quiet beer when your work day is over.

Very highly recommended!