According to the statistics, Tirana is the first capital, with the highest number of cafes per square/meters. But is this true for the restaurants and places where you can grab a bite in the city? The answer this time is NO. Tirana has expanded hugely in the last decades and due to an urgent need, the restaurants had bloomed in the city.
“Mengjezore” Myth is deepening 🙁
With the passing of time, the trends had transformed and in our days we do not see very often “Mengjezore” a typical Albanian Restaurant for breakfast. Now very few of them are still operating in the city and is interesting how you can mostly meet old people as clients. Habit from the past. You can check our Video for the Food Tour of Tirana and get a better understanding of the “Mengjezore”
Being part of the Balkans, in Tirana, you will find “Burektore” as one of the most comment places to grab some Byrek (traditional pie). The options are more than a few, but the most typical ones are Cottage Cheese Byre, Spinach, Ground Beef and Onions Fill in. You can easily spot the Byreks from their rectangular shop in most of the Bakeries in the city or Byrek Shop.
Bonus Tip: The meal is complete only with some yogurt or “Dhalle” (well-mixed yogurt, water, and salt).
If you are curious enough to learn to reproduce it at home check the traditional recipe of “Lakror”, traditional Byrek with just 2 layers. Delicious!
In Tirana, there is still no Starbucks, but we recommend the local cafes where you can find a freshly brewed cafe and choose your favorite. Go with the Local one, known as Turkish Caffe for a different taste. “Mulliri i Vjeter” and “Tradita” are where you can find a great coffee in Tirana.
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Time for Lunch! and here is where we start having plenty of choices. Common one might be “Zgara” a typical grill restaurant where you can have a good lunch for a good price. Nothing fancy on them, but plenty of choices on their menu. For the most typical one visit the Area of “Pazari i Ri” and don’t be surprised when you will see 4 restaurants cooking the same menu and have no seat available. Anyway, the oldest in town is “Met Kodra Restaurant”, since 1957.
“Rruga e Kavajes” is also where you can find the same types of restaurants but with an Upgraded Menu. Still cheap and very convenient. Have a look a “Tymi Ver Reci”. They are pretty good. Do not be surprised if you will be the only tourist there.
If you are looking for going out in the evening for some dinner and searching for a fancier restaurant “Mullixhiu” is a decent place. Make sure to book a Table in advance, especially if its weekend.
Restaurant “Villa Era” is always a good choice and a pretty convenient and classic choice. As having a lot of Italian Influence in the city a place to be is also “Artigano” or “Etalians”.
If you will still be curious to know more in-depth about Traditional Albanian Food and how to cook some Albanian Dishes we invite you to join our Traditional Albanian Food Cooking Class. It is great fun!
