All our Food & culture guides for Albania, in one place.
Albanian menus repeat a fairly short list of dishes, and knowing six of them is the difference between eating well and eating pizza. What to order and where.
Iso polyphony is a UNESCO listed singing tradition with no instruments and no conductor, and hearing it properly takes a little more effort than booking a table.
Blloku was sealed off from ordinary Albanians until 1991. Long before the bars open for the night, it runs on coffee, an evening walk called the giro and a stretch of restaurants, and this is what the neighbourhood is actually like by day.
What is worth carrying home from the Albanian capital and what is mass produced tat with an eagle on it, from the bazaar and the castle lane to the malls on the ring road.
A country famous for grilled meat that also has cheese pies, stuffed vegetables, bean stews, a fasting tradition and the best tomatoes in the region.
A fruit spirit offered before you have eaten, an espresso culture that runs from dawn to midnight, and wine from a country that barely exports any.
Layered pastry filled with cheese, spinach, meat or tomato, sold by weight from a counter, eaten standing up, and the national breakfast.
A guide to Albanian food, from flaky byrek and baked tavë kosi to fërgesë, fresh Adriatic seafood and homemade raki, plus what to order and where to find the best of it.