Eat in Vecrīga (Old Town), Riga

Milda ★ 4.5

Milda on Grēcinieku in Old Town holds a Bib Gourmand for great-value traditional Latvian and Lithuanian cooking, named for the figure atop the Freedom.

Signature: Pelēkie zirņi ar speķi (grey peas with bacon), Pelmeni (Latvian meat dumplings), Cepelinai (Lithuanian potato dumplings)

Order: Grey peas with bacon and sour cream, the national dish, served generously.

Tip: Booked solid for Sunday lunch; weekday lunches are an easier sit. The wine list is short but well-chosen for Baltic food.

Pētergailis ★ 4.2

Pētergailis has worked the Old Town corner between St. John's and St. Peter's churches since 1978, cooking traditional Latvian dishes with mostly Latvian.

Signature: Pelēkie zirņi (grey peas), Roasted Latvian pork, Karbonāde

Order: The grey peas with bacon, the kitchen's anchor dish since opening.

Tip: Named for the golden rooster atop St. Peter's; the dining room is filled with a long-collected display of ceramic roosters and hens.

Domini Canes ★ 4.3

Domini Canes in Old Town between St. Peter's and St. John's churches cooks contemporary Latvian dishes with farm vegetables and wild mushrooms.

Signature: Seasonal Latvian dishes, Forest mushrooms and berries

Order: The seasonal mushroom plate when foraging season hits in late summer and autumn.

Tip: The summer terrace looks straight at St. Peter's spire; book it for a long lunch.

3 Pavāru Restorāns ★ 4.5

3 Pavāru Restorāns sits inside the 18th-century Jacob's Barracks on Torņa in Old Town, listed in the Michelin Selected guide for 2026 with a tight modern.

Order: The six-course set menu, the kitchen's primary format and best value entry.

Tip: Founded by Mārtiņš Sirmais and Ēriks Dreibants in 2011; head chef Pāvels Skopa runs the pass today. Reservations are essential.

Le Dome ★ 4.4

Le Dome sits inside the 400-year-old Dome Hotel & Spa on Miesnieku in Old Town, a Michelin Selected room cooking French-Mediterranean seafood with Baltic.

Order: The Baltic fish of the day, plaice or sturgeon, with seasonal vegetables.

Tip: Book the rooftop terrace in summer for Daugava views, or the narrow main dining room year-round.

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs ★ 4.4

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs sits in a historic wine cellar below Peldu in Old Town, pouring 32 taps of Latvian beer and cider with folk music five nights a week.

Signature: Latvian beer flight, Pelēkie zirņi, Roast pork knuckle

Order: A beer flight from the 32 Latvian taps plus the grey peas plate.

Tip: Folk dancing on Wednesdays, live music most other nights. Open until 02:00 weekdays, 04:00 weekend.

B Bārs Restorāns ★ 4.0

B Bārs Restorāns on Dome Square in Old Town pairs an all-day European bistro menu with a respected cocktail program, popular for Doma laukums terrace dinners.

Signature: European bistro plates, Cocktail program

Order: Terrace seat in summer with a bistro plate and a signature cocktail; the steak frites is the steady choice.

Tip: Right on the cathedral square so views command a small premium; cocktail list outpaces the kitchen, sit at the bar for the value.

Rocket Bean Cafe Rainis ★ 4.2

Rocket Bean's Raiņa branch sits on the canal-park edge of Old Town, the late-opening Rocket Bean for evening espresso after a Vērmanes park walk.

Signature drink: Flat white

Tip: Opens until 20:00 weekdays, the only Rocket Bean that stays late; an after-dinner espresso option close to most Old Town restaurants.

Big Bad Bagels Audēju ★ 4.2

Big Bad Bagels' Audēju branch is the Old Town location of the Riga bagel-and-brunch counter, the morning stop between the Town Hall Square and Centrāltirgus.

Tip: Smaller than the Baznīcas flagship and quicker; counter seating only on weekends.

Worth the queue: Bacon-egg-cheese bagel

Black Magic Bar ★ 4.3

Black Magic Bar on Kaļķu in Old Town is the dedicated Riga Black Balsam stop, a medieval-themed bar pouring cocktails built around the city's 1752 herbal.

Signature drink: Riga Black Balsam cocktails

Food: Chocolates, light snacks

Order: Black Pina Colada or Black Mojito to taste Black Balsam in cocktail form.

Tip: Sells bottles, hand-made chocolates and souvenir gifts; the cellar tasting room is the way to sample the full range.

B Bārs ★ 4.0

B Bārs on Doma laukums anchors the Old Town cathedral square with classic cocktails, a respected bartender team and a European bistro menu until late.

Signature drink: Classic and signature cocktails

Food: European bistro menu

Order: A signature cocktail at the bar; the bartenders run with the room.

Tip: Cathedral-square terrace is the city's prime aperitif perch at 18:00 in summer; the bar runs to 02:00 Friday and Saturday.

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs ★ 4.5

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs is Old Town's deepest cellar bar, 32 taps of Latvian beer and cider with live folk music five nights a week and Wednesday dancing.

Signature drink: Latvian craft beer and cider

Food: Latvian pub food

Order: A four-beer Latvian craft flight; the cellar pours small breweries you won't see elsewhere.

Tip: Open until 04:00 on Saturday; the cellar acoustics mean folk music nights book up.

Riga Old Town Christmas Market ★ 4.5

The Riga Old Town Christmas Market runs on Doma Square from late November to early January, with 80 traders selling piparkūkas, mulled wine and smoked meats.

Tip: Open daily through the run; weekends are busiest. The piparkūkas gingerbread and gluhwine stalls are the food anchors.

Doma laukums Piparkūkas Christmas Stalls ★ 4.4

The Doma laukums piparkūkas stalls run as a focused subset of the Old Town Christmas Market, 80+ traders selling Latvian gingerbread, mulled wine and meats.

Tip: The piparkūkas stalls cluster on the Dome Square's western edge; arrive before sunset on weekends to beat the queue.

Manas Garšas Spice Masterclass ★ 4.3

Manas Garšas runs a one-hour spice masterclass at the brand's Old Town shop on Vaļņu, teaching the signature spices of traditional Latvian cooking.

Tip: Sessions cap at 15; book ahead for weekends. Each guest leaves with a personalised spice mix.

Viator Riga Latvian Cooking Class ★ 4.4

Viator's Riga Latvian Cooking Class runs a small-group hands-on session covering grey peas with bacon, pirosaki and beetroot soup, finished with a sit-down meal.

Tip: Bookable on Viator with free cancellation up to 24 hours; the small-group format keeps the format intimate.

GetYourGuide Riga Cooking Class ★ 4.3

GetYourGuide's Riga cooking class walks guests through traditional Latvian dishes (pirosaki, beetroot soup, grey peas) with a sit-down family-style meal at the end.

Tip: Bookable on GetYourGuide with free cancellation; ask for the dietary adjustments at booking.

byFood Riga Cooking Class ★ 4.4

byFood's Riga cooking class runs hands-on Latvian classics including grey peas with bacon, rye bread and pirosaki, with a sit-down family-style meal at the end.

Tip: Bookable on byFood; ask for the dietary adjustments at booking.

RigaTrips Latvian Home Cooking Class ★ 4.3

RigaTrips runs a Latvian home-cooking class from a kitchen near the Mentzendorff House meeting point, covering grey peas with bacon, pīrāgi and Latvian.

Tip: Three-hour sessions with shared eating at the end; small groups of up to 10 guests.

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs ★ 4.5

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs is Old Town's most reliable late-night cellar, 32 Latvian beer taps with folk music until 02:00 weekdays and 04:00 on weekends.

Try: Latvian beer and pub plates

Order: A late-night Latvian craft beer flight with a plate of pelēkie zirņi.

Tip: Open until 04:00 on Saturday is unusual for Riga; the cellar absorbs the post-club crowd around the Old Town.

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs ★ 4.5

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs runs live folk music five nights a week in its Old Town cellar, with folk dancing on Wednesdays and 32 Latvian craft beers on tap.

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs ★ 4.5

Folkklubs ALA Pagrabs's cellar absorbs the post-club crowd Friday and Saturday until 04:00, the city's most reliable late-night Latvian beer dive.