Budget
Varzob
Uzbek food. The plov is an excellent choice, as is the Shashlik and Lagman.
Lido
A network of 8 restaurants offering decent hearty Latvian food, including desserts, at good prices. The restaurants are either cafeteria-style or feature English menus. The following resturants are in the Lido network:
Äili Pica
Cheap but good pizza.
Smilšu Pulkstenis
Cheap & tasty Latvian food.
Ķīpsala Island Student Cafeteria
Several sets of home-like food are offered in a cozy atmosphere.
Lido Entertainment Center
The wooden building features three floors of dining, a built-in wooden windmill, and a small amusement park outside. The ground floor and basement operate cafeteria-style. There is a huge choice available, including a variety of soups including borscht and the Latvian cold beetroot soup, as well as kebabs, breasts, chicken sausages, fish, red meats. Blinis are another specialty here.
Staburags
á là carte based and not cafeteria-style. Rustic interior, low prices and large portions of traditional Latvian food. Plays pseudo-traditional Latvian music with synthesized backing.
Vermanitis
A fantastic range of Latvian food in "authentic" environment.
Midrange
Osiris
An artsy cafe with a cool interior, fireplace and pancakes worth killing for. While there, drop by Gallerija Istaba for another cup of coffee or beer, and make sure to check out some of the artwork sold downstairs.
Alus Ordenis
Serves rural Latvian food for an eminently reasonable price. Try pork shanks or bull testicles!
Double Coffee
Not just a coffee cafe like Starbucks, but a wide range of teas & coffees + other drinks plus an wide range of food - both Latvian & international. Excellent for lunch or a snack. Reasonable prices too.
Vecmeita ar kaÄ·i
This restaurant and bar is a more upmarket option than Lido, serving very good Latvian food.
Traktieris
For a Russian experience, try out Traktieris. Huge servings, great food, loads of vodkas to try out, and a Russian troubadour for entertainment. Few tourists.
Sweetday Cafe
Coffee house that serves freshly homemade cakes. It has a great cozy atmosphere, and the best service in town. The owner is Inese, speaks Latvian, English, Spanish, Russian and a bit of Dutch.
Gardenia
Enjoy Mediterranean and European cuisine at our re-established, cozy, and elegantly casual Restaurant.
Le Crabe
One of the best fish restaurants in town.
Cafe Grill Bar/Stork's Nest Pub
A jewel of a restaurant/bar with all the comforts of the USA/UK, serving both Latvian and American food The walls are decorated with American/English memorobilia and there is a large plasma TV showing English or American shows and sporting events.
13 Kresli
Still going from Soviet times - 13 Kresli 13 chairshas grown a bit, but is excellent, especially for tea and snacks
Juffin's 12
Serves European and Oriental international food and has an extensive wine list.
Top end
Vincents
If you're splashing out try Vincents Restaurant which compares favorably to any up market western restaurant at half the price.
RozengrÄls
An authentic medieval restaurant in a real medieval basement in the Old Town. Serves tasty medieval foods and beverages.
Riga, as the most vibrant and cosmopolitan city of the Baltics, offers countless opportunities to sample both local cuisine and international favorites. Latvian food can be hearty, using a lot of potato, cabbage, beef, pork and fish. A diversity of foreign cuisines is also available -- sushi restaurants in particular are currently in vogue.