Have a bite in Pavaj, on the pavement of Kapana in Plovdiv, European Capital of Culture 2019
Pavaj score by the 5D Sensograph of placescases.com: 4.9 out of 5.
November 2018
Seen 
Felt 
Heard
Smelled
Tasted
Plovdiv is one of our favorite towns in Bulgaria. It is close to Sofia however when you travel to it, you are moving to a radically different place where you can stroll along the small cobblestone streets, go from gallery to gallery, visit around the bars and the restaurants of Kapana (the artistic central part), to see a concert on the hills, to walk along the main street and there’s still a bunch of stuff you can do there.
In this beloved city of ours, our favorite restaurant is Pavaj, which means paving. You will definitely come up to it if you walk around in Kapana.
I recommend making a reservation a couple a days in advance. However, if you go straight there without booking, they are flexible. They’ll ask you for your phone number to call you when a table is vacant for you. Meanwhile you can drink coffee or an aperitif around here, going through souvenir shops, having a henna tattoo, listening to a jazz concert between the buildings.
Pavaj has an award from Bacchus magazine as a restaurant of the year 2017, chosen by the readers. I visit Bacchus magazine awards ceremony every year. This year Pavaj has been nominated again. Only it competes with some of the best and it will be very difficult for them. We are talking about Cosmos, ANDRe, L’Etranger, Bistrello, Yastrebets in Borovets, Chef Mihalchev’s Miyabi. The latter is unfairly unrecognized by placescases.com. The simple reason is that I had wonderful time with friends there and just forgot to take pictures.
Expect in my next posts to see if Pavaj won the award of Bacchus again.
See ….
…. Very entertaining retro interior with references to the socialist times of Bulgaria- there are many cute accents, which are better to see in the video here;
…. Bright colors– you enter and from the door your gaze crashes into two refrigerators type General Electric from the 60’s- large red and a big green spot. You feel like shouting Huraaaaay! to this colorful wave;
…. The restroom is also fun– there’s an old radio inside, which plays music. Do not get stuck to listen to music, because others can wait outside, and there is no room for a queue;
…. The space is really a little tight, but it was well utilized;
…. Not only the refrigerators are colorful- the plates also burst into colors, from the salad, through the main one, and in the dessert too, but for it you will read more in category Smell… and Taste…. Fill your eyes with a little red, yellow, green, brown, white, even violet.
Feel ….
…. The people are very polite and friendly, it’s very cool to be there;
…. I have a note though, for which half heart has dropped- you can’t pay by card. Come on people, we are in the 21st century. Your payment options are retro as your interior, only this time it’s not a compliment!
Hear ….
…. A little jazz, a little funk, a little soul– my favorite things;
…. There’s a danger of hearing the neighbors’ conversation, and yours can be heard, but like I said, space is scarce and it is the case everywhere in Kapana, so you should live with it.
Smell ….
…. Here the absolute prime is a cheesecake with candy violets- no kidding. It is topped with glaze, prepared from violet candies and they even put one next to the slice, to remember how they looked and tasted in your childhood times. Awesome dessert!
…. The Aroma of rakia from Zarich- apricots, pears…. divine work!
Taste ….
…. My children adored the veal cheeks with risotto- they are my favorite too;
…. Very tasty little trouts – they say this size is the best. Is it true or not, I don’t know, but they had a wonderful crispy crust-perfect!
…. Another favourite for my kids meal here, and I can’t help but steal from their dishes, are the pork ribs- I recommend them to every carnivore 😊.
…. Tripe soup is a classic on a Saturday or Sunday in Bulgaria. Here you can have a very good one!
…. It is a sin not to say that homemade fries there are mega temptation. Forget the low carbohydrate diets! Order a portion with lavish amount of white cheese strained on them and enjoy it guilt free!
…. A very nice selection of Rakia- if you have not tried Serbian rakia, be sure to try it – pear and apricot. The Serbs know how to do them!
How to book your stay in Plovdiv?
If you are planning already a trip to the beautiful town of Plovdiv, The Culture Capital of Europe for 2019, you can book your stay right here. For your convenience, I added a booking.com box, which refers directly to their site. I guarantee you’re going to use all your genius discounts and privileges they would offer to you. Just enter the dates of your trip, then hit the Search button and voila. In addition, booking.com are doing their best to make sure that your expectations as a customer are fulfilled. I’ve described an example about the latter in my story about our stay in Shangri-La hotel in Singapore.
How to get there?
Don’t worry about getting to Pavaj in Plovdiv. Just use the Google map here by clicking on the red pin of its location and then select directions:
А: 17 Zlatarska str, Kapana, Plovdiv
T: +359 878 111 876
Е: pavaj.plovdiv@gmail.com
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Are you looking for info on good restaurants, hotels and any nice places around the world and in our country? Then dig into the categories of placescases.com to find something just for you.
Do you ever wonder how some places are so very different from others in service, environment, as a general experience? This means you are also interested like me in the topic of The Experience Economy by Pine and Gilmore. I’ve tried to recognize those places which apply it in practice its principles, whether deliberately or accidentally, and I think it is worth to consider them. Right click on category The Experience Economy.
