Keto da Kote

A Georgian table in an old house in Vera

The restaurant hides in an old nineteenth-century mansion, deep in a quiet cul-de-sac in Vera, and from the street it is easy to walk past. You have to step into the courtyard, where the tables are laid among the greenery, and from the garden terrace the city opens up, spread out below.

In the kitchen Ramaz Gemiashvili treats the Georgian tradition freely and with imagination. Familiar tastes take unexpected turns here: khinkali arrive with pesto, meat is accompanied by a sauce of roquefort and hot pepper. The wine list deserves attention of its own, and desserts are not taken as a formality but left a full place at the end of dinner.

The name of the restaurant points to Keto and Kote, the first Georgian comic opera, written by Victor Dolidze. Its premiere took place on 11 December 1919 in Tiflis.

In Keto and Kote the history of the city, an old Tbilisi house and present-day Georgian cooking come together in a place that is easy to miss and hard to forget.