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One Perfect Day Drinking in Riga, Latvia
Do Riga right.
Photography courtesy of Labietis
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Latvia’s capital is one of Europe’s best-kept secrets. Nestled along the Baltic Sea, Riga is a city where centuries-old architecture mingles with hip coffee shops, bustling markets, and world-class beer. A UNESCO World Heritage site, Riga boasts the largest collection of Art Nouveau buildings in the world, more than eight hundred in total—meaning just walking its streets is a visual feast. And while the cobblestone charm of the Old Town draws many, the city’s real magic lies in its layers: Soviet remnants, Nordic influence, and a fiercely independent creative spirit.
We recently traveled to this Baltic capital with a group called Brewtopia, who take thirsty travelers to beer destinations worldwide.
Our third stop of the tour, following Helsinki and Tallinn, Riga was arguably the most beautiful and brooding. Prone to cloudy days, Riga has a reputation for being a Baltic beauty.
Pro Tip: Started by Owen Ogletree, Brewtopia gives folks the backstage pass to breweries, pubs, and beer-centric restaurants in well-known beer countries like Germany, Belgium, and the U.K. as well as some surprising places, such as the trip we took to Finland, Estonia, and Latvia. Check out all of Brewtopia’s upcoming trips here.
Whether you’re starting your day with a cardamom knot and coffee or ending it with a horseradish-spiked gose at a brewery known for its pagan brews, Riga is a city of unexpected riches.
Here’s how to spend one perfect day exploring the heart of Riga.
How Hop Culture Spent 24 Hours Drinking and Eating in Riga, Latvia
Coffee: Kalve Coffee Roasters
Living Room: Krišjāņa Valdemāra iela 17A, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1010, Latvia
Baznīcas: Baznīcas iela 13, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1010, Latvia
Old Town: Zigfrīda Annas Meierovica Bulvāris 10, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1050, Latvia
Stabu: Stabu iela 38, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1011, Latvia
Miera: Miera iela 19, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1001, Latvia
Āgenskalna Market: Nometņu iela 64, Zemgales priekšpilsēta, Rīga, LV-1002, Latvia
Buzzy and upbeat, Kalve Coffee Roasters is a must-stop for coffee in Riga.
The specialty coffee roasters respect their craft, dedicated to values like honesty, open-mindedness, and, above all, high-quality beans.
While they have lots of locations spread out all over to ensure you have a way to kick-start your day, we recommend heading to the Living Room or Baznīcas locations because they’re both close to your next stop, a pastry stop.
At the latter, where we poked our heads in for our caffeine hit, the hiss of espresso machines joined the soundtrack of ’90s Beastie Boys and constant conversation. Tins of coffee, available to-go on one wall, create a mosaic, while a small pastry case up front tantalizes with glistening, twisty shapes, including a braided cardamom knot masterpiece.
Coffeewise, these folks know what they’re doing. Need proof? Just this year, the team won a prestigious Roast Masters 2025 title at the Amsterdam Coffee Festival.
With names like Candy Shop, Toffee, Marmalade, and Chocolate Bar, Kalve’s blends lean sweet and rich. But you can also find blends from around the world, including Colombia, Costa Rica, Brazil, Rwanda, and Kenya, to name a few.
Pastries: Mīkla Bakery
Vaļņu iela 20, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1050, Latvia
Photography courtesy of Grace Lee-Weitz | Hop Culture
One of the best bakeries in Riga, Mīkla Bakery has top-quality morning coffee (from…surprise, surprise: Kalve) and French-leaning pastries. By recommendation, I ordered the almond croissant—it’s a house favorite.
And now one of our favorites, too. So buttery that it coats your whole mouth, a lovely almond flavor washes through. Laminated to the moon, this croissant felt elevated and airy
Right in front of you, you’ll see bakers rolling out dough. As the morning progresses, the front pastry case will start to fill up with fresh goodies. When we walked in, they only had a few items available—two types of quiche, a pistachio croissant, and, luckily, that bejeweled almond baby—but by the time we left, more goodies had appeared.
It’s like going to the Tower of London and glimpsing the Crown Jewels…only you can eat them.
We walked out of Mīkla with crumbs at the corners of our lips, fingers glistening with butter, and not a care in the world. We’re pretty sure we found powdered sugar in our hair later.
Breakfast: Katkevitch
Lāčplēša iela 114, Latgales priekšpilsēta, Rīga, LV-1003, Latvia
Photography courtesy of Grace Lee-Weitz | Hop Culture
Unassuming and utilitarian out front, but positively sunny and beautiful inside, Katkevitch seems to embody Riga through brunch.
This place, while spotless and gleaming, reminds you of your grandmother’s kitchen, with its cotton-candy-colored coffee cups and saucers, swing-top bottles of water, and the gentle purr of stoves flaming and eggs frying.
Known for its contemporary yet authentic Latvian breakfasts, Katkevich’s dishes include the Farmers’ Breakfast, featuring a fried egg over fried potatoes, bacon, and chopped gherkins. A sort of savory cottage cheese comes nestled on the side with a mixture of sour cream, tomatoes, and greens next to it.
Hearty without being overly filling, this is the breakfast you’ll need to power through this day.
Stroll Around Riga Central Market
Nēģu iela 7, Latgales priekšpilsēta, Rīga, LV-1050, Latvia
Photography courtesy of Grace Lee-Weitz | Hop Culture
Exploring local markets is a great way to get a feel for a city and its people. Riga Central Market is massive with four hangar-sized buildings, roughly divided by categories—one for meat, another for fish and pickled things, another for sweets, nuts, cheese, and everything else you can think of, and one just for non-edible goods.
Pop around, try a few things.
You could totally have lunch here. There’s even a little corner food court with pop-ups offering everything from dumplings to sushi (seriously).
Whatever you do, don’t skip the kwas (or kvass) trailer outside. It’s a big yellow tankard that you can’t miss. Sidle up to the guy standing in front, and you can either take a kvass to-go to sip on as you stroll or in a swing-top glass bottle for home.
A traditional Slavic and Baltic beverage, kvass comes from fermented rye bread. Kind of like a cross between beer and kombucha, kvass typically has an alcohol content between 0.5-1% ABV. It’s a slightly sweet, slightly bready drink with just a touch of spice from the rye.
Editor’s Note: There is an outpost of Labietis, a brewery we highly recommend visiting while in Riga, so you can certainly grab a beer from them here, but we also suggest getting out to the actual taproom.
Lunch: LIDO
Krasta iela 76, Latgales priekšpilsēta, Rīga, LV-1019, Latvia
Eating at LIDO is an adventure. It’s one of the places you almost can’t explain—just better to experience on your own.
While there are a few locations, you want to go to the one slightly outside of Riga’s center. The part amusement park and part lunch cafeteria is an institution in Latvia’s capital.
It’s a super simple concept: Grab a tray, load it up from across the many different stations featuring everything from traditional Latvian dishes to soups, blintzes, salads, and even sushi, head to the checkout line, and stand in awe as the cashier racks up the cost of all your food in mere seconds.
Once you’re done eating, stroll around the grounds for a quirky time. We know we’re being mysterious, but just trust us.
Brewery: Nurme
Vagonu iela 21, Latgales priekšpilsēta, Rīga, LV-1009, Latvia
Untappd’s third-highest-rated brewery in Latvia, Nurme blends traditional local ingredients with modern contemporary brewing techniques. Eclectic experimentations give you beers like PINEFRUIT, an IPA brewed with grapefruit zest and pine buds. Or NUTS, a full-bodied Baltic porter made in celebration of Latvia’s one hundred-year anniversary. For a twist, this cold-fermented lager features chocolate and caramel malts, as well as hazelnuts. Or Sea Goes Radical, a gose with horseradish and Himalayan salt.
Located in an old industrial part of the city that’s going through a revival, Nurme seems to stand for the future of what’s to come in Riga while still respecting where it’s been.
Brewery: Labietis
Aristida Briāna iela 9a, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1001, Latvia
Riga Central Market Stall: Centrāltirgus iela, Sakņu paviljons 1, Rīga, Latvia
Photography courtesy of Labietis
Labietis Co-Founders Reinis Pļaviņš and Edgar Melnis sum up Labietis in two words: pagan brews.
What does that mean?
“You are most likely clueless,” Pļaviņš says matter-of-factly. “So, for the unfortunate 99.9% of the world that doesn’t speak Latvian, we made a slogan that describes what we do.”
To understand its slogan, you first have to understand the brewery’s name.
Labietis refers to a warrior in pre-Christian Latvian society.
Pļaviņš and Melnis wanted to capture this idea of living before being bound by boring rules and regulations, often governed by a religion.
Photography courtesy of Labietis
Photography courtesy of Labietis
“We’re the noble savage who lives in his meadow of flowers and untouched forests without the sounds of the bells of the church on Sundays,” Pļaviņš explains.
If Christianity is hops in this scenario, then Labietis is pagan, incorporating what grows around them.
“I think the closest thing is using the word terroir,” says Pļaviņš.
He clarifies, “It’s not that we hate hops. It’s just that if you are here in Latvia, there is so much more than hops that you can add to beer.”
Different types of herbs, berries, and honeys, just to start.
When you walk into the taproom about ten minutes outside of Riga’s city center, you won’t find dried hops hanging on the ceiling, but dried plants.
“We’re like a pagan pharmacy,” says Roberts Laķis, who has worked behind the bar at Labietis for the last year. “A place where you could get a drink with some medicinal properties.”
Labietis challenges you to think beyond the borders we’ve placed on beverages. Hops and barley don’t always mean beer. Cider isn’t just from apples, and mead isn’t only from honey.
Photography courtesy of Labietis
“I’d argue that if we go half a millennium backwards, you’d be drinking very interesting drinks,” shares Pļaviņš. “People were basically dropping everything into a brew that was not poisonous!”
At Labietis, this translates to beers with juniper, braggots featuring lingonberries, cranberries, bog myrtle, meadowsweet, and linden blossom, as well as meads made with honey, bee pollen, and heather.
Pļaviņš estimates that over the last decade-plus, they’ve brewed with thirty different herbs (that aren’t hops) and ten or more berries and fruits characteristic of the Baltic Sea region.
“We’re taking inspiration from classic styles of beers, as well as ancient brewing traditions here in the Baltic States and combining all of these traditional beer-making techniques with some more modern styles,” sums up Laķis.
The idea isn’t augmentation and aggression, but niche and nuance.
With Labietis, beers have complete freedom, untied from German Purity Laws or hyped-up trends.
These are beers not only with a sense of place, but with a sense of time.
Drinking at Labietis is like traveling back in time, but it’s also a glimpse into the future—one that isn’t dominated by trademarked names of hops, but by what we see, smell, and taste around us.
Even more impressively, Pļaviņš and Melnis never wavered. And they don’t plan to.
“We’re never going to be a hyped brewery with beer nerds knocking at the brewery door,” says Pļaviņš. “We are on a totally different path.”
If you’re ever in Latvia, we encourage you to follow it.
Dinner: Space Falafel
Antonijas iela 8, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1010, Latvia
As you head back to Riga’s city center from Labietis, stop for dinner at Space Falafel. Look, we’re casual folks. We once found some of the best falafel we’ve ever eaten at a street cart a little way outside Amsterdam, chowing down on the chickpea ball sandwiches while sitting on park benches along a canal.
A modern Israeli restaurant, Space Falafel, will give you the rocket fuel you need to power through the rest of the night with spiffy takes on Middle Eastern cuisine.
Considered a bit of a hidden gem in Riga’s Art Nouveau quarter, Space Falafel’s…space is elegantly designed, composed of items the owner brings back from his trips to Israel.
Oh, and this spot also has a very underrated cocktail menu.
However, if you are looking for something a little more sit-down and dress-up, try the six-course tasting menu at 3 Pavāru Restorāns, which translates to three chefs in Latvian and is run by one of the city’s best-known chefs. Also, TAILS for contemporary, high-end, fish-focused dishes like BBQ octopus with caramelized salsify, fish barbecue sauce, and bonito foam. For a flashy, fun stop, try Boo The Burger, which pairs secretly sauced patties of meat with…champagne. Seriously.
Folkklubs Ala Pagrabs
Peldu iela 19, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1050, Latvia
Photography courtesy of Grace Lee-Weitz | Hop Culture
Walk down some dark stairs and down a long, empty hall to find a beer hall brimming with busy tables waiting for live folk music. That’s Folkklubs Ala Pagrabs.
Just a fun place to hang out with a few friends and some pretty standard but keep-the-night-going beers.
Bar ‘Riga Black Magic’
Kaļķu iela 10, Centra rajons, Rīga, LV-1050, Latvia
Photography courtesy of Grace Lee-Weitz | Hop Culture
Is Bar ‘Riga Black Magic’ one of the most touristy places you’ll visit while in Riga?
Yes.
Will you care?
Probably not.
You’re here for the chocolate and the liquor. This apothecary-cum-bar-cum-confectionary reeks of Medieval charm.
An eighteenth-century pharmacy, the building where you now find Bar ‘Riga Black Magic’ was known for something called Black Balsam, the Riga digestif meant to solve everything that ails you. Today, the Baltic pub serves the same recipe from the mid-1700s.
Dark, dim, and dusty, Bar ‘Riga Black Magic’ almost invites you to dabble in the dark arts and have a hell of a time while doing it.
If You Have More Time: Ārpus Brewing Co.
Jauntrenči, Eimuri, Ādažu pagasts, LV-2164, Latvia
We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention Untappd’s highest-rated brewery in Latvia, which is about a thirty-minute drive outside of Riga.
Ārpus now boasts over 1 million check-ins on Untappd, and for good reason. The Latvian brewery boasts an impressive overall rating of 4.01 and continues to receive high marks from craft beer enthusiasts worldwide.
Founded in 2017 by self-proclaimed craft beer geeks, Ārpus Brewing has grown into one of the most popular breweries in Europe. The independent microbrewery focuses on its favorite styles: juicy IPAs, fruit-forward sours, and bold imperial stouts.
While collaborations with Moersleutel, Northern Monk, Verdant, Salikatt, and a slew of other well-known breweries helped put them on the map, Ārpus’ beer speaks for itself.
During the recent Untappd Community Awards, Ārpus took down twenty-three medals, including ten golds along with category sweeps in the following: Sour (Fruited), Stout (Imperial/Double), IPA (Imperial/Double Hazy), and IPA (Hazy)!
Per Ārpus, “We chose the Latvian word Ārpus for the name of our brewery, as its meaning reflects the types of beers we brew—outside the box, beyond the mass-made lagers, beers with overwhelming flavours and aromas for people brave enough to step out of their comfort zone.”
If you have the time and the means, don’t miss out on this fantastic Latvian brewery.
About The Author
Grace Lee-Weitz
Currently Drinking:
Fort Point Beer Co. KSA
Grace is the Senior Content Editor for Hop Culture and Untappd. She also organizes and produces the largest weeklong women, femme-identifying, and non-binary folx in craft beer festival in the country, Beers With(out) Beards, and the first-ever festival celebrating the colorful, vibrant voices in the queer community in craft beer, Queer Beer. An avid craft beer nerd Grace always found a way to work with beer. After graduating with a journalism degree from Northwestern University, she attended culinary school before working in restaurant management. She moonlighted as a brand ambassador at 3 Sheeps Brewing Co. on the weekends before moving into the beer industry full-time as an account coordinator at 5 Rabbit Cerveceria. Grace holds her Masters degree in the Food Studies program at NYU.
