Oh Yeah!!!! We found this awesome, cheap Estonian pancake house. They were so good! Super buttery, thin, and a bit chewy- somewhere between an American pancake and a French crepe. I had strawberries, whipped cream, and cream cheese. Great combo! Adam prefers savory foods, so he got the ham and cheese. Also really good! We had coffee too, of course. I had a latte and Adam had a cappuccino. Great way to start the day! 

We were craving Asian food, so we ended up at Buddah Lounge for dinner. It was supposed to be Vietnamese, but it seemed more pan- Asian. 

We started with Estonia’s most popular beer- Saku. It’s a light, refreshing lager with a pleasant bitter,nutty finish, AND it’s cheap😃

We had fried spring rolls which were served molten hot and crispy. For the main course, Adam had Wok Fried Chicken Noodles. They were a little on the bland side, but not bad. I had the lemongrass beef. It was good, not nearly lemongrassy enough, but the beef was super tender and succulent.  

We slept in and relaxed this morning. We didn’t leave the hotel until almost 2pm! 😃

We chose a fine restaurant on the outskirts of Old Town- Restaurant Leib or “restaurant black bread”. Black bread is really important to the Estonian people and the cornerstone of every meal- thank goodness! It’s soo delicious! 

We started with Apparetifs. Adam had the house made beer, a well balanced IPA. I had the housemade rowanberry schnapps. It was good- sour, fruity, bitter and served ICE cold!  

    
   
The waitress brought us a box of the awesome homemade Leib with pumpkin and sunflower seed and chive butter. Awesome as usual! We split a started-  pickled herring, roasted potatoes, cottage cheese, pickled onions and carrots, and dill. It was so fresh and so obviously homemade in every aspect. The quality of the ingredients was incredible. The sommelier suggested a wine with each course… Wow! The wine complemented each dish so well. Amazing!  
   
For the main course, I had the pan-seared pike perch with parsnip purée, fresh garden pea sauce, crisp-tart salad, and crispy fried onions and pork skins. It was soooo good. I’m pretty sure they crisped the fish skin in lard. Yes! Great flavor combo beautifully presented. Adam had the homemade pork sausage with smashed potatoes, homemade apple mustard, and onion gravy. His was great, too! 

   
We were both pretty full but we heard we had to try the black bread creme brûlée. We had cappuccinos and shared the dessert. The creme brûlée was ultra creamy and laiden with vanilla bean. There were black bread crumbs in the bottom of the dish- so yummy and inventive. The tart black currents were a perfect foil to the rich creamy dessert. What a satisfying, beautiful meal! 

Tonight is Jill and Cody’s last night in Estonia😔 We had couples date night, then met up for drinks after!

Adam and I went to a traditional Estonian restaurant called Grandma’s Kitchen. It was warm and welcoming and the food was mostly very good. 

Adam started with beer, of course. I had the Grandma’s Apparetif. It was great! A sweet, tart Aperol and soda mix. The waitress brought out delicious, hearty Estonian rye bread with pumpkin seeds and a fabulous chive compound butter- great start!!!

My main was really good- herb baked flounder with creamy mashed potatoes, peas, and cauliflower all surrounded by a luxurious moat of melted butter!!! It was perfectly cooked and seasoned. I loved it. Unfortunately, Adam’s wasn’t as good. He had Grandma’s elk stew with vegetables. It was a surprisingly small, sauceless portion of somewhat dry, roasted things- carrot, mushroom, potato, and elk. Where was the stew? 

It was still a great meal, especially for the low price tag- under €25! But Adam wishes he had ordered something else.  

    
    
    
 After dinner we met Jill and Cody at a local pub and had drinks and good conversation. We’re so thankful that they flew across an ocean to be with us! We had a great time guys! We’ll miss you😘

We had a great day wondering the streets of Old Tallinn! We stopped for a caffeine and sugar break at the oldest cafe in Tallinn. As we were eating, we heard beautiful singing nearby. We popped into an old, gothic church and the music was there! For €1 each, we enjoyed classical music- an opera singer, violinist, and an organist! So beautiful!  

Wr may have found our favorite restaurant thus far! It’s called Farm… I’m sure this won’t be the only meal we have there. 

The restaurant is super stylish and cozy! We loved all the taxidermy, especially the scenes😀 

    
    
 We started the meal with sparkling water, and house made beers- nice! For the appetizer we ordered the Farm Snack- a selection of all of their starters. It was beautifully presented and delicious: warm housemade cottage cheese with smoked eel sausage and herbs, whipped smoked fish spread, beef tartar, white fish tartar, smoked eel with horseradish sour cream and herbs, homemade squeaky cheese, and herb-garlic whipped butter all served with hearty homemade rye bread, fresh butter, and Maldon sea salt! We loved every bite!  

    For the mains: Adam had the roast duck with juicy rice (like risotto), pear and apple compote, and a sweet-tart multiberry wine sauce. I had grilled lamb with perfectly steamed spring vegetables, and silky red wine demi glace. All amazing (and unbelievably affordable)!!! 
    
   

Breakfast was such a disappointment from such a charming hotel. Cold foods were served warm and hot foods were Served cold-ish. The coffee was maybe the worst Ive ever had. So much for “free” breakfast. I think we will be going out most days.  

 
Luckily, the town is gorgeous and they serve wonderful, hot and frothy cappuccinos almost everywhere😊 

We were walking through old town and we came upon a Texas themed bar!!! They were celebrating Independence Day!  We had a beer to remember home on this special day. Now all we need are some fireworks. 

We took a rickshaw from the port to our charming hotel- so fun! After relaxing and settling in, we explored Old Town Tallin and went to a wonderful dinner. 

Jill and I shared a bottle of Italian prosecco- cold, refreshing, and bubbly.   Then, the waiter brought us amazing, homemade pumpkin seed bread. Wow!!! 

Adam and I each started with soup. I had creamy onion and Adam had “two fish soup”. Both were served perfectly hot and made with quality ingredients. 

For mains, Adam had the grilled pork with potatoes and I had the “chicken chest” with tomato-potatoes have and romanesco. Both were great! We love that fine food and drink are affordable in Estonia!!!  

We took a ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn, Estonia. What a fun, cheap adventure! The ferry was large and comfortable. We made a friend, Jonni, at the train station and ended up on the ferry with him! We drank beers and ate chips. Good combo. We played bingo and a “guess the song or artist” game- we won!!! The captain gave us a chocolate bar🎉🎁