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    Home » Travel » Europe » Georgia

    Published: Mar 19, 2023 · Updated: Jul 19, 2023 by Joanne

    Classic Georgian Main Dishes To Try in Tbilisi

    Georgian cuisine is having its moment, and I am so happy for this Caucasus country to be able to show off its food! The striking cheese pull videos of khachapuri are more than enough to entice you. But Georgia's main dishes have something to offer everyone. This Georgian food guide provides an introduction to some dishes you may eat during your trip to Tbilisi.

    You will come across many of these local food if you attend a supra, also known as the Georgian feast. A combination of Georgian appetizers, sides (such as bread), and these larger dishes arrive at the table to be eaten together in a progressive manner. The following dishes are typically featured at the central part of the meal. 

    Chicken in Creamy Garlic Sauce

    Chkmeruli

    Chkmeruli with white garlic sauce in a clay pan

    Chkmeruli is a well-known chicken dish both in and outside of Tbilisi, Georgia. You would know this dish as crispy roasted peasant-style chicken chopped into shareable pieces and layered into a clay pan called a ketsi. The cook would shower the chicken with a garlic cream that is half stew, half sauce. You would mop up the sauce with bread as you tear in the chicken pieces.

    Stewed Eggplant and Vegetables

    Ajapsandali

    A hearty and veggie-filled dish, ajapsandali consists of many vegetables stewed until they blend together. The dish's highlight is the eggplant, which takes on the flavors of the other ingredients. People would consider it a stew and it does belong on the Georgian soups and stews list. However, you can see this served alongside the heavier meat dishes as your main vegetable dish.

    Spiced Meat Sausage

    Kupati

    Georgian sausage called kupati in a ketsi pan

    Georgia has their own culture of sausage-making and consumption, with a range of variations that frequently appear on menus. Let's start with kupati, a rustic version of sausages made with minced pork, sometimes mixed with beef. Each region has its own style of kupati based on fillings ranging from minced meat to chopped organs.

    Sausage with Promegranate

    Aphkhazura

    Apkhazura sausage with potatoes

    Another style of sausage made with meat and stuffed with heavy spices and pomegranate seeds. Although this type of food has its roots outside Tbilisi, it is a widely recognized Georgian dish offered at plenty of restaurants in the capital city.

    Pork Ribs

    Neknebi

    Ribs are a specialty dish, and a few restaurants offer them on their menu in Tbilisi. But if you do come across barbecued ribs on a menu, you should try them. These are always well-seasoned and come out tender!

    "Family Meal"

    Ojakhuri

    Ojakhuri a Georgian dish in a cast iron pan

    Ojakhuri means family meal, an amalgamation of chopped deep-fried pork, fried potatoes, and onions all tossed together in a seasoning specially made for this dish.

    • Variations: Menus across Georgia will have different meat or vegetables to accompany the potatoes in ojakhuri.
      • Mushroom: A popular alternative to achieve a vegetarian-style ojakhuri.
      • Meat: Though pork is the most common fried meat in ojakhuri, you may also come across veal or beef.

    Fish

    Tevzi

    A fried river trout on a white place

    Over 25,000 rivers have carved their way through Georgia over the centuries with the major ones providing sustenance to its citizens. Salmon and trout are the most common fish dishes in Georgian restaurants, the first typically baked or slow-cooked, while the latter would be fried. I've only had fried salmon and trout at restaurants. If you were to take a deeper look at Georgian fish dishes, there are a myriad of more complicated fish recipes. One particular dish I would like to try is trout in pomegranate sauce.

    Pan Fried Chicken

    Tabaka

    The chicken used for this dish is small, yet tasty, so it doesn't require as much seasoning. The whole chicken is spatchcocked, then flattened with a weight and cooked in a special pan called a tapa. This endeavor produces a crispy, lightly seasoned, and flavorful roasted chicken.

    Minced Meat Kebab

    Kebabi

    A kebab with onions on a white plate

    Like many other countries, Georgian cuisine takes influences from its neighbors so the kebab is a mainstay. This minced meat option is served on lavash in nearly all Georgian restaurants.

    Organs in Ketsi

    Kuchmachi

    Nothing goes to waste in Georgian cooking, and the next two dishes make a prime example of this philosophy. Kuchmachi is a regional dish filled with various animal organs that usually come from chicken, although pork and beef are fitting alternatives. The chopped organs (gizzards, heart, liver, etc.) are heavily seasoned and then roasted in a clay pan. 

    Organs with Tomatoes

    Jigari

    Jigari means "entrails," making it the perfect name for this dish. It's a hearty blend of pork parts such as the liver, kidney, and lungs. The pieces are braised with tomatoes along with fresh herbs and spices.

    Barbecued Meat

    Mtsvadi

    Skewered barbecued meat, a type of Georgian dish called mtsvade

    This Georgian food guide wouldn't be complete without mtsvadi. You get your choice of skewered lamb, beef, chicken, and pork roasted over a pit of coal. The cooks make a simple seasoning of salt and black pepper to take care of the flavors. These barbecued pieces are pulled off and served on a plate with sauces such as tkemali, a sour plum sauce, or nasharab, a pomegranate molasses sauce.

    Boiled Beef

    Khashlama

    Khashlama is also part soup, part main dish. Large pieces of fatty beef are boiled to make a stock soup. Then the stock receives some humble seasonings of chopped herbs and minced garlic. In its soup form, the seasoned stock is filled with the tender bits of beef. As a non-soup dish, the boiled beef would be placed and sliced on a plate for serving.

    Where to Eat Georgian Food in Tbilisi

    Below is a list of suggestions to try some of the Georgian dishes I mentioned in this article. These restaurants serving up notable Georgian food are mostly in Tbilisi, while others are located in notable cities throughout the country. The items listed per restaurant may not be available due to seasonality. Let me know if I should add anything to this list!

    • Shemomechama: They live up to their name! Shemomechama means the food is so good that you keep eating even though you are full. They have juicy pork mtsvadi, tasty salads, and a picture-perfect khachapuri to share with friends. 

    • Chemo Kargo: In addition to its popular khinkali and beer menu, this local restaurant offers up an impressive display of mtsvadi, crispy ojakhuri, and various sausages such as kupati.

    • Chashnagiri: This restaurant is excellent at introducing Georgian food. Take advantage of their ajapsandali, chicken mtsvadi, and ojakhuri. They also offer two types of chkmeruli, one with cream and one without.

    • Georgian House: Georgian House is more like an event venue with different eating sections throughout their property. Although it's a bit formal, the menu is consistent, which includes pan-fried chicken, and kupati.

    • Racha: Tbilisi's 100-year-old tavern turned restaurant has an extensive food menu. Their apkhazura, jigari, and ribs should not be missed!

    • Badia: This garden restaurant in Telavi, Georgia, is worth visiting just for its ambiance. Sit under grapevines in their backyard while enjoying the tastiest chkmeruli (I ever had), juicy kebabs, and their homemade wine.

    More Georgian Dishes

    Although this is a detailed list of the main dishes in Georgia, I want to remind you that the supra serves many dishes at once for you to enjoy. So order more than one dish per person at your table to share to get an authentic Georgian experience.

    Finally, although I've lived in Tbilisi for a few years now, I have not had the pleasure of trying every food just yet, especially when it comes to regional specialties. Check back on this page for additional Georgian dishes! 

    Curious for More Tbilisi Food Guides?

    Check These Out 😎

    • 10+ Georgian Appetizers and Snacks
    • 12+ Types of Georgian Bread
    • 10+ Georgian Soups and Stews
    • Two Types of Wine Tastings in Telavi, Georgia
    • 15+ Specialty Coffee Shops in Tbilisi
    • Where to Eat the Best Khinkali in Tbilisi: 10+ Local Restaurants
    • Where to Eat the Best Breakfast or Brunch in Tbilisi: 10+ Must-Try Places

    Tried Some of These Places?

    Please leave me a comment down below telling me how your trip went. Bonus: Let me and other readers know what you did to make this itinerary more interesting - 💫 let's inspire each other!

    Also, follow me on Instagram [@seesfoodwilltravel] and send me a DM of the food you tried. I would love to share and celebrate YOUR experience with our budding community 💞

    Check out Sees Food, Will Travel on Pinterest and Facebook for more delicious updates.

    More Georgia

    • Multiple blue plates of food on a wooden table
      Where to Eat the Best Breakfast or Brunch in Tbilisi: 10+ Must-Try Places
    • Different colors plates of khinkali, or Georgian dumplings
      Where to Eat the Best Khinkali in Tbilisi: 10 Local Restaurants
    • Latte art that shows three hearts
      15+ Best Specialty Coffee Shops in Tbilisi
    • 10+ Georgian Soups and Stews

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kaylynn says

      April 04, 2023 at 6:14 am

      naturally like your web site however you need to take a look at the spelling on several of your posts. A number of them are rife with spelling problems and I find it very bothersome to tell the truth on the other hand I will surely come again again.

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        April 07, 2023 at 6:11 pm

        Great catch, Kaylynn! Thanks for your notes on the blog and I'm glad you like the content in general. This has actually been on my radar and I've been working with an editor for the past couple months to smooth out the grammatical and spelling mistakes across all the articles. It's a work in progress, but we're continuing to refine the site!

        Reply
    2. EDGAR ACOSTA says

      March 10, 2024 at 10:10 pm

      Great website. I always enjoyed Georgian food. Keep helping us. Thanks!!!

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        March 25, 2024 at 12:51 pm

        Thanks, Edgar! I'm glad you found this page helpful and I hope you get to explore more types of Georgian food!

        Reply

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