Gavar cuisine is as ancient as the history of Armenia, and a wonderful combination of different tastes and aromas. Closely related to eastern cuisine, various spices, vegetables, fish, and fruits combine to present a unique experience for any visitor to the city of Gavar.

 

Kyavari Kyufta, the city’s favourite dish is made from minced meat spiced with onions and rolled into balls before boiling in water. Served in slices, it is garnished with butter.

 

People of Gavar like to eat bread with almost everything, and the two traditional types of bread in Armenia are lavash and matnakash.

 

Lavash is particular favourite, flat bread rolled into circles and prepared in earthenware ovens in the ground (tonirs). Lavash is used to wrap Armenian cheese or meat spiced with onions, greens and pepper, and marinated before barbecuing over fire or in a tonir.

 

Khoravadz is served with fried tomatoes, aubergines and peppers. There are also many different types of fish in Gavar from the Lake Sevan, and Ishkan (trout) is considered particularly excellent.

 

Dolma is also popular in Gavar, and there are two types. Summer dolma is meat stuffed into aubergines, pepper and tomatoes, while normal dolma is meat wrapped in vine or cabbage leaves, and served with matsuin (similar to yoghourt) and garlic.

 

Khashlama is boiled meat and potatoes, and Kyabab is spiced minced meat cooked over a fire or in a pan.

 

Harisa however, is a very ancient and traditional meal closely linked to Easter. Consisting of wheat and chicken, many families in the city still continue the tradition of serving harisa on Easter Day.

  

Spas is a popular soup that consists of egg and flour stirred into matsoun, a sour diary product similar to yogurt.

 

Other dishes for the more adventurous visitor to the city include Bastourma and Khash.

 

Bastourma is dried slices of lean beef soaked in spicy chaman.

 

Khash is scraped bovine shins, boiled in unsalted water until the flesh flakes off the bones. It is served hot with crushed garlic, and is eaten with lavash that is soaked in the bowl. Khash in particular, is a heavy meal that is not to everyone's taste, and is best eaten in the winter, early in the morning, and with a glass of vodka.

 

The Gavar cuisine is also rich in vegetable dishes and salads. In particular, aveluk, sibekh, spitakuk and shrest are boiled before frying with onions and eggs, and made into soups and salads. Aveluk and other vegetarian dishes are served with nuts and matsoun.