Europe travel guide

Riga restaurants turn to chips

Soaring inflation is having its effect on eating out in Riga. A sharp increase in the price of bread has seen Latvians turn to the humble spud as families try to balance their household budgets.

The first two months of 2008 saw bread sales fall by up to 15 per cent. To make up for the Latvian shortfall in calories, sales of potatoes soared by around 20 per cent during the same period. Restaurants are also adding spuds to their menus to keep prices down.

The potato was first cultivated 7,000 years ago in the Andes of South America. There are at least 5,000 varieties, ranging in colour from plaster white to deep purple.

The spud was brought to Europe by the Spanish in 1532 and 50 years later it was on sale in the markets of Seville. Experts say it has great nutritional value and only five per cent of the fat content of wheat. The potato has more protein than corn and nearly double the calcium. It also contains essential minerals such as iron, potassium and zinc as well as vitamin C.

And yet, for all charms, the spud suffers badly from an image problem. The Incas revered them and buried them with their dead but we mash them and fry them for a cheap no frills stomach filler.

This article was written for TravelSavvy Europe by Rad Djork. For more information see: Riga - Eating out. If you know of an interesting European travel related news story, please get in contact.