FERMA — Restaurant in Riga

Unpleasant experience for birthday!

I booked the table 1 week in advance warning that we gonna celebrate the birthday, they told that there no compliment but will provide the birthday candle (when they bring us desert we ordered waitress told us that they do not have any candles:). Calling by the phone the same day as we visited I faced inattentive attitude, the person who answered the phone didn’t listen at all what I was saying, asking the same things many times. When we finally went inside the restaurant, the waiters didn’t greet us, not even helping to put out clothes. They were chatting near the bar. The table we were offered was at the right side and this part was very crowded, few big companies were celebrating events, but at the left side was almost empty. They told us that we cannot go there because there tables booked for tomorrow. What..? “Not local girl” who served us, couldn’t answer any questions about the food, only reading in quite route manner from menu, like as we cannot read by ourselves, any additional information she couldn’t provide at all. She didn’t even try to be nice or helpful. The overall attitude was horrible, we felt like we are visiting fast food eatery not Michelin advised restaurant. For dinner over 150 Eur, for 2 people I would expect better experience and more professional waiters stuff. In Riga there are plenty of better places with better attitude to customers. I regret that I didn’t read review before booking the table, all negative and low scores reviews...

Bit difficult because they don't allow half marks. I'm actually scoring this 3.5 but not quite a 4. This is because for a restaurant of this level, scoring has to be stricter as much more is expected and Ferma unfortunately didn't actually deliver as expected. Well located in Quiet Centre. Lovely ambience but the sofa seating was a little difficult to sit and eat from with the table being a little too far from the sofa and at the wrong height. Would recommend sitting in the chairs. Waiters were very pleasant and polite and served well but needed to be a little more knowledgeable with regards to the menu. All food was cooked and presented well. Would recommend the Beef carpaccio with seasonal mushrooms, parmesan, rucola and sweetbread and the thinly sliced Barbary duck to start. However, despite tasty food there was just something missing from a restaurant of that standard. Run by a young entrepreneurial chef with a cooking school attached, I just expected a little more from Ferma and it didn’t deliver. For example, the octopus came with a lemongrass coulis which was so strong that it tasted artificial and overpowered the tender octopus. My d uck reastb - Bacon Puree, Rowan Bean Gel, Cranberries, Broccoli, Broth was tender, well,-cooked just as I like (medium rare) and the dish came together well but was missing that wow factor. Pleasant meal, but didn't meet...

FERMA – Riga FERMA is located in a quiet residential area of Riga, just minutes from Old Town. FERMA restaurant lives up to its Michelin-listed status by creatively and innovatively bringing out the full flavors of Latvian cuisine. The Fish of the Day entrée was poached catfish. Light with a sweet, delectable taste, it was exactly what my partner hoped for. I chose the fillet of beef from a Latvian farm that was so tender and juicy it was a joy to my taste buds. We both had lived in Missouri for quite some time, and two favorite dishes in that state are catfish and steak. The sides were the ‘in season’ Chanterelle mushrooms giving the entire meal the freshness that is FERMA’s hallmark. Chef Maris and is superb team use only locally sourced meat, produce, seafood, and fish to create masterpieces of culinary delight. FERMA’s menu includes mouth-watering appetizers, salads, soups, and hot snacks to prepare your taste buds for your choice of delectable main courses. The Selection of Latvian Cheese appetizer with the Spicy Grilled Tomato Soup is an excellent way to start this culinary journey. For our mains, we chose the fillet from a local ranch and catfish from one of the many rivers that crisscross Latvia. What a delight! Their dessert menu completed this extraordinary meal. We loved the roasted almond ice cream with caramelized apricots, almond crumble, and an...