LIDO Alus sēta — Restaurant in Riga

Lido is a cafeteria-style restaurant offering ready-made Latvian food in an elegant yet casual, self-service setting. We started with two classic Latvian soups: solyanka (a sour/savory soup made with cured meats, pickles, olives, tomato) and a cold pink soup made with shredded beets and dill. Another unique starter was the layered Herring Cake, which looked like a sweet dessert, but was actually a savory composition of mashed potatoes, chopped herring, shredded beets/carrots, cream, chopped boiled eggs, and scallions on top. From their selection of hot foods, I tried the Chicken and Pork Shashlik (grilled skewers), which were juicy and flavorful; the Saithe (white fish) fillet topped with a creamy sauce made of cheese and mixed vegetables; and the Cabbage Roll stuffed with ground meat and served in a creamy sauce. We also had a side of Stewed Sauerkraut, Curry Mixed Vegetables (zucchini, peppers, carrots, onions); and cold shredded cabbage and dill. My favorite items were the Herring Cake, the Solyanka, and the vegetable sides, but everything was tasty and super affordable—there’s a reason locals love...

Unique buffet restaurant with good food.

Buffet restaurant with a bit of a unique take on it. Beverage is self service even the beer and wine. The actual food is abit of a mix since salad and dessert are self service and the hot food the staff put on the plate.

So you don't really get to put how much you want yourself. Example of that is that you don't really get to much protein for a portion compared to the insane mountain of the sides. The selection is very good though with lots of different options for protein, several sides and also a small salad buffet.

Beverages you also have quite a few to choose from all from wine, beers to soft drinks and juices. Just beware that the beer tap is very slow so you have to stand there quite a while to fill you glass full.

After you get thru everything you go to the cash register and the staff counts everything and give you the price. Was quite busy when we went there for a lunch on a weekday. Almost completely full everywhere both inside and outside the restaurant, so keep that in mind...

Lido made it easy for me to have lunch, dinner or breakfast in Riga. I did not have to look all the time where to go for my meals. They have a lot of variations and you can combine the portions you like the most. Menu's change time to time but most of the dishes are consistently there. There were enough variations to try for me and all of them were tasty. So, tasty food combination according to your wish and with a very reasonable price with view of the old town. Isn't it a prefect combo?

It's a self service restaurant and you can get your food really fast if there is no line. Expect crowd when its peak meal time. I would still say you get your food within 10 mins. I have eaten all my meals there and I happy that this idea of the restaurant exists. The idea is like Mensa (Canteen) from Germany and probability of having a tasty meal is way higher. If I am in Riga again, I will go back to this restaurant. The staffs are really nice and atmoshphere is pleasant and...