Nineteen 18, Vilnius

Named after the year Lithuania regained its independence, Nineteen18 sits within the Senatorijų Pasazas, a breathtaking 400-year-old mansion in Vilnius Old Town where Gothic, Baroque, and Neoclassical details meet sleek, modern design. Cheffe Vita Bartininkaitė - alongside with chef Justinas Misius - translates her love for bread, fermentation, and contemporary techniques into a cuisine that feels deeply personal and inventive.

The tasting menu - around ten courses - unfolds like a story, each dish flowing seamlessly into the next, a true celebration of flavour and craftsmanship. Ingredients come straight from the restaurant’s own farm or are foraged locally, bringing the purity of Lithuanian soil and season to every plate. Dining here feels both timeless and utterly alive, a feast for all the senses.

Pickles&ferments: cucumber & elderflower, unripe strawberry, marinated pine tree bloom (male), blackened rhubarb & beachrose petals, unripe fermented tomatoes, kojified beetroot, plum treated like an olive

The first course is like a Lithuanian haiku, composed of seven fermented ingredients from local forests and fields. Just as the seven syllables of a traditional haiku capture a fleeting moment in nature - often with subtle emotion or observation, minimalist and evocative - this dish leaves space for the senses to wander. In this delicate balance, the tone of the entire dinner is set.

Rye & caraway seeds bread, beurre noisette and salt. First spring radishes with salted sourcream & ramson oil

Follows a green bell peppers & tomato water gel, Siberian sturgeon caviar (‘Antonius’, PL) and pepper foam, creamy and subtile. And when the third course arrives, it feels as if time has frozen: bread, aged melted butter, tangy sour cream, and crisp radishes. In Lithuania, spring is best tasted in the simplest of ways: fresh, peppery radishes paired with slices of dark, nutty rye bread. Crunchy and vibrant, the radishes are often enjoyed with a smear of creamy butter and a pinch of salt, bringing out their pure, garden-fresh flavour. This humble combination isn’t just food - it’s a gesture of hospitality, a small but heartfelt welcome to guests, and a delicious reminder of the country’s deep connection to the land and its seasonal rhythms.

1.- Sunchoke basket filled with caramelised mushroom & potato foam, spruce-smoked cheese, cured egg yolk. 2.- Pumpkin seeds milk tofu, Jerusalem artichoke & chicken jus, grilled white asparagus and raw hazelnut. 3.- Kojified sirloin, flower garum caramelised beef tongue, black pudding with ramson capers. Caramelised brioche and smen style aged butter;

A delicate sunchoke basket filled with caramelised mushroom and airy potato foam, lifted by the resinous depth of spruce-smoked cheese and the rich savouriness of cured egg yolk. Earthy, comforting, and quietly refined. The silken pumpkin seed milk tofu paired with Jerusalem artichoke and glossy chicken jus, balanced by smoky white asparagus and the fresh crunch of raw hazelnut. A dish of remarkable restraint and elegance. Then, the kojified sirloin delivers deep, fermented richness alongside caramelised beef tongue glazed with flower garum. Black pudding, ramson capers, caramelised brioche, and smen-style aged butter create a dish that is bold, indulgent, and beautifully controlled.

1.- Burned eel, hot salad, onion caramel and kefir reduction foam. 2.- Fig leaves sorbet. 3.- Pigeon breast glazed with shoyu reduction, pigeon and black trumpet sausage, brased red cabage with chokeberry, liver demi glaze. On the side: kojified barley porridge with rye bread miso and koji eged melon. 4.- Sour-cherry snow, wild rose petals jam, sour cream ganache and roasted hazelnut oil.

A Burned eel arrives with deep smokiness and quiet intensity, balanced by a warm salad, sweet onion caramel, and a sharp kefir reduction foam that cuts through the richness with precision. A fig leaf sorbet cleanses the palate beautifully — herbal, green, and softly creamy, leaving a refreshing pause before the final savoury course. The pigeon breast, glazed in a glossy shoyu reduction, is rich and impeccably tender. Paired with pigeon and black trumpet sausage, braised red cabbage with chokeberry, and a deep liver demi-glace, the dish carries remarkable depth. The side of kojified barley porridge with rye bread miso and koji-aged melon adds warmth, fermentation, and subtle sweetness in equal measure. Sour-cherry snow closes the menu with elegance: bright acidity softened by wild rose petal jam, silky sour cream ganache, and the toasted richness of roasted hazelnut oil. A dessert that feels both delicate and deeply expressive.

The wine pairings are generous and expertly curated by a young front-of-house team, always attentive, friendly, and effortlessly smooth.

Since opening, Nineteen18 has become far more than a fine-dining restaurant. With each course, Cheffe Vita Bartininkaitė, alongside with chef Justinas Misius, elevates Lithuanian culinary traditions, transforming them into a modern, sensory experience that is truly not to be missed.

Website: https://www.nineteen18.lt/

Maria Canabal