After passing the Sioni church, right next to it on 13 Shavteli St you will probably stumble on a weird looking clock tower. Well, right next to it (in case you didn't notice the tiny sign on the balcony) is a cafe. whose owner is the same man that built the clock tower. Rezo Gabriadze is a Georgian theater and film director, playwright, writer, painter, puppeteer, and sculptor (who is still alive at 80 years young) who has dabbled in pretty much every artistic domain. In the same building as the cafe, there is a puppet theater and the foundation in the theater works to preserve and respect all that Gabriadze has done for Georgian theater and art. The cafe itself is just as eccentric and cute as Gabriadze and his works, with many of the decorations featuring posters of advertisements for his works over the years. It's a cute quaint little place and it's a great stop if you're in Old Tbilisi because it's still super close to a lot of the tourist history sites. 

 

 

                                                                                    The food itself is delicious and there's a mix of just                                                                                                 traditional food and more modern twists. One thing that the                                                                                     cafe is known for is it's Khachapuri, the Georgian equivalent                                                                                     of pizza. It's a simple combination of cheese and bread, but                                                                                       even with those two ingredients, there are many variations to                                                                                   it. Each person has their preference in terms of                                                                                                             cheese saltiness and bread

                                                                                thickness, but no matter

                                                                                who you are you have to

                                                                                appreciate Gabriadze Cafe's

                                                                                khachapuri. This khachapuri

great taste and just the right saltines, making even me, someone who's

not a huge fan of Khachapuri despite its popularity, a huge fan of how

Gabriadze does it. However, if you're tired of all the comfort food that

makes up the majority of Georgian cuisine, they also offer great salads

that still have a Georgian flair. A salad I personally enjoy is a green salad

with squash and churchkhela, a Georgian desert made from grape and

walnuts. While the ingredients are once again simple, it's a good mix of refreshing and slightly sweet.

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                                                                    For dessert, definitely, order ponchiki, it's                                                                                                                   a soviet desert that's fried dough with creme inside (while typing that I                                                                realized it's essentially a Soviet donut). I can't explain it but the                                                                               cream in ponchiki no matter where you get it from is very distinct and                                                                   VERY good. It's also vegan, so even the vegans can get it on the                                                                               delicious ponchiki action. 

 

                                                                     Overall, Gabriadze Cafe is a great quaint little cafe with great food                                                                       and good atmosphere. It's a great place to stop while walking around                                                                     Old Tbilisi and if you stumble upon it at the right time you might be                                                                       able to see the clock tower puppets. It's not too expensive and it's easy                                                                   to spot because there's literally a clock tower attached to it. If you're                                                                       not yet convinced to check it out, here are some more pictures of this                                                                     cute eccentric cafe.