Domini Canes (International Restaurant)

As we have only been to Riga once, as with Casa Nostra and Old Hong Kong, we have only been to Domini Canes once for lunch, thus, our experience and knowledge is very limited. Nevertheless, as our dog was welcome and we very much enjoyed our afternoon here, it is another review-worthy restaurant.

Again, we are not 100% sure about the dog policy, but I know all dogs are welcome on the terrace, and I am pretty sure they said dogs are fine inside unless some customers have problems, i.e., allergies. There is one review on Trip Advisor that says dogs and not allowed, but is a very old review (2015), and the fact that I took photos of the inside and have a vague memory of speaking to the friendly staff about it, I am confident that dogs are OK inside, but might be best to call ahead.

First, an apology: I am afraid I cannot remember the prices at all, so I cannot offer any specifics here. However, I remember thinking it was very reasonable given the exceptional quality of food, wonderful location and atmosphere, and fantastic staff.  Also, I do not remember exactly what all the ingredients were etc., or what drinks we had, but will do my best.

First, before going over the excellent food and drinks, I will talk about the location, atmosphere, and staff. Firstly, Domini Canes enjoys a beautiful location on a quiet street in the old town, so the terrace is a lovely place to be, and the inside of the restaurant is very stylish, welcoming, and comfortable. Next, the staff were amazingly friendly and welcoming, and while the website does not seem to have an English version, all the staff spoke English and there was an English menu available. The food alone is reason enough to come here, but the staff made the experience wonderful; we had an extremely enjoyable couple hours here eating amazing food and enjoying great drinks.

Next, to the wonderful food and drinks! The food offerings do not fit into any individual category; thus, I have termed it as “International”. For example, there are some French influenced dishes, some that nod towards Italian, some that I would just call modern European, but then there are dishes (like the ones we enjoyed) that combine techniques from European cooking with flavours from Asia.

The first dish that we thoroughly enjoyed was very well presented and fantastic tasting liver pate/parfait! It was beautifully smooth, packed with flavour, and the crispy toasts, along with the fresh bread and butter, complimented it perfectly (as did the delicious drinks, but I will come to that soon). We have enjoyed many such dishes over the years, from local restaurants in France to Michelin starred restaurants around the world, and this pate/parfait easily stands up as one of the best we have ever had! Next, for the main course, we shared a salmon dish and a duck dish, both of which were very nicely presented, cooked to perfection, and exploded with wonderful flavours. The salmon dish consisted of a perfectly roasted fillet of salmon coated in a kind of Teriyaki sauce and served with a tomato and avocado confit. It was simply lovely, and I want to eat it again right now as I write this review. The duck dish was made up of a confit duck leg (duck confit is one of our favourite things in the world) with a tangy sauce, roasted/pan fried potatoes, grilled vegetables, and a salad. We class ourselves as somewhat experts on duck confit, but we are also quite specific in the way we like it, and this dish hit all the right boxes! The meat was extremely tender on the inside with crispy skin on the outside; perfect! The sauce was lovely, but as traditionalist, and given the sauce on the salmon, was not needed in our humble opinion. The sides complimented it perfectly and were a great contrast to the freshness of those that came with the salmon. All in all, we were very surprised, and of course pleased, with the quality of the food.

Moving on to the drinks, as it was such a lovely sunny day, we overindulged a bit by enjoying a couple glasses of cold and well served local beers, a glass of delicious red wine, and some local digestifs (various kinds of Riga Black Balsam and I think a Spanish brandy).

As noted, I cannot remember the prices and we paid cash, so I am not 100% sure, but I think the total bill for 1 starter, 2 mains and plenty of drinks, was about €65-70: extremely reasonable given the amazing quality etc.

To sum up, if you and your furry companion(s) are in Riga and are looking for some unusual and exceptional food served by friendly and efficient staff in a wonderful setting, I am sure Domini Canes will not disappoint!