Georgian food is usually associated with meat and cheese, but fish has an important place too. Mountain rivers yield excellent trout, the Black Sea gives red mullet, horse mackerel and turbot, and Georgian sauces — kindzmari, tkemali, bazhe — turn simple fried fish into a festive dish. Here's what to try and where.

Trout (kalmakhi)

Kalmakhi is Georgian for trout, probably the country's most popular fish. It's cooked:

  • pan-fried whole with a crispy skin;
  • on a ketsi, a clay pan in the oven;
  • on the grill over embers;
  • baked with herbs and pomegranate.

Trout is served with tkemali, pomegranate, herbs and lemon, sometimes with bazhe (walnut sauce).

Where to eat trout

  • Trout farms — plentiful along the Georgian Military Road around Mtskheta, Pasanauri and Kazbegi, in the Borjomi gorge and other mountain areas. You can often pick your fish from the pond and have it on the table 20 minutes later.
  • Roadside restaurants by mountain rivers.
  • Tbilisi restaurants — trout is on almost every menu.

Black Sea fish

On the coast, especially in Batumi, Kobuleti and Poti, fresh sea fish is available:

  • Red mullet (barabulka) — small and delicate, usually fried whole; a firm favourite.
  • Horse mackerel — oily and flavourful, fried or baked.
  • Turbot (kalkan) — large, firm and delicious, highly prized.
  • Black Sea anchovy (khamsa) — a seasonal small fish fried in heaps.
  • Sea bass and sea bream — often farmed, served in restaurants.

Seasons

  • Anchovy — mainly in winter (November to February).
  • Red mullet and horse mackerel — spring to autumn, depending on the catch.
  • Turbot — fishing is regulated, so availability varies by season.

Batumi's fish market

Batumi has a fish market where you buy fresh catch, with cafés next door that cook it for you for a fee. It's simple:

  1. Choose your fish at a stall and pay by weight.
  2. Take it to one of the neighbouring cafés.
  3. In 15–30 minutes you'll get it fried or baked with salad, bread and sauces.

It's one of the freshest and cheapest ways to eat sea fish in Georgia.

Sturgeon skewers

Zutkhis mtsvadi — sturgeon shashlik — is a festive dish. The dense, rich meat is lightly seasoned and grilled over embers, then served with tkemali, pomegranate sauce and onion. Sturgeon is usually farmed, and the dish is fairly expensive.

Sauces for fish

  • Kindzmari — a light sauce of coriander, wine vinegar, garlic and water, served with poached or fried fish. A classic of Georgian fish cooking.
  • Tkemali — the sour, spiced plum sauce, perfect with fried trout.
  • Bazhe — a thick walnut and garlic sauce for cold fish.
  • Pomegranate sauce (narsharab) — sweet and sour, for fried fish.

Fish dishes

  • Fish in kindzmari — poached or fried fish dressed with coriander-vinegar sauce.
  • Fish satsivi — fish in walnut sauce, served cold.
  • Fish on a ketsi — baked in a clay pan.
  • Khramuli — a river fish from the Khrami and other rivers, traditionally prized in Georgia; sometimes found in restaurants and markets.

Recipe: trout with tkemali (2 servings)

  1. Prepare the fish. Gut, rinse and dry 2 trout of 300–400 g each. Make shallow slashes along the sides.
  2. Season inside and out with salt and pepper. Tuck coriander or tarragon sprigs inside if you like.
  3. Dust with flour (optional — for a crisper skin).
  4. Fry in a hot pan with oil or butter for 4–6 minutes per side until golden.
  5. Serve with tkemali, pomegranate seeds, fresh herbs and a lemon wedge.

Wine with fish

  • Tsinandali — the classic Kakhetian white.
  • Tsitska and Tsolikouri — fresh Imeretian whites.
  • European-style rkatsiteli — light and fresh.
  • Light amber wines — with oily fish or fish in walnut sauce.

Tips

  • Freshness is everything. At the market, check for clear eyes, red gills and a clean sea smell.
  • Sea fish prices depend on season and catch; trout is usually available year-round.
  • At trout farms, ask the price per kilo in advance.
  • Bones — red mullet and small fish are bony, so eat carefully.

In short

Fish in Georgia means fried trout with tkemali from mountain farms, red mullet, horse mackerel and turbot from Batumi's fish market, festive sturgeon skewers and fish in kindzmari sauce. Choose the freshest catch, try different sauces and pour a fresh white wine — and you'll discover another delicious side of Georgian cooking.