In the Georgian mountains people cook differently from the valleys. It is colder, the nearest shop can be hours away and work in the pastures takes a lot of energy. So mountain food means meat, cheese, corn, beans, potatoes and herbs — simple, hearty and delicious. Every gorge has its own dishes, many of which you can't find in Tbilisi. Here is what to look for in Svaneti, Racha, Tusheti and Kazbegi.

Svaneti

Svaneti is Georgia's highest inhabited region, with the defensive towers of Mestia and Ushguli. Svan food is filling and well spiced.

  • Kubdari — the signature Svan pie: dough filled with hand-chopped beef or pork, onion, garlic and Svan salt. The meat is cut with a knife rather than minced, so the filling is juicy and dense.
  • Chvishtari — cornmeal cakes with sulguni inside, crisp outside and stretchy inside, eaten hot with soup or meat.
  • Tashmijabi — Svan mashed potatoes beaten with lots of sulguni until stretchy; the mountain answer to Megrelian elarji.
  • Svan salt — salt ground with garlic and herbs, added to almost everything.
  • Smoked Svan cheese — sulguni smoked over the hearth.

Where to try: guesthouses and restaurants in Mestia and villages like Ushguli, Becho and Latali. After a hike to the Chalaadi glacier or the Koruldi lakes, kubdari with hot tea is the best food in the world.

Racha

Racha, a mountain region in central Georgia, is home to Khvanchkara wine and famous ham.

  • Rachan ham (rachuli lori) — pork salted and smoked over the hearth, fragrant with a light smokiness, eaten with bread and herbs or baked into lobiani.
  • Rachan lobiani — bean-filled bread with pieces of Rachan ham, the best-known version of lobiani in Georgia.
  • Shkmeruli — chicken in a creamy garlic sauce, from the Rachan village of Shkmeri.
  • Khvanchkara — a naturally semi-sweet red from Aleksandrouli and Mujuretuli grapes, made around Ambrolauri.

Where to try: Ambrolauri, Oni and the guesthouses around them. In summer and autumn Racha is one of the most beautiful and least crowded places in Georgia.

Tusheti

Tusheti is an isolated mountain region reachable only by one dangerous road over the Abano Pass in summer. Tushetians are shepherds, and their food revolves around sheep.

  • Tushetian guda — a pungent sheep's cheese aged in sheepskin bags.
  • Kotori — thin pan-fried flatbreads filled with curd or cheese, a simple everyday shepherd's dish.
  • Tushetian lamb — from sheep grazed on high meadows, boiled or grilled over coals, considered among the best in Georgia.
  • Lamb khinkali — the mountain version of khinkali.
  • Tushetian beer — homemade barley beer brewed for festivals.

Where to try: only in Tusheti itself — Omalo, Dartlo, Shenako — from June to September when the road is open. Tushetian cheese and butter sometimes appear at Telavi market.

Kazbegi and Khevsureti

Along the Georgian Military Road towards Mount Kazbek the food is simpler but just as good.

  • Khinkali — especially in Pasanauri, the "capital of khinkali" on the way to Kazbegi, made the Mtiuleti way with only meat, onion and pepper.
  • Kobi cheese — firm and salty, from the village of the same name.
  • Dambalkhacho — smoked, mould-ripened curd cheese from Mtiuleti and Khevsureti.
  • Khevsur beer — the ritual drink of mountain festivals.

Where to try: Pasanauri, Gudauri and Stepantsminda, in guesthouses with a view of Gergeti.

Eating in the mountains

  • Guesthouses are the best restaurants in the mountains. Hosts cook from what the farm provides, and dinner is often included in the price.
  • Portions are huge, made for people who spent the day on the slopes. Order less than you think.
  • Seasonality. Many dishes and products are available only in summer, when shepherds are up on the high pastures.
  • Alcohol and altitude. Chacha and wine hit harder up high; go easy if you are hiking tomorrow.

What to take home

  • Svan salt and smoked Svan cheese;
  • Rachan ham — check your country's rules, as many ban meat imports;
  • Tushetian guda, vacuum-packed;
  • mountain honey from Svaneti and Racha;
  • a bottle of Khvanchkara from Racha.

In short

Mountain Georgia is a culinary country of its own. Eat kubdari and tashmijabi in Mestia, Rachan lobiani with ham and shkmeruli in Racha, kotori and lamb in Tusheti and khinkali in Pasanauri. And take home some Svan salt — it makes even plain potatoes taste a little like the mountains.