Restaurants & Cafés

With a large selection of restaurants available and a trend toward sophistication, Pärnu’s dining scene is surprisingly advanced for a town its size. If you’re out for a simple, quick meal, you’ll have no problem scrounging up a bite at one of the beachside lounge bars, street food locations as well as pubs and casual dining cafes - no matter your dining needs, you certainly won’t go hungry in Pärnu.

Romantic

Fora romantic dinner justfortwo,ormore-there are several lovely restaurants to choose from. The Art Nouveau Ammende Villa has a rich history and has long been a dining favourite due to its elegance and delightful cuisine. Villa Wesset is likewise a bit of a trip back in time to the turn of the century, yet the food is decidedly New Nordic.

Casual

If you’re looking for something a little more casual, or a place to eat out with a small group of friends there are several great choices including Vehverments bar & tostadas that serves up creative dishes in a funky, colourful old wooden house. Gastronoom is a popular choice with their international menu, cocktail list and breakfast options. Postipoiss is a place to enjoy slavic cuisine in a historic tavern with a large summer terrace. Another casual eatery is the American-style Bison. They have come pretty close to the ‘real deal’ here and the steaks, jalapeno poppers, and beer-battered onion rings are mouth-wateringly good.

Villa Wesset

A popular restaurant with an elegant, indoor/outdoor terrace, which is the big attraction in summer. The menu is composed mainly of Wesset’s creative take on popular European classics, none of which will disappoint. They also offer breakfast buffet Mon - Fri 7.00 - 10:00 and Sat, Sun 8:0011:00.The classic breakfast buffet selection of egg dishes, pancakes, salmon etc costs 15€ for adults, 8€ for kids ages 7 - 14 and is free for kids 6 years old and under. QSupeluse 26, tel. +372 56 46 05 00, www.wesset.ee. Open 12:00-23:00; Fri, Sat 12:00-02:00. Off-season open 12:00-23:00, Fri, Sat 12:00-24:00.

STREET FOOD & PIZZA

Simple grab’n’go food is always quite popular, and in recent years‘street food’has become a goto when you’re hungry and just want some great grub,withouttheneedforanythingfancy.Someof the more proven choices are Victor Tänavatoit, where you can find a huge selection of burgers, finger foods, wraps and more. Likewise, PoisiEine has a similar variety on offer, albeit many of the portions are rather large. Add to that a cool retro vibe, indoor and outside seating areas with great prices and you’ve got a hunger beater. Pizza Mizza! Easily one of the most popular foods in the world, pizza comes in many different shapes, sizes, flavours and styles based on where in the world it’s made. Estonia is no different, however, Italian-style wood oven pizzas have become increasingly available in the country - and this is a good thing to be sure. A good selection of wood-oven pizzas can be found at

Leivakas, a new bakery by the Pärnu river. For a more American, chain-style (think Dominos), Dodo Pizza is in fact based on several American chain models and provides a consistently good pie alongside great wings and a whole bunch of other tasty snacks. They also deliver, and if you don’t get your pizza in an hour they’ll give you a gift card for a free pizza on your next order. Finally we get to Steffani Pizza, which is hands down the most popular pizza place in Pärnu. Steffani’s is a perfect place for kids as well, and they open up a beach-side location during the summer months.

Postipoiss

Portraits of Czarist royals preside over the wooden-decked halls in this lively, Slavic-themed restaurant. The 19th-century building at one time served as part of the Russian empire’s postal infrastructure, so perhaps it’s appropriate that authentically Slavic dishes like bliny and pelmeni make up the menu. Diners can wash them down with a pint of the house beer and enjoy it all on their large summer terraces that can fit up to 200 people. Drop by any weekend evening when Postipoiss turns into a party spot. Q Vee 12, tel.

+372 446 48 64, www.trahterpostipoiss.ee. Open 12:00-23:00; Fri, Sat 12:00-02:00; Sun 12:00-23:00.

Bison House

Following in the hoofsteps of other eateries named after XXL-sized animals, Bison House is a smart-casual affair that specialises in steaks, ribs and other high-protein consumables. All the American favourites are on the menu from onion rings and chicken wings to steaks and burgers. All-day breakfast dish is available for anyone who likes to sleep in or just can’t resist eggs and bacon at any time of the day. QRüütli 14, tel. +372 53 82 00 80, www.bisonhouse.ee. Open 11:00-21:00; Wed, Thu 11:00-23:00; Fri, Sat 11:00-01:00.

With Kids

Eating out with kids can sometimes be a bit of a chore, especially trying to find a spot that has a menu that pleases the whole gang. Pärnu is quite child-friendly, so there’s no need for anyone to go hungry, or have a tantrum because someone didn’t want to be force-fed blue, goat milk camembert grilled cheese sandwiches on quinoa bread with a side of fermented black olives, caramelised with buckwheat honey and home fried Jerusalem artichoke wedges. In fact most eateries have menus for kids, even if they are rather unexciting, the two below however give the younger ones something interesting to do while waiting for the food.

One particular family friendly spot, located right at the beach, is Estonia’s answer to an American diner/smokehouse, Mack Bar-B-Que (only during summer). Here you can find burgers, ribs, fries, deep fried items, a pizza and pretty much every other stereotypical, conceived in the US, food item.

The popular Pärnu Yacht Club restaurant by the river is the perfect family place to dine, there’s a small pirate ship parked at the front, keeping your kids busy playing pirate games while you wait in peace for the food. Win-win.

In the centre, Oliver’s Garden Café with a great garden terrace and a sizable playground might be just what you ordered. The menu has burgers, shish kebab, plenty of finger foods and some refreshing cocktails as well as mocktails.

Breakfast

While travelling, breakfast is always on everyone’s mind. And if you aren’t staying in a hotel with an included breakfast, there are numerous spots around town that offer up greatvalueformoneyinthebreakfastcategory. We particularly like Pastoraat which serves breakfast from 7:30am, VillaWesset welcomes everyone to their hotel’s buffet breakfast, Bison has an all day breakfast starting daily from 11am.

Set in an old wooden house and sporting a spacious terrace under the apple trees and a kids playground, make it a great choice for families. The menu consist of burgers, salads, shish kebab and other easy to please meal items, plenty of finger foods and some refreshing cocktails as well as mocktails. Please check their Facebook site for the occasional events. Q Supeluse 1, tel. +372 5349 77 94, http://villaoliver.ee. Open: 12:00 - 22:00.