Highlights / General details Taste authentic Balkan cuisine, influenced by Asian, Mediterranean, and Eastern European culinary traditions — and 100% delicious! Bulgarians tend to take their meals leisurely with lots of chitchat, so expect plenty of conversation served up with your food! Inclusion Home cooked lunch or dinner; Water, tea, or coffee; Traditional rakiya alcoholic drink. Exclusion Hotel pick-up and drop-off; Souvenirs and items of a personal nature; Gratuities for your local guide. Hours of operation Available daily departing at 10:30am and 5:30pm. Duration Approximately 3.5 hours. Location Tour departs from Eight Sea Regiment Memorial (Osmi Primorski Polk Monument), 1 mile from the city center, close to the Chataldja bus stop. Itinerary Get to know a local family in the best way possible: by being invited into their home for a meal! Your Varna tour takes you to the home of Deyan and Denitsa, a tour guide and journalist who can provide you with rich insight into Bulgarian culture and traditions. Deyan will escort you from the meeting point to his home, either on foot or by bike — your choice! (Note that if you choose to travel by bicycle, please let Urban Adventures know when you make your booking.) In addition to offering up great conversation, you’re guaranteed good food, too — Deyan used to operate a local seafood restaurant, Ribski, which was well respected in the community. Your Home Cooked tour will reflect the deep rural traditions as well as the recent trends and flavors of Bulgaria. Expect traditional salads like shopska, zelena, or turshiya, with a bit of rakiya as a starter. If you like soups, we’ll recommend shkembe, ribena chorba, tarator, or vareno. There’s a bona fide fish expert in the family, so if fish is your preference, you can try traditional fish dishes, simply garnished and delicious. You’ll be treated to recipes passed down over generations, including tasty banitsa, a salty pastry. Expect at least 3 kinds of yogurt — yogurt’s a staple in Bulgaria and is said to be some of the best in the world. If you are a wine lover, your host family will help you to choose a bottle of quality Bulgarian wine en route that will pair well with the regional dishes. Note: This experience is real. Our families come from all walks of life. Some are probably very similar to you and some are from poor or rural backgrounds. We encourage you to check out our photos of the Kateliev family to make sure your expectations are correctly set about the family you will be sharing a meal with and where they live. The beauty is that everyone involved in our Home Cooked series is a wonderful person who wants to meet travelers and share this experience with them. Additional Information Casual dress is encouraged. Participant restrictions Children under the age of 6 are allowed, but please make sure you inform our guides of this before you take the tour. Policies Cancellation: 2 days prior 100% penalty. No show 100% penalty. Complete information, including local telephone numbers at your destination, will be included on your Confirmation Voucher. **All information requested must be supplied or booking is subject to automatic cancellation**