Nene

Walk into Nene and it's immediately clear that every corner was thought through. The upper room lives at a warm, slightly worn pace: natural stone, exposed beams, German industrial light fixtures, chairs and tables sourced at flea markets, and Tbilisi ceramics on the shelves. The walls, mirrors and windows are covered in murals by Roma Peeks, an artist whose work can be found in the Tretyakov Gallery's collection. The lower floor is built from different material: neon, metal, the feel of a club where the night hasn't started yet. The interior was designed by bureau Mast BURO together with Peeks, resulting in a space that quotes Tbilisi not through postcards but through mood.

Our restaurant guide's team finds the wood-fired oven at the center of the room works not as decoration but as the lead character: you feel it and see it from any seat.

Behind the concept are Mikhail and Denis Levchenko, who already own J'PAN, RA'MEN and several other notable projects. They built Nene not as a reconstruction of Georgian classics but as a conversation with a contemporary city, one where Berlin's rhythm and Parisian lightness have long lived alongside tradition. That comes through in both the menu and the bar.

The meal opens with dips: adjapsandali, pkhali made from roasted vegetables, lobio with jonjoli, and a chutney of unripe tomatoes. Next come appetizers, where recognizable Georgian dishes get an unexpected context: turkey satsivi is served in the manner of vitello tonnato, beef tartare comes with a sour-cream cream, and eggplant rolls come out with nadugi cheese. A separate plate of Georgian cheeses stands out, with Imeretian cheese aged in Saperavi and gebzhalia served with an orange jam.

Khachapuri is baked only in the wood-fired oven, in several versions: with porcini and oyster mushrooms, with truffle, with sun-dried tomatoes. Khinkali comes both in the classic form and as minis, with rabbit in chkmeruli sauce, with crayfish tails, with smoked suluguni. Next to the oven, a mangal is at work: charcoal-grilled skewers of various meats, honey-glazed chicken, and lyulya-kebab. Among the hot dishes: chkmeruli chicken, chanakhi with lamb and bell pepper, dolma with matsoni, gnocchi with beef pastrami, and grilled sea bass fillet.

The dessert corner by the entrance looks like a scene from another era: trays, tiered stands, lace napkins. A buckwheat-honey medovik, walnuts with hazelnut and boiled condensed milk, and a bird's-milk cake chocolate-coated right at the table. The Soviet patisserie aesthetic here isn't irony but affection.

Nene's bar list is arranged like a portrait gallery: each of the ten signature cocktails carries the name of a person or place tied to Georgian culture. Tusya, Mina, Ninochka, Bassiani, the Khinkali Gimlet. Chacha comes with adjika instead of the usual lime. Among the non-alcoholic drinks: lemonades with feijoa and vanilla cream, a cold brew of Georgian teas, and an iced tea with quince and sage. The wine list spans labels from different continents, and the Georgian section includes Rkatsiteli Qvevri, Otskhanuri Sapere and Mukuzani from trusted houses.