Our Man in Tirana

Thanks to Venera for introducing us to yet another fine restaurant in Tirana. On Wednesday we were at Grepi i Arte, which is tucked away on a small, nameless street between Bulevardi Gjerg Fishta and R. Myslym Shyri. The restaurant is bright and spacious and tastefully decorated. More importantly the food is excellent as is the service. The owner, Niko, has made a real effort and it seems to be paying off, since the restaurant was well filled on Wednesday night and I'm told it is also very busy at lunchtimes. Well worth a visit if you are in Tirana. Pass the Elda petrol station on Gjergj Fishta heading away from Taiwan, then take the first right followed by the first left. The restaurant is about 50 metres away on the right. If you want to make a reservation - or if you get lost trying to find it - you can call them on 068 207 7804. look for the blue neon Niko, the owner, with a big fish take your pick

On the menu at Sofra i Ariut: the Laura Bush veal fillet.

I've been trying to come up with a list of restaurants I've eaten at here in Tirana. I know I've missed some, and I'm sure I've got some of the spellings wrong, and there are others I've been to but I've no idea what they were called, but here they are in no particular order. If anyone has any suggestions of other places to try send them in. Carlsberg, Metropolitan, Green House, Piazza, Chocolat, Eastana, Efendi, Royal, Juvenilja, Lion Park, Sofre e Ariut, Serendipity, Amsterdam,Berlin, Lulishte 1 Maji, Casa di Pasta, La Tavernetta, Rozafa, Ujvara, Divjaka, Gloria, Shvjek, Vila 31, Floga, Pusi, Noel, Vinum, Emblema, Ashiana, Amor, King House, Alcora, La Cantinella, Vila Logoreci, Xhokonda, Bacchus, La Mediteraneo

Thanks to Albanian friends we found yet another superb restaurant. This one, Dy Kitarrat , is in Durres. We skipped the pizza and had plate after plate of superb fresh seafood washed down with good Sicilian wine. We also had live music from the two brothers who own the place and some of their friends. Highly recommended.

Last night after another fine dinner at King House - highly recommended - I ended up at Tirana's trendiest nightclub, Lollipop. There were five of us there and I think between us we raised the average age considerably. I'm not a nightclub person, but there was a live band playing and a friend arranged some tickets for us. We arrived just as the band were playing Gloria - a taste of home. For those who don't know, Gloria was a song by Them, whose lead singer was Van Morrison before he got famous all on his own. Van Morrison is a son of my own home town of Belfast - and is the person they should have named Belfast City Airport after instead of drunken wife beater George Best. Then we could have flown from Van Morrison airport to John Lennon airport. We also had The Monkees, Elvis, Robbie Williams and a few others I can't remember or didn't recognise. I thought it was interesting that all the songs were in English and the few words the singer spoke between songs were a...

Tirana's excellent Indian restaurant, Ashiana, has deservedly outgrown its original location which was a little on the compact side. In ten days or so, it will be moving to much larger premises with a lot more space indoors and an outdoor area as well. The new place will be on Rr. Dervish Hima near Rr. Elbasan.

Some of you may be under the impression that I earnestly patrol the streets of Tirana and scan the newspapers daily for interesting stuff to post here, with occasional dog-related diversion. In fact, I spend a considerable amount of time sitting on the balcony drinking beer and reading detective stories. When I'm not doing that I'm often in restaurants, cafes and bars. On Monday afternoon I ended up at Floga with some friends. Ryan, Beni, Dritan and James James, a Peace Corps volunteer we know, was in town for a few days. We met up and headed out for coffee. Just before we left I got a call from Dritan. How about a drink later? Sure, but I've got a friend with me. No problem, bring him along. At the cafe James called Ryan, another Peace Corps guy in Tirana for the weekend. Dritan phoned. Where are you? We're downtown - there's another guy with us now. OK. See you soon. We met up. Introductions were made. You want a drink? How about something to eat? We made a few no...

At midnight on Friday Albania went non-smoking, with a complete ban in all public places. I was sceptical - everyone I know was sceptical. Albanians are too addicted to the weed, we thought; the law is just for show for the EU; it will never be enforced. It looks like I was wrong. Tonight, day two of the ban, I was walking around the city with Bella the dog in tow. Bella is a leisurely walker - she likes to stop and sniff - so I had plenty of time to glance in the cafes and bars as we passed. In smaller local bars, the picture was mixed. Some places had cleared the ashtrays off the tables; in others the customers were puffing away as normal. In more central areas, the change was more noticeable. Most places had removed the ashtrays; one had placed a large no-smoking sign on the entrance; another had multiple signs on the walls; a third had individual no-smoking signs on all the tables. The timing of the ban has been helpful. Since the days are hot and the evenings are warm, many people...