STRENGTH.
Owner of the restaurant Sigitas appreciates open cuisine and seasonal products. He and his colleagues from Sweet Root respect all local products. Besides, they and Agnė spend to all the time in the restaurant and serve their guests themselves.
IDEA.
Although Sigitas, Vilnius and Agnė find the new winds in gastronomy interesting, they decided to go back to the roots when creating the restaurant. In this way, in 10 years they managed to create a restaurant and the name. However, “this return to the roots” in this case does not mean in any way a conventional Lithuanian cuisine. Food is presented in a modern way and authenticity is determined by products, Lithuanian traditions and the will to restore the emotion in dishes and during the dinner.
CHALLENGE.
To open a restaurant the owners spent a lot of time to find reliable local farmers (this process is, actually, dynamic until now). As Sigitas puts it, it is sometimes more difficult to find a local product than to get a wide range of products from all over the world. At the same time, additional effort is required to discover not only a local product but also its delivery to the restaurant.
INGREDIENTS.
To develop an idea and foster it, not to fall down when you fail is a true challenge and it has been accepted in this restaurant. The owner Sigitas and chef Justinas with his team aim at bringing back the emotion to the food on the plate.
The founders of Sweet Root continuously educate their clients and tell them about local ingredients – where they come from, how they grow and when they are of the best quality.
Salt, coffee and wine are, certainly, imported. However, although, for example, coffee beans are shipped from South America, coffee is bought from the local coffee roasters (Taste Map and Crooked Nose & Coffee Stories). Thus Sweet Root support not only the local cultivator but also the producer.
KITCHEN-GARDEN.
After the opening of Sweet Root, Sigitas and Agnė launched one more project – their own garden. It is now plenty of herbs, vegetables and berries. All this is used in their own restaurant during the season, they also have reserves for ingredients to be used during winter season.
CREDO.
It is important that a dish is clear, understandable, convenient to eat, and that its taste is natural, recognisable and also surprising. It is also important that everyone finds emotions and memories in what is on their plate.
TASTING DINNER.
A tasting dinner in Sweet Root is comprised of 7 courses, a welcoming glass, a lightly carbonated or table water, hot or cold brewed coffee, tea or a few bite-size histories. A tasting dinner per person costs EUR 65. The dinner takes about 3 hours. It reveals a palette of colours of our country. This dinner is a wonderful idea, if you want to show the Lithuanian but modern cuisine to foreigners. Such dinner is perfect for a romantic date, a family feast and an evening with friends.
INTERIOR DESIGN.
The author of the restaurant’s interior is the founder Agnė’s sister Jurgita Marcinauskaitė (2XJ architecture studio). She created a clean, pastel and uncrammed interior which does not distract attention from the plate. The latter is an emphasis of the restaurant in terms of its colours and emotions.
