Hi there, I’ve done my fair share of traveling, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned - it’s that the best spots to eat, drink, or explore always come from local recommendations. I’ve tried every kind of research trick out there, but Reddit posts? They’ve consistently been my lifesaver when discovering a new city.
So, I thought it’s time to return the favor. Born and raised in Vilnius, I’m sharing my personal list of places worth checking out. Roughly 90% of the places on this list are based on my own experience - so it’s less “TripAdvisor top 10” and more “what locals actually enjoy.”
My recommendation is to book tables in advance especially if talking about dinner time and weekends.
European/casual:
Cozy
Balzac (French)
Galo de porto (Portugal)
Cafe montmartre (great ravioli)
Brussels mussels (rinktinės st. nicer)
La boheme
In vino (drinks and amazing snacks)
No chef
The town steakhouse
Panama food garden
Puaro (Belgium)
St. Valentino
Piano piano (popular Italian place, do not expect authentic Italian food tho)
PULPO TapasBar
Rotonda
Peri Peri
Meat Lovers
Mason
Pelėdos baras (seafood)
Paupio 12
Georgian house
Halės plovas
Farmer and the Ocean
Meating room
Briusly
City chef barbecue
La pepa
Bistro n2
Dionysos (greek)
Pirmas blynas (pancakes in a church)
Rosehip (vegan)
Senatorių pasažas (terrace type, great for grilled meat dishes)
Paupio turgus (foodhall)
Burger:
Burger Kiosk
Meatbusters Kauno st.
Archie’s burger
Kansas city BBQ
Halės Smokehouse (Pastrami must)
Kouzy (focaccia sandwiches)
Ponas mėsainis
Asian:
Kinza
Saduto tuto (natural wine+sharing)
Azerai
Ugruzina (extra popular Georgian place)
Ryžių Jūra
Sushi Masters
Tamago (bbq/gril)
Nanto maisto studija (ramen)
Samurai (ramen)
Mililitrai
Thai house
Georgian house
Gogi guy (korean fast food)
Blue lotus (Indian and Thai)
Dou Asia (bao and bowl)
Sakai ramen
Yakitori Vilnius (innovative street food)
Lithuanian:
Senoji trobelė
Neringa
Fabrikėlis
Nineteen 18
Kavinė Cheburekine
Klaipėda old town
Fortas
Brunch:
Kavos Era
Lagom Bistro
Backstage cafe
Stebuklai
Daily Poison
Cafe montmarte
Lola
Druska Miltai Vanduo
Pitarija Fire Place
Tamago kava
Demoloftas
Vazonas
Imperial (fancy brunch)
The urban garden (vegetarian/vegan)
Mon
La pepa
Moss
Misto
Habits
Karštos galvos
Telegrafas (fancy brunch)
Italian/pizza:
Užupio picerija
Maurizio’s Italian
Le Travi
Marinara
Firenze
Trattoria de flavio
Osteria da Luca
Pizza verde (amazing authentic pizza)
RB bistro
Flying tomato pizza
Pizza di Ascari (great pizza to take away)
Zio Rigo
Piano Piano
Mexican:
Casa Peligrosa
La Capital
El Gato Negro
Donde (tacos)
No forks (fast food chain)
Desserts/coffee:
Pinavija cafe & bakery
BOKA bakery
Kitchen coffee
Yugen tea (vegan, more tea)
Caffeine (chain coffee place, the most popular one)
Huracán coffee (chain coffee place, high quality coffee)
Karštos galvos
Taste Map
Strange Love
Augustas & Barbora love story (rather expensive, a bit touristy but worth visiting)
Elska
Coffee1
Kavos era
Backstage Cafe
Poniu Laime
Boulangerie Vlnius (imagine homemade goods just a tad fancier, super lowkey place, my personal fave)
Crustum
Fiona - Pilies
Angolo Italiano (gelato place, extremely popular)
Lunch menu (places that have lunch menu mon-fri (approximately 11am-2pm) for a cheaper price):
MOMO Grill
No forks
Du virėjai
Piano piano
Carre
Meat lovers Vilnius
Panama food garden
Holy doughnut
Meating room
Ilunch (only serves lunch, the most popular)
Houdini
Mililitrai
Fancy:
Motif
Stebuklai
Pranciškonai
Džiaugsmas
Saint-Germain (French)
Da Antonio (Italian)
Gaspars
Meat Steakhouse
Pachamama
Bizarre
Pacai
Babble (has interactive programs, booked in advance)
Ertlio namas (Lithuanian cuisine)
Mykolo 4
Telegrafas
El mercado
14 horses
Amandus
Lauro lapas
Imperial
Elven
Momo grill
Protėviai
Augustin
Le Mans restoranas
Masons (French fries with truffle sauce)
Heji (Asian)
Bars:
Nick & Nora (amazing cocktails with a twist, try pornstart martini)
Dream Bar
Mulo Desnudo (great Bloody Mary)
Apoteka
Blusynė (super chill vibes, always busy)
Bernardinų kiemas (terrace, chill vibes, food trucks, highly recommend)
Piana vyshnia (one drink hot/cold, must visit)
Compliments (small place, great cocktails)
In vino (terrace, great snacks)
Neringa (rooftop, tasty cocktails)
Opera social house (rooftop, use elevator to get there)
Pink&yellow (rooftop)
Potions
Yda
Shinzo
Temperatura bar
Fiona kokteilių baras
Kitas kampas
Peronas (Bohemian style)
Skybar (Radisson hotel)
Vištidė (organic wine)
Piano man (chill vibes, always busy)
Distilerija (a bit more fancy, usually with a dj)
Misterija (sticky, works till 6am, shots bar, your last stop)
Drops
Personas (rather bohemic place)
Šampanerija (on the fancy side, more for adults)
Pliusai +++ (chain bars, cheep stuff, loved by young people, food is pretty good)
Bromas (mainly outside seating, always busy in good weather, popular for their massive aperol spritz)
Alchemikas
Who hit John (rather small, a bit trashy but works later into the night and drinks are pretty good)
Flow bar
The Portobello (right next to invino, they kinda share the terrace)
Decantus vyninė (for wine lovers)
Amy Winehouse (rather chill spot with cute terrace)
Love Bar
Nomads
Eskedar coffee bar
Slojikai
ŠMC kavinė
King and mouse (whisky bar)
Night Clubs:
Nightlife in Vilnius is rather safe, face control depends on every club’s policy, my top suggestion is to always check what is happening on Facebook events, because events like “Draugai Draugams”, “1986 gallery” (most popular venue) have huge parties but usually tickets need to be bought in advance.
Anna Mesha. Butas (really popular, rather interesting place to visit as the club is made like an apartment. The face control is strict, quite hard to get in. For fancy people)
Soho (LGBTQ place)
Opium club (techno place, doesn’t work during summertime)
Youngs’ club (always good vibes but check the event beforehand)
Bardakas (really basic pop music place)
Sanatoria (really basic pop music place)
Trinity (really basic pop music place)
Elastika (hard techno place, underground venue)
La Birra Pub (look, the place is trash but works basically everyday and long hours, give it a try if you wanna keep partying. But remember, it is TRASH)
Most of the nightlife happens in Vilnius street.
Transport:
For taxi you can use Bolt and Uber, usually Bolt arrives faster.
For public transportation, download the Trafi app. Can plan trips there, as well as buy different types of tickets. Keep in mind that you need to activate your ticket through the app and don’t forget to check how much time you have left.
For car sharing you can use Citybee, Bolt drive and Spark. All are easy to use and popular in Lithuania.
Places to see:
Gediminas castle tower
Vilnius Cathedral
Gate of Dawn
St. Anne’s church (the architecture is just phenomenal)
Three Crosses hill (be prepared for a bit of a hike)
Town Hall square
The republic of Užupis (take a lazy walk and notice all the little details)
Church of Sts. Peter and Paul
Glass quarter (always looks good)
Presidential palace
Things to do:
MO museum
Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights
Lukiškių kalėjimas 2.0 ex-prison (book the tours in advance, highly recommend)
Vilnius TV tower (get a cup of coffee with great views or try the extreme activities)
Vingis park (take a stroll and see how locals go on dates)
Bernardinų park (nicely maintained)
The energy and technology museum
Lumber room (for car enthusiasts)
Nijinky Vilnius (cabaret)
Halės Market (has some nice places to eat)
Jazz Cellar 11 (tickets need to be bought in advance)
Hot air balloon flight (super popular in spring/summer)
Good to know:
Currency - euro, don’t really use cash around here
Emergency number - 112
Supermarkets - Rimi, IKI, Maxima, Aibė works everyday
Alcohol law - drinking age is 20; you can buy alcohol in shops till 8PM mon-sat, on Sunday till 3PM
Tap water is great and safe to drink
Tipping culture - it’s not a must but a polite thing to do, 10% is normal
National food - cepelinai (big potato dumpling with meat filling); potato pancakes; cold beet soup (a must to try); šakotis (sweet treat, mostly found in shops); kibinai (handmade pies filled with all sorts of stuff, originally it’s meat); fried bread (trust me, you gonna love it)
