Ö

Õ is a letter distinctive to the Estonian language. Itisso tricky to pronounce that not even every Estonian has mastered it. The islanders of Saaremaa deploy another letter, Ö, in its stead. The difference between the two is exactly as big as that between the cuisine at Ö and all the other Estonian restaurants.

Every dish at the Ö is seasoned with Saaremaa’s humor. To avoid losing itin translation, the restaurant has prepared a small simple written guide to the provenance of each dish. An inventive solution! The guest won’t be spending any energy on decisions at the Ö.

The choice lies between two tasting menus. The Taste Journey takes you through seven courses and the Taste Exploration through eleven. A specially composed drink selection can be ordered to match either. With one exception, the drinks are alcoholic.

A non-alcoholic drink selection is not offered. The question of drinks is the biggest independent decision the restaurant trusts the guest with. The drink selection begins with Tanker’s craft beer Imperial Sauna Session, brewed with real birch leaves (the stuff that Estonian traditional sauna whips, used to administer gentle beatings, are made of!) and continues a winding journey around the world.

A cocktail, a sparkling South African wine made with the Graham Beck method, raisin-flavored local kali(kvass or root beer), a rosewater-scented North Italian Cantina Tramin Kellerei Gewürztraminer... A conservative restaurant-goer might be taken aback at first, but will notregret a bold decision. The drinks match the food perfectly. The dishes stay within the Estonian culinary boundaries, but they traverse the entire country, from the beach sand to the farmyard to the ancient forests.

Roach, a fish generally left to the cat, is served in tiny pieces as salty tartar with soured milk cream andbread cream. This is modern fine dining based on rustic dried fish, soured milk, and rye breadas black as sin. The perch pike, wrapped in lightly salted lard and baked on coals, iscomplemented by potato cream flavoured with wine and a forest verde of herbs and weeds. The Ö offers modern Estonian cuisine at its leading.

The written guide serves as a useful introduction to its semiotics...