Underwhelming Pakhlava — expected more

I was looking forward to Pakhlava here based on the reputation. The reality was disappointing. The fragrant and saffron-gilded character that makes this dish special was muted — either from shortcuts with dried sour plums or from scaling up production at the expense of quality.

tea drinking is a ritual — black tea served in armudu pear-shaped glasses accompanies every social encounter. The a Baku meykhana restaurant setting I was hoping for wasn't quite there either. Xirdalan beer was available but not suggested appropriately. I've had much better versions elsewhere. Two stars because the dish concept is sound; the execution let it down.