If you have a sweet tooth, I would say that my country unfortunately doesn’t have many traditional desserts to offer – thinking hard, I can only name a few purely Bulgarian ones. Luckily for us, during our common past with the Ottoman empire we acquired their incredible baklava-making skills. So this article is all about desserts smothered in syrup and sprinkled with pistachios…

Antep is a small pastry shop on Jenski pazar (Ladies’ market) that is without a doubt (for me) the best for baklava in Sofia. The interior is not amazing, but their sweets are freshly made in their own kitchen (at the back of the shop!) and one can surely taste the difference. They have a great range of traditional baklavas and some not-so-traditional ones – like chocolate and hazelnut. My personal favourite is the Shobiet – with pistachios and kaymak (some form of milk-based cream), and the simplest one – the walnut one. Their kadaif is also to die for, but quite frankly, everything is so sweet that I advise you to choose one dessert at a time and come to enjoy this place more than once!

Antep baklava is a gem in one of the less touristy areas of Sofia, which might seem a bit dodgy to the less adventurous. I personally am in love with this area and frequently come here to enjoy a snack at Ashurbanipal followed by a cup of Turkish tea and Shobiet in Antep. Walk around for an authentic feel of Sofia’s oldest neighborhood!