With over a thousand years of beer brewing traditions and folk songs celebrating the amber nectar, Latvians are fond of a pint or three. And they have also created the perfect beer snack to line their stomachs.

Ķiploku grauzdiņi, fried garlic rye bread, is one of those beautifully simple things in life. Cut rye bread into chunks, fry or oven bake in oil, then rub generously with garlic. Serve with a cream or cheese dip. And behold a mouth explosion of oil, salt and tang that warms chilly northern hearts (and keeps cardiologists busy).

These treats emerged during the shortage-plagued Soviet era. With peanuts, olives or potato chips a distant dream, Riga barmen used what was available to keep imbibers' thirsts up. Square loaves of brown bread (affectionately called ķiegelītis, or “little bricks”) were readily available. Garlic was grown in every allotment. And thus a comfort food for the toiling masses was born.

Today, there’s nothing like sharing a bowl of piping hot, pungent snacks in a cosy pub with your mates, washed down with some local ale. So we explored some of Riga’s most esteemed taverns and put their grauzdiņi under the microscope. Each place gets a score out of ten, based on their taste and presentation of the grauzdiņi, the atmosphere of the bar and value for money (though obviously prices can change). Indulge yourself after enjoying my tours of Riga.

This sprawling Old Riga bar somehow pleases both tourists and locals alike with terrific service, huge portions of meat and a mile-long beer list for reasonable prices. And the terrace spilling over Jāņa sēta courtyard is possibly the nicest al freco imbibing space in town.

In other words, a beer garden with lots of benefits. Including grauzdiņi, of course. But while the presentation on a wooden board is classy, we felt the yoghurt dip was a bit bland, and the toasts need a deeper fry and another head of garlic. Oh, and they promised three types of bread, but we only got a duet of rye and wholegrain. Still, another mug of excellent Rudiments Rye IPA more than compensated, and the big serve for 6.80 euros was a meal in itself..

Score: 8/10

Address: Kalēju iela 11

"The Droplet" is another Old Town cellar restaurant with loads of history. It was reportedly a drinking den for thirsty Teutonic Knights, and in its current version has been wining and dining since 1975.

Legend has it communist bigwigs used to grab a cheeky vodka here between reviewing parades on the Daugava Embankment. And there's a resident ghost (whose political views are unknown).

The interior is tastefully medieval, and the menu is generous helpings of Latvian peasant fare and extravagant game dishes - keep your eyebrows away from the venison flambee in rum.

The grauzdiņi are worth jousting for. The thickest rye triangles you'll ever hold, fried to a sublime crunchy outside, melting soft inside. Served with a blue cheese sauce which, if slightly untraditional, is a marriage made in high-cholesterol heaven. Which for 4.80 a serve (beautifully presented in earthenware bowls), plus 4.50 a pint of Užavas from Ventspils, makes for one of the best tenners you'll spend in Riga.

Proprietor Oskars Dundurs, a gent with the old school knack of being both attentive and discrete, explains that grauzdiņi need to be big to get that inside/outside balance. And the garlic needs to be hand grated. A painstaking job which he says, "makes the chefs' knuckles bleed."

Their pain is not in vain.

Score: 10/10 

Address: Anglikāņu iela 2

Let me guide you on an intriguing Jurmala walk or a day exploring the seaside.

Discover gorgeous Kurzeme or awe-inspiring Sigulda.