Max Cekot Kitchen.

Max Cekot Kitchen occupies a former red-brick woodworking factory, trading the traditional charm of Riga’s Old Town for a sharp, industrial-chic edge. The experience is choreographed as a journey through the building; guests start with snacks on the ground floor before climbing a narrow spiral staircase to the main dining room for a multi-course tasting menu. Chef Max Cekot’s influence is total, extending from the modern Latvian dishes to the hand-crafted furniture and custom crockery designed specifically for the space. The cooking is seasonal and technical, often utilizing home-grown herbs and glasshouse produce to balance bold acidic and savory notes. For those who want to see the mechanics of the kitchen, the community table offers a front-row seat to the plating process. Given it is only open three nights a week, dinner here feels less like a standard meal and more like a deliberate, three-hour event.