What Bulgarians Ate and Drank 150 Years Ago

What did Bulgarians eat and drink 150 years ago? A new exhibition at the State Archives Agency delves into this question, offering a glimpse into the culinary habits of the past - from royal tastes to everyday customs, from forgotten recipes to cultural shifts at the dinner table.

Among the exhibits is the hand-written recipe book of Natsko Sotirov, the personal chef to Tsar Boris III. His grandsons, Kalin and Atanas Sotirov, recall stories passed down through the family. Boris III, they say, had modest preferences - his favorite dish was simply fried mullet. Each day, he received a list of lunch and dinner options, selecting what he wanted himself. Unlike his father, Ferdinand, who enjoyed lavish multi-course meals, Boris often preferred a single dish. “I saw one menu where he had written: ‘Just one well-boiled potato for me,’” remembers Atanas.

After the Tsar’s death, Natsko went on to cook for the Council of Ministers, though at home he rarely stepped into the kitchen. Kalin recalls a moment when his grandfather prepared a fake venison leg just once at home. But Natsko's personal favorite was more humble: a thick slice of white bread, toasted and spread with soft cheese, topped with a pan-fried hot red pepper.

The exhibition also traces wider social habits. According to Adriana Popova from the State Archives Agency, the fork was not commonly used by most Bulgarians until the early 20th century. The spoon was the primary utensil, and people who used forks were often mockingly referred to as “fork people” - a term used to poke fun at the educated elite.

The end of the 19th century also marked a shift in drinking preferences. Beer surged in popularity and quickly outpaced traditional beverages like wine and rakia. The change stirred tensions in the alcohol trade, sparking what Popova describes as a “beer-wine war” marked by fierce competition between brewers and vintners.

Altogether, the archive’s exhibition brings together royal menus, personal notes, and social observations to paint a rich picture of how food and culture evolved in Bulgaria over the last century and a half.