• When did Babaghanoush first open it's doors?
• Babaghanoush started around 11 years ago, in the beginning we had a small kitchen in “Tingëll Tangëll,” then we decided to expand and create a new concept as a restaurant. When we started, I was pregnant, so we only had appetizers and worked only in the afternoons, but after 3-4 years, we started working full-time until evening.
• How much interest did Kosovars have in vegetarian cuisine at the beginning?
• When we started working all day, the interest was huge. Initially, it was mostly foreigners trying it out, but over time, Albanians also became more interested. Then we realized that we actually had many vegans and vegetarians here, which I hadn’t thought of. Later, I started focusing more on the vegan aspect of food. Although the restaurant is vegetarian, all the dishes we offer here are vegan-based, except for the egg sandwich.
• How difficult is it to find vegetarian or vegan products in Prishtina?
• It’s not so difficult now. It’s very easy for vegetarians, but a little more difficult for vegans. The markets here don’t always consider vegan products, but there are more products available for vegetarians. However, you need to search a bit to make sure everything is vegetarian or vegan. You can't find all products in one store, or the same product all the time. We used to have vegan cheese for a while, but they never brought it again. Although we’re happy to have fresh fruits and vegetables available at the market and they are pretty cheap too, so you just have to get creative with all that is available.
• What are some of the most favorite dishes?
• We don’t have a large menu, so all the dishes are tried and very preferred by all clients. One of most popular is the ‘zesty wrap,’ which is usually the favorite, as well as the falafel wrap and the egg sandwich are very sought after. Personally, I think the egg sandwich is the best for those who have just started a vegetarian diet. We’re a place where you can start being vegetarian and feel full with healthy food. I really like it when people leave meat and come to try our food, they’re always satisfied.
•The menu is very special. Where does the inspiration for the recipes come from?
•The recipes are all mine, they are recipes that I have combined from my family, from the dishes they have made - for example, for falafels, I was inspired by the meatballs my father used to make, I adapted his recipe and made falafel with chickpeas. This is just one of many dishes that I have adapted. Something I really enjoy during cooking is the time when parsley is chopped, I really like the smell of parsley, the smell of dill, coriander, spices in general are my favorite part when I work.
• When are the busiest times during the day and during the year?
• During the day, we usually have more customers at lunchtime, but also during dinner around 7:00-8:00 pm. As for the season, our busiest time is during summer, especially in September when albanians from foreign countries come to Kosovo, they are our favorite customers. But I really love and feel very connected to the customers who come here, we’re like a big family with a passion for vegetarian food, we have our own bubble here.
• I noticed some cats walking around the place. Are they yours ?
• We love animals very much. We have some stray cats here, in fact, we’ve always had cats. There have been times when they set the alarm went off at night when they slept here. Now there’s a cat named Pati who comes, stays around, sits near the customers, they pet him, but we love all the cats here and take care of them. We rarely have complaints about them, they are free to hang around inside whenever they want.
