Snacks of a different country excite me quite a lot. Whether we realize it or not, pretty much anyone on this lovely rock in space spends quite a lot of time snacking, thinking about what to snack on, experimenting with new snacks, and so on. Therefore, it only makes sense to care at least a bit about the “snack situation” of a country one intends to visit. Will it have your favourite chocolate bar? Does its people prefer more salty or sweet nibbles to bite on? What sort of soft drinks do they often consume? Well for such questions regarding Albania, look no further than this piece right here!
Crisps and Sweets
The two weeks I got to spend in Albania made me realize that when it came to the selection of available snacks and drinks, Albania packs a punch despite its apparent small size, geographically and population-wise. It seems that this phenomenon is caused by both the country’s proximity to many other different states, and due to its amicable relationship with both Turkey and Italy, both of which floods the Albanian market with their own products. This means that even some of the smaller shops you can find in Albania (and some are quite literally wall-in-the-holes) almost always sell a combination of some Italian, Turkish, Greek products alongside with many other Albanian and Balkan snacks.
The situation in super or hypermarkets gets even better, with one being able to find almost any Turkish product on their shelves, with the rest of the shelves acting like extras in comparison to a regular Turkish supermarket. As a Turk myself, I had very little taste in buying these Turkish products abroad, as trying new things is often my priority. To that end, I managed to try a selection of Albanian, Italian, and Greek delicacies during my time in Albania. Although at no point in my travels in there I have ever felt like I found an amazing new item to snack on, everything I bought managed to satisfy either my sweet tooth or my need to have something salty to go with my much-needed cold soft drinks, or just beer in most cases. Some of the more notable snacks that I would like to mention in more detail can be found below.
A selection of sweets from Albanian markets. Buttery biscuits can be bought from SPAR, and the Italian-made strawberry “cake” and berry-filled cupcakes are quite ubiquitous. Some discretion is advised though, since the Italian snacks certainly were quite sweet for my taste. However, the biscuits were so on point that I ended up buying some to eat back in Turkey!
The Magnificent Dhalle
Although I was somewhat impressed with the generous selection of edible snacks in Albanian markets, what really got to me was the variety of their soft drinks. For example, though we are already familiar with ayran (a sour tasting yoghurt-based drink, often with a pinch of salt) in Turkey (our national drink as some might call it…), Albanian “dhalle” hit all the right spots for me, tasting familiar yet also different at the same time. It is less salty than its Turkish counterpart, and the brands I tried were often sourer. These are all good traits of a yoghurt-based drink in this part of the world if you are not aware! I ended up drinking tons of it when I was in Albania, and its taste lingers in my mouth to this day. Which reminds me to go ahead and make some ayran for myself before continuing with the rest of this article.
Land of the Berry?
Dhalle was not the only drink that left me with lasting impressions though. Though I am a “picky drinker,” enjoying most brands of Albanian water was not much of an issue, though some of them were a bit too “soft” for my taste. Albanian soft drink brands, especially those producing juices, often include berries of many kinds as a flavour, which was quite fascinating to see for me, a berry-lover. In fact, the very first juice we had was served to us during our flight from Istanbul to Tirana by Air Albania, and it was mixed berry flavoured! The rest of that meal may not be much to write home about, but that juice was a sign of all the good things to come in the country that we were flying to.
Where is my tea?
Although these all sound nice, a piece of warning must be made to those that have an affinity for black tea. My mother happens to be one of them, and most certainly can consume copious amounts of boiling hot brewed black tea every day, regardless of the time of the year, or how hot the weather may be. We (miserably) failed to find any tea for her for almost three days, and with Albania being known as a “coffee country,” that perhaps does not come as much of a surprise to more studious readers of mine. If you want to enjoy some black tea, go to bigger cafes or more “Turkish” looking restaurants, and if you wisht to enjoy it at the comfort of your Airbnb, hotel, or hostel, then go to a supermarket (better a hypermarket) and look for “çaj i zi.” Finding it for the first time, among a plethora of different herbal teas was like striking gold for my mother, so keep this in mind, and do not lose your time like we did by looking for one in one of the many smaller establishments around the country.
Snack Like a Local
While these pre-packaged snacks and pre-bottled drinks are all nice and dandy, and are frankly what comes to my mind when one mentions snacks and snacking in any context, it is important to note that snacking and as such snacks may have a different meaning for most Albanians, who seemed to have a great time casually snacking on byreks and other baked delicacies throughout the day, and not only for breakfast during which we often opted for them. There are plenty of options when it comes to what one can buy from a byrektore (basically an Albanian bakery), and the often triangularly shaped byreks may be overshadowed by tasty pizza slices, or a decent selection of other baked goods. Frankly, I did not try many of them, as I prefer not to snack much these days, and because I almost always skip breakfast. It is not a good habit by any means, but it is what it is. This means that I mostly stuck to the pre-packaged snacks I mentioned earlier in this article to sate my appetite for late-night snacks, and only went for a byrek a few times when I opted for them for a quick lunch.
In short, this lovely country by the Adriatic Sea has a lot of snacking options to offer to anyone who is lucky enough to visit it. Many “universally known” brands can be found here, but more importantly, one can taste quite a nice selection of Turkish and Italian snacks without ever visiting either of them during their stay in Albania. It is also possible to have a more “Balkan” experience when snacking, either by opting for more local brands or for going with more traditional snacks such as byreks and the like. No matter what your personal preference will be, it will not break the bank, and it most certainly will leave you satisfied!