One of the defining traits of Armenia culture is the love and appreciation for simple and delicious food. Ask any Armenian in the market, the streets, or the cafes who was the first man on the moon, and they may take a moment to pause. But ask them what their favorite meal consists of, and how to prepare it, and they will be content to wax lyrical for as long a time as you have to listen.

No matter the weather or time of year, “khorovats,” barbequed meats and several staple vegetables (namely tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and aubergines/egg-plants), is the dish of choice. “When my friends and I have something to celebrate, our first thought is to make “khorovats,” and pass a wonderful time will eating our favorite dish,” says David, 21. Whether for a birthday, a wedding, or just a gathering among friends, an Armenian feast is not complete without the presence of succulently grilled pieces of pork and beef.

Bread and Armenia’s distinctive salty cheese - colloquially “hatz oo panir - accompany every meal, or make do for a light snack. The innumerable varieties of bread, ranging from black to white to flat to airy, from lavash, very thin, flat, unleavened bread, to matnakash, a more chunky alternative of lavash, make it impossible to dine without. Gohar, a housewife in an Armenian village says, “there is nothing my children enjoy more than fresh baked lavash from a day of baking with my friends.”

The season of bounty, when the fruit ripens, provides Armenia with delicious varieties of fruits, giant peaches, luscious strawberries, delectable grapes, apricots, cherries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and many more. The fruits are welcome refreshments during hot summer days, yet are also included in various pastries, pudding and other desserts. “The abundance of fruits throughout the summer months allows one to forget the humid weather and satisfy ones thirst,” says Varduhi, 28.

Being invited to an Armenian-table, which will for sure be groaning under the countless dishes wedged around its surface, is a social experience different from most. Take care to pace yourself, and don’t allow your eyes to be bigger than your belly…the various tasty dishes will continually be refreshed and changed; and then you have the main and sweet courses, and coffee, and fruit, all still to come. All food will be washed down with numerous fresh and quenching juices, ethnic wines, brandies and vodkas: and all newcomers to the ‘toasting tradition’ will be advised to have prepared some words longer and more gracious than simply ‘cheers!’

In general, victuals in Armenia are still mostly seasonal, thus free of a high level of preservatives. Food is also proportionately much cheaper in Armenia than most will be accustomed to; take advantage of this and engage in the return of warm hospitality with careless-abandon.