There is a school of thought that Lithuanian cuisine was damaged by the Soviet era. Baltika, which shares a name with a popular brew from St Petersburg, demonstrates that from a culinary point of view, things may be on the road to recovery, if this interesting shop at 32 High Street is anything to go by.
The shop sells sweets, snacks, frozen dumplings and fish such as carp and hake, dried and smoked items like herrings, sausage and meats and tinned fish from the Latvian Riga Gold range. They also supply a range of breads,butter and cheese, teas, tinned salmon caviar, bottled wild mushrooms, pickled cucumbers, cabbage, tomatoes. The produce is not simply from the Lithuanian tradition, as the items packaged in cyrillic and the cans of Bigos testify.
Books,videos and magazines are available in Lithuanian, as well as Cosmopolitan in Russian. A well used social centre and place to buy phone cards and make money transfers for many of the Eastern Europeans who have been welcomed to Walthamstow, there are also adverts in display for other businesses, like Hair and Beauty Salon Ligita, seeking to establish themselves in their new country as well as handwritten messages about rooms to let, bricklaying, flyer delivery and cleaning jobs in the windows. Unfortunately, these have recently included thinly disguised advertisements for sex workers. Judging by the advert offering a pest control service, in particular to deal with bed bugs, there are a lot of eastern Europeans who are living in very poor quality accommodation in the area. Must remind them of the bad old days back home.
Where the thinking of the Soviet era is still exerting its influence is in the basic layout of the shop, which is entirely inward looking. Unlike at Tradicia, up the road, it is impossible to see into the shop and get an idea of the treasures within from the High Street because of the massive sign covering the shop windows and an almost total lack of effort to communicate about the shop's wares to an English speaking community. In fact, sales can be conducted in English. The occasional surly looking lads in shell-suit and sandals who swagger in and out unsmilingly are just homesick and should not put people off from exploring this shop. Immigrants who shop here should be aware that many comparable items they seek are also available locally at Faris's Supermarket or in mainstream shops for a bit less.
Nevertheless, as a collection of Baltic comestibles for the curious and connoisseur alike, it is a useful addition to the High Street, standing on the corner of Cranbrooke Place, opposite the pet care shop. Tel 0208 503 7519.