A new culinary project is materializing in the village of Varbovo in the Rhodopes. Maria Zhekova transforms a former storage for potatoes into a space where one can get to know the old cuisine of the area. She named her project "Silivryak" after the popular Bulgarian name of the endemic Rhodope plant Haberlea rhodopensis.
Maria Zhekova, who came to stardom through the TV reality show Master Chef, hopes to sustain the project by forming a cooperative among women in the village. Her plan is to offer local produce and cooking lessons, which would introduce visitors to old recipes from the area. The Rhodope is renown for its low-scale production of potatoes and beans and its simple, mountain cuisine, considered by many as unique and delicious. “Silivryak” is expected to provide visitors with opportunity to sample local food and stay in the guest rooms of the renovated potato storage building.
The latest issue of "Bacchus" magazine published an interview in which Maria Zhekova tells Andrea Puncheva about “Silivryak" (in Bulgarian).