No, I’m not thinking Ray Charles, as great as he was. And no, I’m definitely not thinking of a state in the world’s newest despotic nation. The Georgia on my mind here is new and located in Wales… and no, I’m not talking yet another embarrassment on the world rugby union stage either. This Georgia on my mind is a fabulous new addition to the cuisines available in the heart of Cardiff.

Georgian food doesn’t seem to be widely available on my travels (though post 489. ‘Georgia on my mind’ outlines a first encounter in Riga, Latvia). And did you know… Georgia just happens to be the oldest wine producing region in the world… so what’s not to like here.

Genatsvale has only been open since summer 2025, and on a quiet Thursday afternoon it provided the perfect setting for two people sharing a love of all things Georgia. The menu displayed outside the entrance already establishes authenticity… why succumb to dumbing down to the bland repetition of so many town centre eateries when you can have something genuine and different.

The wine list also testifies to a certain confidence in what they do… you’ll not find anything that isn’t originally sourced in Georgia… and those 8000 years of practice shine through in today’s bottles! That Qvervi Saperavi bottle just happened to be the most expensive of four reds also available by the glass… very important as you realise time is gently passing by and one bottle just isn’t going to be enough to do it justice.

As for the food, well there is the essential Georgian dumplings… the Kinkhali, made with a variety of fillings. We went for the beef & pork and the lamb (chicken and vegetarian options are available). Don’t forget to ask the waiter how to eat these things, or life might get a little messy. And be prepared to wait, and sample that wine, because these delights are prepared to order…

Pkali was something I hadn’t heard of before… large enough balls of pate in four flavours, but forget everything else you’ve experienced in life and just let the beetroot version take you to somewhere else altogether.

But even that was surpassed by the delicate balance of tastes involved with the Mushrooms in ketsi. The mushroom and melted cheese might just recalibrate your taste buds in ways you never thought possible.

And, getting back to that Qvervi Saperavi… somehow 5 or more hours seemed to pass by in no time. Yes, good company invites a sense of a complete loss of time, but good wine smoothes the whole process in ways that a cup of tea never seems to be quite enough.

Until we speak again, Georgia is on my mind. Ray Charles might well be talking about a place that fortunately stood up to the bullying of the Chief Narcissist of Untrustworthy Land, but I’m currently very interested in a very small plot of real estate right in the centre of my own city. Now, if anyone could also play that grand piano in one corner of the restaurant…