Ramsar – conventions, kitsch and queer caviar

View of Alborz Mountains from Ramsar Grand Hotel

Ramsar is a seaside town on the western edge of Mazandaran Province.  Look north and you see the Caspian Sea. Turn around and you see the thick, dark green forest carpeting the slopes of the Alborz Mountains.

A popular holiday resort with Iranians, Ramsar is filled with hotels, villas and plenty of restaurants and shops. A cable-car takes adventurous visitors to the cliff tops and the beaches attract the rest. As we were there in the off-season at the end of January, it was rather quiet, damp and chilly.

Two things struck me about Ramsar: the Ramsar Grand Hotel and the food.

There was a sort of “Grand Budapest Hotel” kind of feeling, when we checked into the Ramsar Grand. Constructed about 80 years ago, it was a luxury resort and casino in pre-revolutionary Iran.

The Ramsar Grand Hotel from the rear garden

It was – we were proudly told by the lobby attendant – a place visited by President Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Josef Stalin and former Egyptian President, Anwar Sadat. In fact, the lobby attendant also added that Anwar Sadat was such a frequent visitor and loved Ramsar so much that Mr. Sadat named one of his children after the place.

The Ramsar Grand’s main claim to fame, however, is its location for the signing in 1971 of the Ramsar Convention, better known as the World Wetlands Convention. With 168 contracting parties and 2,186 wetland sites under its protection, the Ramsar Convention continues to be a crucial inter-governmental treaty caring for these important ecological sites worldwide. 

And, if you are nice to the lobby attendant, he will take you for a tour of the conference room.

View of the Caspian Sea from the Ramsar Grand Hotel

After the Revolution in 1979, the Ramsar Grand was taken over and turned into a government-run hotel.

The Ramsar Grand has, to be honest, seen better days. Yet, despite the musty smell, the Egyptian Pharaonic wallpaper and the old, tatty furniture, there is a certain charm of times past that you just can’t shake off. I made a point of sitting in some of the old leather chairs, pondering about which famous statesmen must have sat where – and thought what.

And the food? Well, you can’t come to the Caspian Sea and not eat fish.

Having already tasted Caspian trout, I decided to be adventurous and try some grilled sturgeon, while Gary pushed the culinary envelope and ordered his customary jujeh kebab with salad.

Of course, I didn’t just get a plate of fried fish and a few chips.

Local Caspian Caviar

Before the sturgeon (known locally as chelo mahi ivrun-e barun-e darayeh) appeared, an array of appetizers – both familiar and unfamiliar – were laid before me.  Included on the plates, was something that at first glance looked like a reddish sausage.  On closer inspection, I saw that it was compacted and rolled red cod roe – a local type of caviar I was told.

With this queer caviar, came some flat bread, natural yogurt, broad beans and walnuts. I was then informed that you just take a little bit of the caviar, wrap it in the bread and eat it with the yogurt, beans and walnuts.

Not one to shy away from a challenge or two, I gave it a whirl. 

Grilled Caspian Sturgeon

And, I can now say with some authority that it is definitely an acquired taste – not one I am likely to attain any time soon.

But, fortunately the fish was fabulous, especially when I squeezed the local narenj citrus over the top of it. And, along with the fish came some torsh-e tareh­, a particularly northern Iranian sour herb stew. The flagrant blend of flavours works wonders with grilled fish. It was completely new to me, but not any more. 

I can’t promise, you will find Caspian sturgeon in your local supermarket, but you can definitely make some torsh-e tareh­ to spice up your next fish dish.

Torsh-e Tareh­ or Persian Sour Herb Stew

What you need:

200 grams fresh coriander, finely chopped

250 grams fresh spinach, finely chopped

2 tablespoons dried mint

4 to 6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 medium onion, diced finely

Torsh-e Tareh - Persian Sour Herb Stew

Approximately 1/3 cup lemon juice or grape verjuice

6 tablespoons of olive oil

¼ cup of butter

3 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon turmeric

2 & ½ cups of water

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

5 eggs

What to do:

Heat the olive oil in a non-stick pan. Keep the heat at a moderate to low level. Add onions, garlic and turmeric and fry gently until the onions are soft and almost transparent. Add the coriander and spinach and fry gently for approximately 15 minutes. Add the dried mint, water, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid, lower the heat so that the vegetables simmer. Leave for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Blend the flour with about 3 tablespoons of water. Pour it into the stew and add the lemon juice or verjuice and the butter and stir in well. This will make the stew sour.

Add eggs in at this stage. Crack the eggs into the stew but do not mix. When the eggs are set, mix in and then serve the stew.

Enough for 5 to 6 people.