The Seaside Café Metropolis

“Antanas Sileika has invented a new genre: the culinary picaresque. Throw in the Cold War, dissident shenanigans, an ideologue mother, knife-fighting love story, iron curtain Bohemians, and more than half a dozen traditional and innovative Lithuanian recipes and you get a sense of the many flavors Sileika blends to perfection in this sad, funny, insightful, propulsive banquet of a novel. This is a rare dish served by a master chef.”

-- Tamas Dobozy, author of the Governor General's Award–shortlisted and Writer's Trust Fiction Prize–winning Siege 13
“A delicious peek into the world of spies, artists and food at the fringes of the Soviet Union. Sileika’s prose is wry and wise, and conjures up a place and time that glimmers like a bittersweet memory.” -- Trevor Cole, author of Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour–winning Practical Jean
“Emmet Argentine is a Canadian restaurateur tapped to open a different kind of dining spot in Khruschev era Lithuania. His flair for food service in a time when Soviet sensibilities are perhaps thawing just a bit make for a comic novel with culinary know how, dry wit and a smart take on that which can bring disparate peoples together. Garty Shteyngart has make a career covering this beat, but Antanas Sileika does it as well or better. This was a delight, and one of my favourites for the year.” -- David Worsley, Words Worth Books (Waterloo)
“This novel was so darkly hilarious that I spent the whole time reading it and chuckling. It was wildly entertaining and Sileika’s ability for such sly, dark humour is fantastic.” -- Alison Manley * The Miramichi Reader *
“A celebration of community, solidarity, and the transformative power of imagination.” * Pickle Me This *
“Hundreds of kilometres from the nearest shore, the fictionalized Seaside Café Metropolis brings to mind the Rick’s of Casablanca combined with the Tropicana of I Love Lucy. ... In a place of scarcity, the novel asks, how does one reimagine ‘working man’s food’ like Riga sprats or buckwheat groats? How does one gather ingredients for elevated cuisine?” -- Kyle Wyatt * Literary Review of Canada *
“The Cold War was a nightmare, but dreams were irrepressible. Forging connections could help you find a better hospital for a friend to die in, or a way back home. Sileika’s novel spills the beans on our human condition, on ‘who we are, what we love, and what we dream of.’” -- Trevor Carolan * subTerra