Restaurants In Croatia
 

Can you Fedorites familiar with Croatia tell us which restaurants we should visit for good and inexpensive local food?

In September we are traveling to Zagreb (Slovenia) and the following cities in Croatia: Bled, Opatija, Plitvice Lakes area, Split, and Dubrovnik. We want to get away from hotel dining to really sample the local cusine and would welcome any and all suggestions.

I'll look up places for you but in the meantime you are going in truffle season (starting end of September through December). If you are going them I would definitely seek out places serving fresh white truffles.

You can also seek out roadside spit-roasting places for wonderful lamb and pork. Also stop at the roadside stands where you can purchase local cheeses, wines, oils, etc. Just wonderful!

Peka or "under a lid" is fabulous - it can be difficult to find places who serve it. (Often it is lamb.)

Prsut is the equivalent to Italian prosciuotto only better. If you can seek out Pag cheese. We often purchase local cheeses, Prsut, fresh bread and a small bottle of olive oil for great picnic lunches when in Croatia. We've been lucky enough to be offered fresh figs in Istria in tiny hilltowns!

Fresh lobster and grilled squid are outstanding (albeit pricey, especially in Dubrovnik).

Thanks for your wonderful suggestions. Exactly what is "peka". Will it be found on a menu as peka?

I had two meals in "Vindol" restaurant in Zagreb that was recommended to me by a friend who works at the US Embassy in Zagreb.

As a lover of Prosciuotto/Prusut I was very impressed with their offering of the dish.In fact one night we made an entire meal of just Prusut,bread,olives and local Croatian wine.
The restaurant is located within easy walking distance of Ban Jelačić Square in central Zagreb.

Website:
http://www.vinodol-zg.hr/

More info for you! Other than travel food is my favourite topic.

We do not have dessert very often but do like palacinka - thin pancakes filled with jam and topped with chocolate. We also had them in Dubrovnik (forget the name of the place - sorry) filled with whipped cream, topped with chocolate, nuts and chocolate sauce. Of course the rizot or risotto is very good. Try squid ink risotto if you find it. I've had it a few times now and love it!

Brodetto is a mixed fish stew with polenta is a regional thing in the north. Oh, and pizza can be very good. Burek is common (heavy pastry stuffed with meat or cheese) but to me it is not all that great. Sir is the word for cheese. Gulas is goulash which can also be excellent. Pecenje is the word for spit-roasted meat. Przeni krumpir is roasted potatoes - very good.

Konobas (as opposed to restorans) are our favourite places to eat (in addition to those I mentioned above) as they are usually small family-run places that serve very local stuff.

I think the top restaurant (if you do want a treat) in Zagreb is Boban. The squid ink gnocchi is great! Zagreb is not in Slovenia but Croatia (just so you know!). :) Bled is not in Croatia.

The Plitvice Lakes area is outstanding - just superb and gorgeous. Glad you are going.

Are you spending any time in Istria after Zagreb? There are such wonderful tiny villages with tons of konobas serving family-style rustic meals. That includes the peka I mentioned above (ispod peke - placed under a lid) which is covered by hot embers and slowly baked. One place we had to order it 24 hours in advance. Known in Zagreb and north.

Keep in mind that fish is sold by weight so it can get expensive. Octopus is yummy as well. Mussels are fabulous but again can be expensive.

Some people recommend Nautica in Dubrovnik but I find it to be hyped up far too much - you do not get what you pay for. Same with Zigante in Livade in Istria. It is a once-in-a-lifetime sort of place as it serves all things truffles. It is great, the food is wonderful but it is very expensive. If you are a truffle fanatic as I am it is worth it.

Split is not my favourite place in the world but it is very interesting for a day or so. Places to eat:

Galilja for good pizza.
Konoba kod Joze - fantastic seafood and risotto.
Konoba Marjan - great seafood and not expensive.
Lucica - good grilled fish and traditional foods like lamb stew.
Buffet Fife - packed with character, locals, lots of benches but inexpensive home cooking, especially seafood.

Dubrovnik:
Konoba Ekvincijo for fish and meat. Good stuffed squid.
Proto - my favourite place for fabulous food although it is pricey. Maybe for a splurge night!
Orhan for location - right on the water.

Cant help with Zagreb or Bled as it's been a few years since i visited.
In Opatija, nothing comes near Le Mandrac, in season they organize truffle hunting and the food overall is top class.
www.lemandrac.com
Plitvice, we ate at Licka Kuka near #1 entrance, good regional fare.
Split, my favorites are Fife and Konoba Marjan, both on the west of the city.
Dubrovnik,i love Orhan on the waters edge and also Locanda Pekarija in the port for tasty seafood.
September is a lovely time to travel in Croatia, less traffic and not too hot. You will have a great time for sure.

Truffle hunting is very interesting if you are into that type of thing. We went in the middle of nowhere in interior Istria and it was definitely a hush-hush operation.

We just returned from 10 days in Croatia and can suggest the following restaurants:

ZAGREB
- Agava Restaurant
Sat outdoors - excellent seafood risotto and the traditional Croatian dish with meat and gnocchi (name escapes me right now)
- Millenium (for gelato)
lots of unusual flavors

DUBROVNIK
- Poklisar
Outdoor at the old port so great views; excellent food and service. Shrimp over blue cheese risotto was amazing.
- Spaghetteria Toni
Sounds bad, but has really great pasta and is always crowded - eat outside if you can.
- Pizza Baracuda
Next to Toni, fantastic thin crust pizza. We found great pizza everywhere in Croatia.
- Gaffe Pub
For when you want a break from pizza for lunch, this is a great Irish pub with good burgers, fish and chips, etc. Veggie burgers there are awesome.

Overall, we had many amazing meals in Croatia. Lots of great fish (brodetto is fantastic), seafood, pasta and pizza. Gelato stands are ubiquitous! And we found in general meals were very reasonably priced.
Enjoy your trip!

Just back this week from Dubrovnik and travel2live is spot on about the Konobas. Nava, just off the Stradun on a small walkway, has the best gilled baby squid and a delicious minced meat dish, cevapi. Orphan, serves the awesome peka meal. Gorgeous spot near Pile gate, next to Nautika
with water view, better food and prices. They need a day's notice for the peka meal because of the preparation. Adam, cripnja may be another term for peka, but both refer to the way your meat is cooked.

Take a look at DAY THIRTEEN of my trip report posted last night.

We ate at Ekvinocijo Konoba and, for the most part, the dishes were very good.

It is very close to the entrance to the Buza Bar, which you will see we loved.

((H))

Welcome back, rainbro! Are we going to get a trip report from you?? Especially about the food...:))

Glad you enjoyed the food and suggestions. Isn't Orhan wonderful? I think it is a little underrated, which is fine with me!

There aren't many guests who arrive in Dubrovnik who know about Nava. It is a local well kept secret. However some wonderful and charming friends were there with me last week and we had a wonderful lunch there.

Lamb ispod peka is indeed a wonderful dish. Someday we will eat this at Mlinca in Orebic, a unchanged and very old olive oil pressing facility and now a wonderful restaurant.

Next trip very soon I hope

Adio
cas

In Dubrovnik, we loved Mea Culpa (best pizza ever) and Spaguetteria Tony for the amazing 5 cheese lasagna. Monte in Rovinj was OUTSTANDING!!!!!!!!