Food & Drink

Traditional Croatian cuisine reflects widely diverse cultural and geographic influences. Some are a result of Croatia's proximity to the sea and fertile farmland, and some are the result of foreign occupiers who imported their tastes and recipes. Croatians are very proud of their gastronomic traditions, and while there are regional differences, you'll find that freshness, grilling, and daily baking are consistent across the country.

Until recently, there was little menu variety within the region. But in summer 2009, it was clear that a new breed of chefs had infiltrated Croatia's dining scene with food-forward trends and preparations. In large cities and small, menus offering dishes made with local produce, meats, and fish were being prepared using sophisticated methods like sous-vide, infusion, and vertical presentation. The new culinary outlook has given new life to Croatia's dining scene, which is now innovative and exciting.

In Istria, the development of the country's first quality rating system for wine and olive oil production has been introduced, opening the way for development of new export possibilities. And in such cities as Dubrovnik and Zagreb, there has been an explosion of ethnic restaurants offering Croatians the opportunity to sample global cuisines including Thai, Mexican, Japanese, and even southern American. These are long overdue accomplishments, and they are making a significant contribution to more interesting dining choices and the development of a new Croatian culinary tradition.

Meals & Dining Customs

Croatia's old dining tradition still is strong, but it is changing as citizens change their work hours, eating habits, and culinary awareness.

Breakfast & Gablec -- Western-style breakfast (dorucak; eggs, pastries, meats, cereals) is served at larger hotels and restaurants throughout Croatia. In smaller towns and in homes, a glass of rakija (fruit brandy), a cup of coffee, and bread or a roll hot from the local bakery comprise the usual early-morning meal.

Around 10am Croatians who farm or start work early often stop for gablec (marenda on the coast), literally "breakfast eaten with cutlery." This meal is a smaller version of lunch, Croatia's main meal, but it sometimes substitutes.

Gablec was common in the former Yugoslavia because back then people started work and school around 6 or 7am, which didn't allow time for breakfast. They were hungry around midmorning and a meal of home-style food like sarma (stuffed sour cabbage), goulash, or fis paprikas customarily was offered in factories, schools, and local restaurants.

Lunch -- Lunch (rucak) generally is Croatia's main meal. It often begins with a bowl of soup followed by an entree of roasted meat, vegetable or salad, potatoes or noodles, and dessert. Croatians eat lunch anywhere from 10am to late afternoon, and if they eat dinner at all, it usually is a light meal.

Dinner -- Dinner (vecera) for Croatians often consists of a very thin-crusted pizza or a shared plate of snacks, such as cevapi (spicy grilled sausage), prsut (smoked ham) and cheese, or grilled sardines, usually served well after 8pm. If they aren't eating at home, Croatians most frequently dine at restorans or konobas, both of which serve a wide range of dishes but differ in levels of formality, with restorans being the fancier of the two.

Coffee & Ice Cream -- Drinking coffee is a social event in Croatia. People sipping espresso are a common sight on almost every street in every town at any time of day. Sometimes Croatian coffee shops are cafes attached to restaurants or pastry shops, and sometimes they are free-standing shops that serve only drinks (alcoholic or nonalcoholic). Ice-cream shops -- almost as ubiquitous as coffee shops -- serve coffee and mostly nonalcoholic beverages plus a huge array of frozen concoctions ranging from basic cones to multilayered sundaes, as well as a selection of cakes and pastries.

Tipping -- Tipping in Croatia is becoming more commonplace, especially in upscale restaurants. In the past, tipping was welcome but not expected. Today, an extra 10% or 15% is the norm in upscale establishments and in big cities. Tipping is rare and not expected in informal restaurants and in smaller towns, but most people leave any coins they receive in change for the waiter. Croatian waiters do not depend on tips for living wages.

Couvert -- Adding a couvert to the bill is a relatively new practice in Croatian restaurants and it is not uniformly imposed. The couvert is a "cover charge" that is a prima facie charge for bread, which is brought to the table automatically in most places. Menus usually list the couvert and its cost, which can range from 5kn to 70kn or more. You can refuse the bread and escape the couvert, but once the bread basket lands on your table, you have to pay the charge.

Regional Specialties

Dining is a national sport in Croatia. Generally, food is surprisingly good in all regions of the country. However, besides consistent quality and an ever-present offering of grilled meat and fish and pizza from north to south, each part of the country prides itself on specific traditional dishes.

Continental Croatia (Zagreb, Bilogora, Zagorje, Podravina, Medimurje) -- Food traditions in this region have roots in seasonal climate, fertile farmland, and the rural lifestyle of the common people, plus the lavish gastronomy of the nobility (Austro-Hungarian) who lived in castles dotting the terrain.

Consequently, cuisine in this part of Croatia is more substantial than in other regions. For example, the need to store meat safely inspired lodrica ili tiblica (big wooden bowl), baked meats kept in bowls full of lard in cool places for later use. Smoking and drying, also methods used to preserve meats, extended to cheese (prgica), still a popular item in regional markets. Zganci, a kind of grits topped with cheese, sour cream, yogurt, or bacon, is a common breakfast dish. Turkey or duck with mlinci (baked noodles), sarma (ground meat in cabbage leaves), and krvavice (blood sausage with sauerkraut) are popular mains.

Favorite desserts in this region are strukle (phyllo filled with fresh cheese, apples, cherries, or other fruit) and palacinke (crepes filled with honey and walnuts or jam). Knedle sa sljivama (potato dumplings stuffed with plums) are on almost every restaurant menu. In Medimurje, prekomurska gibanica (yeast cake layered with fresh cheese, apples, walnuts, poppy seeds, and raisins) is a must-try sweet after dinner.

Gorski Kotar & Lika -- The area southwest of central Croatia (including Plitvice Lakes National Park) is a combination of forests, hills, and pastures where winters are long and summers short. The food is similar to that of continental Croatia, with a few notable additions. You'll see a lot of roadside stalls selling homemade cheeses and fruit brandies as well as spit-roasted lamb and pork. Look for janjetina (lamb) or janjetina baked under a peka (a metal, bell-shaped lid). Lika-style sauerkraut is another specialty that consists of marinated cabbage and smoked sausage served with potatoes boiled in their skins. Pijane pastrve (drunken trout) is fish cooked in wine sauce and served with potatoes and veggies, while licki lonac (Licki pot) is a stew of cabbage, potatoes, root vegetables, and meat.

Slavonia & Baranja -- Cuisine in the eastern part of continental Croatia has a Hungarian influence: The food is quite heavy and seasoned with a lot of paprika. Specialties include cobanac (goulash made from meat and seasoned with hot paprika, garlic, and bay leaves), ribli paprikas (paprika-based stew with a variety of fish), punjene paprikas (paprika peppers stuffed with minced pork, rice, and bacon), and freshwater fish grilled on a spit over an open fire. Kulen (spicy paprika sausage), rezanci (broad egg noodles topped with sweetened walnuts or poppy seeds), and breskvice (dough balls filled with walnuts, sugar, chocolate, and fruit brandy, colored red to resemble peaches) are other regional delights. And the red stuff served with meat is called ajvar, a kind of red-pepper tapenade that can be mild or hot.

Kvarner & Istria -- These two regions offer the most diverse cuisine in Croatia, perhaps because they combine both inland and coastal tastes. Here the peka covers food placed on a ceramic slab during cooking. The peka is covered with hot ash during the process. In the Kvarner, try Creska janjetina (lamb from the island of Cres) and skampi (shrimp cooked under the peka); or try game stews infused with bay leaves that from the mountainous part of Cres island.

In Lovran and along Kvarner Bay, maruni (chestnuts) are used in almost everything, including krostule (fried strips of dough made with flour, eggs, lemon zest, and grape brandy). On Pag, try Paski sir (Pag cheese), lamb, and prsut (Dalmatian ham), all infused with a distinct Pag flavor because of the animals' diet of local herbs.

Istria has the most refined cuisine in Croatia, and it is also the source of some of the country's best wines. Try riblja juha (fish soup), riblji slozenac (fish stew), kuhane kozice (boiled prawns), crni rizoto sa plodovima mora (black and white seafood risotto), and any dish with tartufe (truffles), including Istarski fuzi sa tartufima (Istrian fuzi with truffles). A special Istarski fuzi sa gulasom od divljaci (fuzi with game goulash) is worth trying. Wines from this region are Malvazija and Vrbnicka zlahtina (whites); and Teran and Borgonja (reds).

Dalmatia -- Freshness and simplicity are the watchwords that most aptly characterize Dalmatian cuisine. Main meals typically start with prsut and Paski sir, both often scattered with olives that have different flavors, depending on the Dalmatian village that grows and processes them. Oysters (kamenice) from Ston on the Peljesac Peninsula are also prized, as is anything from the sea. Riba na leso (fish grilled with olive oil) and served with blitva (boiled Swiss chard and potatoes) is a common main course, as is skoljke i skampi na buzaru (shellfish and shrimp stew). There are as many recipes and spellings for buzara as there are restaurants, but common ingredients in this sauce seem to be oil, garlic, parsley, wine, and shellfish. Pasticada (larded beef or pork roasted in wine and spices) is another good choice.

Wines to seek out in this region include Bogdanusa and Postup (white); and Kastelet and Plavac (red).