February 3, 2023 - As the cold weather persists and sour cabbage keeps calling our names, it might be time to rethink the nation's favourite and treat yourself to deconstructed sarma. We know you want to shout blasphemy, but just hear us out. Don't tell us you've never wished you could have it baked.

Sarma (no English equivalent, I'm afraid) is a traditional winter dish of Croatia and the Balkans.

It's made of minced meat, rolled into sour cabbage leaves, and cooked with more sour cabbage. It's also one of those meals a woman should know how to make to get married (so they say).

Although sarma is considered a national dish in Croatia as well as in Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro, and Macedonia (even Bulgaria and Romania), its historical roots come from the Ottoman Empire, all the way back in the 16^th century. And they stole the idea from the Persians! So, it's little to say that sarma has been around for some time.

The original version was meat-free, made with wine leaves and stuffed with rice, then boiled in hot water, which is the recipe known today as yaprak sarma (yaprak is the Turkish word for leaf). This kind of sarma is still eaten in more Muslim-oriented countries like Turkey and Bosnia. Other countries prefer the meat filling and sour cabbage combination, although in the south of Croatia and Herzegovina, they use leaves of a plant called raštika (wild blitva), and that dish is called Hercegovački japrak. Many nations, twice as many varieties of sarma.

The most common sarma in these areas is the one with cabbage and meat. Each household has its own ''unique'' recipe, and while some use only minced pork meat, others use a pork/beef mixture. Some put more spices in the meat mixture, while others keep it clean with salt, pepper, and paprika. Some make the sauce more flavourful by adding a bit of ajvar to the whole story; others don't. Some roll big sarmas; some make them small. And there's also a dispute over the right amount of ''sourness'' regarding the cabbage. As it usually goes in Croatia, everyone is right and wrong at the same time.

Now, if you're looking to ride an emotional rollercoaster when you say you're now going to deconstruct the almighty sarma (they'll hate you before they love you for it), just get your normal sarma ingredients and a little bit of patience. Let's recap what you'll need to feed a family of 6, twice (the right way).

Ingredients for deconstructed sarma:

- 1 kg of shredded sour cabbage or a cabbage head that you can chop up 

- 1 kg of mixed minced meat

- 2 cups of rice

- 2 medium onions

- 1 tbsp of lard

- salt, pepper, sweet paprika

- sour cream

Instructions:

1. Boil your sour cabbage in enough water to cover it. Cook for about 30 minutes.

This is to soften it up a little and release any extra sourness (depending on how sour you like it, you might want to leave it on for a bit longer).

2. Chop up and saute the onions in lard, add the meat and spices, cook until 80% done. Drain and save the flavourful liquid.

3. Cook the rice in the meat liquid; add water if needed (about 6 cups of liquid for the 2 cups of rice). Season to taste.

4. Heat the oven to 180 °C.

5. Layer the ingredients in a mirrored fashion: cabbage, rice, meat, rice, cabbage. Finish off with a thin layer of sour cream.

6. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the sour cream starts looking golden.

7. Eat way too much deconstructed sarma.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated Lifestyle section.

September the 19th, 2022 - The gorgeous Istrian peninsula is well known for its gastronomic scene and its delicacies, and Istrian white truffles are just one of those special items people flock to this area for. They are lacking this year, and causing issues for consumers.

As Morski writes, there is currently a shortage of one of the most expensive types of items of this sort in the world - Istrian white truffles. Truffle farmers across Istria are becoming somewhat desperate, they claim that they did everything according to the rules of the profession, but Istrian white truffles are chronically scarce this year.

Truffle lovers fear that this shortage is just the beginning of what could befall this highly sought-after, expensive culinary delicacy in the near future.

''I come from a family whose several generations have been involved in truffle hunting, and for as long as my memory serves me, I can't for the life of me remember a situation like this. Some of my colleagues compare it to 2012, when we also witnessed damaging droughts, but I, with a definite dose of anxiety, think that something much worse is at play,'' Robert Marusic, one of the founders of the Association of Truffle Growers of Istria from Motovun, told Rijeka portal Novi List.

Due to the shortage of Istrian white truffles, which are the more expensive type, the prices of black truffles could go wild and cost a pretty penny when they otherwise wouldn't.

''According to what we're now hearing, the black truffle, especially if it is bought by restaurant owners who don't have permanent suppliers and higher levels of consumption, is coming in at the amount of five thousand kuna per kilogram. This, of course, isn't the normal price, because the black truffle is neither something special nor that rare. The intensity of its flavour is immeasurably lower than that of white truffles, and it's also well distributed. On the other hand, white Istrian truffles are a great gastronomic mystery, and they're located in an extremely narrow area that borders the areas from Vrh, Livada, Motovun, all the way to Ponte Porton,'' noted Marusic, adding that it is a very small area that has specific mineral composition.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

October 14, 2021 - Tastes of Croatian Tradition returns for its second edition next month after the pandemic brought the culinary event to a halt last year. 

Representatives of ten counties attended the council for "Tastes of Croatian Tradition," hosted by the Brod-Posavina County Tourist Board and held at Salaš Savus in Bukovlje near Slavonski Brod. After a one-year break due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was agreed at the session that the Taste of Croatian Tradition Days will be held from November 15 to 28, 2021.

As expected, in this second edition of the event, about 110 catering establishments bearing the Tastes of Croatian Tradition standard from 13 Croatian counties will be included. During the fourteen-day duration of the event, they will offer guests two menus consisting of at least three courses of local traditional dishes. Furthermore, restaurants will design the offer of their choice in one of four price groups: from 75, 95, 125, or 195 kuna.

The second Tastes of Croatian Tradition Days will be presented at a press conference in Zagreb in early November when the first national Tastes of Croatian Tradition labels prepared in digital and printed editions will be presented.

The Tastes of Croatian Tradition standard was received by another catering facility in the Brod-Posavina County area, which met the high criteria to be awarded the prestigious standard. Namely, Ružica Vidaković, director of the Brod-Posavina County Tourist Office, awarded the label to Kuća Piva restaurant in the town of Slavonski Brod, and it was received by the owner of the facility, Željko Špalat.

This standard is held by fourteen restaurants today in the Brod-Posavina County area. In 13 Croatian counties, the Tastes of Croatian Tradition standard is carried by almost 130 restaurants that offer at least six traditional dishes (of which two main dishes with side dishes are required) and at least six labels of local drinks, of which four are wines.

Source: HRTurizam

You can read more about the project HERE.

For more on lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

April the 13th, 2021 - CUHaCHA might seem like a strange word and a bit of a mouthful to try to pronounce, but this project is set to set just how important Croatian culinary heritage is firmly in stone.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marta Duic writes, aware that traditional food plays a major role in the tradition and folklore of countries and is the basis of cultural heritage, the Zadar County Agency for Rural Development - AGRRA, the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of the Herzegovina-Neretva County-Canton, the Tivat Municipality and Zadar County have jointly launched the CUHaCHA project.

As Ana Zubcic, AGRRA's international cooperation project manager, explained, tradition, Croatian cultural heritage and that of other surrounding countries, gastronomy and catering/hospitality are inextricably intertwined in this region. In addition, Zubcic pointed out, local cuisine and local products can encourage both innovation and promotion, and ultimately ensure further development at the regional and global level, this further improving the overall tourist offer.

Accordingly, the main goal of the "CUHaCHA" project is to strengthen and preserve the identity of Croatian culinary heritage and the common culinary heritage of the programme area, as well as to further contribute to the development of tourism, and it's a project worth 710,946.94 euros in total, of which the EU is co-financing 604,304.89 euros.

"Our general goal is to revive those dishes through gastronomy and traditional dishes that are slowly falling into oblivion and thus provide tourists the opportunity to experience the authentic flavours of the region. Food has played a key role in the tradition of our area for thousands of years now and remains an important part of our cultural heritage. In this way, we not only work to promote the destination and our traditions, but also offer an opportunity for innovation in this field,'' added Zubcic.

The project started back in August last year, and the first meeting of the partners involved was held in November, when the first project activities and plans were initially agreed.

Namely, as Zubcic revealed, as part of the project, common culinary heritage trails will be developed to strengthen and diversify the tourist offer, a culinary heritage monograph will be published, and training will be held for all service providers to ensure better culinary heritage management.

The project will also arrange traditional kitchens with the aim of promoting culinary heritage. Unfortunately, like the majority of other things, this project was also slowed down by the ongoing pandemic, but a culinary heritage survey is planned for the next six months.

"By researching all three areas, we'll find out what these dishes are, and then revive them and offer them in restaurants and in the general tourist offer. We believe that this will encourage farmers as well, because tradition and home-grown food are the key to this story.

The idea is that those who already offer food, if they don't already offer traditional food, for them to go in that direction,'' concluded Zubcic, adding that they will soon adapt and equip a traditional kitchen where training sessions for caterers, chefs and restaurant managers will be held. One of the last steps will be a virtual gastro trail.

For more on Croatian culinary heritage and local dishes, check out or dedicated section.

November 17, 2020 – Croatia receives another gastro recognition as the gastro portal Chef's Pencil has declared it as one of the best undiscovered gastronomic destinations in the world.

As Večernji list reports, it is a competition named "The Most Underrated Foodie Destination in the World" conducted among 250 renowned chefs and culinary experts, who singled out under-exposed gastro destinations that can stand alongside popular gastro destinations such as France and Italy.

They selected the top 10 countries that can boast of their gastronomic offer and wealth but are not widely-known as gastro destinations. Croatia took a high fourth place on this list, behind the Philippines, Vietnam, and Mexico. It is followed by Thailand, Peru, Australia, Jamaica, Portugal, and Norway.

Screenshot Chef's Pencil

"Croatia has become a really popular place to holiday over the last few years. And who can blame all those holidaymakers for reaching for pristine Adriatic waters, spectacular beaches, sublime Mediterranean climate, atmospheric Roman ruins, incredible national parks, and soaring mountains… Have I mentioned the food yet? And maybe that’s why it’s an underrated foodie destination – the country has so much going for it, the food has to fight for attention," they say from Chef's Pencil about the Croatian cuisine, noting that it's hard to pinpoint it as it varies from region to region.

"Dalmatian food is typically Mediterranean with lots of fish, veggies, and olive oil. Istrian cuisine is similar although they have their own special approach to beans and pasta here. In Zagreb there’s more of a European vibe with meat and a special attachment to cabbage, while in Slavonia its pork and more pork and lots of paprika," they explain, naming some of the best Croatian food such as sheep's cheese, cured ham, black risotto, octopus salad, brudet, sarma, and more.

Octopus salad / Copyright Romulić and Stojčić

Although Croatia is already recognized for its gastronomic excellence, offering unforgettable gastronomic experiences for all food lovers, chefs, and experts who participated in the survey believed that our country deserves additional international recognition.

"Recognitions like this give us an additional incentive to continue the development of our gastronomic scene and to continue to promote ourselves as an attractive and quality gastronomic destination, which we really are," said Croatia National Tourist Board director Kristjan Staničić.

Recall, in 2020, the Croatian National Tourist Board presented Croatian gastronomy on this renowned portal, as well as Croatian chefs and regional gastronomic specialties.

Kvarner was presented by the youngest Croatian chef with a MICHELIN star, Deni Srdoč, who shared with readers a recipe for a lamb dish "Heritage lamb". Marko Gajski, the chef of LD Terrace in Korčula, who was also awarded a MICHELIN star this year, presented the Dalmatian region through his original recipe for Komiža bread, while chef Bruno Vokal from Noel, Zagreb's first MICHELIN star restaurant, shared his original recipe for "Deconstructed štruklji". Marina Gaši, chef and owner of the family restaurant Marina in Novigrad, presented the flavors of Istria via sardine tartare. The story of Croatian gastronomy was concluded by Tomica Đukić, chef of the Osijek Hotel and official chef of the Croatian national football team, who presented the rich flavors of Slavonia with a flavored fillet of a black Slavonian pig with pumpkin and beetroot.

Rich gastronomic offer from Slavonia / Copyright Romulić and Stojčić

As Morski writes on the 24th of June, 2020, renowned Croatian chefs from various restaurants within the country which boast a Michelin star have been representing the rich Croatian gastro scene on the popular Australian gastro portal Chef’s Pencil. This is a cooperation initiated on the Australian market by the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) with the aim of promoting Croatian gastronomy, chefs and regional gastronomic specialties.

''After we successfully presented the entire richness and quality of Croatian gastronomy on the Chef’s Pencil platform, the focus of our cooperation is now on presenting famous Croatian chefs who represent our most important gastro regions through their original recipes. At a time when we're hard to reach for Australians and for many other guests from distant markets, this is one of the ways in which we're maintaining the visibility of Croatia and at the same time representing the richness of our gastronomic offer,'' said CNTB director, Kristjan Stanicic.

The first to be introduced was the youngest of the Croatian chefs with a Michelin star, Deni Srdoc, who presented the flavours of Kvarner by sharing a recipe for a lamb dish called "Heritage lamb". Srdoc shared his story with the readers, starting from the first culinary steps all the way to the restaurant called Draga di Lovrana, for which he secured a prestigious Michelin star in 2019.

Marko Gajski, chef of the LD Terrace restaurant on the beautiful island of Korcula, which was awarded his first Michelin star this year, revealed that his participation in Masterchef marked the beginning of his life's journey dedicated to dealing with top quality gastronomy. Through the recipe for Komixa bread, he revealed the story according in which sailors brought the recipe for Komiza bread with dough from India, and then enriched it with ingredients they already had in Dalmatia, more precisely on the island of Vis.

The Chef’s Pencil platform will also feature chef Bruno Vokal from Noel, the first Michelin star restaurant in Zagreb, who will share his original recipe for ''deconstructed strukle'' with his readers, one of the most popular dishes on Noel’s menu. After Bruno Vokal, Marina Gasi, the chef and owner of the family restaurant Marina in Novigrad, will present herself on the platform, presenting the rich flavours of Istria, while one of the renowned Slavonian chefs will reveal all the charms of continental Croatian cuisine which unfortunately gets less of the limelight than Dalmatian and Istrian cuisine does.

Otherwise, the Australian web platform Chef’s Pencil has been publishing content for eleven years for people interested in gastronomy, from professional chefs to amateur food lovers. In addition to numerous recipes, the site contains tips for cooking and visiting gastronomic tourist destinations, the latest reports from the culinary industry and professional advice for all people interested in gastronomy.

For more, follow our lifestyle page.

March 30, 2020 - On the ‘Chefs Cook at Home’ Facebook page, you can follow some of the most famous Croatian chefs making magic in their home kitchens.

“Dear friends, we couldn't even imagine a thousand likes after just ten hours of our new ‘Chefs Cook at Home’ page. Thank you! In these moments, we can cheer you up with what we know best, cooking! Stay tuned and let’s cook together,” reads the new Facebook page, which has garnered incredible support in the beginning stages.

A dozen chefs who are not currently working or working with reduced capacity due to deliveries have joined forces to bring us closer to their work, but this time from home, reports T.portal.

Chef of Bistro Apetit Marin Rendic has been able to bring together an outstanding group of big names in the Croatian gastro scene, from which we will be able to learn, but also suggest ideas for new dishes, he says. 

Namely, the ’Chefs Cook at Home’ page has brought together Laganini chef Hrvoje Zirojevic, Pellegrini chef Rudolf Stefan, Agave chef Belizar Milos, Noel chef Goran Kocis, chef Mate Jankovic, chef Ivan Pazanin, chef Teo Fernetich from San Rocco in Brtonigla, chef Ante Bozic from Kornati Konoba Opat and Pero Savanovic, who has already posted two recipes - spaghetti aglio olio e peperoncino and asparagus risotto. At the same time, Marin Rendic made Mediterranean beef meatballs with potato cream for Sunday lunch.

The first video, for example, had 3000 views in an hour and a half. 

“We want to bring food, ideas, and ultimately convey emotions to people, and thus move away from stress. Every day we will try to give tricks or answer questions if you are struggling with something,” says Rendic. You can also follow them on Instagram.

“We wanted people to see that we, too, cook for ourselves, for our family, when we have the opportunity, and now is a perfect time. We wanted you to get to know us better and to see how much we actually enjoy our food,” said Ivan Pazanin from Split. He adds that they also want to educate people and give them a handful of new tips.

“I don't know what I'm going to cook. When I'm home, I cook whatever comes to me. I go into the fridge and always find something. Here, I am left with stuffed peppers sauce, so I will combine it with fuži or some other pasta to have a great lunch for little money,” says Pazanin. 

Recipes and tips will be shared with the Facebook audience, while chefs will also answer questions and help new chefs perfect their culinary skills.

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

Croatian chef Saša Medved, 42, from Orahovica, never dreamed that he would even end up in the Far East when he left Croatia, let alone create the business story of his life there.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Goran Jungvirth writes on the 15th of November, 2019, Medved told Poslovni Dnevnik how he came up with the idea to open a restaurant which served Croatian cuisine in a country where people barely know a thing about Croatia, but that it was precisely because of this that Croatia can now be experienced in Taiwan, thanks to the launch of its business idea.

When and why did you move to Taiwan?

I never thought about leaving Croatia. But at the urging of a friend, back in 2013, with a loan of 850 euros, I went to Ireland. After just five days I got my first job, but at first it wasn't easy. After the first job, I got a second, a third... Basically, I was collecting work experience in Ireland and getting better jobs. I spent almost 7 months in a hostel and made some good, honest friends there, and eventually I met my wife, a native of Taiwan.

How did you come up with the idea of ​​a Croatian restaurant with Croatian cuisine?

I went to Taiwan on holiday, and after two or three days I was craving ''normal'' food... anything but rice and noodles. I visited European restaurant after European restaurant and came to the conclusion that absolutely none of them had any real, authentic food. Everything is Taiwanese. The bread is sweet (if they have any on offer, that is), the dishes are completely unseasoned, etc., I could write a novel about it. I couldn't believe how most restaurants work here, how they convince the Taiwanese that their dishes are authentically European, Indian, American, Italian... and they all have a similar, impersonal taste. That's where I came up with the idea that I could open a 100% authentic Croatian/Slavonian restaurant here. I weighed up the pros and cons of the idea for a year and eventually got it off the ground, I got all of my savings together and went to Taiwan in January 2016.

How did you get started?

When I came to Taiwan, honestly, I didn't know where to start. Everything is different, a completely different world, at some moments completely "illogical" for us "from the west". We decided to start first with a small booth in Qishan, where my wife has a house. The offer was very modest. We used to make burgers, kabobs, meatballs, and sometimes sarma and lemonade.

Were there any initial business difficulties?

There were days when we sold absolutely nothing, moments when we thought about leaving everything and going back to Ireland because our main idea was authenticity and strictly adhere to it. After a while, people became interested in our food and we became popular. After 6 months, we started thinking about a small restaurant, no luxury… a couple of tables, closed doors and air conditioning. Believe me, it is not at all comfortable to be on the street all day in the heat and impossible humidity, so the climate was a huge motivation for me.

As we were looking for a suitable space, an opportunity to rent an old house in the city (Kaohsiung) came up. The lower floor of the house was remodelled to a place with much desired air conditioning, and we lived upstairs. The construction style is completely different here, everything goes up in height, so let's say the living room is on one floor, the bedroom on the other, the kitchen, the toilet, etc on a third, which to me personally is very impractical.

Still, it got started. What was the turning point?

The space was really modest, 6 tables in a semi-dark room, a small cabinet like a counter and that's it. We literally had one light bulb in the middle of the bar. No matter how modest, it was ours and it was moving forward steadily.

Within a few months, we stood out as something different from the others and people began to take an interest and come in increasing numbers. In the next 6 months, we completely renovated the lower floor and made a decent place out of it. From the installation of electricity to the carpentry, I've been forced to learn and do it myself because the cost to foreigners, especially in the restaurant business, is incredibly high. The amount of work in the restaurant was constantly increasing and we decided to hire one person, then two, three, four… Everything was finally going as we'd imagined, so we started thinking about a slightly bigger and better place. After 2 years we moved to the centre of the city.

Who are your main guests... Taiwanese or foreigners?

For the most part, our guests are Taiwanese, I'd say 95 percent, which is our goal. Constant advertising through all available media is targeted at the locals, with foreigners mostly coming upon the recommendation of the hotels where they're staying.

I see that you offer kabobs, sarma, kremšnite, what foods are do the Taiwanese like best?

The menu is very most because we do only those things that can be done 100% the same as in Croatia and so only one person prepares all of those meals, myself. Slavonian čobanac, Slavonian sausages, paprikaš, ražnjići, ćevapi, mixed meat, sarma, stuffed peppers, knedle with plums, vegetable soup and mushroom soup, kremšnite, pancakes and ice cream.

What would you highlight as your best specialty?

Slavonian čobanac, sarma and Slavonian sausages are the most accepted and praised dishes.

Reading the reviews, I've seen that you also create a good impression of the Croatian atmosphere. How do you achieve this?

We have come to be known as the most authentic European restaurant in town, which we're incredibly proud of! Kaohsiung is a huge city with three million inhabitants. There are thousands of restaurants and still a mass of people who have never heard of us. But maybe not for long, because you can hear a good voice from far away.

What are your future business plans?

We're probably opening another restaurant in the next year.

How is your life here?

Everything here seems pretty upside down, most of all the lifestyle. For example, most Taiwanese people hang out only on social networks and at lunches or dinners that are agreed months in advance. There's no way you're going to call someone and say, "let's have a coffee and a chat.'' But chatting on Facebook or any other social network is constant. There's time for that. To me personally, it all comes down to work and thinking about work 24/7.

Do you miss Croatia, do you come here for holidays and do you ever think of coming back?

I have absolutely everything here that I wouldn't even dare to wish for in Croatia. And on the other hand, I'm satisfied, I'm still not thinking about returning, and when I say return, I mean to Ireland! Never say never, but returning to Croatia doesn't seem attractive to me, at least for now.

All those stories about where people were in 1991, Ustashas, ​​Chetniks, Partisans and many other things... I don't miss that at all. It's unfortunate that even now, after 7 years since I left, every year I meet the same people sitting in the same places and talking about the same problems and nobody does absolutely anything. General lethargy! In Croatia, it seems that time has stopped. So much so that Taiwan is at least 20 years ahead, and not to mention Ireland and the rest of Europe.

Make sure to follow our dedicated Made in Croatia, business and lifestyle pages for much more.

The innovative Croatian Plate project is primarily based on molecular gastronomy, and only foods from Croatian OPGs are used.

As Ivan Tominac/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 29th of August, 2019, a great many culinary connoisseurs have said that a true chef has undying persistence and a constant desire to learn more and more, and the young Croatian chef in this story is not only persistent and eager to learn, but also boasts an enviable entrepreneurial streak.

Although only twenty years old, Dino Popović has already managed to become a chef and launch his own gastronomic project. As he notes, he always knew that cooking was his calling, and when he was a kid, he liked to make ''incompatible'' foods and put them together on a plate. He started his culinary career immediately after graduating from the Hotel Palace and successfully conceived the concept of presenting traditional Croatian dishes with a modern twist, starting a food festival with his own signature.

"I recently became the head of the kitchen of the SOI Fusion Restaurant, and it's a great honour for me, seeing as I'm only twenty years old. The responsibility is much greater, from the supply of groceries to everything functioning properly," Dino Popović said, stating that his job as a chef is what he truly loves, and as the only flaw in working in a place like this one he works, is that there are no opening hours. Just working in the kitchen never satisfied all his affinities, and it was out of a desire to present something new to people that he decided to launch the Croatian Plate project.

As he explained, the idea was born overnight, and was conceived as a secret dinner concept with traditional cuisine prepared in an unusual way. "It allowed me to understand how Croats are afraid to step out of some of their old ways and try out some more new flavours," Popović said.

The Croatian Plate project was initially launched with a primary focus on molecular gastronomy. It is a blend of natural sciences and culinary arts, and the choice of this young chef was to present traditional foods with a modern twist. In the field of molecular gastronomy, chemical ingredients such as alginate and calcium, as well as processes such as ice filtration for some types of soups and liquids, are frequently used.

As he noted, in the beginnings of his Croatian Plate project, he realised that Croats didn't particularly like to leave their comfort zones (a habit which stretches much further afield than food and eating), so this year, as a result of his desire to have his culinary ideas presented to a wider audience, a new idea from the Croatian Plate project emerged.

This young Croatian chef launched a small food festival that bears the brand name Hrvatski Pjat (Croatian Plate). Unlike the concept of secret dinners where he used molecular gastronomy, he decided to present traditional foods in the form of fusion cuisine. Dino finished high school in Vrbovec, and returned there to present his new idea. The first Croatian Plate food festival was presented as part of the traditional summer event ''Kaj su jeli naši stari'' (What our elders ate).

It is an event that gathers tens of thousands of visitors each year, which is precisely what proved to be a good choice for this ambitious young chef.

"At the first Croatian Plate Festival, about 15,000 people tasted our food in just three days," Popović said. This talented young chef believes that it is important to support local producers and farms, so through collaborations and sponsorships, he seeks to reach foods that are locally produced.

With an emphasis on staying local and keeping traditions alive, he and his team presented this year's offer at the Croatian Plate Festival, offering burgers and sausages made from black Slavonian pigs, duck with mlinci and modern versions of other old, traditional dishes. As Popović stated, in the meantime, he wants to devote himself to promoting food through PR.

Make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle and Made in Croatia pages for much more.

This Slavonian store is a unique selling point where the shelves feature a rich assortment of local produce from local Slavonian OPGs, handmade souvenirs, and traditional ethno clothing items.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 26th of April, 2019, in the first year, sales surpassed expectations, and products from the new Slavonian store's shelves are finding their way around the world, from Uruguay all the way to Australia, Sanja Rapaić writes for Agroklub.

In Nova Gradiška, a town historically referred to as the youngest Croatian town, the totally unique ''Slavonian store'' was created last year. Located in a building with almost fairy-tale interiors dating from the 1920s, this small Slavonian shop boasts a varied and rich offer. The shop is unique, with a special atmosphere that combines the past and Slavonian traditions with contemporary methods of manufacturing for its numerous local producers.

Located close to the premises of the Tourist Board of the city in which it is situated, the Slavonian shop primarily attracts tourists, travellers and numerous Slavonians working abroad and who are coming on holiday to their native Slavonia. Thanks to them, products from local OPGs, cheeses, and cured meat products, as well as honey, fruit spreads and pastes, souvenirs, clothes and items decorated with ethno motifs and even expensive gold jewellery, have already travelled to almost all countries of the world, from Uruguay all the way to the other side of the world, to Australia.

"It all started two years ago, when the city of Nova Gradiška and six surrounding municipalities - Cernik, Rešetari, Staro Petrovo Selo, Nova Kapela, Davor and Okučani - founded the Nova Gradiška area community of producers. That was the basis of everything, with huge support from Nova Gradiška, in March of last year, we realised another idea of ​​a sales point through which all interested manufacturers could place their products.

As soon as we opened the Slavonian store, the shelves of which were immediately filled with products from all four Slavonian counties and from part of Sisak-Moslavina County. We started out with about twenty manufacturers and in just a year, their number doubled and today the Slavonian store has launched a range of products coming from as many as 55 subcontractors, of which about 30 percent are made up of OPGs, and the rest are from obrts (small companies) and from domestic labour,'' said Milan Rosić of the Slavonian store.

He pointed out that the opening of the Slavonian store has unexpectedly triggered another positive chain reaction. Namely, just so that they could put their products on store shelves, many Slavonian locals decided to open up their own OPGs.

"We're especially proud of the fact that many people who have good ideas and good products have been motivated to open OPGs, obrts or engage in home-based work, and make a serious effort towards doing this work. In the first year of operation, the Slavonian store was responsible for the opening of a dozen brand new OPGs, and partly because of this, our offer is richer and more luxurious every month. The sales are going more than well. Our customers are mainly foreign tourists, Brits, Italians, French and Japanese, of which there are, as much as it might seem unrealistic to some, more and more,'' he says.

While foreigners are mostly looking for souvenirs from this area, as well as traditional clothing, ethno-style jewellery creations, our people who work abroad and domestic tourists are primarily buying Slavonian delicacies - cured meats, various cheeses, alcoholic drinks, liqueurs, fruit juices, honey and honey products, and a variety of homemade pastes and homemade cakes which have been made according to old traditional recipes,'' says the shop manager, who is more than pleased with how the Slavonian store's sales are going.

The whole system works very easily, it's enough to contact the producer's community or come directly to the Slavonian store, where you can sign an agreement with the manager and arrange all details regarding the sale of your products.

"We're working on sales commissions, we negotiate quantities, we display products at our store, and at the end of each month we send a detailed sales data report to all of our producers, send them invoices and then make payments to their accounts for all the products we've sold here that month, so far, everything's been working flawlessly and everyone's satisfied, the manufacturers, the buyers, and us,'' stated Milan Rosić.

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