December 20, 2018 - For a traditional Christmas lunch at Zagreb and perhaps Croatia’s best hotel, the Esplanade, chef Ana Grgić has prepared a feast to remember for a lifetime. 

Among media representatives, this Christmas lunch is particularly important, and the obligations of all journalists are always reorganized in a way to ensure their attendance. After all, the Zinfandel restaurant at the Esplanade is known for its chic ambiance, sophisticated fine dining and charming, professional service, and their always ambitious but not overly pretentious menu reaffirms their stellar position on the gourmet map.

This time, around sixty journalists and influencers from all important Croatian media, and the “who’s who” of the domestic media scene, followed the likable Ana Grgić who again demonstrated her majesty, creativity, skill, innovation, and virtuosity. 

Ana once again proved that she was not accidentally proclaimed 2018’s Great Chef of Tomorrow for the Gault & Millau guide and honored with exclusive membership in the company of Chaîne des Rôtisseurs. Everyone who knows her work knows that even without these titles Ana Grgić merely is an irresistible personality and a superb chef that, with her recognizable expression to guests, unmistakably brings an explosion of fantastic flavors. Her strong, innovative concepts, specific creative expression, unique ingredients, artistic plating, and emphasis on original flavors are also the features of Zinfandel's new menu.

The menu contains irresistible appealing, modern and accurately shaped interpretations of traditional dishes and an exciting combination of winter food such as čvarci, cabbage, chestnut, kayak, sour cream and kimchi. The media was first served the pearls of Ana's winter menu: a delicate block of Pag cheese with a marmalade of red cabbage, pearls of vinegar and čvarci,; pheasant rillette, hazelnut foam, porcini mushroom tuile, roasted hazelnuts; cuttlefish, Jerusalem artichoke, cuttlefish ink powder, capers leaf; a pork fillet with a brown butter bearnaise - and for dessert, a crunchy chocolate with mascarpone, almond and citrus fruit biscuits. In the end, Brie cheese arrived with roasted almonds and honey. 

Along with these delicacies, you can find much more on Zinfandel's menu, which you can see in its entirety here. 

Flambé - a meal prepared at the table in flames, is more and more popular among guests, and at Zinfandel, you can experience it with a veal fillet with pickled mustard, baby carrot cream, and Port wine; foie gras in orange and cognac sauce, apple chutney, brioche; red shrimps, sun-dried tomatoes, Pernod Ricard; or crêpes Suzette in orange sauce, and vanilla ice cream. 

For all those who want to experience these perfect tastes and unbeatable dining experience, Ana has agreed on a carefully selected tasting menu of four, five and six-course meals. 

Anyone who is gluten-free can also visit Zinfandel, which offers a selection of three and four courses of gluten-free meals certified by the first Bosk gluten-free certificate in Croatia. 

Ana, with Esplanade's team of top pastry cooks, also prepares a selection of excellent desserts that perfectly round off every gourmet story. A brownie of dark chocolate with peanut and vanilla; marinated pears with lemon biscuit and homemade cinnamon ice cream; carrots with sour cream and pineapple; and grissini with flambé kumquats are just some.

An unforgettable gourmet experience is only complete with a list of top quality wines and champagnes from Croatia and the world, and the charming sommelier Ivan Šneler will be delighted to recommend the right wines to match the selected dishes for your Zinfandel visit. 

To make ordering as easy as possible, all dishes are marked with special gluten-free, vegetarian or halal labels. Without exaggeration, Ana has launched this winter's most creative menu.

All photos from Esplanade archive. 

For the first time, two Croatian chef’s risotto dishes’ have won over an Italian jury and have been entered into the prestigious Gallo Guide this year.