Cuisine of Pag Island for gourmets. Places for dinner - best restaurants

You can’t fully plunge yourself into the culture of a foreign country without trying its national cuisine. Croatia is famous for its delicious food. There are two kinds of catering establishments on Pag. You can eat in a restaurant or visit a konoba which is a Croatian local tavern. There is no difference between dishes in a konoba and a restaurant, the places just have different interiors. Konoba is furnished in a country style. The main dishes are served in a konoba and in a restaurant only at dinner time. But dinner is usually a late meal in Croatia. However, you can come here at noon and have marena which is a late breakfast. You will get a portion of meat or fish but it is smaller than you can get on dinner and it costs less.

Croats love pizza. It is not the only dish that came to Pag from Italy which is located close to Croatia, but pizza plays a great role in the Croatian diet. Moreover, it is not only a kind of fast food here. Be sure to visit local pizzeria and try salads. They are even more delicious than you can find in a local restaurant. There is a great number of delicious pizza toppings, but the tastiest is seafood topping. There is also a Croatian pizza which is called pizzeta. It is usually served by the slice.

However, there are many other dishes every tourist should tase. Brodet is a thick seafood soup. It was initially food for poor people, but nowadays brodet is served at all fashionable Croatian restaurants. One more national dish is pršut. It is a dried pork ham. Pršut is not just simple food for locals. They are proud of this dish and you can always find it on the table during different celebrations. Don’t pass by Pag cheese. It is incredibly delicious sheep milk cheese. Kulen also deserves your attention. It is spicy sausages with paprika. Despite its colour, crni rižot (black risotto) is a delicious dish. It is made of rice with seafood and cuttlefish ink which makes the dish black. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

Cutlets are usually served on dinner and supper. Fried meat is very popular on Pag. Fried meat in the dough is called Prague schnitzel and schnitzel with cheese and ham is called Zagreb schnitzel. Goulash is usually served here with pasta. Beef with plum and wine is a delicious meat dish too. Turkey with mlinci (flat pasta, soaked in roast juices) is very popular in Croatia. Ćevapčići is sausages made of minced pork or beef with onion. Croats also love peppers stuffed with meat or vegetables. Truffle dishes play an important role in Croatian cuisine. You can buy truffle paste in every supermarket on the island.

A large number of restaurants are oriented on fish dishes. Fish is boiled, fried and baked here. Don’t pass by sea bass, flounder and a scorpion fish. Bakalar (dried cod) and Croatian mullus are delicious fish which you can try at a low price. Local mussels and oysters with lemon drops are delicious too. Don’t miss a chance to try Ispod peke. It is a traditional Croatian dish. This phrase is translated as «under the bell». Ispod peke is usually made of potatoes, lamb or octopus. You need to put the ingredients in a stone oven, cover it with a lid and coal. You should remove the lid only when the dish is ready to be served.

Croats prefer to eat low-fat desserts. Local cakes are like puddings and you won't gain weight. Don’t pass by međimurska gibanica, a layer cake with apple, poppyseed, walnut and cottage cheese fillings and rapska torta (rab cake) which original recipe is secret information. You can easily find coffee and juice on the island. The most popular Croatian hard drinks are local wines, travarica (loza with herbs), šljivovica (plums) and vinjak. Women will definitely like local cherry liquer.