Istria is well known for its delicious food and good wine, from seafood at the coast to rich red meat inland, from olive oil tasting to sipping a glass of good wine at sunset, an amazing gastronomical experience is guaranteed!
If you are dining in one of the coastal towns make sure not to miss the fresh fish dishes, octopus, squid, mussels, oysters, shrimp, lobster and other sea delicacies. Most restaurant have a daily offer of fresh products and be sure to ask what the specialty of the house is!
In Rovinj, we would like to suggest Restaurant Scuba with an excellent fish offer, Restaurant Balbi and Mali Raj in the narrow streets of the old town, Restaurant Maestral with one of the best views in town; or if you are looking for something a bit fancier there is the unique Restaurant Putulina situated on the rocks just a few meters from the sea or the two Michelin star restaurants: Restaurant Monte in the old town or Cap Aureo located in the Grand Park Hotel.
When visiting the central parts of Istria however, driving through the hills full of vineyards you will encounter plenty of traditional konobas offering more of a meat selection. For starters, there is the Istrain pršut (dry-cured ham) and a variety of cheese made from goat, sheep or cow’s milk. The cheeses are often aged with herbs and spices or even truffles and can be accompanied by some extra virgin olive oil or honey from local beekeepers.
Pasta is a traditional dish in Istria with its traditional shapes: fuži, pljukanci, njoki, ravioli, accompanied either by truffles (white truffles are Istria’s delicacy), or šparoge i pršut (wild asparagus and dry-cured ham) or mushrooms when in season; or a seafood or meat sauce (beef or boškarin goulash, lamb goulash, chicken žgvacet). The options with pasta are many and you can’t go wrong!
For the main dish, you can’t go wrong with a steak. Make sure to try Boškarin meat, a type of Istrian ox, the symbol of the peninsula!
Istrian food is always accompanied by extra virgin olive oil, Istria’s liquid gold. You can also enjoy in the region’s “olive oil routes” with olive tree plantations all around and visit some of the best olive oil producers in the region like Chiavalon (Vodnjan), Grubić (Bale), Konfin (Buje), Komarija (Borut), Oleum Maris (Galižana) and many more.
And, of course, no meal is complete without a glass of good Istrian wine! Istria has to offer local grapes: the white Malvasia and the red Teran, but local producers have a wide variety of excellent bottles, including the sweet Momjanski Muškat perfect to taste with a dessert. Many wineries offer wine tasting in their amazing up-hill estates with breath-taking views of their vineyards. Some of the most popular are: Kozlović Winery (Momjan), Kabola winery (Momjan), Vina Cattunar (Brtonigla), Fakin Winery (Motovun), Clai Wines (Buje), Coronica winery (Umag), Meneghetti Wine Hotel and Winery (Bale), Medea Winery (Vodnjan), Wine station Trapan (Pula), Matošević Wines (Rovinj) and many many more so make sure to make a stop at at least one of them!
Finally, to complete the meal you should get a locally produced rakija (brandy) or liqueur such as Teranino (made from the red wine Teran). If you would like to taste all different kinds of brandy, be sure to visit one of the Aura Distillery shops.
A trip to Istria really takes you on a fantastic gastronomic journey with all the excellent konobas you will encounter along the way and the excellent wine that will delight your taste buds with amazing views of the peninsula!
