Dubrovnik Food and Wine

Restaurants in Dubrovnik generally offer good value but prices have been climbing recently. Self-caterers will find grocery stores in the side streets off Stradun in the Old Town, along the main streets of Lapad and a morning market in Gundulic square in the Old Town.

The staple of Dubrovnik cuisine is fish and seafood, usually off-the-boat fresh and expertly prepared. With strong historic links to Italy, it's unsurprising that pasta and risotto is served in nearly every restaurant. Pizza is another favorite, usually toasted up in wood-fired ovens.

Prices
Because of its tourist business, prices are a little higher in Dubrovnik than elsewhere but you can still get a plate of pasta that often makes a light meal for 50to 60HRK. There is usually no minimum order so don't be embarrassed about ordering only one dish. Fish and seafood is more expensive, running from 300
to 400HRK a kg; An average serving is 250-300g. Calamari is much cheaper.

Restaurants:
Old Town
As any place where tourists congregate, there are restaurants that get away with exploiting their position. Avoid any restaurant that has touts outside; you'll find plenty of them on Prijeko, the street that runs parallel and north of Stradun. Look for little hideouts frequented by locals, generally on the side streets south of Stradun. A good budget choice is the Kamenice on Gundulic square. Lokaranda Peskarija is a popular local choice on Dubrovnik's Old Harbour. One of my personal favorites is Dundo Maroje just off Stradun on Kovacka. Leaving the Old Town by Pile Gate, is the high-quality Atlas Club Nautika on Brsalje 3. Spaghetteria Toni is a wonderful choice for pasta.

Lapad
There are some excellent restaurants in Lapad, mostly away from the streets along the beaches where large hotels sport hotel restaurants. You'll find some good bets along Kardinala Stepinca, a mixed commercial and residential street, and along the pleasant Kralja Zvonimira. Levanat Pucica 15 is a standout in Lapad for fine dining. For a good casual place for pizza a simple meals, try Konavoka on Zvonimira.

Ploce
Leaving the Old Town by Ploce Gate, you'll have to pass the hyper-elegant Labirint Sv Domenika 2, part of the high-rolling Labirint nightlife complex. On Frane Supila, the five-star hotels Grand Villa Argentina and Excelsior provide fine dining indeed.

The many tourist-friendly restaurants in and around the old town offer standard versions of local dishes, such as rizot (seafood risotto), manistra (minestrone soup) and buzara (langoustines in a tomato sauce). For top-notch versions, with formal service and superb sea views from the terrace, Club Nautika (Brsalje 3, 442 526), just outside Pile Gate, is Dubrovnik’s landmark eaterie. The same management runs Proto (Ul.Siroka 1, 323 234), in a similar vein, just off Stradun. Most side streets have at least one local restaurant – check the aforementioned maroon signs on the corners. For something far cheaper and less touristy, head where the locals go for seafood mainstays in rustic surroundings by the old harbour: the hard-to-beat Lokanda Peskarija (Ribarnica, 324 4750).
A few lively bars cluster around Buniceva Poljana in the Old Town, where the lovely, lived-in jazz bar Troubador (No.2) is the most commendable, although Mirage (No.3) and Poco Loco (No.5) are acceptable substitutes if it’s too full. More bars line a short stretch of Bana Jelacica at its southern end, including the rocking Roxy (No.9), good for late-night atmosphere. Get all the theatrical gossip at Talir (Antuninska, off Stradun), the luvvies’ bar. Lapad has outdoor bars aplenty near the bay and along Setaliste Kralja Zvonimira.

Kameniće
Gundulićeva Poljana 8
The menu is small but the portions are huge at this animated hangout. Known for its mussels, it's often so crowded with locals at lunchtime you'll have to sit on the outdoor terrace. That's no hardship as you'll be looking out on one of Dubrovnik's more scenic squares.

Lokando Peskarija, Ribarnica bb
Located on the Old Harbour right next to the fish market, you'll feast on the freshest catch here. Locals tuck in to a hearty plate of fried sardines and finish with a rozata Dubrovnik (flan) for dessert. The interior is suitably atmospheric and from the outside tables you can watch the boats come and go over a glass of good local wine.

Nautika, Brsalje 3 - This elegant restaurant offers good but expensive dining and a spectacular view over the sea. It's class all the way with an emphasis on dressed up seafood dishes. The staff are also dressed up - in period costume. But the best item on the menu is the undressed oysters from the nearby Pelješac Peninsula. Good vegetarian selection available. Web: http://www.esculap-teo.hr