Slovenian food: the back story

About Slovenian food: the back story

By the ULTIMATE Ljubljana Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Slovenia sits where the Alps, the Pannonian plain, the Karst and the Adriatic meet, and its kitchen borrows from all four. In Ljubljana you can taste the whole country in a single afternoon.

Four landscapes on one plate

From the mountains come cheeses, buckwheat and hearty stews; from the Karst, air-dried pršut and the dark red teran wine; from the coast, fish, olive oil and salt from the pans at Sečovlje; and from the east, pumpkin-seed oil and rich layered pastries. Ljubljana’s restaurants mix them freely.

Gostilna classics

A gostilna is the Slovenian inn, and its menu is the place to start: kranjska klobasa, the Carniolan sausage protected by an EU geographical indication, served with mustard and horseradish; jota, a sauerkraut and bean soup; žlikrofi, little dumplings from Idrija; and štruklji, rolled dumplings with sweet or savoury fillings.

In Ljubljana, lunch at a gostilna is still the best introduction to the country.

The sweet side

Potica, a rolled cake with walnut, tarragon or poppy-seed filling, appears at every celebration. Prekmurska gibanica stacks poppy seed, cottage cheese, walnut and apple in layers, and at Lake Bled the cream cake, kremšnita, has a fame all of its own.

Open Kitchen

From spring to autumn, on Fridays, the Open Kitchen (Odprta kuhna) street-food market fills Pogačarjev trg by the cathedral with stalls run by Ljubljana’s restaurants. It is the most enjoyable way to taste a lot in a short time.

The Central Market

Ljubljana’s Central Market (Osrednja tržnica) fills Vodnik Square and the riverside colonnade designed by Jože Plečnik. Come in the morning for seasonal fruit and vegetables, then look for Slovenian specialities to take home: dark pumpkin-seed oil from Styria, Tolminc cheese from the Soča valley, and honey from Slovenia’s own Carniolan bee. Under the colonnade you’ll find bakers, butchers and fishmongers; on Fridays from spring to autumn, the Open Kitchen sets up next door on Pogačarjev trg.

Our advice: have one long lunch at a traditional gostilna such as Sokol or Šestica, buy a Carniolan sausage from Klobasarna, and book at least one of the modern kitchens recognised in the MICHELIN Guide, such as Strelec, TaBar or Landerik. Ask for Slovenian wine by the glass: the lists are excellent.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Slovenian food: the back story before you go.