Serbian cuisine: how-to instruction.
First of all, it is necessary to say a few words about eating habits in general. Serbians respect their traditions and most of them have got three meals per day (except, of course, beer or coffee during breaks): breakfast, lunch and dinner. The latter is the biggest one, so if you go out somewhere in the evening, have your stomach ready for intensive work!
Besides, the focal point of all food is having meat in almost all dishes: pork, beef, chicken, veal… Opening menu of some cosy kafana the range for meat lovers is wide so it is hard to choose without the help of waiter or recommendation of Serbian friend.
To make things easier, the best option would be to describe each meal separately.
According to breakfast food Serbians are totally European people: scrambled eggs, toasts with butter and jam, coffee. The only distinguishing features are the home-made pavlaka (sour cream) and sujuk (sausage).
Lunch is the mix of Muslim and Slav cuisines: soup as the first course can be considered as European tradition whereas dry and spicy meat dishes belong to the heritage of the Asian past.
Speaking about soups it is essential to mention that there are two types of it: supa – ordinary ones (usually they consist of beef or poultry and noodles) and čorba – soups with browned flour.
The main course at the same time cannot be characterized by simple dividing dishes into groups – there are far more combinations than even Serbian kafana chefs can imagine! Some of the classical versions of dishes: pljeskavica (hamburger meat served with onion and potatoes), ćevapi (grilled minced meat balls usually served with onion and traditional bread), đuveč (Balkan Ratatouille with pork) and Karađorđeva šnicla (breaded cutlet).
The traditional Serbian dinner is famous for its unforgettable taste of grilled meat and vegetables included in the following dishes: podvarak with sauerkraut and bacon, prebranac with beans, mućkalica with diced pork, pečenje with roasted meat.
Beverages are also worth trying as the national strong alcohol drink rakia can be produced with so many natural flavours (no chemicals, indeed) that tourists every day will try totally new drink. People cannot certainly stay indifferent to this 45-50% beverage.
Moreover, local beer is good way to relax and enjoy yourself, especially in the summer when the temperature is so high that blood starts boiling inside of body. The brands of Jelen and Lav offer wide range of quite cheap beer that can be found in all bars and shops.
Okay, what about the places? Based on expert point of view we have made a rate of TOP-3 kafanas where one can feel real Serbian food.
Number three is a place at Prizrenska, 8 in Belgrade called Zlatno Burence. 10-18 euros for one person will be more than enough to taste specialties of this restaurant: veal ragout, mixed meat plate, rakia – what else do you need for perfect meal?
The second position is ‘occupied’ by ‘Korcagin’ café. Delicious food and tasty home-made drinks as well as traditional live music and ‘Serbian family’ interior allows us to claim that this is the coziest kafana in Belgrade.
Finally, the ‘Oscar’ goes to… Dva Jelena (‘Two Deers’
. Located in the Bohemian street of Scadarlija, this place certainly catches everyone’s attention because of the live music performed permanently and the delicious smell of the cooked food. Furthermore, the interior makes people think that they have their meal in the countryside house and everyone around are friends to them. Moreover, the food there is of high quality as all official representatives and Presidents of other countries while visiting the capital have a dinner here. Since 1867 the recipes of the dishes there are carefully saved for customers who all become the friends of the ‘Dva Jelena’ staff. What’s more, the prices are reasonably low, though, and that fact surely doesn’t disappoint tourists and inhabitants.
At least, I have tried to explain how the whole system works and how you can spend great time enjoying yourself and tasty Serbian food and drinks.
