What to eat in Zagreb

Zagreb's food is continental Croatian, closer to Vienna and Budapest than to the coast. Štrukli turn up everywhere, from restaurants to bakeries, the Zagreb-style cutlet wraps ham and cheese inside the meat before it is breaded, and Dolac above the main square shows every day what has come in from the Zagorje region. This is the selection people actually order, with the price per portion.

Štrukli — boiled and baked

Zagorski štrukli (€6.50–13) are dough filled with fresh curd cheese, served two ways. They are boiled in water or broth, as a starter or a side, or baked in the oven under sour cream or sweet cream, denser and closer to a dessert. They come from the Zagorje, the hilly region north of the city, and in Zagreb they are eaten every day, on a holiday and off it.

Day tripsThe Zagorje as a full day trip, not just where a dish comes from:Day trips from Zagreb →

2 daysWhere štrukli and a gablec fit into the day-by-day plan:Zagreb in 2 days →

The cutlet, sarma and turkey with mlinci

The Zagreb-style cutlet (€29) is veal or pork wrapped around ham and cheese before it is breaded. That is what separates it from a Viennese schnitzel, which is meat alone. Sarma (€13) and turkey with mlinci (€25, a slow-roasted turkey leg with thin sheets of baked pasta) are holiday dishes that stay on restaurant menus outside the holidays too, but are ordered more densely around Christmas and Easter.

BudgetWhat these meals add to the daily budget:What Zagreb costs →

Dolac, from the food angle

Dolac is a market. The upper level is fruit and vegetables under red umbrellas, the lower level dairy and meat. This is where you buy the cheese for štrukli someone else cooks at home, or the ingredients for a picnic on Lenuci's Horseshoe; for a finished meal, head to a café or restaurant right around the market.

Where to stayThe areas the market sits closest to:Where to stay in Zagreb →

Coffee and quick bites

• Street food. Burek from a kiosk or bakery, €3.20 (burek), quick and no sitting down.
• Gablec. €7–12 for a set weekday lunch menu in the centre; the dish changes daily and is rarely offered at dinner.
• Restaurant, main course. €12–30, for sitting down with a menu.
• Coffee. €1.70–2.50, rarely drunk on the move; sitting over a coffee is a civic habit here.

Getting aroundHow to reach Dolac and the restaurant streets:Getting around Zagreb →

When to goWhich month suits Zagreb best:The best time to visit Zagreb →

Hidden gemsWhat is eaten and drunk on the same street where a stream once ran:Zagreb after the main six →

MistakesMore slip-ups with food and the bill:Mistakes everyone makes in Zagreb →