What to eat in Belgrade

The kafana is an institution that does not translate: neither restaurant nor bar, but a place where you sit for a long time, eat slowly and order for the table rather than the person. Not knowing that, you order five dishes for two and pay double — knowing it, you eat the best food in the city for less than in a white-tablecloth restaurant.

How to order in a kafana

Meze comes first — kajmak, ajvar, cheese, cured meat, pogača — and it is not a starter but the first half of the meal, lasting as long as it needs to. Only then does a main course arrive, and one between two if the meze was taken seriously. Rakija goes with the meze, before the food, and is drunk in sips. The bill is asked for rather than brought, and that is not neglect but the rule — the table is yours until you give it up.

The grill and the portions

Ćevapi are ordered by the piece or by the ten, a pljeskavica is one and enormous, and vešalica or a Karađorđe schnitzel are dishes one of which is shared. Kajmak, raw onion and a lepinja come with the grill rather than a side dish, and the salad is often larger than expected.

2 daysWhere these meals fit into the two-day plan:Belgrade in 2 days →

Mornings and quick things

• Burek with yoghurt — with meat, cheese or greens, and eaten in the morning. What is left after midday is not what it was at seven.
• The bakery — kifle, small pogače, projara. Open from dawn, and the cheapest breakfast in the city.
• A pljeskavica from a kiosk — after midnight, and it belongs to the night rather than to eating; in daylight it is eaten sitting down.
• Pancakes — an institution of their own, mostly after a night out, with a dozen fillings including walnuts and honey.

Where you overpay

• A kafana with live music on Skadarlija, in season. The setting has earned it, but you pay for it: the same dish is cheaper in a neighbourhood kafana in Dorćol or Vračar.
• A river raft with a menu. The splavovi are for music and drinks, and food there is priced like a night out.

Hidden gemsWhere the market shows what is in season — and what else the guidebooks skip:Belgrade off the main axis: a bunker, a river tower and Tito's tomb →

Where to stayWhich area keeps this kafana price the lowest:Where to stay in Belgrade →

BudgetExactly what these meals add to the daily sum:What Belgrade costs →

Getting aroundGetting to the market and the neighbourhood kafanas:Getting around Belgrade →

When to goWhich month changes what the market sells:The best time to visit Belgrade →

Day tripsWhat's eaten outside the city, on day trips:Day trips from Belgrade →

MistakesOther mistakes around food and the bill:Mistakes everyone makes in Belgrade →