Guide for luxury gourmet experience in Istria: restaurants, private dinners, cooking classes…

Being in Istria and not trying Istrian food is like being in Bavaria without trying German beer.

This region has a lot to offer in terms of gastronomy.

The best olive oil in the world, restaurants with a Michelin star, local taverns, some of the greatest examples of truffles – sounds good, right?

In the rest of the blog, explore gastronomic experiences you can try in beautiful Istria like private dinners, wine tasting, best restaurants, cooking classes, fine dining, cooking show…

Fine dining experience

There are several excellent places where you can eat a superb multi-course meal.

However, if you want something really special, then our recommendation is definitely the famous chef Deniz Zembo.

Namely, as part of the Amphitheater restaurant, you have the opportunity to try some of the tasting courses from this chef.

What is really fantastic and a real rarity is that you can contact them with your food wishes. For example you want Mediterranean cuisine in 4 courses, with mandatory ingredients such as octopus, shrimp and prosciutto.

An interesting part is also the food story that this chef with encyclopedic knowledge will surely tell you during the breaks, who has behind him running his own restaurant in London and cooking for the Vatican and presidential delegations. Find out details here.

Cooking classes

Culinary courses are a great way to get to know Istrian gastronomy.

Cooking with a professional chef, eating fantastic dishes, wine tasting and hanging out – sounds very interesting in itself.

This experience often remains deep in the memory as it is a good opportunity to learn how the locals eat and live.

Amfiteatar Culinary Development Center has the best and most diverse cooking courses, and you can find their offer here.

Private dinners: luxury gourmet experience at your address

Private dinners have been an absolute hit lately, both among tourists and locals.

Who wouldn’t want to have a professional chef in their (or rented) holiday home, yacht or luxury apartment who will prepare breathtaking dishes.

The occasion of a private dinner or lunch can be different, and it is usually a celebration, birthday, anniversary, engagement or honeymoon.

The best and most diverse dinners are provided by the Istria Cooking team, which has cooked for big world names. You can choose between meat, fish and vegan dishes, and they even offer a street food truck.

See the offer and experiences from the private dinners they had here. Except private dinners, they have catering, cooking show, rent a chef.

Top restaurants in Istria

Istria is home to many good taverns, pizzerias and street food. Of the restaurants, the ones that stand out here are those with a Michelin star, and there are more and more of them every year.

Rovinj is the absolute leader with 2 restaurants with a Michelin star. These are the well-known Agli Amici and Monte restaurants.

There are also many other restaurants, some of which are Konoba Morgan (Brtonigla), San Rocco (Brtonigla), Zigante (Livade), Marina (Novigrad), Sv. Nikola (Poreč), Meneghetti (Bale)…