Feature
Cro with the flow
Croatian capital Zagreb is a feast of entertainment and fun
Fairytale city in the Balkans is famous for world-class footballers and top-notch cuisine
I RECKON it was the football strip that first made me fall in love with Croatia.
The red-and-white checked top that their 1998 World Cup superstars sported was so distinctive — and their players wearing it so good — that I adopted the Balkan country as my ‘other’ national team.
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So the chance to finally visit the homeland of football legends Davor Suker, Robert Prosinecki and Luka Modric was far too good to pass up.
Throw in the prospect of spending three days exploring a Christmas market that is consistently ranked as Europe’s best and I felt like Santa Claus had dropped down my chimney a few weeks early. And getting there was a breeze, despite there being no direct flights from Scotland (yet).
A quick hop via Paris left me just enough time to scoff a croissant before Air France whisked me to Zagreb.
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Arriving in daylight in early December, my first thought was that the Croatian capital was an attractive, bustling and historic city.
But when I first wandered out from my apartment in the evening, the magic really began.
Every picturesque square — and Zagreb boasts plenty of them — was lit up in Christmas lights. The sparkling confection of greens, reds and golds was the perfect backdrop for the winter wonderland that is King Tomislav Square.
The pretty city-centre spot boasts an outdoor ice rink, traditional food stalls selling local delicacies and live music. Winter sports are popular in Croatia and the locals are experts on skates. It was like a live- action version of Frozen but sadly my skating skills are more of the Bambi On Ice variety. But I was happy to spectate while sampling some of the inexpensive and delicious street food.
Zagreb’s traditional take on lamb stew is called Licka kalja. Tender and tasty, it was as good as any I’ve ever had. And washed down with a flagon or two of mulled wine, it was the perfect warming combination on a chilly December evening.
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While the spicy sausage that is a trademark of the Istria region was so tasty, pigs probably dream of becoming it when they grow up. Best enjoyed with mulled wine.
I’ve always had a sweet tooth (hence one of the reasons I was here for their excellent dental treatment) and indulged myself beneath the giant Christmas tree towering over the crowds in the city’s main plaza, Ban Jelacic Square.
I was tempted by one of Zagreb’s signature desserts, the walnut pastry roll called Orehnjaca. This log-shaped treat featuring diced walnuts drizzled in honey is highly recommended and mulled wine really brings out the flavour.
My second day in Zagreb dawned with me having a mysterious hangover and being in desperate need of a coffee before facing the world.
The marvellous staff at the Otto & Frank café came to my rescue. First they served up their modern twist on the traditional Zagreb breakfast, a lip-smackingly tasty combo of poached eggs, ham, spinach, cottage cheese and radish. Then they introduced me to coffee in the Croatian style, which isn’t just a drink. It’s an experience.
There’s none of that ‘gulping a flat white while bathed in the light of a laptop and guarding the only spare power socket like a hawk’ nonsense you get here.
Instead, Croatians sit down and sort out any problems over an extended espresso or leisurely latte.
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Whether it’s personal issues or big business deals, it’s how things are done. And on the weekends, Zagreb’s coolest cats (i.e. people who don’t use phrases like ‘coolest cats’) don their smartest clobber and try to out-do each other in being effortlessly stylish in chic coffee houses.
Fuelled by my own fix of caffeine, I headed for the city’s British Square for a date with a telly chef. Jack Stein is, you might well have guessed, the son of Rick Stein. And he is a chip (no doubt a perfectly cooked one) off the old block.
He was filming his new show, Jack in the Box, in Zagreb. The series, to be shown in Australia and the UK next year, features Jack serving British traditional dishes to locals in ten locations worldwide.
The twist is that the dishes features classic local ingredients, which in the case of Zagreb meant Fish and Chips with sauerkraut on the side, instead of mushy peas.
GO: ZAGREB
GETTING THERE: Fly Edinburgh to Zagreb with KLM from £183 return, from Glasgow with KLM from £199 return and from Aberdeen with KLM from £207 return. See klm.com
STAYING THERE: Stay at the Esplanade Zagreb Hotel with rooms from approx £122.50 a night. See esplanade.hr
MORE INFO: For more on visiting Zagreb see infozagreb.hr and Croatia in general, see croatia.hr
It didn’t take long before the smell of frying sea bass – caught locally – attracted a crowd of peckish locals who reckoned the younger Stein’s fish supper was super. I wolved mine down and managed to catch up with Jack, who as well as being a brilliant chef also turned out to be a top bloke.
“We’re trying to show that food belongs to everyone and doesn’t have borders,” said Jack, between dishing out free samples. “Take fish and chips, for example. You’ve got the fish from an East End of London Jewish tradition, chips are a Belgian creation, mushy peas are from the north, and tartare sauce is French.
What costs what?
A pizza is around £5 and beer costs around £2.50 a bottle in a bar.
DO travel by bus or tram — they are reliable and reasonable.
DON'T forget to make a dental appointment.
“But it all adds up to a classic British food. The same way tikka masala probably owes as much to Glasgow as it does to anywhere in India.
“My dad always said that we should eat from the street to get an authentic experience, and immigrants have always been at the forefront of that. I am happy to be spreading that message.”
With that, I was off to try some sophisticated cocktails at one of Zagreb’s hippest spots.
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Dezman Bar has quickly acquired a reputation as the go-to spot for delicious pastries and snacks, and it boasts a bar that serves up cocktails as good as any I’ve sampled in London or New York, at a fraction of the price.
From there, a short trip on the world’s shortest funicular, all 65 metres of it, takes you to the upper town and one of Zagreb’s more quirky attractions. The Museum of Broken Relationships is a collection of items from around the world that have been donated to ‘celebrate’ the moment when love hits the rocks. It’s not the biggest of museums but the collection is well worth a visit and has proven so popular that a second one has opened in Los Angeles.
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One of the most extraordinary advent attractions lies a short bus journey from Zagreb itself. Salajland is a Christmas park covering 15 acres and lit by more than 2 million festive illuminations. It is an incredible sight and a particularly magical destination for kids and families. Which pretty much sums up Zagreb, and the surrounding region.
Having been to Christmas markets in France, Germany and Austria, I can say that Zagreb beats them all as the perfect destination to visit for a magical festive experience.
In fact, Santa could do with a slight fashion update... I reckon he’d really rock red and white checks.
SOMETHING TO SMILE ABOUT
DURING Richard Pidgeon’s trip to Zagreb he popped into the B.Dent dental clinic in the city to get a spot of work done on his gnashers.
He went for the full works of fillings, extractions and root-canal work, plus whitening. Here’s how he got on . . .
The rise of “dental tourism” has seen ever increasing numbers of Brits travelling abroad to have work done on their teeth.
Having grown up on the tried-and-tested Scottish West Coast diet of sweets and fizzy juice — combined with infrequent trips to the dentist as an adult — my gnashers were in desperate need of some TLC.
Which is where B.Dent came in. The Zagreb-based dentistry and implant centre specialise in offering world-class treatment at prices that are a fraction of what we pay in the UK.
I didn’t know what to expect but, from the moment I was picked up from my hotel by Toni (all part of the service), it was obvious I was in great hands.
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Not only did everyone at the clinic speak fantastic English but the equipment and surroundings were top-notch, easily surpassing the kit I have encountered in Scotland.
The dentist looking after me had studied and worked abroad, in the US, and talked me through all the procedures I would be having done.
In my case, that included fillings, extractions and root-canal work, plus whitening. Now let’s be honest, NO ONE loves going to the dentist to get that kind of treatment. It’s not a barrel of laughs.
But this was the closest to painless I have ever encountered. These were consummate professionals carrying out complex dental work with the minimum of fuss.
The difference was incredible.
For the first time in decades I felt good about my smile.
And at roughly half the price of equivalent work in Britain, my wallet appreciated the difference too.
Even when you factor in the cost of flights and accommodation, B.Dent gives you a better, brighter smile at an amazing price.
And with Zagreb offering fantastic shopping, beautiful surroundings and an unbeatable Christmas experience, it’s no chore to spend time in the Croatian capital.
Check out bdent.eu/en to find out more.
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