Pivnica Dubrava — Restaurant in Dubrovnik

We were eager to have a grill and wanted to find a restaurant outside of the all-to-busy old town and found that this place had great reviews.

We took the bus and ventured to Pivnica Dubrava. Something to be aware of, the restaurant is surrounded by several resort hotels, which for us, wasn't the vibe we longed for as we wanted to find a place where the locals go, as it were. This is no fault of the restaurant itself but is something that is good to know. I myself avoid resort hotels at all costs.

Anyway, despite this and that there were virtually no other customers, as well as the interior having less of a cosy traditional tavern feel to it than the pictures suggest, we had our minds set on the grill.

I had the tuna steak which was beautifully tender, nice and pink in the middle and brownly seared on the outside. A slightly harsher browning on the outside to give some crispiness would have been welcomed, but all in all a very nicely grilled tuna steak.

The potato salad on the side was quite delicious I must say. I really enjoyed it. It had a nice tang to it and was a refreshing accompaniment. My partner on the other hand ordered a rump steak and we found that it was too thin; not providing the plumpy juiciness that is desired. With both dishes came some garlic oil and boy was there garlic! Hmmm.

The food was enjoyable and they can grill here! They also do some slowly cooked meat "under the bell" which need to be ordered in advance i.e at least a day before, by the sound of it this could be worth it.

Maybe locals do come here, particularly when Dubrovnik isn't filled to the brim with tourists. Regardless of how I feel about resort hotels, great food can be...

We came here the first night on our stay in Croatia. The older man serving us was okay but not very friendly, seemed a bit annoyed at times. The food was okay, we had a mixed grill to share. The fries were under the meat and that made them soggy and not nice but the rest was okay. Because it is near our hotel and we needed a place to eat later at night we came back some days later. I had the grilled chicken with mushroom sauce and have been sick for days after eating here. Diarrhea for days and feeling really sick. The chicken has not been cooked properly or not been kept in a good way before making it. You probably wonder how I know that it was from this place and not somewhere else but that day I only ate breakfast and this dinner and my boyfriend at the exact same breakfast as me and was alright. Also the sickness came the next day and it takes about 8 hours to get sick from food (like from a bacteria or parasite). I got a feeling I've got salmonella from this place and that is not good. Too bad also because the guy that served us that night was so very friendly. He even ran after some other people who forgot their coat. I really suggest they check the cooking of chicken or the way they store the chicken because something went...

Food: The food we chose was rather mediocre. We got a spaghetti napolitana and a spaghetti bolognaise. The one i took (napolitana) had a watery sauce on the bottom of the plate and there wasn't much taste to the whole thing. The bread being served with these dishes was homemade so that was a big plus. I think when you choose a meat dish in stead of spaghetti, you'll get good food for good money. Maybe spaghetti just isn't their cup of tea...?

Service : The waiters at this place are very helpful, quick and totally not pushy in their job. There is someone outside standing by the menu-board to help you when necessary but leaves you alone if you're just looking at what's available. A pleasant change in comparison with other places where they immediatly come to push you to a table, in a matter of speaking.

Ambiance : This pub/diner is located in a cosy little mall area with mini markets, shops etc... There is a fun and lively vibe to the area but at the same time it's no really big mass of people so you can enjoy a relaxing meal on the...