Merlin Bistro — Restaurant in Grad Split

The staff is super friendly and inviting, they also have no problem to adjust the meal to safely accomodate a glutenfree diet. The white wine (Malvazija?) they recommended was also really good. The restaurant seems to go for a French haute cuisine, which they do really well! We both ordered the bouillabaisse soup (with no bread) and the hama fish. The soup was good but a bit bland and thin. I understand that because of my dietary restrictions that the bread is a essential part of the course, but without it, the soup is rather empty. I'd recommend to add more vegetables, like carrot, spring onions and potatoes, so it gets more body. Or just serve gluten free bread 😉. Flavour wise the soup could use more salt and garlic. Or some fresh flat parsley. The hama fish was very good, better than the soup. The sauce (made out of lentils, tomatoes and herbs) was heavenly! In my opinion, the amount of fish was a bit low for 25 euros. The portion of the main course was also fairly small. I'd suggest to add a few boiled potatoes in skin which are shortly stir fried in butter, garlic, onion powder, and chives. It would make the meal more filling. The ambience in the restaurant is also really great! Well designed, pleasant to look at, nice music. All in all, a great restaurant but the dishes could use some bigger portions and a bit thicker texture....

We had beef tatar and white fisch ceviche as starters. They were both quite good. As a main course we ordered cuttlefish ragout with gnocchi and the lamb duo. Unfortunately the main course took nearly 1:30h to arrive without any explanation or information given by the staff (-2⭐). The lamb was good but the portion was really small. The cuttlefish ragout tasted a little bit fishy, but was otherwise ok. The menu also said that each main course will be accompanied by a seasonal salad (see Photo). We did not receive a salad (-1⭐). After checking with the waiter, you apparently had to specifically ask for the salad, even though the menu said: "With our seasonal salad, we will complement each of your main dishes". Our experience might be an outlier, because all the other reviews here on google are really positive. Furthermore this restaurant was recommended to us by our host. Hopefully this was just the case of the staff...

We were staying nearby and just wanted something handy to eat and this looked like a decent pizza place, based on the previous reviews. What we found was it is under new ownership and is no longer the mere 'pizzeria' it was previously. The food and menu are now of a Michelin standard. The beef tartar was one of the best starters I have ever had and my partner's mixed fish starter was so impressive we're going back again tomorrow night to try other items on the impressive menu.

The listing calls the establishment a bistro/pizzeria, which does not do it justice at all. This is seriously a real gem of a restaurant, with an outstanding menu, quality food and excellent service. In spite of all that, the prices are relatively modest, though I expect they will rise as Merlin's reputation spreads. Couldn't recommend...