DUBROVNIK

Gastronomy - general info
The cuisine of Dalmatia and the islands follows the trend of modern nutritional norms. The brief thermal preparation of foodstuffs (mainly boiling or grilling) and plenty of fish, olive oil, vegetables and self-sown herbs found near the sea is why this cuisine is considered to be very healthy.
Dalmatian wines, like olive oil and salted olives, have been highly esteemed since ancient times, which the present names of some of the indigenous grape sorts reveal (Grk : Greek, from the island of Korčula; Prc from the island of Hvar). Famous wines include Dingač and Postup from the Pelješac Peninsula, then there are Pošip and Grk from Korčula; Maraština from the island of Lastovo, and also Prošek (a sweet dessert wine), the very strong grape (loza) and herbal brandies (travarica, grapes with medicinal herbs).
Although even today every area has its own way of preparing certain dishes, the cuisine of the islands represents a separate world, their distinguishing features having been discovered only recently, such as the cuisine of the islands of Hvar, Korčula, Brač (vitalac, a dish made from lamb offal wrapped in lamb gut and spike-roasted), Vis (spike-roasted pilchards, as during the Ancient Greek period; flat cake with pilchards from Komiža and Vis, related to the modern-day pizza).
Fresh sea fish (dog's tooth, gilt head, sea-bass, grouper, mackerel, pilchards) grilled, boiled or marinated; then there are mollusks (squid, cuttlefish, octopus), crustaceans (shrimps, lobsters) and shellfish (mussels, oysters, date-shells) boiled in a fish stew or as a risotto.
Of the meat dishes, prosciutto is unarguably unrivaled - pork leg smoked and dried in the bora (from Drniš), served with dry, mostly sheep’s cheese (famous sorts of cheese are those from Pag and Dubrovnik) and salted green and black olives, capers and pickled onions. Lamb is also very highly valued, especially boiled or baked on an open fire (Franjevačka begovica from Visovac, or lopiz from the island of Iž); also, dried mutton (kaštradina), roast beef, Dalmatian stew (pašticada) with gnocchi, offered by many restaurants.
Lightly boiled vegetables are also favorite dishes (Swiss chard with potatoes, tomato sauce) often a mixture of cultivated and self-sown vegetables, spiced with olive oil and wine vinegar, or served with meat (manestra - pasta with minced meat; arambašići - stuffed vine leaves).
Regions with an abundance of fresh water are famous for their frog, eel and river crab dishes (the Neretva valley, Trilj and the Cetina basin). Typical Dalmatian desserts win the heart with their simplicity. The most usual ingredients include Mediterranean fruit, dried figs and raisins, almonds, honey, eggs (rafioli, mandulat, smokvenjak, the gingerbread biscuits from the island of Hvar - rozata).