Kavarna Cacao (Ljubljana, SLOVENIA) ★★★☆☆

Kavarna Cacao is widely considered as the best cake shop and dessert bar in Ljubljana. Situated by River Ljubljanica with the beautiful Central Market's colonnade in the background, Kavarna Cacao is among the most popular cafés in Ljubljana. There are three things you should not miss here - their ice-cream, milkshake and pastry.



There's a good selection of cakes available at the counter.



But since dinner was just around the corner, we decided to pass on their cakes and enjoyed a small cup of ice-cream instead. Our pick was a combination of nut with fig and pineapple flavors. It was very fruity.



While enjoying our ice-cream, we took a nice scenic walk along River Ljubljanica. We got in front of the Butchers' Bridge and found this picturesque view under sunset.

In case you are interested, the Butchers' Bridge is a bridge connecting the Ljubljana Central Market and Petkovšek Embankment. Couldn't help but notice all the love padlocks here although it's no comparison to the Parisian Pont des Arts.




Food Rating: 5/10
Price: $$$
Address: Petkovškovo nabrežje 3, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: +386 143-01771
Website: http://cacao.si/



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Julija (Ljubljana, SLOVENIA) ★★★☆☆

Restaurant Julija is a restaurant located in the heart of Ljubljana's Old Town serving Slovenian cuisine with European influence. Its interior is a modern take on baroque-style decor with white as the primary color.

We were starting to know this place pretty well now having dined here a few times. Valvas'or, where we dined 2 days ago is located right next door.  



We arrived at Julija a little after 8pm following a visit to the Ljubljana Castle and had to wait about 15-20 minutes for a table. We were given a bar table on the side while we waited and decided to take a quick look at the menu. That way, we could immediately order after we were seated.



It was getting a bit late so we decided against having too much meat at this hour. Things got rolling first with a Greek salad with rocket leaves, eggplant, tomato, olive, cheese and prawns. A simple and unspectacular start to our dinner (4/10).



Better was my pan seared scallops with lemon cream and mashed potatoes (5.5/10). 



Adding to the Mediterranean flavors was our first main course, grilled octopus with cherry tomatoes. It reminded me of a similar dish we had in Santorini but this one paled in comparison when it comes to size and flavor (5.5/10).



Our final dish was a handmade Istrian-style pasta with mushrooms and asparagus. Nothing comparing to the Istrian-style pasta we had at Valvas'or the other night. A slightly more flavorful sauce would have helped to tie everything together nicely (5/10).




Food Rating: 5/10
Price: $$
Address: Stari trg 9, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: +386 41 663 307
Website: julijarestaurant.com


 

Hotel Cubo Ljubljana (Ljubljana, SLOVENIA)

There has been much debate among ourselves on whether to stay at Vander Urbani Resort again for the second leg of our visit in Ljubljana after our brief stop at the Plitvice Lakes but being the adventurous person that I always am, I decided that it was of our best interest that we check out another hotel in the Slovenian capital and I am glad we did.



One of the biggest selling point of Vander Urbani Resort, apart from the fact that it's a member of Design Hotel, is its location in the heart of Old Town. But that also means dragging very heavy luggage down all the cobble stone roads. It's all give and take. So, after going through all my options, I decided to go with Hotel Cubo Ljubljana instead.



After dropping off our car at the hotel valet, we quickly completed the check-in and were excited to finally see our room upstairs.



Unlike our room at Vander Urbani Resort, this one was as good as advertised.



The single beds were a little small but the room itself was well appointed with a nice city view. 

Of course, it would've been even nicer if we could see the Old Town from up here.

The bathroom was very spacious.



They were obviously working their monochrome magic here. Everything was in black (or grey) and white tone with the occasional red (flower etc.). Very sleek two-tone design.



Just when we thought things couldn't get any better, it did. Our breakfast on the next morning was served on the first floor restaurant. Before breakfast officially got underway, Jelloman and I spent some time exploring this brilliantly designed space. 




The buffet-style breakfast kicked off with some freshly squeezed juice, milk and cold cuts.



It was followed by a wonderful collection of fruit (fresh and dried), snacks and bread.



There were also egg (your choice) and bacon which were made to order. I had the omelette with bacon which was served sizzling hot right from the kitchen. Very very nice.



For those who's driving in from Croatia or other European cities, Ljublijana is well-connected by highways. There's an underground parking lot (most centralized one) right underneath Maxi and the neighboring park. It's the closest parking available if you're staying in the Old Town.

Hotel Cubo is about a 8-minute walk to the Old Town. The better way to go is to go through Congress Square (Kongresni Trg), a historic square and popular gathering spot in the city for major events.

This was a much much better stay comparing to Vander Urbani Resort. It proves once again that there's such a fine line between design and practicality and in this case, practicality wins!

Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Price: €€€

Address: Slovenska cesta 15, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

Tel: +386 1425-6000

Website: www.hotelcubo.com

Fetiche Patisserie (Ljubljana, SLOVENIA) ★★★☆☆

I was very impressed with the list of high quality ice-cream parlours in Ljubljana and Fetiche was certainly very high on this list. Tucked away in the buzzing old town streets surrounded by bars and cafés, Fetiche also doubles as a high-end patisserie.

Apart from a small selection of macarons, they also offer 8-10 different pastries ranging from a simple cheesecake, cream puff or fruit tart to more sophisticated chocolate opera cake and caramel cake.



Both eating in house or take-away is welcome. We had their Calan, a vanilla and strawberry mousse cake and it was definitely not bad.




Food Rating: 5/10
Price: $$$
Address: Cankarjevo nabrežje 25, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: +386 407-00370
Website: www.fetichepatisserie.com

Valvas'or (Ljubljana, SLOVENIA) ★★★★☆

Opened in July 2008, Valvas’or is a modern European restaurant located in the Old Town of Ljubljana. It owes its name to the famous Slovene man Janez Vajkard Valvazor (1641-1693), who was born in a house just across the street from the restaurant.

Today in the ever-changing food scene of Ljubljana, Restavracija Valvas'or represents a new generation of restaurants that combine traditional Slovenian cuisine with modern European cooking. That is why it's no surprise that for the third year in a roll, the Valvas'or team has been granted with the Gault Millau award. Its 14 points in the Gault Millau guide had them tied for 4th place in Ljubljana, only behind JB, Maxim, Pri Poku and Smrekarjev Hram.



The main dining room had fine dining written all over it.



But we were so beaten up after a long day at Lake Bled and so we decided to hide ourselves at the back where there's a more casual dining area next to the kitchen.



Before we formally started our supper, a little amuse bouche courtesy of the chef, came in the form of a tomato gazpacho with mozzarella and homemade pesto (5/10).



I had the fresh tuna tartare with tangerine foam and jelly as my starter and what a pleasant surprise it was! The tangerine foam provided a lovely touch to the freshness of the tuna (6.5/10).



Homemade Istrian-style pasta with truffles and pancetta ham was next. It tasted a lot like penne and was particularly impressive with that creamy truffle sauce (6.5/10).



I thought the best dish of the night was this tagliatelini with scampi, pumpkins and cherry tomatoes. Creamy, flavorful and al dente (7/10).



Valvas'or provided quite a pleasant surprise for us. We are thinking about returning for another dinner tomorrow night to get a feel of their fish and meat dishes.


Food Rating: 6/10
Price: $$
Address: Stari trg 7, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: +386 (0) 1 425-0455
Website: valvasor.net/?lang=en


 

VIGO' Ice Cream (Ljubljana, SLOVENIA) ★★★★☆

VIGO' Ice Cream Parlour is a relatively new member in the food scene of Ljubljana that managed to fly under the radar screen of everyone. Located on Stritarjeva ulica just a few steps away from the famous Triple Bridge, it's slowly attracting some well-deserved attention.



While VIGO' does not have the most extensive collection of ice-cream flavors, it more than made up for it with its four exciting groups of flavors. These are not their official names but just to give you an idea here:
1. cheesy (cheescake, yogurt, yogurt with honey and sesame...etc), 
2. chocolate (milk chocolate with brown sugar, white chocolate and mango...etc), 
3. nutty (pistachio, piemonte hazelnut....etc) and 
4. fruity (Strawberry, raspberry...etc).




I picked the piemonte hazelnut and cheesecake, one scoop each. But before I got my first lick, a little bit of chocolate on top.....wow it was so creamy!



Yes, life is a lot better with ice-cream.




Food Rating: 6/10
Price: $$
Address: Stritarjeva ulica 4, Mačkova 2, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: +386 820-56428
Website: www.facebook.com/pages/VIGÒ-ICE-CREAM-Ljubljana/726237044083751


 
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Kavarna Zvezda (Ljubljana, SLOVENIA) ★★★★☆

Café Zvezda on Wolfova Street has been a stalwart in the dining scene of Ljubljana. Already in its 15th year, it is still the place to be for a relaxing gathering among friends to share a few laughs and enjoy some of the finest coffee and dessert in town.



The legendary Zvezda cake (linzer dough base, mascarpone, cooked sour cherries, strawberry topping), Sacher cake (chocolate sponge cake, jam, chocolate coating), Emona cube (Chocolate sponge cake with coffee, vanilla cream with walnuts, chocolate) and Strudel Zvezda (puff pastry, whipped cream, apples, peaches / puff pastry, whipped cream, raisins, curd cheese) are just some of the highlights from their impressive menu.



Apart from pastries, Kavarna Zvezda is also highly regarded for their homemade ice-cream and macarons.

A little snack before dinner?

From top to bottom, left to right.....
lavender (grey), Zvezda cake (brown), Jasmine (beige)

Sacher cake (yellowish brown), Plum with cherry cream (pink), Caramel (light brown)

Pistachio (green), Green apple (light green), Blueberry (dark blue)

and here's my take.....
Superb: lavender, green apple and blueberry
Good: plum, caramel and pistachio
OK: Zvezda cake, Jasmine and Sacher cake

It's not difficult to understand why I fell in love with the Old town of Ljubljana at my first sight. Its small-town charm (French style) with a little Eastern European twist was irresistible.




Food Rating: 6/10
Price: $$
Address: Wolfova ulica 14, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: +386 142-19090
Website: www.zvezdaljubljana.si/kavarna/

Vander Urbani Resort (Ljubljana, SLOVENIA)

I can never seem to get enough of design hotels so for the first leg of our Slovenian trip, I decided to go with Vander Urbani Resort coz yes, it's a design hotel and the only one of its kind in Ljubljana (and all of Slovenia). We stayed here for just one night as part of our stopover from Austria to Croatia. It was the obvious choice for us because for one, it's a member of Design Hotels (we love boutique hotels with design) and two, it's located right in the hustle bustle of the Ljubljana Old Town. Couldn't ask for more, could we!?

I can't wait to check this gem out but as it turned out, finding Vander Urbani Resort was a little trickier than I thought as the entrance was hidden in an alley. Luckily that didn't go too badly; at least not to the point of repeating the same saga we did in Venice where we had trouble locating the entrance of Hotel Palazzo Barbarigo Sul Canal Grande (that time, it was hidden behind an alley.). 

Anyways, after a quick check-in, we finally got into our room and things started to unveil. The room itself was relatively small (even for European standard) with a tiny window facing the back of the hotel. There wasn't a lot of "design" in it except for a throwback style light switch and a glass-faced cabinet hiding the fridge and safe. That's about all. 




The bathroom was surprisingly a little more spacious than the bedroom but I thought they could have put some of the spaces into better use. Take the space behind the glass door for example, what a waste of real estate there.



In this day and age, any hotel should have complimentary wifi. It's no longer a luxury but more of a necessity (especially for tourists). Unfortunately, there was no free wifi in the guest rooms. We had to go out to the reception area if we wanted wifi connection but the reception was so small and the fact that it's without any chairs made it a little uncomfortable to enjoy the free wifi.

Breakfast was included and it was a decent one. Hams and egg, pancakes etc. are all made to order. Still I thought they should have provided a little more variety for fruits and salad.



If there's one thing I can't complain about the hotel, well it's its location. It's beatable. Situated in the middle of the picturesque old town area, it's easily accessible to almost every attraction in the city. 



The restaurant on the ground level serves a good fusion cuisine and it's a good bet for dinner. If you want to explore Old Town, there are more choices available in Valvas'or, Julija and Spajza which are all just around the corner (5-10 minute walk).



All in all, we had a decent stay at Vander Urbani Resort. While the location of the hotel is perfect, it lacks the design elements and attention to details from a typical design hotel. Let's take a very minor detail as an example - their hair dryer. The little white button put excruciating pain to my finger every time I pressed it for just 5 seconds.




For much better value for money, I strongly recommend Hotel Cubo instead of Vander Urbani Resort. More about our stay at Hotel Cubo a little later.


Rating: ❤❤❤
Price: €€€
Address: Krojaska Ulica 6–8, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: +386 1200-9000
Website: www.vanderhotel.com