Bosnia and Herzegovina Food and Drink Guide: What to Eat and Drink

Why Bosnian food is special

Bosnian cuisine sits at a crossroads of Ottoman, Mediterranean and Central European cooking. Meals are hearty, grilled meats dominate, and almost everything is washed down with coffee. Portions are generous and prices are low: a filling meal in Sarajevo or Mostar often costs 10 to 20 KM (around 5 to 10 EUR).

Signature dishes to try

• Ćevapi - small grilled minced-beef sausages served in soft somun flatbread with raw onion and kajmak. The Sarajevo version comes in tens; order 5 or 10.
• Burek - flaky pastry filled with minced meat, rolled in a coil. Filled with cheese it is sirnica, with spinach zeljanica, with potato krompiruša. Strictly, only the meat one is burek.
• Begova čorba - a creamy okra and chicken soup, the bey's soup.
• Japrak and sarma - stuffed grape or cabbage leaves with rice and meat.
• Bosanski lonac - a slow-cooked pot of layered meat and vegetables.
• Klepe - small dumplings with garlicky yoghurt.

Street food and snacks

Grab burek from a buregdžinica, or warm somun bread during Ramadan. For something sweet, try baklava, tufahija (a walnut-stuffed poached apple in syrup) and hurmašica soaked in syrup. Sahlep, a warm thickened drink, appears in winter.

What to drink

• Bosanska kahva - Bosnian coffee, brewed in a copper džezva and served with a sugar cube and rahat lokum (Turkish delight). It is a ritual, not a takeaway.
• Boza - a thick fermented millet drink.
• Rakija - fruit brandy, often plum (šljivovica), offered as a welcome.
• Sarajevsko and Nektar - the leading local beers.
• Tap water is safe to drink across the country.

Dining tips and etiquette

• Coffee is social. Accepting an invitation for kahva is a sign of respect; never rush it.
• Many traditional aščinica eateries serve home-style stews displayed in trays - point to what you want.
• Tipping is appreciated, around 10 percent; round up in casual spots.
• Pork is uncommon in Muslim-majority areas; halal grills are everywhere, while Herzegovina has more wine and pork.
• Try Herzegovinian wines like Žilavka (white) and Blatina (red) near Mostar and Trebinje.

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