Food from the Region

The food around Banja Luka is honest, generous and deeply local — slow-cooked meats, wood-fired bread, fresh dairy, and the kind of breakfast that keeps you going all day.

All photos taken at local restaurants and spots we know personally. We add new dishes as we find them.

Traditional Bosnian breakfast plate — fried egg, kobasica sausage, roasted potatoes, ajvar and mustard, Banja Luka — Bosnian breakfast — kobasica, fried egg, roasted potatoes, ajvar

Bosnian kobasica grill plate with sausages, mixed vegetable stew, boiled eggs, fresh tomato and mustard, Banja Luka — Kobasica plate — grilled sausages, &dj;uveč, eggs, tomato

Bosnian ćevapi on somun flatbread with kajmak and ajvar — traditional grilled minced meat, Banja Luka — Ćevapi on somun — kajmak, ajvar, the real thing

Kobasica u sosu — Bosnian sausage in tomato pepper broth, a classic regional comfort dish, Banja Luka — Kobasica u sosu — sausage in tomato-pepper broth

Grilled chicken with crinkle fries, kajmak, fresh tomato and lettuce — Bosnian grill plate, Banja Luka — Grilled chicken — crinkle fries, kajmak, tomato

Ćufte s makaronama — Bosnian meatballs in tomato sauce with macaroni, a hearty regional favourite, Banja Luka — Ćufte s makaronama — meatballs in tomato sauce, macaroni

Bosnian cold cuts platter — šunka, sudžuk, mortadela and fresh tomato, traditional charcuterie from the region — Hladni tanjur — šunka, sudžuk, mortadela, tomato

Kupus salata — Bosnian shredded cabbage salad with oil and vinegar dressing, a classic side dish, Banja Luka — Kupus salata — shredded cabbage salad

Bosnian dessert — soft sponge cake with caramel fruit glaze, traditional sweet from the region, Banja Luka — Regional dessert — sponge cake with caramel glaze

Bosnian restaurant table setting — goulash with macaroni, kupus salata, bread basket, a typical lunch in Banja Luka — A typical Bosnian lunch — goulash, salata, bread

Cheese-stuffed pljeskavica with somun flatbread, grilled red pepper, lettuce and kajmak — Bosnian grill, Banja Luka — Stuffed pljeskavica — somun, grilled pepper, kajmak

Pljeskavica topped with grated cheese on lepinja, with rice, onion, salad and kajmak — Bosnian grill, Banja Luka — Pljeskavica with cheese — lepinja, rice, onion, kajmak

Slow-cooked pork and beef with potatoes, carrots and onion in a black pot — Bosnian home cooking near Banja Luka — Straight from the pot — meat, potatoes, carrots, onion

Plate of grah bean stew with shredded cabbage salad, a bread basket and a glass of red wine, Banja Luka — Grah — bean stew, kupus salata, bread, a glass of red

Banja Luka — The Ice Cream Hub

Locals take their sladoled seriously. Two dozen flavours, long summer evenings on Gospodska, and a cone always within reach.

Soft-serve ice cream on Gospodska Street, Banja Luka — street food and sweet treats in the city centre — Soft-serve on Gospodska — street food, city centre

Sladoled ice cream flavour board in Banja Luka — 24 flavours at 2.50 KM, from vanilla to Nutella and Kinder Bueno — Two dozen flavours — 2.50 KM a cone

Carpigiani soft-serve ice cream machine in Banja Luka — fresh swirls made to order — Fresh swirls, made to order

The Lupo gelato cart — Gospodska street, Banja Luka — The Lupo gelato cart — Gospodska street

Lupo gelato — The sign you look for, Banja Luka — Lupo gelato — The sign you look for

Served from the cart — Two scoops, on the street, Banja Luka — Served from the cart — Two scoops, on the street

More dishes added regularly. Enquire if you want specific local food recommendations for your visit.

Taking it home?

Most of what you see here cannot leave the country with you — meat, cheese and eggs do not cross into the EU and are restricted at the Serbian and Montenegrin borders too, so the sudžuk and the trapist have to be eaten in Bosnia. Ajvar, rakija and Bosnian coffee travel fine. What you can take across →

Ask for food recommendations