Konoba

In the age of Socialist industrialisation, Vranjic was surrounded by factories and Split’s nearby cargo port. They are still there, some of them not working, but this small peninsula between Split and Solin has since regained some of the charm that once earned it the nickname of ‘Little Venice’. It’s a classic Dalmatian village, with stone-built houses, narrow alleys and a sun-bathed waterfront. In a space that was the Konoba Mala Venecija restaurant, Davor Grabovac and his wife Nataša opened a new venue in 2015, and called it, simply, Konoba. The common term for ‘tavern’, konoba is a place in Dalmatian houses where people kept their wine, oil and anything else they produced. That's exactly what Davor (‘Graba’ to his friends) wanted, a place where his guests will feel completely at home. The setting is simple, pleasant and intimate, with only ten inside tables and, since ‘Graba’ is also a fish supplier for the local market and other restaurants, his menu is pure improvisation. Whatever the daily catch, that’s what you’ll get. No strict menu, they’ll just tell you whatever was delivered to Konoba’s kitchen. Sometimes, it will be just sardines or some other small blue fish, grilled or fried, or their main specialty, a conger ‘painted white’ – a sort of brodetto. Prices are reasonable, there are parking spaces between the restaurant and the sea, and you can also get there by bus. Graba’s cousin is owner of the Grabovac Winery near Imotski, one of the best known in inland Dalmatia.