Today is about a beautiful evening well spent in quaint Ljubljana.
This destination restaurant is called JB Restaurant, set in a 1920’s Secessionist building in the heart of the city. It was a chic place with delicate décor and old-world charm, walking distance from the iconic Grand Hotel Union where we stayed.
We were greeted and brought to our table quickly by our pleasant server, Miha, upon arrival. It was a delight to have full experience of their menu by renowned Slovenian Chef Janez Bratovž.
A welcome set up was served shortly which consisted of a variety of wonderful little edibles. There were deep fried balls, enjoyable potato cornetto filled with cream, and anchovy tempura. This was served with divine brown and white bread.
There was a lot of things going here, a flurry of different flavors and textures. It almost seemed like a little warm up towards all the distinctive flavors that were about to come our way!
The first course was a foal carpaccio with potato cream, Jerusalem artichokes and well-prepared salad. There was also scrumptious fried chips of sweet potato and parmesan cheese.
It featured consistencies that were soft, creamy and crunchy textures at play. Despite all the flavors in this dish, it was not at all salty. It tasted quite heavenly!
The next course was delicious homemade cooked soft polenta with curdled milk, fried red currants, asparagus, and thin slices of bacon.
This was a very pleasant and creamy dish that had a soft texture with sudden bursts of crunchy, salty essences from the bacon. It had a cohesive flavor along with the legumes and sour milk. This was yet another perfect integration of flavors and textures.
The third course was enticing homemade ravioli filled with cottage cheese and pistachio, meat and cream sauce, goose liver, and some licorice. When this dish arrived, it looked like a fun dish presented innovatively.
Like the previous dishes, this dish had so much flavor. It’s essentially an exquisite rich goose foie gras ravioli. It was sweet and tempting like a tart yet soft due to the pasta texture. Fantastic all throughout!
The fourth course was a delightful egg yolk fried in homemade cracklings with parsnips cream and lovage. On the plate was plain yolk which served as the base upon which Chef Janez poured the rest of the ingredients consisting of pork and other ingredients allowing it all to cook and sizzle. This was quite the wonderful show featuring such a fun, rich and crunchy dish!
Then came the mint sorbet with sweet wine in order to cleanse our palette in preparation for the main course. This was not surprising given the wonderful flavor party evident during the entire meal.
The fifth course was a gratifying Slovenian baked lamb. This was excellently served with strudel stuffed with cottage cheese and puree. The lamb was extraordinarily soft and flavorful.
The extraordinary skills of Chef Janez really blazed through. This dish was very well set up with the lamb on center stage as the sides made a concerted effort to maintain attention to the lamb.
For dessert, we enjoyed three different kinds of delectable cupcakes. The dainty little cupcakes were amazingly ambrosial. Small in size but big in flavor, these little luscious sweets were mouthwatering in its sweetness.
Something I must say during this entire experience was that Chef Janez was very engaged with everyone in the restaurant. He was the gracious host, engaging with his guests and ensuring they are enjoying the meal.
We learned that Chef Janez goes to the market every day to source out his fresh ingredients. Whatever the season brings him, he’ll put together a simple menu which he changes frequently. He normally only has 4 different kinds of cold dishes, 4 hot appetizers, and 4 main options.
Truly, Chef Janez is a chef that intuitively gives consideration to all the fundamentals that allows his enterprise to stand out. From the components of the concoctions that he sources out, to the fine points of the environment of his venture, and all the way to his restaurant’s customer engagement and prominent service, all these little details were part of his integral rise as a world-renowned chef. What an incredibly pleasing encounter to meet such a spectacular chef who cares!
If you would like to try a delicious Slovenian-Mediterranean-French menu served with flare and explosive character, further accented with spectacular service by the illustrious Chef Janez Bratovž and staff, drop by JB Restaurant in charming Ljubljana.
Thanks to Restavracija Jb | Miklošičeva cesta 19, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia | +386 1 430 70 70 | All views, posts and opinions shared are my own.