Novi Sad is experiencing bizarre weather for May, and it frankly sucks. Early May featured temperatures in the 10C (50F) and 16C (60F) with wind and rain. The rain is totally unpredictable and the weather forecast is useless. This past Thursday, we were supposed to go out to dinner with friends, but unfortunately the weather Gods laughed at our plans and an unexpected thunder and lightning storm swept the city and flooded many of the streets, causing us to postpone dinner. Since Novi Sad was established in 1694, the storm drainage system cannot handle a lot of rain and the results can be seen below.
Fortunately our friends, Vesna and her husband Srdjan, decided rain was not going to stop us from having a good time, so we hosted an impromptu cocktail party that allowed us to share some of the goodies we brought from the US. Vesna whipped up a delicious cheese pie that is made with fresh phyllo dough and locally produced cheeses that was amazing. We will definitely learn how to make this dish soon.
Restaurants
The restaurants in Novi Sad primarily offer grilled meat dishes. There are other ethnic cuisines like Italian, Greek, Thai, Sushi/Poke and American, so we are finding our “Go To” places. Dining can range from casual to fine, and one of or favorite fine dining restaurants is Fish & Zeleniš. This is our second time, after a year gap, and once again the food was really delicious and we had great savory tapas style appetizers including calamari, smoked tuna, a spicy cheese dip and fish pate. The mains were creative and paired beautifully with locally grown wine; clean plate club for everyone!
We plan to try a few other restaurants that friends have recommended including Kalem by Zak and Project 72. Speaking of food, I would be remiss if I didn’t share that I have finally found an India Pale Ale (IPA) that is hoppy and bitter enough to warrant the name IPA. Serbians seem to prefer lagers, but if you are an IPA drinker, the lack of bite is hard to appreciate. As discussed in an earlier post, 3BIR, is a local craft brewery that we came across. Eunjae really likes their lagers and I am enjoying the Cryo Pop Trio, New England IPA; very similar to Stone Brewery’s Fear.Movie.Lions IPA. It comes in a funky can that I think is pretty cool.
That is all so far, hope you are enjoying this blog and will talk with you soon.