The published text was supported by funds from the Fund for the Promotion of Media Pluralism and Diversity, allocated by the Ministry of Culture and Media.
For more than two decades, narrow streets of the Old Town of Bar have been filled with the smells of the “Kladrma” restaurant, the place which has over time become the inevitable part of the Town and its gastronomic offer. The Restaurant is managed by Dino Bećović, assisted by his sons Nuri and Emin with their families, carefully preserving the spirit and tradition of this area through authentic dishes. We talked with Dino about the idea for the restaurant, family tradition, about the cuisine of Old Bar and about the challenges of preserving the authentic gastronomy in contemporary tourism.
CM: How did the idea to open the “Kaldrma” Restaurant in the Old Town of Bar in 2004 come about?
- The idea to open the restaurant was born out of the family tradition and my personal gastronomic experience. In my family, food has always played an important part. My father was a well-known producer of olive oil and great food connoisseur, and on my part, I have been producing olive oil for years and I have learnt how important the quality of victuals is for every dish. I have always been saying that without good olive oil there is no good dish. On the other hand, The Old Town of Bar has always had very well developed culture of food and local cuisine. Home menu has been extremely rich and versatile here, and I had the feeling that almost every family could start a restaurant serving traditional recipes. For that reason, I had the idea to offer something different in the public gastronomic space – a restaurant which would represent the authentic cuisine of the town. This is how “Kaldrma” came about. I like to describe it as the first real traditional restaurant in Bar after the World War Two, with the menu based on the cuisine of the Old Bar.
CM: How did you decide to open the restaurant in this house here in the Old Town of Bar and what is its history?
- The house itself has a special historical and personal value. The Restaurant is located in the historical core of the Old Bar, on the street where once was the famous produce market, famous even beyond this town. Meat, fish, fruits, vegetables, cheese, spices and various other goods used to be sold here. For me, this area is also important because of my family’s relation with it. As early as in mid-19th century, my family owned a commercial facility on this street. My grandad had his store there, which was a part of everyday life in the Old Bar. It is for this historical and emotional connection that I decided to open my restaurant there. When I came back to the Old Town of Bar after being away for a long time and when I saw these streets and felt the atmosphere, I was delighted and very soon I decided to buy some small premises and to start with this undertaking.
CM: “Kaldrma” is a family restaurant managed by Bećović family. How is the job divided among the family members?
- Yes, the “Kaldrma” is a family restaurant in the operation of which all family members take part, but we very much value individual creativity. Everyone has his/her role, but we all take part in the creation of ideas, recipes and methods of operation. The family participate in the kitchen, in the organization of work and in everyday management. It is important for the restaurant not to strictly stick to standards, not to be always the same. Every dish bears a personal signature of the one who prepares it. Sometimes a dish will be prepared by one family member, sometimes by another, and each one will make his/her own personal contribution. Such combination of cooperation within the family and individual creativity gives the restaurant a special energy and authenticity.
CM: What is the influence of the multi-ethnic history of the Old Bar on the gastronomy and spirit of the place?
- The Old Bar has always been a multi-ethnic area which reflects very strongly on the gastronomy of the place. However, for us who were born here, this diversity is nothing special or unusual, it is a natural state of life. The orthodox, the Catholics, the Moslems all lived in one street, and they all shared their mutual life there. Every family kept its customs, holidays and food preparation methods, but all that would intertwine through their everyday lives. People would exchange recipes, spices and methods of preparing food. This diversity brings a big advantage to gastronomy, because it offers a lot greater choice and inspiration for new dishes.
CM: Which dishes represent best the traditional cuisine of this area?
- Traditional cuisine of this region is based primarily on local victuals and seasonal produce. In the “Kaldrma” we prepare dishes which are part of the Old Bar cuisine and which used to be prepared in the local households. Among these, there are meat dishes, dishes prepared with vegetables like aubergines, as well as numerous traditional recipes typical of this region. A large portion of these dishes has been on our menu from the very beginning. When we opened the restaurant, we made the menu based on traditional dishes and almost all of these are still on offer.
CM: What kind of reactions do you most often get from tourists when they visit the “Kaldrma” for the first time?
- The tourists who come to the “Kaldrma” for the first time are delighted with the atmosphere of the restaurant in the first place, and then also with the flavours of the food, in particular with the freshness of the vegetables and the simplicity of the dishes. Many of them say that the vegetables they try here has totally different flavour from the one they got used to. The guests particularly appreciate the fact that local victuals are used in the restaurant and that the food is not industrial, but prepared in a traditional way. The guests who are knowledgeable in terms of gastronomy, very often recognize these things and tend to return to our restaurant.
CM: What does it mean to you personally to manage a restaurant in a place with such a long history?
- Managing a restaurant in such a place is both a great honour and big responsibility. The Old Town of Bar has rich history going back to the Roman times, and every guest coming here feels that special atmosphere. Historical setting creates a possibility for different kind of communication with the guests, because in addition to gastronomy you can always speak about the history of the town, its culture and tradition. For me personally, this means being connected to all those people who once worked in hospitality industry here, who have left their traces in the industry.
Recipe for longevity
Speaking about the future of the restaurant, Dino says that he sees the future of the “Kaldrma” in the combination of tradition and innovation, that it is important to preserve traditional dishes and the method of preparing these as a part of local culture, but at the same time to constantly enrich the gastronomic offer and adjust it to modern guests. He stresses that gastronomy always requires balance between the old and the new – tradition provides identity, whilst innovation enables development. He hopes that the coming generations of Bećović family are going to continue this story and that the “Kaldrma” will continue being a place which preserves the spirit of the Old Bar cuisine.
