MMM Stories: Učilna okusov and Trgovina pri zmaju

Starting your journey at the Dragon Bridge (Zmajski most), the first door under Plečnik's arcades at the Ljubljana central market leads you into the Flavour Classroom and its Shop by the Dragon (Trgovina pri zmaju). There, they do not stock the shelves with products from suppliers, but rather from their close partners - Slovenian family farms and small producers, with whom they are linked through the Cooperative Union of Slovenia. They do not discuss price with them, but rather the value of their sustainable, local, traditional produce and products, thus working according to the principles of the fair share and sustainable development.

Although they are visited by many shoppers and connoisseurs from near and far, and therefore have to speak many languages, they prefer to speak the language of the Slovenian countryside and give it a voice in a world dominated by big retail chains. By taking small but important steps, they are creating a community that can be an alternative to hectic, individualistic consumer lifestyles, returning calmly and prudently to the roots from which they draw inspiration for a better and more prosperous future.

The space managed by the GRM Novo mesto Landscape Governance College is not just a shop - it is also a space for the education of new generations who have the opportunity to discover and co-create modern sustainable approaches to the cultivation and processing of authentic, people- and environment-friendly food at the Flavour Classroom. Pupils and students from many Slovenian schools and young entrepreneurs can get their first work experience and try out new ideas, thus growing and gaining invaluable knowledge and skills enabling to write their own success stories.

The whole world enters through the doors of the Flavour Classroom to discover the best and most beautiful that Slovenian soil has to offer. Whether it be meat from the indigenous Slovenian breed, the Krškopoljec pig, raised in Sevnica, cheese from Posočje, honey from Kočevje, wine from Bela krajina, olive oil from Brda or pumpkin oil from Prekmurje, here they can taste and experience authenticity through the products that will whisk them away to the various lesser-known, but all the more unspoilt corners of our land. And when they leave the Flavour Classroom through the same door, they carry with them an invitation to continue their exploration.

Step into the Flavour Classroom, meander through the Shop by the Dragon—and depart with new found wealth.