When trying local and Slovenian food - štruklji are a must
If you have visited Slovenia before or were even born somewhere in the Balkans, you probably know what štruklji are. For those of you who don't, štruklji are boiled or baked rolls of filo pastry, which can contain various fillings.
Štruklji variations
Traditional štruklji are made with filo pastry and have a filling of your choice. Mostly, you can get cottage cheese ones or the very popular buckwheat ones with a walnut filling. The interesting thing about štuklji is they can be served salty as a side dish next to meat (especially tasty when served with venison) or as a dessert with breadcrumbs for the topping. Apart from the most famous ones, there are some other flavours gaining popularity: boiled apple, baked apple, and tarragon. Tarragon is widely used as a seasoning in Slovenia, so I suggest you give them a try.
Where to get traditional Štruklji?
First, we have a štruklji-only restaurant at the central market, but you can also find štruklji in plenty of restaurants all around Ljubljana (and surely in almost every restaurant offering local food in Slovenia).
If you want to try the "Ljubljana štrukelj", visit Druga violina restaurant or Kratochwill. Klobasarna (which is kind of a fast food restaurant) is also a great option where you can try them in different flavours. Their portion contains three types - tarragon, cottage cheese and buckwheat štruklji with a walnut filling. The price is affordable too, and the service is fast so you can stop by and give them a try when strolling through the city centre. Another place serving boiled štruklji with different fillings is Slovenian house, also situated in the city centre.
You can enjoy štruklji at the top of the Šmarna gora hill as a reward after hiking in Gostilna Ledinek.
Štrukljarnica (štruklji eatery) "Moji štruklji Slovenije"
I believe the word "štrukljarnica" is hard to pronounce for those of you who do not speak Slovenian, but you definitely should pay it a visit and get a taste of their štruklji. Štrukljarnica is a shop/restaurant serving štruklji only, but that doesn't mean you are going to get fed up by them. They offer savory and sweet ones, and have them in almost 20 flavours: herbs, chives, meat, carrot, mushrooms, lemons, yoghurt, orange, chocolate. They even have choco-banana ones.
They have so many varieties you'll have a big problem - which flavour to choose? One portion means 2 štruklji, so at least you can try 2. Or maybe 4 and mix them up with a friend. :)
If you ask me, štruklji fit in the comfort food category and you will especially enjoy them on a cold day. Sweet or savory, their taste is good and you will certainly feel warm after eating them. Maybe that's the reason they are often served as a symbol of hospitality in Slovenia.
