Restaurants in Sarajevo, and where to get ćevapi

For ćevapi, go to Baščaršija, the Old Town. Well-known grill houses like Željo, Petica, Hodžić and Mrkva sit close together on Bravadžiluk and Kundurdžiluk. For a sit-down Bosnian meal, restaurants in Sarajevo such as Inat Kuća serve stews and soups, and the small canteens called aščinice serve dishes like sarma.

Below: what ćevapi are, how to order them, where to find burek and pita, how Bosnian coffee works, and which sweets to try.

What are ćevapi?

Ćevapi are small grilled rolls of minced meat, and Sarajevo has its own version. Sarajevo ćevapi are usually made with just beef and salt, so the meat is the whole flavour. They come tucked into somun, a soft round flatbread, with chopped raw onion on the side. Some grills dip the somun in beef stock first.

Many places also add kajmak, a soft, rich dairy cream. Food guide TasteAtlas says the old way is onion only, but kajmak has become common. You will also see the word ćevapčići on menus. It means the same thing.

How do you order ćevapi in Sarajevo?

You order by number: 5, 10 or 15 pieces. TasteAtlas puts a normal portion at 200 to 250 g, so 10 is a full meal and 5 is a light one. Add kajmak if you like it, and a small yogurt to drink. To ask for both extras, say "sa kajmakom i lukom", which means with kajmak and onion.

Here are the portion sizes on the menu of Ćevabdžinica Mrkva in Baščaršija.

Sizes from Mrkva's Baščaršija menu.

You pay in KM, the Bosnian mark. The US State Department notes that many smaller places, cafés and bakeries do not take cards. Carry some cash.

Where do people go for the best ćevapi in Sarajevo?

Most people head to the Old Town grills below. They are all well known, they all have their fans, and they are a short walk from each other. Try two and pick your own favourite.

Our pick: Ferhatović (Petica) or Kastel. That is where we send our guests.

From our door, Baščaršija is about 19 minutes' walk downhill. Coming back up takes longer, so after a big plate you may want the tram to Skenderija and the walk up through Veliki Park. Our guide to Baščaršija and the Old Town has more on the streets around the grills.

What is a ćevabdžinica?

A ćevabdžinica (often written cevabdzinica on signs and maps) is a grill house that serves ćevapi. They tend to be simple places: you sit, order and eat. Apart from ćevapi, the menu often has pljeskavica, a flat meat patty, and sudžukice, a thin spiced sausage. Mrkva's menu, for example, lists both, plus salads and sides.

Search Google Maps for "ćevabdžinica" and you will see them all over Sarajevo, not just in the Old Town.

Closer to us, near Studentski Dom, is Grill Student, a fast food place famous all over Sarajevo for burgers and pljeskavica. Locals call it Trovač, "the Poisoner". Don't let the name put you off.

What are burek and pita?

Pita is the family of pies made with thin layers of pastry, and burek is the meat one. In Bosnia, many locals say only the meat pie can be called burek. The others have their own names:

• Burek: minced meat
• Sirnica: cheese
• Zeljanica: spinach
• Krompiruša: potato

Sirnica, zeljanica and krompiruša are good picks if you do not eat meat. TasteAtlas lists pita as a breakfast dish, served with yogurt.

You buy it at a buregdžinica, a pie shop. In the Old Town, Buregdžinica Bosna on Bravadžiluk opened in 1952, and sells its pies by weight. Buregdžinica Sač, on Mali Bravadžiluk, is another well-known one.

Our pick for burek and pita: Sač or Forino.

Where to eat in Sarajevo for a sit-down Bosnian meal?

For cooked dishes rather than grilled meat, try a traditional restaurant or an aščinica. An aščinica is a simple canteen with home-style dishes ready to serve. These are all listed by TasteAtlas for traditional food:

Sarma is minced meat and rice rolled in leaves. Begova čorba is a soup, and several of the places above serve it. A restaurant has a full menu and table service. An aščinica is more like a canteen, with dishes cooked ahead.

Opening hours change, so check each place on Google Maps before you go.

Want to take some bread back to our kitchen? A bakery is a pekara in Bosnian, and TasteAtlas lists Pekara Poričanin for somun. Fresh somun, a pot of kajmak and some tomatoes make an easy lunch.

Our picks: for dinner, Kašika Viljuška Nož, a traditional Bosnian bistro (warning: addictive). For a night out, Kino Bosna, with a Balkan party and live music on Mondays.

How do you drink Bosnian coffee?

Bosnian coffee comes in a džezva, a small metal pot with a long handle, on a round tray. With it you get an empty cup, a glass of water, sugar cubes and often a piece of rahat lokum, the soft sweet some people call Turkish delight. The BBC says one džezva holds about three cups, so it is made for sharing or for sitting a while.

Here is how the BBC describes the ritual:

1. Take a sip of water first.
2. Spoon some of the foam from the top of the pot into your cup.
3. Pour the coffee.
4. For sugar, bite a cube and let it melt on your tongue while you sip, rather than stirring it in.

The grounds stay in the pot, so you do not get a mouthful of grit. Take your time. A coffee here is a reason to sit for an hour, not a quick shot on the way to somewhere else.

Our pick for coffee: Andar. Try their dibek coffee.

What sweets should you try in Sarajevo?

Try baklava, tufahija and hurmašice. Tufahija is a poached apple stuffed with walnuts. Hurmašice are small pastries soaked in syrup. Kadaif is a sweet made from thin strands of pastry and syrup.

TasteAtlas lists Egipat for tufahija and kadaif, and Slastičarna Ramis for hurmašice. A slastičarna is a sweet shop and café, the place to go for any of these.

After all that, walk it off. Our list of the best viewpoints in Sarajevo has a few climbs worth the effort, and things to do in Sarajevo covers the rest of the city.

Can you cook at Hostel Kucha?

Yes. We have a big shared kitchen, so you can cook for yourself and save your money for ćevapi.

Looking for a bed within walking distance of the Old Town? See our dorms and private rooms. Linen and towels are included.

Quick answers

• Are Sarajevo ćevapi made with pork? No. They are usually beef, sometimes mixed with mutton.
• What can vegetarians eat? Sirnica (cheese), zeljanica (spinach) and krompiruša (potato) pita.
• Where can vegans eat? See our guide to vegan restaurants in Sarajevo.
• Do restaurants take cards? Larger restaurants do. Many smaller places do not, so carry cash.
• What is kajmak? A soft, rich dairy cream served with ćevapi.