Croatian bistro, bakery and bar ‘Boogie Lab’ opening in New York
- by croatiaweek
- in Business
Boogie Lab (Photo: Press/Filip Popovic)
Croatian craft bakery, bistro and bar, Boogie Lab, founded by Karlo Vulin and Mladen Vidović last year, is to open in New York City.
In collaboration with partners, they have established a joint venture in New York known as Boogie Lab USA, Index.hr has revealed.
“It is an exceptional honor for us to open the first Boogie Lab beyond our borders at this location. Our partners, Denis Turčinović and Joseph Liculu, are already familiar figures in the hospitality scene in New York, managing not only Delmonico’s but also around 10 other significant hospitality establishments in Manhattan,” Boogie Lab said.
“With Boogie Lab, we have plans to open three more locations by the end of this year. At the same time, the first containers from Croatia with frozen products for the largest hospitality distributors in America have been shipped. Presentations are complete, and the products are on the shelves. Our colleague Patrik Hrelec has already been in New York, and for the past month, we have been preparing for the opening of our first location,” reveals Boogie Lab.
Karlo Vulin, a pioneer of the sourdough revolution in Croatia, hails from Pakoštane, where he grew up around his family’s bakery, Kroštula.
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“Kroštula started 30 years ago with my parents, who were involved in tourism and trade before venturing into the bakery business. They noticed a gap in the market, and being self-taught, they gained experiences. As my sister Đina studied in Italy, they often visited, drawing inspiration from there,” Vulin told Index.
A trained food technologist, Vulin’s parents directed him towards this profession to assist them in their business. It was during this time that he stumbled upon information about sourdough bread.
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“These were the early days of the sourdough movement in Europe. Ten years ago, we began experimenting in our facility. I was seeking ways to create a better product,” Vulin explained.
Teaming up with Mladen Vidović and building on the success of Kroštula, Boogie Lab has managed to journey from Pakoštane to Park Kneževa in Zagreb and to New York in just one year.
The expansion to the Big Apple marks a significant milestone for Boogie Lab, showcasing the resilience and passion that began in a small Croatian town.
