Pizza Festival is coming to Dubrovnik

Pizza Festival is coming to Dubrovnik (Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

Dubrovnik will host a Pizza Festival from October 12th to 15th. The experts behind popular street food festivals like Fuliranje, Zagreb Burger Festival, and Zagreb Pizza Festival are now coming to the southern coast of Croatia, ready to create a big pizza spectacle.

In a collaboration between TUP, where the festival will take place, and the city, Dubrovnik is bringing a gastronomic adventure to life. Visitors will have the opportunity to savor specialties created by pizza artists like Pista & Pazza, Pizza Social Club, Beg’s Plant Based, and Poma Food Boutique.

So, what can we expect at the Pizza Festival in Dubrovnik?

Pista & Pazza, well-known pizza experts from Župa Dubrovačka, are representing the flavors of Dubrovnik. Festival-goers will have the chance to try excellent Neapolitan pizzas and panuozzo sandwiches, a true gourmet sensation. Panuozzo sandwiches are a delicious fusion of pizza and a sandwich, with their origins dating back to the 1980s in Gragnano, just south of Naples. The Pista & Pazza team is bringing this Italian delicacy to the festival, making it a social media sensation.

Pista and Pazza (Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

Ivan Badžek from Pizza Social Club says they stay true to the classics with some surprises:

“We’ll stick to traditional recipes but add our twist. We’ll be making authentic Italian pizza, with a strong focus on the dough and its fermentation. Our dough will ferment for 72 hours, which is crucial to achieving the desired flavor and texture. The result is a crispy pizza with a fuller crust, a combination of Neapolitan and Roman styles. Some of the flavors prepared by Pizza Social Club include Ma’Margherita with pelati tomatoes, fior di latte mozzarella, and basil, Pizzaioli with pelati tomatoes, fior di latte mozzarella, smoked ham, grana padano, arugula, and caramelized cherry tomatoes, and Pepperoni with unique flavors from pepperoni sausage, Napoli salami, fresh chili, pelati tomatoes, fior di latte mozzarella, and basil.”

(Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

For a different take on pizza in a plant-based version, Beg’s Plant Based is bringing it to TUP, led by Eduardo Beg:

“All our pizzas are made exclusively from plant-based ingredients, and we’re confident that everyone will be impressed with the flavors, texture, aroma, and overall sensory experience. We believe we’ll create a positive ‘wow’ effect and encourage all gourmets to consume plant-based products more often.”

Visitors at the Pizza Festival will have the chance to try three types of plant-based pizzas: Meet the Fig, Quattro Formaggi, and Smoked Salmon and Avocado, all made on Bread Club pizza dough. Beg’s Meet the Fig combines beyond meat ground meat reduced in Vermouth with dried figs, sauce, Mozzarisella mozzarella, basil, and cherry tomatoes. Beg’s Quattro Formaggi mixes Mozzarisella mozzarella, Mozzarisella gorgonzola, Green Vie gouda, and Green Vie cheddar, with sauce, fresh basil, and cherry tomatoes. In Beg’s Smoked Salmon and Avocado pizza, Revo Foods’ smoked plant-based salmon is combined with avocado, fresh dill, garlic, arugula, lemon zest, and freshly ground pepper.

Beg’s (Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

Following successful appearances at festivals in Zadar and Zagreb, Poma Food Boutique is coming to Dubrovnik:

“Our Poma team, in collaboration with the renowned Kroštula Artisan bakery, is dedicated to creating dough recipes that differ from the everyday pizza formats we often see. Poma Food Boutique stands out with its sourdough dough, which is more than just an ordinary ingredient. It’s a story of patience and attention to every detail, making it irresistible with its easy digestibility and outstanding flavor,” explains the Poma team.

Poma Food Boutique – Talijanka (Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

Their offerings at the festival will include diverse pizzas, with a focus on the sauces and pesto they prepare themselves. All their pizzas have in common a red tomato sauce prepared by themselves, and visitors can expect fantastic flavor combinations: Furešta is filled with a blend of mozzarella, pistachio mortadella, grana padano, pistachio pesto, and olive oil, Pepperoni is a combination of mozzarella, pepperoni salami, fresh basil, and olive oil, Talijanka includes mozzarella, pesto genovese, and olive oil. On Margherita, you’ll find mozzarella, fresh basil, and olive oil, while Istrijanka features mozzarella, Dalmatian smoked ham, fig aceto cream, and olive oil.

Pizza Social Club (Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

The fantastic flavors prepared by pizza masters will surely impress even the most demanding pizza enthusiasts. Festival-goers can also look forward to a fantastic musical lineup: Kuzma & Shaka Zulu on Thursday, DJ Maha on Friday, Grše on Saturday, and Songkillers on Sunday. The concerts start at 8:00 PM.

So, mark your calendars from October 12th to 15th, gather your friends, and get ready for a pizza extravaganza. Festival hours are Thursday and Friday 4:00 PM to midnight, and Saturday and Sunday 12:00 PM to midnight. Admission is free, and you can find more information on the official Pizza Festival, Facebook and Instagram.