Restaurants
The Istrians’ deep appreciation for a healthy lifestyle is evident in their daily lives, with food playing a significant role in their daily rituals. Mediterranean cuisine, based on fresh ingredients and simple recipes, is widespread throughout Istria. However, in the heart of Istria, you’ll encounter unique traditional dishes that have remained largely unchanged over the years – healthy and incredibly delicious. In the center of the Istrian peninsula, you can expect traditional, imaginative dishes filled with produce from local family farms and a variety of seasonal vegetables, offering authentic homemade food that will undoubtedly leave you wanting more. If the cuisine is any indication, Istrians, much like their dishes, can be described as healthy and uncomplicated!
Restaurants near Villa Lente
We’d love to recommend a few great local restaurants and taverns near Villa Lente that we often visit ourselves. Although these aren’t fancy restaurants, the food is homemade and tasty, offering a genuine taste of the region. We definitely recommend trying them out for a wonderful dining experience.
minutes drive
At Tinjanski Vijulin, the menu features a premium selection of Istrian, Dalmatian, and Spanish prosciutto, handmade pasta, and a variety of pizzas made from both white flour and flour enriched with activated charcoal. The menu also includes meat dishes cooked over charcoal and Istrian maneštra, a hearty soup that brings together local ingredients to celebrate the flavors of Istrian tradition. Savor the dishes lovingly prepared by the culinary experts at Vijulin restaurant!
Tavern Vela Vrata, Beram
Vela Vrata is a charmingly decorated tavern located in Beram, a small village known for its medieval frescoes in the Church of St. Martin and the Chapel of St. Mary on Škrilinah. These frescoes attract numerous visitors, especially foreign guests who appreciate history and cultural heritage, as well as excellent culinary offerings. The tavern features about twenty indoor seats and a fireplace, along with a terrace that offers a beautiful view and seats around forty people. Their focus is on authentic Istrian cuisine. A slight detour to Beram will provide a wonderful experience and an opportunity to taste the finest offerings of Istria. In addition to truffles, the hosts pair ingredients with Istrian olive oil and, of course, wines!
The tavern is decorated in a rustic style and offers traditional Istrian specialties made from boškarin, dishes cooked under a bell, and various homemade pastas.
Konoba Farini, located in the newly renovated area of Višnjan, offers Mediterranean cuisine with a focus on seasonal local dishes.
Superb service in a homely atmosphere , affordable prices and wide selection of meat and fish dishes will turn your visit to the tavern Daniela in to an unforgettable experience.
A charming railway-themed konoba in the heart of Istria, named after Cerovlje's historic station. Known for wood-fired pizzas, homemade pasta with truffles, and fireplace-grilled Fiorentina steak, with a cozy covered terrace.
Fine Dining Restaurants
Istria is home to some of Croatia’s finest restaurants, exquisitely blending Istrian tradition with Mediterranean cuisine, centered around fish and seafood. These culinary gems also embrace influences from global cuisines, offering an exclusive dining experience that reflects the region’s rich heritage and contemporary flair.
Agli Amici, Rovinj - 2 Michelin stars
An exclusive restaurant awarded 2 Michelin stars, known for its impeccable service and refined cuisine blending local flavors with innovation. Perfect for a high-end gourmet experience.
40 min drive (Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Monte, Rovinj - 1 Michelin star
The first Croatian restaurant to earn a Michelin star, nestled right next to the old town. Serves creative dishes inspired by Istrian ingredients with artistic presentation.
40 min drive (Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Sveti Nikola, Poreč - excellent seafood and mediterranean cuisine
Highly praised for its fresh seafood and Mediterranean cuisine. Its cozy seaside setting makes it ideal for a sunset dinner.
26 min drive (Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Casa Manzolin By Sv.Nikola, Poreč - seafood and international cuisine
A blend of modern and traditional, focusing on seafood and international dishes. Elegantly set in a historic building.
26 min drive (Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Meneghetti Restaurant, Bale - modern interpretation of traditional cuisine
Located inside a luxury resort, the restaurant reinterprets Istrian tradition in a modern way, using locally sourced ingredients. A perfect combination of rustic charm and fine dining.
44 min drive (Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Zigante, Livade - best Istrian truffle restaurant
Specializing in truffle-based dishes, it’s one of the most renowned spots in Istria for tasting this prized delicacy. Elegant setting with a seasonal menu for an authentic gastronomic experience.
29 min drive – (Trip Advisor)
Wineries
Over the past decade, the Istrian peninsula in Croatia has blossomed into a favorite destination for wine lovers worldwide. This stunning region, with its unique vineyards, is celebrated for producing exceptional wines, especially from the native Malvasia Istriana and Teran grapes.
Set among rolling hills and drenched in the warm Mediterranean sun, these Istrian wineries offer more than just great wine. They provide a serene escape from the hustle and bustle of city life, inviting visitors to relax and enjoy wine tastings, cozy gatherings, and unforgettable culinary experiences. Whether you’re strolling through the vineyards or savoring local dishes paired with fine wines, these wineries offer a perfect blend of tradition, taste, and tranquility.
Benvenuti Winery
A family winery from Motovun, known for terroir-driven Malvazija, Teran, and sweet wines like Muscat. Their vineyards are located on white Istrian soil that gives wines a distinctive mineral character. blending local flavors with innovation. Perfect for a high-end gourmet experience.
25 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Deklić Winery
A century-old family winery from Ferenci near Vižinada, run today by the fourth generation. Known for award-winning Malvazija and Teran grown on classic Istrian red soil, with guided tastings in their cellar.
~18 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Roxanich Winery
An artisanal winery in Motovun focused on long-aged natural wines, with an impressive design hotel and rooftop terrace overlooking the Mirna valley.
25 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Saints Hills Cantina
A boutique winery in the village of Istria’s heart, producing premium wines from both Istrian and Dalmatian vineyards. Known for their Saint Heels rosé and rich reds.
12 min drive (Google Maps)
Tomaz Winery
A modern Motovun winery blending traditional Istrian grape varieties with innovative winemaking. Popular for its Teran wines and scenic tasting room with views of Motovun.
20 min drive (Web, Google Maps)
Vina Matošević / Matošević Wines of Istria
A pioneer of modern Istrian winemaking, located in Krunčići. Known for their Malvazija and Grimalda blends, made using minimal intervention methods.
15 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Kozlović Winery
An award-winning winery in Vale near Momjan, with a sleek tasting room, panoramic views, and premium Istrian Malvazija and Teran wines.
45 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Meneghetti Wine Hotel & Winery
A luxury wine resort blending fine dining, award-winning wines, and olive oils, with a serene countryside location.
45 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Kabola Winery
An organic winery in Momjan producing wines aged in amphorae, with a rustic tasting room surrounded by vineyards.
40 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Dvorac Belaj Winery
Historic 16th-century estate and winery, offering tastings in a castle setting, surrounded by rolling hills and vineyards.
40 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Adrenalin
For days when you want more than sun and wine, central Istria has plenty of adrenaline close by. Zipline across a dramatic gorge, cool off on a water slide, race go-karts, swing through the treetops, or take the kids to meet a hundred dinosaurs - all within a short drive of Villa Lente.
Zipline Pazinska jama, Pazin
Four adrenaline-pumping ziplines (up to 280m, 50km/h) soaring across the dramatic gorge below Pazin’s medieval castle, right beside the famous Pazin Cave. A quick, thrilling adventure for the whole family.
~16 min drive (Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Aquapark Istralandia, Novigrad
One of Croatia’s most awarded water parks, with over 20 slides, six pools including the largest wave pool in the Mediterranean, and daily entertainment for all ages.
~24 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Adrenalin park Kringa
A family-run adventure park hidden under shady oak forest, with zipline courses for every skill level plus a 10m “Big Swing” - relaxed, friendly, and great for kids.
~13 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Motodrom Poreč
Croatia’s top-rated karting track, with go-karts for all ages, quad and paintball off-road courses, and a café overlooking the action.
~20 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Dinopark Funtana
Istria’s favourite dinosaur theme park - 100+ animated dinosaurs, live shows, rides and forest trails, set in a shaded karst forest near Poreč.
~24 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Aquacolors, Poreč
Croatia’s largest water park, with 13 giant slides, a 500m Lazy River and the iconic Crocodile Cave Bar - a big, modern day out near Poreč.
~22 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Cycling Routes
Istria’s official cycling portal - over 500km of marked trails across the peninsula.
The Parenzana is a scenic former narrow-gauge railway line turned cycling trail, running from Trieste to Poreč through the Istrian countryside.
Sightseeing
Central Istria puts you within easy reach of the peninsula’s best-known towns and landscapes - from hilltop medieval villages to the coast’s Roman ruins and Venetian old towns. Here are our favourites for a half-day or full-day trip from Villa Lente.
Motovun
Istria’s most famous hilltop town, walled and cobbled, with sweeping views over the Mirna valley and the truffle-rich forest below. Home to prized white and black truffles, wine cellars, and the summer Motovun Film Festival.
~20 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Grožnjan
A tiny medieval “town of artists”, its stone lanes lined with more than twenty galleries, studios and workshops, plus a well-loved summer jazz festival.
~30 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Poreč
A coastal city on a Roman street grid, crowned by the 6th-century Euphrasian Basilica and its UNESCO-listed Byzantine mosaics, with a lively waterfront promenade for an evening stroll.
~30 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Limski kanal (Limski fjord)
A dramatic 9km limestone gorge - often called Istria’s “fjord” - flanked by steep forested cliffs, known for its oyster and mussel farms and a scenic roadside viewpoint above the water.
~28 min drive (Web, Google Maps)
Rovinj
Istria’s most photogenic old town, a former island packed with pastel houses and steep cobbled lanes, crowned by the Baroque bell tower of St. Euphemia’s Church above the harbour.
~38 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Pula
Istria’s largest city, home to a remarkably intact 1st-century Roman amphitheatre - the sixth largest surviving in the world - plus a walkable old town, sea forts and beaches.
~48 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Nacionalni park Brijuni
A protected island archipelago off Fažana, once Tito’s summer residence, now a national park with a safari-style zoo, Roman ruins and dinosaur footprints, reached by a short park boat.
~50 min drive + boat (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Labin
A well-preserved medieval hill town above Rabac, its old town full of artist studios and Baroque palaces, with sweeping views over the sea to the island of Cres.
~38 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Novigrad
A small fortified fishing town where the Mirna river meets the sea, known for its seafood restaurants, walkable old core and relaxed harbour atmosphere.
~32 min drive (Web, Google Maps, Trip Advisor)
Groceries+
For self-catering during your stay - from a quick top-up to a full weekly shop, plus a couple of local specialists worth the extra few minutes’ drive.
Market T.O. Tinjan (small)
The nearest shop to Villa Lente, in the village of Tinjan - good for bread, milk and anything you forgot, without a special trip.
~5 min drive (Google Maps)
Studenac Market Baderna (small)
Another small supermarket, handy for a quick top-up on the way back from Poreč or Vižinada.
~10 min drive (Google Maps)
Plodine Pazin (big)
A full-size supermarket in Pazin - the best choice if you want to do one proper shop for the whole stay.
~15 min drive (Google Maps)
Stop Shop Pazin (shopping park)
A small shopping park with Eurospin (budget groceries) and Jysk (home goods) - useful if you need groceries and household items in one stop.
~15 min drive (Google Maps)
Lidl Pazin (medium)
A reliable mid-size supermarket with a good bakery and produce section, right on the way in and out of Pazin.
~16 min drive (Google Maps)
Shopping park Poreč (Lidl, Kaufland...)
A larger shopping cluster on the way into Poreč with Lidl, Kaufland and more - easy to combine with a coastal day trip.
~26 min drive (Google Maps)
Fisherman’s shop ANCORA, Poreč
Fresh catch straight off the boat in Poreč - worth a stop if you’re planning to grill fish for dinner.
~28 min drive (Google Maps)
Butcher Shop Arman, Poreč
A well-regarded Istrian butcher for quality meat, home-cured prosciutto and local sausages to take home.
~28 min drive (Google Maps)
