The Quirkiest Cafs In Zagreb Croatia

Given the intense competition to entice many random coffee-seekers, cafés in Zagreb have incorporated or amplified various quirks to make their joints unique and appealing. Coffee, after all, is just coffee, and these days it’s of decent quality almost everywhere. So there has to be a twist. Below is a list of the quirkiest cafés in Zagreb, Croation, where you may find yourself sipping coffee at a fairytale garden, in a mock-up of an Agatha Christie-era train compartment, or in a library of 100,000 books.

1. Botaničar

Cafe, Croatian

The aptly named Botaničar sits within a few hundred metres of the Botanical Garden, hence the name and the fact that it’s full of plants, shrubs and cacti. A ‘galerija’ as well as a ‘caffe bar’, the Botaničar espouses a bohemian tone with its artsy photographs, differing from Zagreb’s other funky cafés by offering alcohol. And not just bog-standard wine but sought-after, small-batch craft beers from independent breweries such as Pivionica Zagreb and The Garden. Regular literary events keep the place buzzing for most evenings.

2. A Most Unusual Garden

Cafe, Croatian

Also named Hendrick’s Garden after its sponsors, this bizarre yet bucolic bar-slash-café getaway near Savski Bridge is at its best in the warmer months, when blossoms surround its postcard-perfect treehouse. The rest is a garden with a kind of Alice in Wonderland feel and wind chimes thrown in. The main house, equally bohemian, gets filled up during chillier winter evenings. Opening from 8am, it serves mainly quality coffee, fresh juices and tasty pastries until the post-work crowd trails in. Ideal, too, for a first date.

3. Orient Express

Cafe, Croatian

You wouldn’t really notice it, tucked away along busy downtown Teslina but once you walk in to this unassuming café, you’re transported back to the 1920s. Greeted by the gleam of veneer, you quickly make out that it’s a vintage train compartment fashioned out of a standard bar interior, complete with gilt-framed mirrors and French signage. Poirot himself would not look out of place. No themed drinks, sadly, just standard coffees, softies and beers, but originality of design more than makes up for it.

5. Velvet

Cafe, Croatian

Always ahead of the game and opening up on trendy Dežmanova before it became trendy, Velvet made the national news in 2016 by becoming the first café in the world to provide a free reading zone to coffee-sippers. The so-called FREZ entails an app of some 100,000 books in several languages, accessed by an in-house code after you order your macchiato or freshly squeezed orange juice and toast. Literary treasures may distract you from the quirky decor of DIY starbursts and unusual framed portraits that are the work of an interior designer with a trained eye.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.