Konoba Varos has to be my favourite restaurant that we went to on our Croatia trip! Again, it was tucked away on one of the back streets but this didn’t mean that it was any less busy. Actually on both occasions, we were lucky to get a table as we hadn’t prebooked.

Konoba Varos had a really quirky interior with a fish theme! There were fishing nets decorating the ceiling and various fish and shellfish hanging in the nets! The restaurant had several sections to it.

We were given a huge square table and thought that it was way too big for our group. What we didn’t realise was that our meal would be quite an orchestrated event!

One of my friends ordered fish. Three fish on a plate were brought out to her and she was given the choice of which one she wanted. When the fish had been cooked, the waiter kindly prepared the cooked fish for her at the table.

Before the food was brought out, a few food warmers (with the tealights) were put on the table. The waiter then brought out our plates and let them warm up on the food warmers!

We were served with a couple of baskets of bread. The bread was nice and fresh. The bread selection was brown, rye, white and corn.

Once all the food was ready, our plates were given to us and all the dishes were put on the warmers. At this point, we were grateful for the big table. The waiter was really attentive and friendly!

On the first occasion, I had the tomato soup and a side of boiled vegetables. The tomato soup had rice in it and it was a smooth tasty soup. The boiled vegetables were carrots and courgettes.

The next meal that I had at Konoba Varos was spaghetti in tomato sauce. It was supposed to come with ham but I asked for it without. The spaghetti was a fairly big portion and quite tasty.

On our second evening meal at this restaurant, we ordered a few portions of the chargrilled vegetables. Instead of giving us lots of individual portions, we were given one huge platter of hot steaming vegetables. These went down a treat: big slices of aubergine, peppers, courgettes, carrots and mushrooms!

Some of the other dishes were also ordered more than once, and again, these were brought out as one big portion. This meant that we could just help ourselves and share the food out!

Dining at Konoba Varos was an absolute pleasure. We received faultless service and fantastic food! Service with a smile and a great relaxed atmosphere! Just perfect for a meal out with friends!

Konoba Varos, Ban Vladenova 7, Split, Croatia

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Benito’s Hat has a colourful and vibrant interior with an orange and green theme! These fresh and striking colours are reflected in the food! There’s a funky mural on the back wall towards the bar area of the restaurant. All these elements set the theme of a relaxed eatery!

The restaurant is made up of a long communal high wooden table with many high chairs. There are also seats against the wall with scattered cushions and some window seats, if you fancy watching the world go by!

At the counter, there is the vast array of rainbow coloured fillings to choose from! These include rice, beans, chicken, pork, salad items, sauces and garnishes! The food is all fresh and locally produced where possible.

A vegetable burrito makes for a filling and satisfying meal! The fillings that I chose for my vegetable burrito were refried beans, cilantro lime rice, grilled vegetables, guacamole and salad. The vegetables were a good mix of peppers, courgettes and chayote.

There are a choice of sauces depending on how spicy you would like your meal. Or for something mild, there is always the option of sour cream. The other choice of fillings are grilled chicken, tender chicken thighs, grilled steak, braised pork and some seasonal specials.

I’m always surprised at how much is packed into a burrito and also how the staff manage to wrap it all up into a neat tight roll! The burrito was served with some lovely fresh tortilla chips!

Benito’s Hat does fantastic tasting burritos but if you fancy something slightly lighter, then they also have smaller tacos, homemade soup and salads! The salad is basically all the fillings and toppings, without the tortilla wrap!

The staff are extremely friendly and gave us lovely service. We were definitely given service with a smile! All throughout the meal, the staff came to see if everything was ok and if we needed anything else. They also made sure that the dining area remained clean and tidy by clearing up the tables straight away.

Even though the burrito was extremely filling, after a while, we decided to share a dessert! The bunuelos were crispy cinnamon tortilla strips and vanilla ice cream. It was served in a martini glass! A lovely dessert, not too heavy, and it hit the spot just right!

Benito’s Hat has some interesting drinks on offer! One of them was the horchata which was a sweet milk based drink. The drink that I preferred was the hibiscus one. It had the strong purple colour like blackcurrant but its taste and flavour is a lot softer!

Benito’s Hat does great quality fresh tasting Mexican food! All the elements of Benito’s Hat are just right, from the food, the atmosphere, the drinks to the service and staff!

Benito’s Hat, 19 New Row, Covent Garden, London, WC2N 4LA

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An afternoon tea with an Indian twist is what 3 Oceans provides! Gone away are the traditional scones and in come the vegetable samosas!

It made a refreshing change to have many savoury items and less of the sweet ones! Instead of small finger sandwiches, we were given two whole sandwiches, cut into triangles! The cheese and tomato one had thick slices of cheese and was on granary bread. The egg mayonnaise one was made with wholemeal bread! There were the options also to have smoked salmon, prawn and ham sandwiches, but we decided just to have the cheese and egg ones.

For the Indian snacks, we were given vegetable samosas, crispy bhajia and kachori. None of these were greasy or oily and all had a mild spice level! The vegetable samosas had a crispy pastry and were filled with mashed vegetables. The kachori also had a similar sort of a filling but were made with a batter outer rather than pastry. The bhajias were sliced potatoes cooked in batter too! All were very moreish and went well with the mint, yoghurt chutney and the tamarind chutney!

As if that wasn’t all filling enough, there were also the chocolate based desserts! There was a rich chocolate cake and also a brownie style cake. Both were very rich and had pieces of nuts in them!

3 Oceans had a lot of teas to choose from; the list spread over two pages! I had the lychee red tea which was a black tea! It had a wonderful sweet subtle fruity flavour! The tea was served by the pot! It was really nice that the staff did not mind giving us additional pots of hot water to replenish the tea through our meal!

The restaurant area was clean and spacious! There were cream cushioned high backed chairs and dark wooden tables. It also has a separate bar area.

The staff were absolutely fantastic and so friendly! They made sure everything was to our liking all the time that we were dining here. It made us feel that we were getting such personal service and made us enjoy our time at 3 Oceans. Even though there was a private event going to happen that evening, the staff in no way made us rush. They let us take our time and did not make us feel uncomfortable or that we were getting in their way!

3 Oceans is a lovely friendly place to go to, with great attention paid to the food and service!

3 Oceans, 4 Lodge Lane, Off North Finchley High Road, London, N12 8JR

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