Sarajevska Brewery, Sarajevo, Bosnia Herzogovina

arajevska Pivara is located in just across the river from the heart of Sarajevo. The establishment serves both as a brewery as well as a restaurant. The restaurant is a spacious two story dining establishment that exudes an aura of history and luxury. The brewery produces Sarajevska beer and water as well as Pepsi products. It is one of the few locations in Bosnia where I found Pepsi readily available...although I normally enjoyed their exceptional beer. The brewery was first opened in Sarajevo in 1864, standing as the first industry in the area.

The beer served at Sarajevska Pivara includes Sarajevska, Sarajevska Premium and Sarajevska Dark. The dark beer is very hard to find in Sarajevo. A few restaurants have made deals with the brewery to be able to serve the dark offering. It is not available in bottles...only draft. Although I normally don't care for dark beer, Sarajevska produces a slightly sweet full-bodied version that I found mildly enjoyable. However, my favorite by far was the Sarajevska Premium.

When I was preparing my trip to Bosnia, I was uncertain about the local food. I did a bit of research, but did not come up with much information that I found useful. What I found upon my arrival in Bosnia was that they have beef the way beef should be served. They eat a lot of veal, which they butcher at six months. The beef is normally around two years old. Older beef is generally made into other products like dried beef. Because the beef isn't pumped with a bunch of steroids and produced locally, the flavor and texture is far better than most cuts of beef I have had in the United States. For that reason, I ate a great deal of beef during my trip...far more than my normal diet allows for.

The beef at Sarajevska Pivara was a perfect example of beef done properly. My favorite offering was the Steak Gorgonzola, which was a Fillet Mignon-like cut of beef approximately eight ounces in weight smothered in a mild cheese sauce. The flavor of the beef was exceptional. The beef was uncannily tender and moist (I order my beef well done and am used to it being tough). Even thoroughly cooked the beef at Sarajevska Pivara was tender. This dish comes with a choice of french fries or vegetables. I enjoyed it with mixed vegetables, which consisted of potatoes, light green peppers (that I found in many Bosnian vegetable medleys) and eggplant. The meal was around 22 KM, which would translate to about 16 or 17 US Dollars. The beer was around 4 KM for a regular glass or 8 KM for a monster-sized glass (probably around a liter).

Read More About Sarajevska Brewery in Sarajevo