Gostilna
In such a tavern, it’s loud around the bar, hospitable in a special room, and finely laid out in a homely dining room.
Good
The eternal restaurant dilemma… Where is better, where the plates are so full that the stir-fry forces it over the edge, or where the table is so full of mixed greetings from the kitchen that the wine glasses have to be moved to the edge?
Fine
Over tiny cubes of parsnip and soft semolina dumpling, the waiter pours a spoonful of clear parsnip soup at the table, allowing the parsnip chips and caramelized onions to swim deliciously through it.
Cracklings
In Črešnjevci there is, of course, sparkling wine Zlata Radgonska for an aperitif. And in Gostilna Mencinger, there are, of course, crackling cakes to go with it.
Bread
Although it has recently become “mandatory” for chefs to also be bakers with sourdough, in a home-made inn it is more important that the bread is fresh and homemade. At Gostilna Mencinger, there is buckwheat and white.
Pate
Homemade chicken pate, whipped butter and pistachios. Bold, meaty and recognizable.
Cheese
Sirek (cheese) is a summer curd, seasoned (like liptaver) and dried until winter. With a dry taste of ground paprika and cumin, and chef Matej picks a century-old onion in the garden and adds prunes, walnuts and cold-pressed sunflower oil.
Dandelion
Spring is just around the corner, and dandelions are in a salad, with warm potatoes, cracklings, toasted bacon, and an “egg”.
Tunka
Homemade dried ham, horseradish, Lušt tomatoes, homemade pickles.
Pumpkin gnocchi
Pumpkin gnocchi, cream and pumpkin seed oil sauce, albumin goat’s curd, crispy puff pastry shell, trumpet flowers.
Chicken
Grilled chicken fillet, leek sauce, charred leek, polenta with carrots, mustard, beech oyster mushrooms.
Steak
Baked rump steak, tarhonya (egg-based noodles with vegetables), pickled carrots, baked quail egg.
Wild boar
Braised wild boar leg, venison sauce, homemade curd štrukelj, jurka grape sauce, kale chips.
Oxtail
Beef tail in a baked yeast dough wrapper, celeriac puree, wine sauce.
Walnut and honey
Walnut panna cotta, tepka pear cooked in red wine, yogurt, orange jelly, honey ice cream, crumble.
Štrudelj
Apple strudel according to an old recipe, with cubes of cooked apple.
Gibanica
Prleška cheese cake. It is baked every day at Mencinger in Črešnjevci.
Goat cheese
Three types of goat cheese from the Mali Raj farm in Goričko: fresh, ripened with roasted onions and ripened with chilies; and homemade rosehip jam.
Accompanying wines
Aperitif: Zlata Radgonska sparkling wine, Radgonske gorice. Cold appetizers: Šipon 2023, Verus. Parsnip soup: Ranina 2024, Kogl. Pumpkin gnocchi: Sauvignon 2023 Estate selection, Puklavec Family Wines. Chicken: Laški Riesling 2017 Tempus (Slana) and Riesling & Riesling 2024, Kogl. Wild boar: Magna dominica ruber 2021, Kogl. Ramsteak: Pinot noir 2019, Verus. Oxtail: Cabernet sauvignon 2022 Capris, Vinakoper.
