Every one of us is, and every one of us always will be, a bit local-patriotic. I don’t see anything bad in that. On the contrary, you have to love the place where you were born and raised. The place where I was born and raised is a part of Belgrade called Karaburma. The name comes from old Turkish times, and, as the story goes, Turks used to hang people here by putting black (kara) rings (burma) around their necks. There are a couple more stories about the name, but that’s not the main point right now.

The place I want to talk about is a restaurant called Čobanov ‘lad; the literal translation would be “shepherd’s shade”. It is a place a couple of minutes away from my home and where I love to drink black-as-night Turkish coffee in the morning. I mean, we call it domestic, but it’s Turkish.

Čobanov ‘lad is also a place where you can really enjoy the shade of the trees while drinking coffee, beer or eating a meal. The restaurant’s concept is to put all the ethnic Serbian meals on its menu, along with other classical restaurant meals. I must say that I have never tried any, but while I was sitting there, I could smell all the flavours. It smells delicious, I can tell you that.

So, if you ever find yourself in Karaburma, make sure you step by; I promise you won’t find anything better around.