Dry in Boka Kotorska

We went to May's Herceg Novi with a simple plan: to sit on the beach, look at the sea, drink wine (preferably Institute wine), walk along the coast, swim in the indoor pool and eat fresh sea fish. After a ten-year break a few years ago, I happened to be in Novi again and was fundamentally positively surprised by the development of the city: it gave the impression of functionality, orderliness, cleanliness, friendliness, the prices of everything were much more favorable than in Belgrade. Even in the middle of the summer season it was tolerable as far as the hustle and bustle was concerned.

That's why I was looking forward to this short escape and stay with dear friends. I normally prefer bigger cities by the sea to seaside tourist spots: they are supported by natural life infrastructure that does not die with the drop in sea and air temperature, they better absorb the influx of tourists in the season, and in the off-season they exude an urban sea peace.

Every time I go to Montenegro, various memories come to my mind, I spent a lot of time in Montenegro: the blissful one from my childhood, when I walked along the liander and swam at Slovenska beach, through the half-year work for Jugotours in Budva, Miločer and Sveti Stefan, political crisis of the 90s and conversations with key players, trips to Misko's on Ada Bojan and, always anew, Casper bar in Budva in which, when not some world DJ stars are guests, Marko plays music for his soul. There is no more beautiful and pleasant garden in the Old Town even now, when the hundred-year-old pine that covered Casper has yielded under the gusts of time and been replaced by another.

I have watched Montenegro change from kamikazes on the roads and deadly rolling stones (mountains descending on the coast), to a traffic-safe country where few people break the speed limit. The stereotype about the proverbially rude Montenegrin waiters and Montenegrins in general (which, admittedly, never bothered me) has a place only in Yugoslav stories. I watched Montenegro become independent and Budva turn into a people's fair over which their Belgrade on the water rises.

I drank a lot of Montenegrin vines.

But to return to this May's stay in Novi and the plan to eat fish. Friends say we're taking you to the restaurant Verige 65, which is built on a cliff with a postcard-like view of Boka. I assumed we were going to a fish restaurant, I don't know why I thought the tables would be covered with checkered tablecloths.

We arrived in half an hour. The restaurant, I see, is located in a modern building, a non-invasive architectural solution that, despite the modern lines, fits into the natural environment. Let's go inside: everything against the checkered tablecloths. Waiters one friendlier than the other. Interior: if I wore a suit, I wouldn't be overdressed.

We sit down, looking at Perast. I look at the menu and I'm getting more and more suspicious: Gambori tacos, hummus, burrata, whiskey-marinated smoked salmon, steak tartare, almond gazpacho, potato pearls with truffle sauce, salmon grinders, well, some pastas and sea creature risotto, and from the classic Adriatic fish, only sea bass with spinach puree. Come on, I thought, where did they bring us, not that this isn't a fish restaurant, but one for the newly rich from Belgrade on the water in Budva. The only thing is that the prices are very decent, like everywhere else, significantly lower than in Belgrade in a similar place.

In the end, I look at the solid selection of sushi and think: this is an unnatural fornication, sushi in Boka. It's nice that Montenegro has developed, but did it have to that much? Well, we're not in Los Angeles.

We order fish soup, sea bass and shrimp, friends, god, sushi, if I remember correctly Nevada roll, Samurai roll and Green Dragon roll. In Boka. With a view of Perast.

The broth is coming: superb. Not those sea fish soups, but a real broth rich in sea fish. The sea bass arrives: filleted, of course, on the plate everything as in the picture; semi-cleaned shrimp, you just pull the tail, the head comes off and you can nibble. Okay, the sea bass is delicious, as if it were real, the shrimp are excellent. But that's not it: you don't have to eat with your fingers, struggle a little with the shell, sift through the fish to make sure no bones have been missed, grease your hands, and you're at sea, safe.

Friends urged: try sushi! I refuse, it's really stupid for me to eat sushi on the Adriatic. At the end, we take a roll, take a bite and look at each other: a spectacle. We didn't have to say anything, everything was clear: this is the best sushi we've eaten anywhere, and we ate it.

Afterwards we came to Verige 65 again and immediately ordered only sushi. If we had stayed longer, we would have come a third time and walked through the menu.

This is the new Montenegro: friendly waiters and sushi with a view of the Boka.