Best Restaurants in Rijeka: Nice Places To Eat Seafood Out

There are lots of options for good restaurants in Rijeka, including local neighbourhood eateries. Many of the best restaurants in Rijeka feature seafood from the Adriatic Sea, including Croatian staples like black risotto.

The menus of the city’s restaurants have many options for Istrian food and seafood from the Adriatic Sea. During our many visits to the city, including in 2024, we enjoyed some fantastic meals out. There are also many more bars and cafes in Rijeka for drinks.

My Favourite Restaurants in Rijeka

These are some of the best restaurants where we have enjoyed a meal out during our visit. The food served here certainly enhanced sightseeing in Rijeka.

Bistro Mornar, a Croatian Restaurant

Near the ferry port and seafood markets in Rijeka is Bistro Mornar. Bistro Mornar is a pleasant place with on-street seating and a great vibe. They have a good selection of wines and beers to accompany your meal, including Karlovacko, a great Croatian beer.

For starters, we decided on a cheese and charcuterie board to share. This included some delicious Istrian cheeses and cured meats. To accompany these, they served olives, salad and bread. This was a great way to start a meal; however, it could also make for a great lunch.

For mains, I had Fritto Misto, a dish with small fish, battered squid and prawns. This was a brilliant combination that I ate with a side of potatoes and Swiss chard. My wife enjoyed a shark steak with a Swiss chard side.

We visited with the dog and found their outside seating area to be pet-friendly. Overall, Bistro Mornar is a great place to dine out with excellent service and tasty, fresh food.

Konoba Papalina is a fish restaurant.

Near Trsat Castle and the Church of Mary of God is the delightful Konoba Papalina. Konoba Papalina is a cute little restaurant that serves fantastic food. They have a wonderful selection of drinks and a daily board as their menu.

I visited Konoba Papalina for lunch and opted for their small blue fish with a potato salad. This was tasty with well-cooked fish and creamy potatoes. The server was fun to be around and made me feel very welcome. Despite their limited menu of fish, this fish or that fish. I highly recommend this eatery, and it seems Google reviews do too.

Seafood Restaurant Feral: The Best Place For Seafood in The Centre

Seafood Restaurant Feral is a lovely eatery in the centre of Rijeka that seems to have great reviews. They have a nice dining area and an outside seating area on the street, which is comfy. The server spoke good English and was great for menu recommendations and explaining the options.

For starters, I enjoyed a delicious fish stew, known locally as brodet. This had lots of fish and polenta in a delicious sauce. This is certainly a dish to try if visiting the towns of the Adriatic. My wife enjoyed the local delicacy, fish soup.

For our main course, we opted to share a kilo of mussels cooked in the Buzara style. The mussels were in a delicious sauce of herbs, wine and garlic and cooked perfectly. We also enjoyed a platter of big prawns on a subsequent visit, which was special.

Overall, Seafood Restaurant Feral served great food and was of very good value. The bill was a pleasant surprise when we paid. As a bonus, the restaurant was dog-friendly when we visited with Henry on various occasions.

Konoba Fiume: A Top Restaurant For Seafood

Another restaurant that impressed me with its seafood was Konoba Fiume. Konoba Fiume is next door to the local fish markets and is a pretty traditional place. They have both indoor and outdoor seating areas. On my visit, I sat on their terrace and enjoyed seeing the hustle and bustle of the area. Konoba Fiume has good servers who are very passionate about their seafood and are friendly.

Their menu has lots of options, including many of the Croatian seafood specialities. This includes buzara-style dishes, black risotto and octopus under the bell. I really fancied calamari on my visit for a quick lunch. This was an impressive portion of fresh squid, cooked perfectly. They served this with bread, a choice of sides, and a nice dip.

This was delicious, and the prices were much lower than I had been paying on the nearby islands. Overall, Konoba Fiume was a great place to dine out, and I will be returning to try more of their food menu.

Restaurant ANTACK

Another popular place to dine out near the harbour and markets is Restaurant ANTACK. They have a lovely outside seating area with some interesting features, including a Vespa. Their dining area is rather posh and sets the tone for a splendid meal out.

Their menu has a selection of seafood and meats. However, the friendly server recommended their slow-cooked ribs on my visit after I was looking at another pork dish. The ribs were perfectly cooked and tasted delicious.

Restaurant ANTACK served these with fries, barbecue sauce, and a small pot of hot sauce. They had a selection of drinks to choose from. I opted for the Karlovačko beer. Overall, Restaurant ANTACK was a great dining experience.

Buffet Nostalgija: A Cheap Restaurant

If you are on a budget and need a hearty meal, then Buffet Nostalgija might be the restaurant for you. They have a daily menu on the blackboard outside, which you can wash down with a cheap beer. They have outside seating and a nice, cute dining room to choose from.

On my visit, I opted for their goulash, which they served with gnocchi. This was a filling meal and was a bargain. The goulash was delicious and tender, and reminded me of the restaurants in Prague. Service at Buffet Nostalgija was great, and the nature of the menu means they serve food promptly.

Peking Chinese Restaurant

Every so often, I crave some tasty Asian food, and in Rijeka, Peking Chinese Restaurant was the closest eatery to my accommodation. They have a large restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating. Their menu is rather diverse, and I enjoyed a few dishes while dining out. Their Mongolian chicken was my favourite dish. It was rather spicy with a sweet undertone. Other Chinese dishes I enjoyed included wonton, spring rolls, chilli beef and spare ribs.

King’s Caffe food pub

Near the theatre and the ferry port in Rijeka is the delightful King’s Caffe food pub. King’s Caffe has a large outdoor seating area, which is lovely on a warm day. They also have some comfy seats inside, and it’s air-conditioned to keep cool. They have a great range of beers, including Croatian options and Erdinger, a delicious German beer.

Their food menu is pretty trendy and different from many of the seafood-influenced restaurants in the city. I enjoyed their chicken wing special and the house burger for lunch out at King’s Caffe.

We enjoyed a meal out inside and outside and found both dining areas to be dog-friendly. Overall, this is a great place to enjoy refreshments and is handy for the ferry port, so it’s a great place to wait.

Food Truck Festival At The Castle

Another worthy mention for places to eat out was the eateries at the Food Truck Festival. This was at Trsat Castle, and the street food was excellent. We enjoyed some dirty fries and an epic burger. We washed it down with some nice cold beers. The views from the site are pretty special, too.