For those who want to eat tasty and meaningful in Montenegro

Once in Montenegro, you can catch an unusual feeling that everything here is close and dear to you, but at the same time, slipping away somewhere deep, difficult to define in words. You get the desire to solve this mystery, but it turns out to be a very difficult task. What could be behind this, we are trying to understand, talking with Svetlana Stanovchich about an unusual Old Stanovchich Kitchen restaurant located in the mountains 7 kilometers from Herceg Novi.

- Good afternoon, Svetlana! When entering the Old Stanovchich Kitchen restaurant for the first time, any person, I think, experiences strong and deep feelings. Because the entire arrangement of the restaurant conveys the atmosphere of old Montenegro, which may be several centuries old. We can see here pieces of furniture and utensils that are 2-3 centuries old, and maybe more. And it all looks alive, bright and helpfully used today, perfectly coexisting with modern equipment and a freshly built stone building. What is the real purpose of the restaurant?

- Good day, Elena! This restaurant is located in the village of Kameno, which the archives mention, according to some sources, from the 14th century. A village in the mountains, like Kameno, is traditionally the home of several families living in a single community for centuries, having their own village church. Therefore, when you come to a restaurant, you really find yourself in a traditional Montenegrin house, where food is cooked at home, from products grown here in the mountains. And the restaurant conveys the atmosphere of this place, which has a rich history.

- Svetlana, Kameno is located very close to the road connecting Treben and Herceg Novi, that is, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina. And I can guess that Herzegovina and Herceg Novi are somehow related in history. This place is described as Drachevitsa - the neighborhood of Herceg Novi, which fed the young city of Novi on the Adriatic coast. I know that the coast and the mountains work like two hands doing one work of God. I mean, in the mountain villages, people lived a more peaceful life, raised cattle and plants, and the coast played the role of a protective fortress, a trading port and a meeting place for rulers and their troops.

- That's right, Elena, the city of Herceg Novi was formed the way we see it today by the 18-20th century. This city has at least two strong impulses in its development since the Middle Ages. Both of these impulses are associated with trade interchange and the migration of people between mountain villages and the coast. Herceg Novi has a very advantageous location in the Bay of Kotor, so Neapolitan, Venetian, Turkish and Ottoman, Austrian and Hungarian rulers tried to seize this city throughout the Middle Ages, waging wars. And this is one of the reasons why it was important for Montenegrins to have houses in the mountains, and not just on the coast. In the mountains we have clean fresh water, a natural protection of the landscape. You can see huge terraces built on natural plateaus separated by rocky ridges. Therefore, people went to the mountains and led a peaceful life here, descending to the sea for the sake of trade and other external affairs. This is the case also now: you are doing important things with documents in Herceg Novi, but if you want to look at the panorama of the bay from a height, breathe in the refreshing mountain air, then you climb the mountain, next to Herceg Novi, come to such house like ours that now has a restaurant, and you feel at home, at peace and safe, as people have been doing for centuries.

- Indeed, Svetlana, it is this feeling that arises when I, being in Herceg Novi, look at the beautiful stone houses standing in the mountains. Like the play of sunbeams scattered over the sea upon the mountain surface, these golden roofs and walls of light stone, and I am drawn to climb the mountain and see what is inside these houses. The feeling of peace and security arises clearly when looking at the mountain villages.

- Yes, the events of history were turbulent, but deep down they shaped the spirit of a stable and flexibly maintained world of mountain villages located above the coastal city. Spirit is a creative synthesis of the ancient and the new, feelings and reason, peace and purposeful action. This is how life has developed here, this is how we lived for centuries and live now, hence the meaning and mission of this restaurant, located on the path connecting the sea and mountains, Herceg Novi and Treben, everything that once has been called old Herzegovina and old Drachevitsa - the surroundings of Herceg Novi.

- I also experienced a new and amazing feeling of brotherly fellowship while visiting a restaurant in Kameno. It's like I'm in my siblings' house. It's not an artificial, forced democracy, it's something inherent in this place.

I experienced the same feeling when I went to the local Orthodox church during the service: all the people just sing the whole service together, as if it were a big family, gathered together.

- Of course it is. We all remember our ancestors for several centuries deep into history. We know our family, and how exactly the members of our family participated in the affairs of the community, when there were more and less difficult times. We really live as a fraternal assembly. People who come to Kameno, to a restaurant for a celebration of family Glory, a wedding or a birthday, understand where and to whom they are coming.

- That is, reputation here is not just a word, but a part of life.

- Of course, these are the lines of behavior of representatives of families in generations. This is the stability and strength of the way of life. This is the potential for flexibility in communication and development. We are bound by life and development rather than by formal boundaries.

- Hence this feeling of deep brotherhood and democracy, something close to heart and elusive from a formal external look.

- Probably so. We just live like that, and you look with fresh eyes.

- Let's talk now about the dishes that are prepared in the restaurant in Kameno.

- In our farm you will find everything that has always been grown in the village: cows give a lot of milk, from which we make cheese, including cheese with herbs, which is loved by restaurant visitors.

- Yes, dairy products in these places are really varied and very tasty, I confirm.

- The location of the restaurant allows you to get products for any national dishes: meat, fish, sweet, salty, dried, smoked. We cook dishes here in stone ovens with wood and smoke according to recipes tested for generations. The website has a menu with photos and short descriptions of the dishes that anyone can look at and choose for themselves. Tell us what you want, we will cook everything, you will relax in the restaurant, there is very beautiful nature around the restaurant and areas for outdoor activities, including for children. You can also stay overnight, there are places for 4 and 6 people.

- Svetlana, I have long wanted to ask why the Brodet holiday dish is prepared from three types of fish?

- The history of the Brodet dish is such that at first it was the food of the poor, who put together the remains of fish and other products, and made something unique each time, but also rich in taste, in fact. A similar story happened with Neapolitan pizza, for example, and with other dishes in different cultures, when they were invented in poor families, and then turned out to be loved by everyone. Resourcefulness and creativity have turned the Brodet dish into something that always looks like a firework of taste with unexpected combinations. When people relax, they are like children, they want something unusual, alive, but based on proven ancient recipes. And Brodet is just such a dish. Why are there three varieties of fish, I think this is a kind of ancient symbol of diversity, usefulness, creativity, originality, brightness of taste.

- Well, we will definitely try the dishes in your restaurant and tell you about our impressions. And we will definitely walk around the neighborhood to touch something very ancient, but as lively and picturesque as Kameno, overlooking the sea and Herceg Novi.

- We welcome guests!

- Thank you!