Tourism and gourmet promotion is an amazing thing.
There are the professional writers and researchers who produce great quality content and information, whose work is valued, but it takes time to build an established readership.
And then there is the Rockstar Effect.
Anthony Bourdain’s famous discovery of Croatian food and wine on his ‘No Reservations’ show was arguably the best promotion of Croatia’s food and wine internationally, and a really good show.
Last year I watched in dismay at the viewing numbers of a video about Hvar made by two YouTubers from the UK. As part of the show, I persuaded them to go for a swim in the underfloor aquarium at luxury fish restaurant Gariful in Hvar Town. The video has been watched more than 3 million times since then, making it one of the top 10 videos about Croatia on YouTube.
And then there was a light lunch with U2 star Bono at Laganini on the Pakleni Islands on Hvar, who was so blown away by the Dalmatian feast served by Hrvoje Zirojevic, that he posted his appreciation on the official U2 Facebook page. With more than 100,000 likes and 3,600 shares so far, it is fair to say the message is going round the world about a master of his craft preparing the finest Dalmatian cuisine. Learn more about Bono’s experience in TCN’s report last night.
Can we 100% guarantee that there was Croatian wine involved. Without confirmation, perhaps not, but I would be 99% sure, as both Laganini and Gariful, where Bono dined, have very strong Croatian wine lists, and a top chef preparing a top Dalmatian menu would surely insist that they had the appropriate accompaniment – a range of excellent Dalmatian wine.
A truly fabulous promotion of Croatian gastronomy, reaching many more people in one post than this blogger will in a lifetime. Perhaps I should learn to play the guitar…
