Mali Ston Bay: The Ultimate Croatian Oyster Experience
An hour north of Croatia’s bustling city of Dubrovnik, is a quiet town called Ston. Small, but mighty, Ston is home to one of the longest fortress systems in Europe, an ancient salt making tradition, and a delicious oyster growing operation in Mali Ston Bay.
Mali Ston Bay is where the freshwater and the Adriatic Sea meet which is why it’s perfect for oysters. Visiting Mali Ston Bay was a priority of mine during my recent trip to Croatia. I was eager to learn more about their iconic oyster production that’s been happening since the Roman empire ruled this area.
If you want to eat oysters from Croatia, you have to actually be in Croatia. I wish these delicious bivalves were more readily available around the world, but this small, family operation only sells their oysters domestically within Croatia.
While you can eat them at many different restaurants across Croatia, if you really want to properly experience Croatian oysters, I recommend a visit to Mali Ston Bay, where you can actually tour the oyster farms.
You can plan to spend a weekend in Mali Ston or just visit for the day from Dubrovnik. Bota Sare, the iconic family behind the Mali Ston Bay oyster farms and the Bota Sare restaurants, offer tours of their oyster farms on a regular basis.
Personally, I recommend booking a sunset tour. This way, you’ll get to see the sun set over the tiny village of Mali Ston from the bay. It’s pretty much the best view in the house!
The Bota Sare oyster tour departs by boat from the restaurant in Mali Ston. On board, you’ll be greeted by one of Mali Ston’s oyster farmers, plus local sweets and homemade brandy. The boat ride out to the oyster farms takes less than 15 minutes and provides stunning panoramic views of the bay.
Once you reach the oyster farms, the fun begins!
These boats are outfitted with an opening in the centre of them that allows your tour guide to pull up ropes of oysters and mussels for you to see and of course, eat!
“In the winter time if you put your purse on the surface of the water a muscle will quickly latch on to it, in the summer, sink it to the bottom and the oyster will make it home.”
Due to its location on the Pelješac peninsula and the unique mix of freshwater and seawater, Mali Ston oysters are unique to the world. Locals claim that there are three essential characteristics of Ston oysters: it refreshes, calms and encourages love. Of course, oysters are an aphrodisiac.
And the farmers who grow these unique, love inspiring oysters, say that the conditions in Mali Ston make their jobs so easy. As my guide told me, “all these oysters need is something to hold onto.” That’s why the growers in Mali Ston Bay simply put some floating ropes in the bay, which these bivalves quickly make a home of.
The mussels in Mali Ston Bay take about 2-3 years to grow to the perfect consumption size, while oysters take about a year.
These bivalves will of course, boast the unique flavours of the bay, but the time of year when they’re harvested can also have an impact on their taste. In the summer months, oysters will have a much higher salinity, giving them a saltier taste. In the colder months, they will be less salty, which is when locals prefer to eat them.
Wondering how locals eat oysters in Croatia?
“Just lemon.” said my oyster tour guide, “I tell people from America it’s illegal to bring Tabasco sauce here. When you put Tabasco and other things all you’re tasting is the sauce and not the oyster.” Croatians firmly believe that the point of eating oysters is to taste the flavours from the sea.
“These oysters taste like Mali Ston Bay, so it’s only fitting you enjoy them in Mali Ston Bay.”
If you’re planning a trip to Croatia, you can book an oyster tour in Mali Ston HERE.