Restaurant Dva jelena, Belgrade
Dva jelena restaurant, one of the oldest and most frequented restaurants in Belgrade, has been the biggest à la carte restaurant on the territory of former Yugoslavia for more than hundred years. It is located in Skadalija, the bohemian heart of the city, also known as Belgrade Montmarte.
The story of Dva jelena goes like this:
In the spring of 1832, a hard-working baker named Avram set up his own bakery in this exact spot. The bakery was a success after only one year and his wife Petronija, realizing the potential of the big stove, started making cooked meals for the locals. In no time at all, they were coming in throngs. In 1867, a restaurant owner called Joakim bought the bakery from Avram for 20 gold coins and 2 ‘groš’. Then he hired Djordje, a heavily moustached builder from the region of Crna Trava, to expand the space and turn into a restaurant. The word of mouth about the restaurant’s beauty and the kindness of its owner spread very quickly around the town. Very soon the restaurant became the meeting place of people from all walks of life: craftsmen, actors, poets, artists, musicians, novelists, travelling groups of actors, and other visitors, fans of good music, good drinks and good entertainment. One day, some hunters from Belgrade brought their prey – two deer – in front of the restaurant. The people who gathered around it suggested that from that day on Joakim’s place should be called “Kod Dva jelena” or “At two deer”. We must never forget that the famous artists and giants of Serbian culture, the regular guests of our restaurant, were the ones who made Dva jelena well-known worldwide. Foreign statesmen, artists and tourists from all over the world are also our guests.