Captivating Croatia specializes in immersive, food-centric tours, offering an intimate perspective of this country that has emerged as the destination in Europe. Through carefully tailored itineraries with a dynamic emphasis on culinary traditions and regional specialties, you will journey through the cultural, historical, and natural highlights of Croatia.

With the show-stopping natural beauty of Croatia, stunning fortified cities, and rural off-the-beaten-track secrets, Captivating Croatia tours “take it up a notch” above a regular tour. In fact, we fondly think of them as “Un-Tour Tours” because of how different they are from other tours. Our “Un-Tour Tour” gets you to the heart of Croatia—the where, what, how, and why of the “Croatian kitchen,” from the rustic taverna to modern innovation.

Embracing his roots in Croatia, Richard Gruica created Captivating Croatia with the dream of sharing authentic experiences that explore the incredibly rich and varied cuisine of Croatia. He is a longtime member of the Slow Food movement and was a guest speaker at the 2014 Terra Madre Balkan Conference, at which he saw the immense beauty and diversity of Croatia, ultimately igniting the fuel for Captivating Croatia.

Richard’s extensive research has led him on paths to some of the finest examples of tradition, craft, and small production, but more significantly, to the people that have a true passion for what they do.

Truly, a combination of discovery and passion lead the way when creating culinary adventures with Captivating Croatia. From the ancestral oyster beds of Ston, to the two renowned wine routes of Istria and Peljesac, you will discover why Croatia has become an “it” destination for foodies and oenophiles alike.

Your travels will walk you through the complex history that has shaped the cuisine of present day Croatia—an incredibly varied menu that has preserved and refined the best from all the cultures, a concentration of empires, and events that have passed over this land. You will be immersed in the flavors, sights, and history of Croatia in one simultaneous experience, with Richard and team as your guides to the iconic, the secret, and the authentic. Through carefully crafted itineraries—where history, taste, surprise, and delight compete for front stage—Captivating Croatia is about getting in touch with what this country is all about.

The finer things in life are sometimes the simplest—good food, wine, and friends who will feel like family at the end of your time in Croatia.

From an ambitious passion for gastronomy and a love of bringing people together, Chef Richard Gruica is the driving force behind the very successful dining and social group Good Eats and Meets (the world’s largest Food Meetup group). He is the creator of Sights and Bites Food Tours, which offer intimate food tours in Old Town Dubrovnik and the areas surrounding the city.

He also has a special passion project of pop up dinner events called The Gypsy Table. These unique pop-up dining events strive to have the utmost quality—using only the best ingredients prepared by some of the best chefs in the world in one of the most exceptional settings a person could imagine.