Cheap eats in Dubrovnik under $10
Dubrovnik has a reputation for $30 pizza but if you know the bakeries and takeaway spots you can eat well for under $10 a meal, three times a day.
Slice of burek at a Dubrovnik pekara
The bakery breakfast
Every pekara (bakery) does the same 3 essentials for under $5. Burek (flaky pastry with cheese, meat, or spinach) is $3.50. Sirnica is a coiled cheese pastry, $3. A slice of pizza is $3-4. Mlinar and Klas are the main chains; independents like Vukičević near Gruž market are better. Add a coffee at a stand-up bar for $2 and breakfast is $6. Do this instead of the $18 hotel buffet.
Sandwich shops and takeaway
Barba on Boškovićeva in the Old Town does a tuna burger for $9 and octopus burger for $12 — proper sit-down quality at takeaway prices. Presa on Kovačka does pressed sandwiches with pršut and cheese for $7. Buffet Kamenice on Gundulić square (yes, in the middle of the tourist zone) does a plate of small fried fish for $9 that no one seems to have told the guidebooks about. Tabasco Pizza near the bus station does massive slices for $4.
Where locals actually eat lunch
Konoba Ribar on Kneza Damjana Jude in the Old Town does a $10 daily lunch (marenda) — usually stewed meat, potatoes, and salad. It's the kind of thing the city hall workers eat. Same principle at Taj Mahal on Nikole Gučetića (Bosnian, not Indian — cevapi platter $9). If you’re near Gruž, Buffet Škola does the workers' lunch for $8. All 3 are 30% of the Stradun price and 200% of the flavour.
Frequently asked questions
What people ask before they set off on this one.
Yes, under $30 a day is doable if you use bakeries for breakfast, takeaway for lunch, and one konoba dinner.
Flaky filo pastry filled with cheese, meat, or spinach — a staple breakfast across the former Yugoslavia. Around $3.50 at any bakery.
Barba on Boškovićeva and Konoba Ribar on Kneza Damjana Jude both do proper meals under $12.
A midday workers' lunch, usually stewed meat or fish with potato and salad, served at konobas for $8-12. Ask at 11:30-1pm.
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