Hisa Franko, a restaurant in the village of Staro Selo in northwestern Slovenia, on Tuesday became the country’s first dining establishment to be awarded three Michelin stars, which is the highest accolade given by the renowned Michelin Guide.
The cuisine of Hisa Franko’s chef, Ana Ros Stojan, “showcases dishes that are full of intense and decisive flavors with no half measures,” the Michelin Guide said on its website, adding that “each course is a real discovery.”
At present, only 140 restaurants in the world hold three Michelin stars.
The guide also awarded two Michelin stars to the Milka restaurant in Kranjska Gora in northern Slovenia, while seven more restaurants in the country received one Michelin star.
Hisa Franko has had two Michelin stars since 2020, when the Michelin Guide started to evaluate restaurants in Slovenia. It is also one of only 32 restaurants in the world that hold three Michelin stars along with a Michelin Green Star that is given to restaurants for their sustainable practices, which include ethical and environmental standards, and which work with sustainable producers and suppliers to avoid waste.
“Our food waste is kept to a minimum through reservations and a single menu offering … We do our own foraging and use water from the stream that passes through our property,” Ros Stojan said.
Slovenia lies between Italy, Austria, Hungary, Croatia and the Adriatic Sea. In the past years, the country has significantly boosted its culinary tourism.
The number of foreign tourists who visited the country in the first seven months of this year jumped by 29.8 percent compared to the same period of 2022, the country’s Statistical Office said last month.
