The Ljubljana Podcast

Have you tried making Slovenian food? Baking potica at home, cooking with kranjska klobasa, or making bread the old fashioned way, with sourdough starter? This episode is about Slovenian food, but more specifically about adventures in cooking it. To learn more I invited two special guests who teach the world to cook Slovenian specialties: Michelle Pusic Ryall (of Slovenian Kitchen or Slovenska Kuh...

What is it like to represent Slovenia at the Olympics? To find out, in this special episode of The Ljubljana Podcast, we spoke to Lila Lapanja, an alpine skier raised in America who competed for Slovenia at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina. What is it like behind the scenes for an Olympian representing Slovenia? Tune in to find out! To learn more about Lila, click here: https://www.lilal...

Today, we’re talking about one of Ljubljana’s greatest success stories—one that started as a local food event and became a national movement. If you’ve ever wandered through the Central Market on a sunny Friday, following the smell of sizzling meat, truffles, or freshly baked burek, you’ve already found it: Odprta Kuhna , or Open Kitchen. This episode features interviews with Open Kitchen founder,...

Slovenes love Balkan fast food, and cevapcici is the classic—the hamburger of the Balkans. Of Turkish origin, cevapi are small sausage-shaped meatballs made of ground meat and are super good and easy to like—if you like burgers, you’ll like these. This episode is all about this, the most popular fast food in Slovenia. You'll hear from Peter Hajdu, Slovenia's grill guru, and Mate Jankovic, Croatia'...

To learn more about the Brina Festival , held on 21 June 2025 (check the website for dates in future years), visit: https://www.visitljubljana.com/en/visitors/events/events-in-ljubljana/brina-festival/   Some of the recommended bars in this episode are: Silk & Fizz : https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g274873-d32708549-Reviews-Silk_And_Fizz-Ljubljana_Upper_Carniola_Region.html Kolibri :...

This episode is all about learning Slovenian as a second language. It’s considered difficult to learn by many, but is it really so tricky? To find out I spoke to two anglophone expats to hear of their ex-perience, as well as with two leaders of the Center for Learning Slovene as a Second Language, part of the University of Ljubljana. Whether you’re just language-curious or trying to learn your-sel...

Visitors to Ljubljana with an eye for design and architecture cannot help but notice the striking buildings, bridges, and urban design of Ljubljana's genius loci, Modernist mystic architect Jože Plečnik. This episodes provides a self-guided walking tour through the city center that lasts around one hour--a perfect introduction to the "eternal" architect's work in the heart of the city. Your guide...

Jorg Zupan's restaurant is Aftr Igor Jagodic's restaurant is Strelec Jason Hartley can be followed here . Jake's GUTS Magazine is here . Riki's amazing mountaint hut restaurant, Pr'Jurju, is here . And the obviously very popular Olimpija Burek is here .   If you'd like to follow my updates and activities you're welcome to sign up at  https://noahcharney.substack.com/   You might also enjoy any of...

This podcast is not only about Ljubljana, but also about interesting folk who live in Ljubljana. And it doesn’t get any more interesting than Slovenia’s most beloved musician, Vlado Kreslin. Kreslin is a national institution in Slovenia, having achieved the status of folk hero.  Songs from his albums, and based on his published poetry, have inspired films and novels. I could describe him as Sloven...

For our first episode, we thought we’d bring you a one-stop overview of some of my favorite things in Ljubljana. It’s based on an article I wrote for The Guardian newspaper, part of their Local’s Guide series. This is an expat’s guide to Ljubljana. It’s just scratching the surface, but it’s a good place to start. How many times can a city be called a ‘hidden gem’ and still remain hidden? This is t...