I once met an guy from Split who didn't drink coffee. He made light of the fact, but you could see that he was tired of having to explain his disability every time some new acquaintance uttered the standard Split greeting: "Veliku kafu sa hladnim mlijekom?" ("big espresso?"). His breezy but faintly passive-aggressive manner concealed, I suspect, deep pools of self-doubt and underground lakes of wounded masculine pride.
Coffee is so much a part of Split culture that the idea of not drinking it is as foreign as the idea of having to explain its rituals. These rituals are set in stone and not always easy for outsiders to understand.
In fact, as in any self-respecting cult, they are made deliberately hard to comprehend, so that the initiated can recognise each other over the bar counter without the need for a curious handshake (which would only lead to stubborn cappuccino stains).
Riva is "living room" and the best central reference point in Split where you can get your big espresso.
Online booking - made reservation online and pay at location.Check our prices online
