Taste Rado’lca

Taste Rado’lca

Taste Rado’lca

Project Number: 2022-KA220-VET-89ACFE12

Best Practices

Taste Rado’lca

Slovenia

(Europe)

Taste Radol’ca developed as a project of local restaurants in Radovljica (Julian Alps region), Slovenia. The main idea was to create a food brand, where participating restaurants offer typical Gorenjska dishes (in a modern way), prepared with locally produced ingredients.

In the beginning, the collaboration developed among 9 local restaurants, 14 local food producers/suppliers, and a local tourism organization. Each restaurant offers its own dishes, emphasising its own identity. A strong local food supply chain developed through this project, where local restaurants and local food suppliers collaborate.

The brand extended from offering Taste Radol’ca dishes in restaurants to include also special culinary events in Radovljica’s old town centre, such as a local market, street food, and themed menus, gift vouchers for Taste Radol’ca, catering offers, and event “month of local cuisine”.

Benefits

Taste Radolc’a exemplifies regenerative food tourism by fostering the collaborations among food producers, restaurants, and local DMOs, enhancing local economy, creating short and green food supply chains, focusing on sustainable practices, and preserving local culinary heritage. Culinary experiences under Taste Radol’ca provide meaningful, unique learning and multi-sensory experiences to visitors, allowing them to discover a place through their cuisine and the understanding of local culture. A broader local community is involved and local food is combined with other tourism products, enhancing local economy.

Key Success

Collaboration among different stakeholders – local restaurants, local suppliers, and support of local DMO through communication and events.

The first initiative was taken by one local and renowned chef, other local chefs respected and were ready to follow. The project was thus generated bottom-up, where local chefs /restaurants played the main role (taking ownership of the project, and being proactive).

Strong focus on sustainable practices (sustainability-oriented) and quality. Shared values developed and for being part of this informal association, restaurants and producers need to adopt and follow these values/mindset in everyday practices.

Keeping diversity in restaurants’ menus by respecting restaurants’ own identity and offering a wide range of different dishes (within unique restaurants’ character) under a common brand. Visitors are thus offered a wide array of culinary experiences, which guarantee quality, and invite them to experiment and stay longer at the destination.

 

“The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein”

Project Number: 2022-1-ES01-KA220-VET-000086688