PTUJ AND MARIBOR - Croatia and Slovenia - page 1018

Gostilna Amadeus serves up traditional Slovenian cuisine to tour groups, individual
tourists, and a few locals. They're especially proud of their €5 štruklji (ravioli-like filled
dumplings). The bar, with outdoor seating and drinks only, is downstairs; to eat a meal,
head upstairs to their nicely appointed dining room (€7-8 pastas, €8-18 main courses, Mon-
Sat 12:00-23:00—except closed Tue Oct-May, Sun 12:00-16:00, Prešernova 36, tel. 02/
771-7051).
PP is frequented by locals who enjoy its inexpensive, unpretentious, stick-to-your-ribs
fare—lots of meat and potatoes, plus fried...everything. With a gaudy pub ambience, this
Slovenian answer to T.G.I. Friday's is on the town's main shopping square (Novi trg), sur-
rounded by supermarkets and malls. The Kavarna (café) has light food and outdoor seat-
ing; to eat a full meal, look for the indoor Gostilna (filling €4-7 main courses, Mon-Sat
9:00-20:00, closed Sun, Kavarna open until 22:00; off-season, Gostilna closes at 16:00 and
Kavarna closes at 18:00; Novi trg 2, tel. [phone]). The name stands for Perutnina Ptuj,
a chicken conglomerate that owns half the town (including this place, Gostilna Ribi č , and
the big wine cellar)—you'll see their logo everywhere.
Pizzeria Slon č ek has a great location right on Prešernova, with outdoor tables and good
pizzas (€6-7, Mon-Sat 9:00-22:00, Sun 12:00-22:00, Prešernova 19, tel. [phone]).
muziKafe, which also rents rooms (see earlier), is a cool hangout with an artistic spirit
right in the center of the creaky Old Town. They serve drinks, light food, snacks, and
cakes in a colorful, convivial atmosphere. Their vaulted cellar also hosts musical perform-
ances a few nights each week (Mon-Sat 8:00-23:00, Sun 10:00-22:00, Vrazov trg 1, tel. 02/
787-8860, www.muzikafe.si ).
Ptuj Connections
From Ptuj by Train to: Maribor (8/day, 45-60 minutes, additional connec-
tions—sometimes faster—possible with transfer in Pragersko), Ljubljana (1/day direct
Mon-Fri, departs early, none Sat-Sun, 2.5 hours; 6/day with easy transfer in Pragersko, 2-3
hours), Zagreb (3/day, 3.5-4.25 hours, usually requires 2 transfers), Budapest (1/day with
transfers in Maribor and Vienna, 9 hours; other connections take longer and require more
changes), Vienna (that's Dunaj in Slovene, 1/day with transfer in Pragersko, 4.5 hours;
1/daywithtransferinMaribor,6.25hours;additionalconnectionsrequiremorechanges,5-6
hours). For destinations in western Slovenia, first go to Ljubljana.