Lunch and "Due Passi in Yugo"

The weekend has passed and no doubt if you are lucky enough to live in Trieste, you probably went out for lunch on Sunday in Slovenia and then out for do Passi afterwards.

It is a curious tradition that the Triestini preserve. It goes back to times before the fall of the Iron Curtain, which is evident in the language used to describe the phenomenon.

The invitation (in Trestino) sounds something like this:

A: Femo qualcossa in weekend per star assieme?

B: Volentieri. Demo fora maniar qualcossa in Yugo?

A: Va ben. Poi femo do passi.

Eating out "in Yugo" as in: the country formerly known as Yugoslavia, with friends and/or family on the weekend is going to involve some negotiation to 1) choose the right restaurant and 2) decide which border between Italy and Slovenia to meet at to be close to the destination. You will caravan together on the big day.

Choice of location is based on two things: 1) the ratio of price to quality and 2) how popular it is with Triestini. There is a direct correlation between the two. A gostilna has the best quality/price ratio as long as it is somewhat new and caters to the Italian palate yet remains unknown to the mainstream. Once too many Triestini start going (popularity is based on word of mouth), prices go up and portions go down. The trick is to get there "in time" before this happens. Curiously, once the place becomes truly popular, the Triestini no longer go there. They will have found a new place by then. Popular restaurants in Slovenia are much like free illegal parking places where you don't get ticketed in downtown Trieste, they change once too many people know about them. When the Triestini no longer go, the restaurants start to do really well. The "foreigners" keep them alive. First the people from the Veneto start coming (thanks to Tripadvisor), then the Milanesi, and finally the Germans as they pass through on their way to Croatia in the summer.

The "do passi" after lunch should not be confused with an actual healthy hike. It is short and sweet, just enough to say you went for a walk, especially since lunches in Slovenia tend to be a good excuse to stuff oneself with all forms of heavy comfort food. Actually, the smart Triestini meet 10 minutes earlier than usual for their walk so they can "earn" the gnocchi with goulash and follow it with a Lubljanska and a couple of homemade beers without feeling guilty.

If you haven't been privy to this practice and would like to start, feel free to adapt the above dialogue to fit your needs. Here is some more insight into the vocabulary you will use most often. Remember, when in Trieste, speak like the Triestini!

1. Stare assieme: Hang out and be together
2. Magnar tanto pagar poco= Poca spesa tanta resa: Cheap place with big portions/more bang for your buck
3. Far do passi= go for a walk (literally make two steps)
4. Volentieri: Gladly (in the dialogue above). Can also mean: would love to give you what you are asking for but we don't have it. Bad news if you are at a store...

Dober tek!