Restaurant in Škofja Loka, Slovenia
Michelin-noted, €€ price, easy to book.
Danilo carries Michelin Plate recognition in both 2024 and 2025 and back-to-back La Liste Top Restaurants entries, all at a €€ price point that undercuts every comparable awarded contemporary restaurant in Slovenia. Booking is Easy, the address is a short drive from Škofja Loka, and the value argument is the strongest in the region's contemporary dining tier.
If you're deciding between Danilo and driving an hour to one of Slovenia's more celebrated contemporary tables, stop. Danilo holds two consecutive Michelin Plates (2024 and 2025) and back-to-back La Liste Leading Restaurants entries — 80.5 points in 2025, 77 in 2026 — and it does so at a €€ price point that most recognised Slovenian restaurants abandoned years ago. For food-focused travelers exploring the Škofja Loka area, this is the booking to make first. The credential-to-cost ratio here is difficult to match anywhere in the region.
Danilo sits in Reteče, a quiet settlement just outside Škofja Loka's medieval centre, which means you arrive at a contemporary restaurant without the tourist-facing performance that sometimes attaches to old-town addresses. The setting is modest by design. What the kitchen produces is not.
The cuisine is classified as contemporary, and the La Liste scores over two consecutive years confirm the restaurant has sustained a level of technical ambition that earns recognition at the European scale. A Google rating of 4.5 across 201 reviews suggests the experience lands consistently for a broad range of diners , not just the food-press crowd. That alignment between award-body recognition and civilian satisfaction is a useful signal: this is a kitchen cooking for guests, not for critics.
At the €€ tier, Danilo occupies a position that is genuinely unusual in the context of awarded Slovenian contemporary cooking. Comparable Michelin-recognised restaurants in Slovenia , Hiša Franko in Kobarid, Milka in Kranjska Gora, Gostilna Pri Lojzetu in Vipava , all sit at €€€€. Danilo is producing at a recognised level for meaningfully less outlay. If you're planning a multi-restaurant trip through Slovenia's contemporary dining scene and need to calibrate spend, Danilo is the table where the value argument is strongest.
Because Danilo is accessible at €€ and booking difficulty is rated Easy, it genuinely rewards a multi-visit approach , something you can't say about Slovenia's harder-to-book destination restaurants. Here is how to think across two or three visits.
On a first visit, treat it as a calibration meal. Contemporary cuisine at this price tier in a non-capital Slovenian town is a specific proposition: you're eating to understand the kitchen's register and range. Focus on the full menu progression rather than ordering selectively. The La Liste scores across two years suggest the kitchen has a consistent identity worth reading from start to finish.
A second visit rewards specificity. Having understood the kitchen's vocabulary on the first visit, you can make more targeted choices , return for whatever course or technique impressed most. Contemporary menus at this level typically rotate with seasons, so a visit separated by a few months will surface different produce and different preparations. Slovenia's agricultural calendar runs through markedly distinct seasons, and a kitchen operating at Michelin Plate level is almost certainly tracking it.
A third visit, for the committed explorer, is about comparison and depth. By this point you have enough context to evaluate whether the kitchen is evolving , whether the La Liste score trajectory (80.5 in 2025, 77 in 2026) reflects a menu in transition or a house style being refined. For travelers building a mental map of Slovenia's contemporary restaurant tier alongside visits to Hiša Denk in Zgornja Kungota, Hiša Linhart in Radovljica, or Restavracija Strelec in Ljubljana, Danilo functions as a reliable anchor point , the control against which the more expensive tables are measured.
Reservations: Booking difficulty is rated Easy, making Danilo accessible without the lead time required at Slovenia's most sought-after contemporary tables. Advance booking is still advisable for weekend evenings. Address: Reteče 48, 4220 Reteče, Slovenia , a short distance from Škofja Loka centre; travelling by car is direct. Budget: €€ price range; awarded contemporary dining without the €€€€ spend required at peer venues. Awards: Michelin Plate 2024 and 2025; La Liste Leading Restaurants 2025 (80.5pts) and 2026 (77pts). Rating: Google 4.5 / 5 (201 reviews).
Slovenia has developed a recognisable contemporary dining identity over the past decade, anchored by a handful of internationally recognised restaurants , most of them in rural or small-town settings, and most of them priced at the top tier. Danilo fits the geographic pattern but breaks the price pattern. That makes it a useful entry point if you're new to Slovenian contemporary cooking and want to understand the category before committing to higher-spend bookings. It also makes it a natural companion booking alongside Pavus in Lasko, A3 in Brestanica, or City Terasa in Maribor when building a broader itinerary across the country.
For international context: the contemporary format Danilo operates within , tasting-oriented, produce-led, technically considered , is the same register you find at César in New York City or Jungsik in Seoul, both of which sit at significantly higher price points. The comparison is not about equivalence of output; it's about genre fluency. If you know what to look for in contemporary tasting menus, Danilo will give you plenty to read.
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Danilo is a contemporary restaurant in Reteče, just outside Škofja Loka, with Michelin Plate recognition in both 2024 and 2025 and La Liste Leading Restaurants listings in back-to-back years. It operates at a €€ price point, which is significantly below the cost of comparable awarded contemporary restaurants in Slovenia. Booking is Easy relative to higher-profile Slovenian tables, so you don't need to plan months ahead. Arrive expecting a technically considered menu in an understated setting , this is not a tourist-facing experience.
Specific dishes are not published in the available data, so any menu-item recommendation here would be speculation. What the award record does confirm is that the kitchen is operating at a consistent level across seasons , two consecutive Michelin Plates and two La Liste entries suggest a menu with a stable identity rather than an inconsistent one. On a first visit, ordering the full menu progression (rather than à la carte, if both options exist) is the most reliable way to understand the kitchen's range. Ask staff on the day about the current menu , contemporary kitchens at this level rotate their offer regularly.
Seat count is not published in the available data, and the restaurant does not list a public phone number in our records. For group bookings, contacting the restaurant directly via their address at Reteče 48 or through their reservation system is the practical step. Given the €€ price tier and the contemporary format, Danilo can work well for small celebratory groups , but confirm capacity and group-menu options before assuming flexibility.
The most direct comparison within the region is Dam, a Mediterranean and modern cuisine restaurant priced at €€€. For higher-spend contemporary and creative Slovenian cooking, Hiša Franko (€€€€), Milka (€€€€), Gostilna Pri Lojzetu (€€€€), and Grič (€€€€) are the relevant peer set. Danilo is the value play in this group. If budget is not a constraint and you want the most internationally celebrated table, Hiša Franko is the obvious choice. If you want recognised contemporary cooking without the top-tier spend, Danilo is the answer.
Yes, with a specific caveat: Danilo is the right choice for a special occasion where the quality of the cooking matters more than the theatrical trappings of a high-end dining room. The setting is in Reteče rather than a city centre, the price is €€ rather than €€€€, and the experience is rooted in the food. Two consecutive Michelin Plates and strong La Liste scores confirm the kitchen delivers at a recognised level. If your occasion requires a grander room or more elaborate service presentation, the €€€€ tier venues like Hiša Franko or Gostilna Pri Lojzetu will fit the brief better. If the meal itself is the occasion, Danilo is a strong option at a price that won't force you to moderate the rest of the trip.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Danilo | Contemporary | €€ | Easy |
| Dam | Mediterranean, Modern Cuisine | €€€ | Unknown |
| Hiša Franko | Modern European, Creative | €€€€ | Unknown |
| Milka | Creative | €€€€ | Unknown |
| Gostilna Pri Lojzetu | Modern Cuisine | €€€€ | Unknown |
| Grič | Farm to table | €€€€ | Unknown |
A quick look at how Danilo measures up.
Danilo is a contemporary restaurant in Reteče, just outside Škofja Loka's medieval centre, with a Michelin Plate in both 2024 and 2025 and La Liste scores of 80.5pts (2025) and 77pts (2026). Booking is straightforward — no weeks-long wait required, which is unusual for a restaurant at this recognition level. At €€ pricing, it's one of the more accessible Michelin-noted tables in Slovenia. Arrive with appetite and without the stress of a hard-to-secure reservation.
Specific menu details aren't available here, but Danilo's contemporary format typically means a set or semi-set menu structure. Given the €€ price point and two consecutive Michelin Plates, the kitchen is building a considered tasting progression rather than an à la carte spread. Ask staff on arrival about the current menu format and any seasonal focus — that's your best steer on what's driving the kitchen right now.
Group capacity details aren't confirmed in available data, but Danilo's location in Reteče — outside the town centre — suggests a standalone property rather than a compact city-centre room, which often means more flexibility for larger parties. For groups of four or more, check the venue's official channels to confirm table configurations and any group booking requirements.
Danilo is the standout contemporary option in this part of Slovenia. For a comparable or higher level of ambition in the region, Hiša Franko in the Soča Valley is the reference point — internationally recognised and considerably harder to book. Grič, in the hills above Škofja Loka, offers a competing local contemporary option worth comparing directly. If Danilo's easy booking and €€ price are part of the appeal, neither Hiša Franko nor Gostilna Pri Lojzetu match it on accessibility.
Yes — the combination of a Michelin Plate, La Liste recognition, and €€ pricing makes Danilo a strong special-occasion choice that won't require a months-out reservation or a high-spend commitment. It sits in a quiet setting outside Škofja Loka, which suits occasions where you want a destination feel without a city-centre crowd. For a milestone dinner where you want more ceremony and are prepared to book months ahead, Hiša Franko is the step up.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
