Restaurant in Split, Croatia
Owner-run, market-led, book ahead.
BÒME is Split's most compelling case for owner-run fine dining at an accessible price. Seven tables, a Michelin Plate (2025), and a 4.9 Google rating across 416 reviews signal consistent quality. Chef Mario and his fiancée Franciska run the room themselves, which shows in service that feels proportional to the occasion. At €€, it delivers more than restaurants charging significantly more.
If you're weighing BÒME against Split's more obvious fine-dining choices, here's the short answer: book BÒME. At the €€ price point, it delivers Michelin Plate-level cooking in a room that feels genuinely personal rather than performative. ZOI charges significantly more for a comparable creative approach, and while Krug offers solid Mediterranean execution, it doesn't match the intimacy or the value here. BÒME is the answer for a special occasion dinner in Split where price-to-quality ratio matters as much as the meal itself.
BÒME sits inside a building that earns a second look before you even reach the door. The exterior is a Modernist structure from the socialist era, painted in bright colours that read as deliberately incongruous against Split's limestone streetscape. Step inside and the room shifts entirely: seven tables arranged in front of an L-shaped open kitchen, a contemporary interior that is spare without being cold. The contrast is part of the experience, and it works.
What makes BÒME worth booking for a celebration or a serious dinner date is not the building, though. It is the service model. Owner-chef Mario runs the kitchen while his fiancée Franciska manages the floor, and the result is the kind of warmth that larger restaurants hire consultants to simulate and rarely achieve. This is not a staffed operation pretending to be personal. At seven tables, every guest gets attention that feels proportional to the occasion. For a birthday dinner, an anniversary, or a first visit to the Dalmatian coast that you want to remember clearly, that matters. The service earns the price point here rather than merely accompanying it.
The cooking follows a modern Mediterranean framework, with flavour balance and texture treated as primary concerns rather than afterthoughts. Bread and pasta are made in-house, and the chef sources ingredients directly from Split's local market. That market provenance shows in what arrives at the table: this is seasonal cooking tied to what is available now, which in the current summer period means Dalmatian produce at its most expressive. Adriatic seafood, local herbs, and the kind of vegetables that taste like they were picked that morning rather than sourced through a distributor. The approach connects the kitchen to its geography in a way that matters for a first-timer trying to understand what Dalmatian cooking can be at its most considered.
Michelin awarded BÒME a Plate in 2025, which places it in the category of restaurants the guide considers to offer food prepared to a good standard. In Croatian coastal terms, that credential puts BÒME in a selective group. For context, the Adriatic coast's most decorated tables include Agli Amici Rovinj in Istria and Nebo by Deni Srdoč in Rijeka. BÒME belongs to that broader conversation about Croatian cooking earning international attention, even if it operates at a different scale and price register. If you're travelling the Dalmatian coast and want one meal that reflects where the region's cooking is heading, this is a reasonable place to spend it. Restaurant 360 in Dubrovnik and LD Restaurant in Korčula offer comparable coastal ambition further down the coast if you're planning a longer itinerary.
Google reviewers give BÒME a 4.9 from 416 ratings, which at that volume is a meaningful signal rather than a statistical anomaly. High scores at small restaurants sometimes reflect local loyalty more than consistent quality, but the Michelin recognition provides an independent check. Both signals point in the same direction.
Booking is direct, and with only seven tables the room fills but does not feel like an impossible reservation. BÒME is not the kind of place where you need to plan three months out, but for a Saturday dinner in summer you should book at least a couple of weeks ahead. The small capacity means that even a modest surge in demand fills the room quickly. Contact via the address at Ul. Dinka Šimunovića 14a if you need to confirm logistics on arrival.
For broader planning around your visit, our full Split restaurants guide covers the range of options across price tiers. If you're sorting accommodation, our Split hotels guide will help with proximity decisions. For drinks before or after dinner, our Split bars guide has the relevant options. And if the wider region interests you, our Split wineries guide and experiences guide are worth a look.
At the Mediterranean price-tier level in Split, the comparison set worth knowing includes K.užina for regional Dalmatian cooking and Kadena for international-leaning plates. Both serve different purposes. BÒME is the one to choose when the meal itself is the occasion and you want a room small enough to feel the difference that owner-run service makes.
If BÒME represents the kind of owner-run, market-led cooking you want more of on a Croatian trip, the country has a handful of comparable addresses worth planning around. Korak in Jastrebarsko and Alfred Keller in Mali Lošinj offer similarly considered cooking at different points along the coast and inland. For Mediterranean cooking in other markets, La Brezza in Ascona and Il Buco in Sorrento share the same produce-first philosophy at a different price register.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| BÒME | Mediterranean Cuisine | €€ | Easy |
| Krug | Mediterranean Cuisine | €€€ | Unknown |
| PiNKU fish & wine | Seafood | €€€ | Unknown |
| ZOI | Mediterranean Cuisine | €€€€ | Unknown |
| Šug | Regional Cuisine | €€€ | Unknown |
| Dvor | Mediterranean Cuisine | €€ | Unknown |
Comparing your options in Split for this tier.
Yes, and it's one of the better solo options in Split's dining scene. With only seven tables and an L-shaped open kitchen, you're close to the action throughout the meal. The owner-chef Mario and his fiancée Franciska run the floor personally, which makes the experience feel attentive rather than isolating at a small table.
The building will throw you off — the colourful socialist-era Modernist exterior looks nothing like a Michelin Plate restaurant. Once inside, the format is intimate: seven tables, an open kitchen, and owner-chef Mario cooking dishes built around ingredients he sources himself at the local market. At €€ pricing with Michelin recognition, first-timers should know they're getting serious cooking without the formal-restaurant overhead.
The menu follows a modern Mediterranean approach, with the kitchen emphasising flavour balance and texture. Bread and pasta are made in-house, and ingredients come from the local market — both are strong signals of where the kitchen puts its effort. Beyond that, the specific menu is not published, so arrive open to what's running on the day.
The interior is contemporary, the setting is owner-run and personal, and the price point is €€ — relaxed but considered. Neat, casual clothing fits the room. This is not a jacket-required venue, but it's also not a beach-cover-up situation.
With only seven tables in total, large groups are not a practical fit here. Parties of two or four are the natural format. If you're travelling with six or more, you'd likely need to book the entire restaurant or look elsewhere — Dvor, which has a larger terrace setting, is a more accommodating option for bigger groups in Split.
The dining space centres on seven tables in front of an L-shaped open kitchen, and there is no documented bar seating. If counter or bar dining is your preference, BÒME's format is table-only — plan accordingly.
Book at least two to three weeks out, particularly in peak Croatian summer season (July to August) when Split fills fast and a seven-table restaurant has almost no slack. Michelin Plate recognition increases demand further. Do not rely on walk-ins.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
