Karlobag, on the Adriatic coast
Tables on the rock, by the sea
Restaurant Pizzeria OK Karlobag sits under the pines at the water's edge, with the bare ridge of Pag across the channel and fish on the grill.
Three things worth knowing
At the water
Our tables stand on a rock and gravel apron directly at the sea, under mature pine trees. Across the Velebit channel you look at the bare karst ridge of the island of Pag.
Fish, grill, pizza
Grilled squid and calamari, octopus salad, fish soup, whole sea bass and gilt-head bream. Also a mixed grill platter, čevapčići, small grilled minced-meat rolls, steak and pizza from the same kitchen.
How it works
Portions are large and platters are made for sharing. Staff speak Croatian and English. Cards and contactless payment are accepted, dogs are welcome inside and outside, and children have their own menu.
What we cook
What comes out of the kitchen
The sea side of the kitchen is the reason most people walk down here. Grilled squid and calamari, octopus salad, mixed fried fish, fish soup and shellfish. Whole white fish goes on the grill, brancin, which is sea bass, and orada, which is gilt-head bream, often served with potato and blitva, the Swiss chard that grows all along this coast. There are also shrimp and scampi.
Beside the fish there is a grill for meat and an oven for pizza. The mixed grill platter, čevapčići, small grilled minced-meat rolls, and steak come out on large steel ovals, with vegetables grilled alongside and a plain salad of tomato and onion. Pizza runs from quattro formaggi to americana. Families rarely order the same thing, and that is fine here.
Pasta and rice are on the list too: seafood risotto, green pasta with shrimp, fried anchovies as a small plate with a drink. The bar keeps going through the day with coffee, draught beer, wine, cocktails and spirits, and there is food late into the evening. Prices are given in the restaurant, and the fish of the day depends on what the boats bring in.
The place
Karlobag, under Velebit
Karlobag is a small town in Lika-Senj County, on the Adriatic at the foot of the Velebit mountain and directly opposite the island of Pag. The municipality counted 780 residents at the 2021 census, and the town itself 368. It is a place of stone, wind and water rather than a resort, and the restaurant sits at the bottom of it, right on the shore.
Velebit is the largest mountain range in Croatia, roughly 145 kilometres long and protected as a nature park. Behind the town the Oštarijska vrata pass climbs to 928 metres and carries the road over to Gospić in the interior. From a table by the water you can see how the mountain drops straight into the channel. The light changes quickly here, and so does the wind.
The town was rebuilt in 1579 by Archduke Charles and renamed after him, which is where the name Karlobag comes from. That history is easier to feel than to read: a narrow grid of streets above the sea, a stone waterfront, and pines that have been holding the ground for a long time. The tables here stand on rock and gravel, under those trees.
Hours and telephone
- Address
- Augusta Šenoe 2, 53288 Karlobag, Croatia
- Telephone
- +385 95 365 6633
- Opening hours
- Monday 10:00 – 20:30
- Tuesday – Sunday 10:00 – 24:00
Telephone: 095 365 6633. That is the only reliable way to reach us, to book a table or to ask what the kitchen has today. Address: Augusta Šenoe 2, 53288 Karlobag.
Listed hours are Monday 10:00 to 20:30 and Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 24:00.
Come down for lunch or stay for the evening
Ring us to reserve a table, and read the arrival notes first, because the descent to the restaurant is narrow and steep.