Clearly there's nothing wrong with wanting to spend your entire holiday relaxing by the pool or dining on one of our terraces.  If you do want to sample some very local cuisine then there are two restaurants and two cafe bars all within a 1km walk from the villa; Restaurant Marina and Restaurant Gloria both serve traditional Istrian food; both are located in the adjacent village of Kufci, just a short walk away from the villa.  Both restaurants are family run and very friendly.  Restaurant Marina even makes it's own wine from its own local vines.  Less than 5 minutes drive will take you to a superb pizza/pasta bistro restaurant, Birikin, or you can be at the main car park in Porec within 10 minutes.  Birikin has ample parking, but gets very busy during the summer months, especially at the weekend.  They also offer takeaway or delivery - all of their food is incredible value and delicious!  

One of my favourite restaurants is Restaurant Trost at the Marina in Vrsar.  It's on the first floor, with a wonderful terrace overlooking the marina and the ancient town of Vrsar nestling on the hillside.  They do a wonderful steak tartar, and their pasta with truffles is a special favourite for me, but everything I have eaten at this restaurant has been very good.  It's not overpriced, and if you park in the marina car park and give the restaurant your parking ticket, they will stamp it for you so you don't even have to pay for parking when you leave!

Another favourite is Restaurant Konoba Daniela in Veleniki - about 15 minutes away by car.  The restaurant is in a traditional Istrian stone building with a lovely covered terrace and courtyard garden.  It is family run, welcoming, and always offers superb Istrian food.  It's slightly more expensive than Restaurant Marina, but it is well worth a visit during the summer months as the setting is lovely, or in the winter when the indoor restaurant area is lit by a log fire. 

Just five minutes from Villa Astra is Restaurant Kvartin which is a family run rustic Konoba.  We find this restaurant is fantastic in summer or winter due to the prettiness of their outdoor terraces and the terracotta and stone warmth of the inside dining area.  They have a log fire blazing in winter which adds to the atmosphere.  Gina serves rustic Istrian food, with chunks of delicious bread - try the homemade pasta with goulash, or in summer something grilled on the outdoor barbecue.  The ham and truffle cheese starter is also delicious!

In Novigrad, we have two favourite spots; Cafe Bar Vitriol and Stars Pizzeria.  Cafe Bar Vitriol is, perhaps, one of the nicest places (apart from the villa's upstairs balcony, of course!) to watch the sunset over the Adriatic, so an aperitif there, followed by dinner at Stars is always a good evening out.  Stars is very reasonably priced, and serves the pizza, pasta, meat and fish dishes that you will find all over Istria.  The quality is generally good, and the service friendly.  

Many restaurants offer childrens menus (Pizzeria Birikin for example) but this is not common in Istria.  However, most are happy to provide a half portion of some items on request, or split one main course onto two plates - do not hesitate to ask.  This is even acceptable for adults with smaller appetites, and we regularly share our starters and/or main courses.  Some Istrian specialities take time to prepare and may need to be ordered in advance.  Examples of this are roast chicken or pork knuckle in Restaurant Marina or the traditional Istrian Peka (a type of stew cooked in a cast iron pot in a charcoal fire) offered in many konoba's.  Just order in advance!