Croatia 2025 – Day 6 (Day trip to Omiš, Traditional Soparnik Tasting, and More Diocletian’s Palace)

Morning in Split

We had a leisurely morning that included some shopping and exploring before being picked up at 11am for a day trip to Omiš and a drive into the mountains for some traditional soparnik tasting (a protected Croatian national dish). On our way to getting our morning coffee, we came across a flock of pigeons. So, of course, Teresa and Hugh tried to join them. We also saw our first Dalmatian! We are, after all, on the Dalmatian Coast.

Hugh and Teresa running to join the pigeons

Hugh and Teresa have joined the pigeons!

Our fist Dalmatian sighting! We are, after all, on the Dalmatian Coast.

Early Afternoon in Omiš

Omiš was a pirate town from the 13th to 15th centuries, when pirates in fast boats called Sagittae would attack maritime trade and retreat into the Cetina River for safety. During warmer months, Omiš is known for adventure tourism, with white water rafting, rock climbing, hiking, and zip-lining. The only adventure we did was climb the steps up Mirabella Fortress for incredible views.

The Cetina Bridge in Omiš, which opened in 2024.

External details of St. Michael’s Church

The Climb Up Mirabella Fortress

View from a window partway up Mirabella Fortress

View from another window partway up Mirabella Fortress

View from a slit on the way up Mirabella Fortress

The final climb to the very top of Mirabella Fortress involved a ladder and hand-holds.

The View from Mirabella Fortress

The House of the Happy Man

This house in Omiš is called the House of the Happy Man because of the inscription above the door, which reads “GRATIAS AGO TIBI DNE QUIA FUI IN HOC MONDO”, meaning “I thank thee, Lord, that I have lived in this world”. It’s believed it was the house of Ivan Primojević, a lawyer and the ambassador of the Omiš comune in Venice.

Beer and Coffee Break in Omiš

Our group enjoying some refreshments at an outdoor cafe

Soparnik Tasting

After a coffee and beer break in town, we drive to the hills above Omiš to the tiny suburb of Gata. There we visited the home of Nikolina, who, along with her aunt, made a Croatian protected dish called soparnik. She started us off with three types of liqueur (plain, walnut, and sour cherry), served with some sweet fried dough balls (Fritule). Everywhere we went in Croatia, they called their various liqueurs “grappa”, but none of it tasted much like the Italian grappa. So, if you’re offered “grappa” in Croatia, don’t be discouraged – it’s much sweeter and delicious than what you may have tried in Italy!

Nikolina explaining the different types of liqueur

Next, Nikolina brought us into the room with the wood fired oven to show us the coals that will be used to cook the soparnik. It might not look like it from the photos, but the coals were quite hot.

Now it was time to make the soparnik – a savory dish made with chard, onion, and garlic. First, the dough is rolled very thin into two large rounds (one for the bottom and the other for the top).

A dough ball is flattened to a small disc, with plenty of sifted flour.

It’s fairly small now, but will soon take up the entire table.

Almost there! It will be slightly larger than the table when finished.

Once there are two rounds, slightly larger than the table, it’s time to add the filling of Swiss chard, onion, salt, and a little garlic (don’t worry, there will be more garlic added later). Spread the filling in an even layer on the bottom dough round, then top with the second dough round. Tear off any excess dough, then pinch the two sides together to form a seal.

Pinching the top and bottom dough together.

Once the wood has been burning for an hour, the coals are moved to the side and the soparnik is put on the hot stone (it’s launched from a paddle, just like a pizza). Once on the stone, the coals are put on top of the soparnik – yes, directly on top! The dough will begin to puff up, so you must poke a hole to let steam escape. It cooks very fast – no longer than 10 minutes. Once cooked, remove as many of the coals as you can with a brush.

Starting to cover the soparnik with coals.

Soparnik is now completely covered in coals.

Here’s a video of steam being pushed out of the soparnik from a hole poked in the side:

Steam escaping from the soparnik.

Once the soparnik has been removed from the oven, it needs to be cleaned of any remaining ash. The old way was to use a brush. Here’s an example:

Using a brush to clean ash off of the soparnik.

The modern, and much quicker, way to clean the soparnik is to use an air compressor:

Using an air compressor to clean the soparnik.

Next, the cooked soparnik is brushed with olive oil and plenty of garlic before being sliced into diamond shapes.

Adding minced garlic and olive oil to the top of the soparnik.

Time to eat! Nikolina brought out the most delicious and ripe home grown tomatoes with balsamic, grilled bell peppers (these were absolutely amazing – like eating candy), cheese, prosciutto, pickles, olives, marinated sardines, and wine. The soparnik was absolutely delicious! It’s very thin, with a nice crunch, and off-the-chart flavor.

We were too stuffed to finish everything, so Nikolina packed up the leftovers for us to take with us. They would provide excellent snacks (and breakfast!) back at the apartment.

Here are a few pics of Nikolina’s property, and the recipe for soparnik.

A car that seems to be enjoying the view.

The Church of St. George in Gata

On the way back from Gata, we stopped by a very small church along the road, not so much for the church, but for the view. It was a wonderful panoramic view of the Cetina river valley, Omiš, and the Adriatic Sea beyond.

Back In Split

Once back in split, we did some shopping and more exploring. We found an outdoor market, and a very cool bar.

Streets decorated for the holidays in Split.

A More Extensive Look at Diocletian’s Palace Cellars

While the main part of the cellars are open to the public, the rest of the extensive cellars, including many pieces that have been excavated, require a ticket. It was only a few Euro (I don’t recall exactly, but I think it was around 7 or 8 Euro), and well worth the price of admission!

Over a period of several hundred years, the cellars were filled with trash, construction remnants, and anything else that would fit down the numerous holes on the topside. Eventually, the cellars were completely filled and compacted. This turned out to be an archeologists treasure, as they had hundreds of years of layers that showed changing diets, differing construction materials, and much more valuable data. The cellars are mostly excavated, but there are a few areas that are still actively being dug out. At the other end of the ticketed portion of the cellars, there are some additional parts of the palace that were very interesting as well.

This area of the cellars is still being excavated

Close-up of a domed roof in the cellars.

More of the cellars that still needs to be excavated.

An ancient wooded beam found in the cellars.

Part of the ancient palace just after exiting the cellars.

The floor underneath the domed roof with a hole.

Game of Thrones in the Cellars

Here are a couple screen grabs from Game of Thrones down in the cellars of Diocletian’s Palace. Many of the streets above were used as stand-ins for the city of Maureen in the show. I’ve also read that parts of Kings Landing were also filmed here, specifically the Peristil, but I couldn’t find a screen grab (and haven’t done a re-watch yet).

Screen grab from Game of Thrones, showing the Cellars of Diocletian’s Palace.

Model of Diocletian’s Palace and View From Google Earth

Part of the ticketed portion of the Cellars was a 3D model of Diocletian’s Palace as it originally looked. Here’s also a top-down view of Split from Google Earth where you can clearly see the outline of the palace walls.