Gradska Kavana Arsenal

Gradska Kavana, the city café, has been a meeting place for Dubrovnik since 1895. It stands at Pred Dvorom 1, next to Luža Square and the Rector's Palace, in the heart of the Old Town, and its terrace is one of the classic places to sit with a coffee and watch the square at the end of Stradun. The building takes its name from the Arsenal, the old shipyard of the Republic, which occupied this part of the city from at least the 13th century and where the city's galleys were built and repaired.

The café is now part of the Nautika Collection, the group behind the Nautika and Panorama restaurants. The front terrace works as a classic European city café, for a morning coffee or a glass of wine in the afternoon. Inside, the space extends into a restaurant with a second terrace on its eastern side that overlooks the old harbour, with St John's Fortress to the right and the Lazareti complex across the water to the left. The restaurant menu focuses on Mediterranean cooking with local ingredients, including fish specialities, paired with a good selection of wines.

It suits almost anyone: solo travellers wanting a coffee break between sights, couples looking for a harbour-view dinner, and families who need somewhere central to regroup. Prices reflect the prime location, so expect to pay more than in cafés outside the walls, but the setting is hard to beat.

According to its website, the café is open every day from 08:00 to 23:00. It is a good choice for breakfast before the walls open their gates to the main crowds, for an afternoon break when the heat is at its strongest, or for an evening drink as the harbour lights come on. For dinner on the harbour terrace in summer, booking is sensible.

Allow 30 minutes for a coffee or one and a half hours for a meal. The Rector's Palace, Sponza Palace and the Church of St Blaise are all a few steps away, and the gate to the old harbour is next door, so it is easy to combine a visit with a boat trip to Lokrum.