The Story of Hiša Aleš

Heavenly good, succulent, slightly smoke-dried, homemade Carniolan sausages, carefully put in oil by Aleš’s grandmother Pepca herself, that have served as a meal to all those dusty horse and cart drivers and tired travelers that came from all around, are now the only memory that remains of those times, when there in the yard stood a couple of old bushy apple trees and here, where you are sitting now, stood a thick forest. Until recently there was a large wooden umbrella, built by the master of the house and a constructionist Filip Aleš, taking care there was some cool shade in the summers. In time the umbrella became somewhat of a house mascot. If a local had to give directions to a traveler, he would only say,” There, the house with the large wooden umbrella outside….”. Not long ago the umbrella lost its strength, gave in the hands of time and was destroyed by the force of blowing wind. Now the guests can sit and relax under big canvas parasol, cooled by the nearby forest, fresh meadows of Sorško polje and by the Sava River, which you can still hear humming, although it has already taken over a big part of Zarica canyon and has started to form a lake.

The Aleš family has managed to make a lot in the past couple of decades. To think that in the sixties, when the innkeeper Lojzka Aleš started her own business and took over the management of the kitchen, the village inn had only four or five tables and a small bar. Later the inn was expanded and designed by sophisticated Slovenian architects with special emphasis on interior design. Today the inn is a well renowned, prestige and respected inn with accommodations, a modern kitchen and a whole gallery of sophisticated paintings by Slovenian painters. A real cultural temple!

In the years when Lojzka started with the innkeeping the kitchen became famous in all Zasava and for miles around for its succulent stuffed veal breasts, black puddings with a lot of sweet smelling mint, for the flat cake with cracklings originating from her home, Poljanska valley, and for many others delicacies. Some of the dishes are still in the standard “repertoire” of the inn.

Aleš’s kitchen has been, now under the watchful eye of the third generation, preparing the most exquisite dishes for gourmets and those with a sweet tooth. Regular Italian guests that have, years ago, stayed at Aleš’s for a whole decade, have unwillingly left a touch of Mediterranean and Tuscan cuisine in the inns kitchen, which has made it even more noble. Today the day offer includes all kind of fish, meat, delicate desserts and much more. Have you already tried their Mediterranean sea bass fillet, the house tartar steak or the royal braciola? No? Then do not go too far, because trying this is a must.