Ljubljana

Janez Bratovž of JB Restaurant in Ljubljana has been named Slovenian chef of the year by the French restaurant guide Gault&Millau and his restaurant was added to the ten that received the highest accolade, the four toques.

"If you've ever eaten well in a Slovenian restaurant, Janez Bratovž certainly contributed to that," the restaurant guide said.

The Finnish air carrier Finnair re-launched scheduled flights between Helsinki and Ljubljana after a three-year hiatus on 10 April. It will be flying between the two capitals four times a week.

Finnair will be flying an Airbus A319 to Helsinki on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Flights from Ljubljana will depart at 9:25am and arrive in Helsinki at 1.05pm local time.

Works by 32 artists, spanning from Slovenian post-war existentialist art to contemporary figurative art, have been put on display at the Cukrarna art venue in Ljubljana in a show that discusses human alienation.

The Ministry of Infrastructure has published an open call for airlines interested in operating flights to three international airports in Slovenia under a scheme that aims to improve air connectivity after a very slow post-Covid recovery.

Slovenia and Serbia will give an initiative to create a joint task force with Croatia, Austria and Italy to explore ways to speed up railway traffic between the countries. This was agreed as Infrastructure Ministers Alenka Bratušek hosted her Serbian counterpart Goran Vesić in Ljubljana on 3 April.

The MENT music festival, which focuses on new progressive discoveries in the region and beyond and is accompanied by an extensive networking and music industry conference, gets under way in Ljubljana on 29 March. Both segments of the three day-event will put the Baltic region in the foreground.

Ljubljana's celebrated rock club Orto Bar will host the 23rd iteration of the Orto Fest from 30 March to 29 April. The 2023 line-up features 20 Slovenian and 10 foreign bands, many of which are well-known crowd favourites.

Opening the festival will be the popular Slovenian rockers Big Foot Mama, who will soon be followed by Dan D, described by some as Slovenia's Pearl Jam.

The new season of Ljubljana's hugely popular outdoor food market known as Open Kitchen starts on 17 March, featuring more than 50 stalls serving both traditional Slovenian cuisine and foreign culinary delights.

For the 11th year running, visitors will be able to treat their taste buds in Pogačar Square next to Ljubljana's central market every Friday between 10am and 9pm.

Kolosej, Slovenia's first multiplex cinema, closed down on 14 March having been in operation for 22 years at Ljubljana's BTC shopping district. The new owner plans to refurbish it into a new entertainment centre.

"We would like o inform you that Kolosej is closing its doors on 14 March," the operator announced in a post to its website and social media.

Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport saw a significant increase in passenger transport in the first two months of the year and is optimistic about the summer season given that some carriers have announced they will return.