Few restaurants on Vis are as closely connected to the island’s maritime history as Jastožera. Sitting directly above the sea on the Komiža waterfront, the restaurant occupies a historic lobster holding facility built at a time when fishing and seafood trade were central to life in the town.

The story began in 1883, when plans were made for a facility where live lobsters could be kept in seawater before being transported to markets across Europe. Completed in 1902 by the local Marinković-Mestrežane family, Jastožera could hold up to 15 tonnes of live lobster. From Komiža, lobsters were packed into wooden boxes with straw and sent on journeys lasting several days to cities including Vienna, Budapest and Paris.

The building was completely renovated in 2015, but its connection with the sea remains at the heart of the restaurant. Dining here means sitting within a place that was once part of Komiža’s working fishing industry, with the water and harbour quite literally beneath you.