According to a report by the Croatian gastronomy portal Kult Plave Kamenice, Batak—Croatia’s largest national restaurant chain—has decided to take a radical step regarding the pricing of its wine lists. Starting July 15, 2026, the price of all bottled wines offered in their restaurants will be set within a range of 19.90 to 24.90 euros, meaning that no single item in their selection will cost more than 24.90 euros.
This measure does not apply to inexpensive, unbranded table wines, but rather to wines from renowned, internationally recognized, and award-winning wineries: for example, the Decanter-award-winning Fakin Malvazija, the Agrolaguna Malvazija Festigia, and the Testament Pošip are offered for 19.90 euros. These are priced at just €3.80 per glass. Premium wines such as Korlati, the Laguna Castello—which has also won multiple Decanter gold medals—the prestigious Belje Sauvignon, as well as excellent German Rieslings and French Sauvignon Blancs from the Loire Valley, are available for €24.90. An elegant sparkling wine from the French house Bouvet Ladubay is listed at just €4.40 per glass.
According to Batak’s management, the out-of-control and often unjustifiably high restaurant wine prices over the past two years have specifically harmed the reputation of the domestic hospitality industry and deterred guests. The chain conducted months of negotiations with winemakers and distributors to ultimately create the country’s most competitive wine list. The analysis highlights that this strategy not only increases Batak’s own revenue and customer satisfaction but could also give a long-term boost to the entire Croatian wine industry by attracting new consumer segments.
Reading about the Batak restaurant chain’s bold and strategically brilliant decision, one can’t help but think: if only such an initiative could be implemented in Hungary as well! Unfortunately, when visiting restaurants here, it has become almost commonplace to experience the shock of opening the wine list only to find that even the most basic, “run-of-the-mill” wines are priced per glass at amounts that could buy an entire bottle in retail stores. And in many places, the prices of bottled wines are sky-high. This practice not only discourages Hungarian consumers from ordering quality wine to accompany their meals but also widens the gap between excellent local wineries and the general public who frequent everyday restaurants. If a major Hungarian restaurant chain or a collaborative group of restaurants were to implement a similar, fair pricing structure here —in direct agreement with the winemakers—it would not only make Hungarian restaurants more welcoming and accessible, but it would also finally restore people’s belief that cultured wine consumption is not a luxury reserved for the few, but a natural part of a quality gastronomic experience.
