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According to owner Vladimir Ocokoljic, Kafana is New York’s first Serbian restaurant. But MetroCard-carrying gourmands will recognize a few familiar dishes from the Bosnian joints scattered around town. The big difference, according to Ocokoljic: “We use pork.” Do they ever. Kafana’s menu is immersed in the stuff, from the rinds that garnish a mixed-meat meze platter to the bacon that wraps walnut-stuffed prunes. And then, of course, there’s cevapi, the region’s signature beef-pork-and-lamb sausages; a slew of vegetable salads; and variously stuffed pies, akin to layered bureks but, to Ocokoljic’s mind, better. Like any self-respecting kafana—a term meaning neighborhood restaurant—his serves food, coffee, and beer and wine. — Robin Raisfeld and Rob Patronite

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