Zagreb Burger Festival: eleven days of grills on Tuđmanac

For eleven days most Septembers, wooden burger stands fill Trg dr. Franje Tuđmana in Zagreb. Locals call the square Tuđmanac. Chefs and grill crews from Zagreb, Istria and Dalmatia cook smash burgers, game burgers and experimental creations from late morning until midnight. Entry to the square is free, and you pay at each stand. Visitors vote for their favourite burger with QR codes, and the festival names the winners on one of the last evenings.

The first Zagreb Burger Festival ran on Strossmayer Square from 15 to 25 September 2016, Croatia Week reported. The Zagreb Tourist Board called the 2017 edition the second, with ten burger chefs from Zagreb, Split, Dubrovnik, Pula and Fažana. About 130,000 people came that year, the tourist board wrote. The festival stayed on Strossmayer Square until 2020. In 2021 it moved to Trg dr. Franje Tuđmana, after the city banned food festivals from the Lenuci Horseshoe, Time Out reported. The 2025 edition was the tenth, and 2026 brought the eleventh.

The line-up has changed shape over the years. In 2019 the tourist board announced about twenty burger masters from Zagreb, Rijeka, Osijek and Ljubljana. In 2020 the COVID-19 rules cut the festival to 14 food stands and 3 food trucks, down from 27 the year before, Croatia Week reported. In 2025 and 2026 there were 16 stands on Tuđmanac. Most were burger kitchens, with sweets and drinks between them.

Dates of past editions

These dates come from the Zagreb Tourist Board and the press:

• 2016: 15 to 25 September on Strossmayer Square, the first edition.
• 2018: 13 to 23 September on Strossmayer Square, with ten burger makers from Zagreb, Split, Dubrovnik, Fažana and Pula.
• 2019: 12 to 22 September on Strossmayer Square, with free entry.
• 2020: 2 to 13 September on Strossmayer Square, the fifth edition.
• 2021: 10 to 19 September, the sixth edition and the first on Trg dr. Franje Tuđmana.
• 2023: 7 to 17 September on Tuđmanac, with 20 burger spots in small cabins, according to Time Out.
• 2024: 10 to 20 October, the ninth edition and the only one in October so far.
• 2025: 4 to 14 September on Tuđmanac, the tenth edition, with 16 stands.
• 2026: 12 to 22 September on Tuđmanac, moved by two days because of the weather forecast.

How a visit works

The festival fills a public park, and you walk in from any side. Each stand sets its own menu and prices, and you pay where you order. In 2025 and 2026 the stands opened at noon on weekdays and at 11:00 at weekends. In 2025 they closed at midnight. Beside the burgers there are desserts, milkshakes, mini doughnuts, cocktails, wine and beer.

Visitors vote with QR codes printed on the sides of the stands and on receipts. In 2024 only visitors voted, and the awards went out on the final evening. In 2025 the vote covered burgers, desserts, milkshakes and cocktails, Index reported. In 2026 a jury of three chefs also judged the burgers in blind tastings, so the festival named two winners.

Programme and the names behind the grills

A side programme runs every day. Past editions had evening DJ sets, concerts, quizzes, workshops, an open-air cinema and a children's zone. Volim Ljuto ran a chilli-eating contest in 2021 and a hot-sauce duel in 2025. In 2025 the children's zone had inflatables, trampolines and a pool with pedal cars.

The burger line-up changes every year, and some names return. Chef Mate Janković with Institut za burgere and chef Ivan Pažanin with Chef's Burger cooked at the festival in 2021, 2024, 2025 and 2026. Grof Lovski serves burgers made from its own Croatian game meat. New stands come from the coast and from abroad. In 2026 Farabuto from Labin brought Žgvacet, a burger with chicken stew, mature cow's cheese and caramelised onion.

Getting to Tuđmanac

Trg dr. Franje Tuđmana lies on Ilica, west of the city centre, beside the Western Station (Zapadni kolodvor). Trams along Ilica stop at the square, and the walk from Ban Jelačić Square follows the same street. Suburban trains from the west stop at the Western Station. Our airport transfer guide lists the buses and taxis from Franjo Tuđman Airport into the city.

Tips for the visit

• Weather: in 2026 the organisers moved the whole festival by two days because of the forecast. Date changes appear first on the festival's Facebook and Instagram pages.
• Vote: scan the QR code on the stand or on your receipt to vote for the public award.
• Share: with more than 50 burgers on the 2025 and 2026 menus, a group can order several and split them.
• Final days: the winners are named near the end. In 2025 the announcement came at 18:00 on closing day, in 2026 on the Sunday two days before it.
• Next stop: the square sits at the western edge of the Lower Town. Our guide to what to see in Zagreb starts a few tram stops east.

Zagreb Burger Festival 2027

As of 20 October 2026, the organisers have published no date for 2027. Recent editions ran for ten or eleven days, mostly in September:

• 2023: 7 to 17 September.
• 2024: 10 to 20 October.
• 2025: 4 to 14 September.
• 2026: 12 to 22 September, first announced for 10 to 20 September.

In recent years the date went public in late August or early September, through the organisers and the press. The Zagreb Tourist Board lists the festival on infozagreb.hr. Our Croatia festival calendar for 2027 adds the date once it is announced.

Zagreb Burger Festival 2026 in review

The eleventh edition was announced for 10 to 20 September 2026. On 9 September the organisers postponed the opening because of an unfavourable forecast, Croatia Week reported. The festival opened on Saturday 12 September at 11:00 and ran until Tuesday 22 September. The two lost days were added at the end.

Before the festival the organisers announced 17 vendors and 56 burgers. In the end 16 stands took part, 13 of them burger kitchens, and they served more than 50 burgers, Hello Magazin reported. A quiz on the square drew more than 400 players. The announced programme also had a chilli-eating contest, arm wrestling and a BBQ masterclass.

On Sunday 20 September the festival named its winners. Chefs Matija Bogdan, Marko Palfi and Mario Mihelj judged in blind tastings. The jury's top three:

• First: Slaninator by Smashville, the stand of Enes Hrnjić and Juraj Klepić.
• Second: Burn Baby Burn 2.0 by Street Food by Tom Gretić.
• Third: Bacon Jam by Point 99 Burgers & More.

The public vote ran over the festival days. Chubby Chuck's won it with the Butter Jam Smash, its second public win in a row. Farabuto's Žgvacet came second and Point 99's Bacon Jam third. Bacon Jam was the only burger in both top threes.

More of Zagreb

Between meals, our Zagreb weekend itinerary links cafés, museums and parks over two days. On a rainy day the museum route stays in the Upper Town. Hotels, transport and the city overview are on the Zagreb city page.