Marija Tarlać on Langouste’s cuisine as conceptual art

When we speak of a “sensory experience,” few activities engage the senses as fully as the experience of fine gastronomy. A restaurant that stimulates all five senses through a carefully designed aesthetic ambience, music and the murmur of other guests’ conversations, and of course thoughtfully composed flavors, textures, and aromas, is located in the epicenter of urban Belgrade, at the prestigious confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers. We have no doubt that Langouste immediately came to mind, the renowned Michelin starred fine dining restaurant where cuisine is experienced as art and dinner as a carefully directed, multisensory performance.

As an essential destination for both locals and tourists in search of an unforgettable gastronomic experience, Langouste has not escaped the refined taste of Marija Tarlać, who, through the Mastercard priceless.com platform, elevated her fine dining experience at the Belgrade restaurant to an entirely new level.

How? At the very entrance to the restaurant, she was welcomed by Marko Đerić, executive chef and member of JRE, Jeunes Restaurateurs, who prepared a five course menu of innovative dishes for guests of the Mastercard priceless experience. “What a way to start the day. Wow,” Marija shares her impressions after the first bites, paired with a specially selected glass of local wine, as she prepares to step into Chef Marko’s kitchen. “Our next snack is a celeriac tartlet with smoked trout tartare from Prijepolje, crème fraîche, broccoli, and dill, topped with a bit of trout caviar,” he describes the next dish, which resembles a perfectly shaped isler cookie.

“What excites you most about cooking?” Marija asks curiously as she observes him in his most natural environment, the kitchen. “Seasonality and locality. That is, ingredients that are in season, just as we served them in the snacks, and later throughout the entire menu,” Chef Marko replies, describing his menu philosophy in three words: honesty, toward the ingredient and technique, locality, and seasonality.

With an emphasis on fresh, wholesome, and precisely selected ingredients, each bite goes beyond mere nourishment. Instead, Marko guides the guest into a world of complex flavors and textures, led by a clear gastronomic philosophy that encourages curiosity and attentiveness.

Marija returns to her table, surrounded by the restaurant’s elegant yet understated ambience, which further enhances the experience of the next course. “This is goose liver from Banat, locally produced,” Chef Marko explains, as Marija knowingly confirms, “You can really taste that the geese are from Banat. It’s phenomenal.” For many fine dining enthusiasts like Marija, the greatest allure lies in the element of surprise, in a chef’s ability to transform familiar ingredients into something almost unrecognizable yet extraordinarily delicious.

“Here we have a combination of forest and sea,” the chef continues with a menu that seduces. “This is Adriatic scampi, grilled on a yakitori grill, with three different interpretations of porcini mushrooms. We have a ragout, a carpaccio, and grilled porcini with dashi foam.” It is precisely here that Langouste enters the realm of avant garde gastronomy, where Chef Marko acts like a conceptual artist. The table becomes a stage, the plate a canvas, and the meal an intellectual and sensory performance designed to provoke, inspire, and be remembered. “I celebrated my first wedding anniversary here, my fortieth birthday,” Marija recalls as she tastes artisanal wine, carefully paired with each course on the menu.

Alongside this artistic ambition, another strong current of contemporary haute cuisine is present at Langouste, a deep respect for the ingredient itself. The focus on origin, seasonality, and product quality shows that luxury does not necessarily lie in complexity, but in flawless execution. In these moments, culinary mastery is reflected in restraint, in the ability to elevate simple elements to excellence, allowing their natural value to speak for itself.

An experience to remember, available to Mastercard cardholders

Have you ever wondered why some dinners remain etched in memory while others pass without a trace? The secret often lies in the perfect pairing of wine and food. When the right wine is matched with the right dish, flavors become more intense, and every note, whether in the food or the wine, is expressed in an entirely new way. At Langouste, you can experience a unique story told through the narrative of Chef Marko Đerić across five innovative dishes, enriched with subtle notes of seasonal ingredients and carefully paired with Serbian wines. This exclusive gastronomic experience is available to Mastercard cardholders on the priceless.com platform.

Creative direction: Milena Kitić
Video and photography: Franjo Matković
Producer: Teona Milićević
Location: Langouste

This article was created in collaboration with Mastercard.