Zagreb, Croatia's picturesque capital, is famous for its cafés. On nearly every block tables spill out onto the sidewalk, or even the street, filled with well-dressed locals sipping coffees and cocktails.
Try to find an actual restaurant, however, and you could walk kilometres.
Many Croatians reflexively use this as a metaphor for their economy. The country's wealth of low-hanging economic fruit - a majestic coastline and large inward flows of remittances - masks a general lack of nourishment, and tempts the public and policymakers to put off or water down much-needed reforms. Although well ahead of the war-ravaged former Yugoslav republics to the east, Croatia trails star EU candidate Slovenia and other advanced transition countries, and runs the danger of complacently muddling through another decade.
| Zagreb: a café society, but good restaurants are hard to find |
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The prevailing economic and political climate in the small republic of roughly 4.5