The Story of Our VIVA Beach Club

Some places are created with a business plan. VIVA Beach Club was created with a feeling.

From the very beginning, we knew we did not want to open “just another restaurant” on Ugljan, Croatia. The Island already has beautiful views, a crystal clear sea, charming villages, and sunsets that make you stop mid-sentence. But we wanted to create something more than a place where people come, eat, pay, and leave.

We wanted to create a place where people feel something. A place where dinner becomes a memory. Where guests who arrive as strangers leave feeling like they were part of something. Where a holiday in Croatia becomes less about checking into a villa and more about truly living, slowing down, connecting, and enjoying the moment. That is how VIVA Beach Club was born.

Behind the name "VIVA"

The name of our Beach Club, "VIVA", came to us very naturally. It means in translation "to be alive". And for us, that is exactly what this place represents.

The feeling of being alive is something we feel most deeply when we are by the sea. Maybe it is also because the project management team comes from Slovakia. We built this place with vision and structure, but as people, the sea has always meant something much more emotional to us. Since we were children, going to the seaside was never just a holiday. It was a moment we had waited for all year. The first smell of salt in the air, the sound of waves, the warmth on our skin, the feeling that time suddenly moves more slowly. For people who come from inland countries, the sea lives somewhere very deep in the heart. It is not something we see every day, so when we are finally close to it, we feel it with our whole body. It becomes all we have ever wanted: freedom, joy, family, childhood, summer, and peace all at once.

That is why VIVA felt like the only right name. Now try adding this feeling to the sound of tropical house music in the background, a table full of food and a glass of wine. Bare feet, warm air, soft lights, people laughing, and that rare moment when nobody is rushing anywhere. VIVA is not just a name. It is a reminder. To live.To taste.To meet.To stay a little longer.

Community

We are located on the island of Ugljan, a place that has its own quiet magic. It is close enough to the big city of Zadar, so you still feel connected, but it is far enough to allow you to breathe. There is something very honest about the island. The rhythm is slower here. The sea feels closer. The people still know each other. And we wanted VIVA to respect that, while also bringing something fresh and unexpected to the island.

Our idea was simple: to change the way people experience their stay on holiday. Many guests come to beautiful villas and resorts to rest. Some come to celebrate. Some come with families, some with friends, some with people they love but rarely have enough time for during the year. We have decided to allocate part of our VIVA Beach Club to serve as a restaurant. A place where food, music, design, and people come together. Not stiff. Not cold. Not overly formal. But elegant, warm, and full of life. Building a community was always at the heart of the concept. We wanted people to sit down and feel welcome. To hear live music, have a great time on sun loungers overlooking the infinity pool, and maybe stay for one more drink. To let the evening unfold naturally.

The heart and soul of VIVA is not only in the location or the intentional design. It is in the people. Our waiters and chefs bring years of experience, but also something much more important: care. We wanted a team that understands hospitality not as a performance, but as a feeling. The kind of service where you are looked after without being interrupted. Where the food is prepared with pride. Where every plate, every table, every detail matters. It was also very important for us to work with people from the island itself. We want VIVA to give opportunities to locals, to support the island, and to become part of the community, not something separate from it. At the same time, we also welcome people from abroad, because we believe hospitality can be international, inspiring, and full of exchange. We want VIVA to feel different for the team, too. A place where people can grow, be proud of what they create, and feel that they are part of a vision.

Behind the scenes of design

Most importantly, there is the space itself. The interior was designed by Studio E, who understood from the beginning that VIVA needed to feel exclusive, but never untouchable. Beautiful, but still warm. Designed, but not artificial. Every material was chosen with intention.

Wood, stone, soft lights, greenery, texture, shadows, earthy colours.

The space is filled with exclusive pieces, but nothing is there just to impress. Everything has a reason. Everything is part of the atmosphere. The greenery became a big part of the identity of VIVA. Monsteras, banana plants, palms, and lush natural elements soften the space and make it feel alive. They bring freshness into the stone and warmth into the wood. In the evening, when the lights turn golden and the plants cast shadows around the restaurant, the whole place starts to breathe in a completely different way.

And at the entrance, there is the majestic olive tree. For us, the olive tree became almost symbolic. It stands there quietly, but with strength. On Ugljan, olive trees are part of the land, the culture, and the rhythm of life. They survive wind, sun, salt, and time. They grow slowly, but deeply. And that felt very close to what we wanted VIVA to be. Not something temporary. Not something built only for one season.But something rooted.

The olive tree welcomes every guest before they even sit down. It is the first sign that this place has a heart. It reminds us that beauty does not have to be loud. That the best things take time. Those roots matter.

VIVA Beach Club is made of many things: food, music, design, sea air, stone, wood, light, plants, and most importantly, people. We left a piece of ourselves here. In every decision.In every corner.In every late-night conversation about how the space should feel. In every detail that maybe not everyone will notice, but hopefully everyone will feel. Because that is what VIVA is about. Not only eating well.Not only being somewhere beautiful.But feeling alive while you are there.

And if, even for one evening, we can make someone forget the time, put the phone down, enjoy the music, taste something beautiful, laugh a little louder, and feel connected to the people around them, then VIVA has done exactly what it was created for. For you.