The tradition has it that the family Matjaž has been in the catering business since the second half of the 19th century, while the written evidence shows that in 1908 in Mozirje, Jože Matjaž (Filip’s great-grandfather) started an inn named “Pri Kočerju”. His daughters, Helena and Marija Matjaž, carried on with the tradition.
Helena used to work as a cook at the Court of Vienna, while her sister Marija, benefiting from a rich family tradition in catering, went to Croatia to the small town of Bakar near Rijeka where she opened an inn “Pri Slovenki” which had gained over 20 years of her management an excellent reputation.
Her son Mate started his apprenticeship in this very inn. Nowadays Mate is more known under his nickname Tomi. In 1978 he left Bakar together with his wife Darja and his mother Marija, and opened a restaurant Tomi in Portorož, which soon became well known.
The family tradition continued with Filip their youngest son, who decided to take over the family business and have his own restaurant – COB. The idea was to open a new restaurant with different concept, where he could be more connected with his guests and be able to offer them more than just food.
He called it Cooking Outside the Box (in short COB), where guests will discover Slovenian gastronomy in an unexpected and interactive way. A unique storytelling menu was presented.
