The dining experience features Croatian-style cooking techniques that include grilling seafood over mesquite- and charcoal-broilers for varying flavor profiles and uniform broiling.

[2][3] The original restaurant opened in 1849 as a coffee stand on Clay Street in San Francisco, California.

[4][5] It was founded by Nikola Budrovich, Frano Kosta, and Antonio Gasparich, three immigrants from Croatia, who launched their restaurant as "Coffee Stand".

[3] In 1887, their restaurant was purchased by and renamed after John Tadich, a Croatian hailing from Stari Grad on the Island of Hvar.

[6] Herb Caen, longtime columnist of the San Francisco Chronicle, was a fan of Tadich's version of the Hangtown Fry, a Gold Rush era combination of scrambled eggs, bacon and oysters.

[6] In The New York Times, Sadie Stein wrote in 2013 that the restaurant is "Festive without being stuffy, it offers a taste of the San Francisco of yore while embracing the present day.

[5][3] The restaurant grills seafood over mesquite broilers and charcoal,[3] a common practice throughout Dalmatia and the island cities of Croatia.