Romanian food never gets awards in the glossy international press focused on gastronomy. At times even tourist pamphlets make statements about Romanian restaurants and Romanian menus; these statements look like excuses in advance and they do not promote Romanian food and cooking tradition.
It is not fair and it is an image overseeing the fact that the financial problems of Romania have made going to restaurants something you can only do on special events or if you are rich.
Even Romanian restaurant owners themselves complain. One of them said to the newspaper Bucharest Herald that ” Romanians do not know how to go to restaurants!”
Well, we could not care less, and I am sure the natives do not worry either about the atmosphere in expensive Bucharest restaurants. These restaurants survive on foreigners who send the bill to the firm back home and Romanian mafiots who do not count the numbers on the bill.
Earning a minimal Romanian salary makes going to a restaurant for a complete meal almost out of the reach. If your bill consumes your monthly salary, would you?
So Romanian public restaurants are a mixture of a few very expensive ones and plenty of small cafes, bars and ”terraces” that may range from poor to surprisingly cheap and tasty.
So if we go for this only, Romania is not actually a diner paradise – I mean compared with countries where eating out is common to the middle class.
However, if you are invited home to someone you will find the most tasty and generous dishes made and served with a love and care that only Romanians can produce.
The ”bunica” or grandma have spent hours in finding the right ingredients at the ”piața” or at the local store and spent similar long hours in front of the stove or ”aragaz” to make it all perfect.
When I have my ”Ciorba de perisoare” with the best beer in Europe – the Romanian ”Ursus” – there is no other place to be than Romania. The country that has her best restaurants at home.
So, the ultimate Romanian restaurant is ACASA – at home.
Source: Torgeir, Destinasjon Romania
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