The best restaurants Romania

A good traditional restaurant in Târgu Jiu, with rustic wooden tables, pretty decor featuring local crafts, waitresses in traditional costumes, folk music... In short, the place to enjoy Romanian specialties in a warm atmosphere. On the menu: sarmale, soups, papanași, mămăligă, etc. The place, which is always full, is a little to the south of the pedestrian plateau. It also features a pleasant terrace overlooking a lovely little green courtyard. Waiting can take a while.

Romania on the walls and on the plate. Restaurant Roata ("wheel" in French) is made up of several charming little rooms, authentically decorated, with white tablecloths embroidered with red thread drawing traditional motifs, and dark wooden furniture. In terms of cuisine, we're treated to a wide range of Transylvanian specialties: varză a la Cluj, papanași, grilled meats, mămăligă, tocăniță, chicken soup with semolina dumplings, sarmale... A truly typical restaurant, at prices that remain affordable.

Located in the city center, just a stone's throw from the former princely residence, this restaurant serves traditional Romanian specialties and Italian-inspired dishes: ciorbă, pork belly with mămăligă, beef fillet with gorgonzola sauce, cherry tomatoes and basil, or salmon medallion in a crust. The extensive menu also features pizzas, as well as a wide selection of beers, wines and drinks of all kinds. The dishes are tasty and hearty. As for the setting, it's rather pleasant, all wood panelling.

Whether you're staying in Cheia or on your way to Bucharest or Transylvania, don't hesitate to stop off at the "Baril de joie". It's certainly one of Cheia's best addresses. In this chalet-style restaurant, everything is simple and warm, from the setting to the service. The menu consists mainly of well-executed Romanian specialties: ciorbă de burtă, bulz, grilled trout and goulash are all on the menu. The establishment also offers a number of charming upstairs rooms.

Hotel Bucegi's restaurant, located in the middle of the central boulevard, is well-priced for good local cuisine and large portions. Starters(iahnie, zacuscă, salată de vinete, salată de icre...), grills, trout and game rub shoulders with pizzas and other less traditional dishes. The interior has recently been modernized: very contemporary, it mixes beautiful woodwork and light tones, which bring a welcome luminosity. The large terrace is very pleasant in summer. A place with a certain popularity.

Authentic Romanian atmosphere guaranteed! The decor is original, surprising and very colorful, with handicrafts and beautiful wooden furniture from another era. The backs of the chairs are carved to depict characters from Romanian folklore, making up an incredible gallery: ancient ritual masks, peasants, voïvodes or famous artists... The typical cuisine is excellent: soups, sausages, pork loin, tigaie, sarmale, corn-crusted trout, stews, grills... Prices are also very reasonable.

Part of the Dragului Hotel, the restaurant of the same name serves excellent, ambitious and mouth-watering international cuisine, which also draws on Romanian traditions. Alongside pizzas, pastas, bruschettas and other dishes, you'll find the unmissable grilled meats, șnițel, ciorbe... not forgetting the chef's specialty: grilled pork chops with a mushroom, bacon and onion ring sauce. The setting is very distinguished, both contemporary and retro. Unquestionably one of the best restaurants in town.

It's a restaurant where locals like to go for special occasions. Located just south of the center, it specializes in fish and seafood. You'll enjoy all kinds of refined dishes with iodized and Mediterranean flavors, in carefully presented plates. You'll also find a number of meat and vegetarian dishes. The setting is resolutely designer, bright and uncluttered. When the weather's fine, you'll be able to enjoy a magnificent green terrace, complete with a lovely pool.

Rogojini took up residence on the waterfront over twenty years ago. The all-wooden dining room, with its large bay windows, blue benches and fishing nets, is a touch kitsch, but very welcoming. The menu features pizzas, meat dishes and an interesting selection of fish, including one of the Black Sea specialties: rapane, a mollusc that arrived in the 1930s from the Sea of Japan via the hulls of merchant ships. Prices are fair and service pleasant.

As the name suggests, this restaurant mainly serves meats of all kinds (Angus beef, burgers, etc.), although the menu also includes fish. It's simple and well done. When it comes to wine, you'll be spoilt for choice from the 150 or so references, mainly Romanian. The homemade iced tea is delicious. The vast dining room is furnished in Scandinavian style, with a mix of white, wood and acidic touches. Its large windows overlook the beach. This is one of the few year-round establishments in Vama Veche.

An excellent address, opened in 2015 by Olympic canoeing champion Ivan Patzaichin, a native of the delta. Very committed to the defence of his terroir, he has designed a restaurant that is very much in his element. We serve only fish, caught locally and cooked in a typical way: smoked mackerel, borș from the fisherman, sturgeon storceag, Black Sea mussels... The saramură of carp is a delight! The very pleasant setting is also in local colours, all in white and light blue. The large bays overlook the promenade along the Danube.

A breathtaking location in the heart of the forest, behind the boutique-hotel Ioana. The decor, all wood, is sophisticated and unusual, amidst huts and rabbits! The menu is varied and the dishes are excellent, original and refined, blending the flavors of the world. Some are affordable, but overall prices are high, especially for specialties such as Angus or Kobe beef. The sommelier offers excellent advice and will help you discover local wines. An address for gourmets.

This pleasant restaurant is located about 3 km north of the center, in a quiet, leafy area. You can get there quickly by cab if you don't have a car, or you can have it delivered. The popular, rustic atmosphere is well worth a visit, especially in the evening. The traditional Transylvanian cuisine is good and inexpensive. House specialties include mutton pastrama, fried trout, baked pork chops with sweet sauce... There are also a number of reasonably priced rooms.

Excellent restaurant located in a quiet street in the city. The atmosphere is classic and elegant and refined dishes. There is also a very nice terrace.

Nestled among the trees, this "den of outlaws" is considered by some to be one of Romania's finest restaurants. For its astonishing decor, first of all: rustic, busy and warm. But also for the cuisine, of course: you'll taste the best of Romanian specialties (ciorbas of all kinds, homemade bread, numerous meat dishes...). Ask the staff to show you around the basement pantry: it's overflowing with pickled fruit and vegetables, meats and other dried victuals, and so on.

The best restaurant in town. "La vieille cave" is located at the rear of the cultural center, occupying its half-basement. The decor is like the cuisine: traditional and very successful. You first enter the peasant room, furnished with rustic woodwork and decorated with handicrafts (ceramics, carpets, farming tools...). The medieval room, meanwhile, recalls the days of the craftsmen's guilds. The terrace overlooking the park is very pleasant. Folk music performs here regularly, adding to the authentic atmosphere.

You enter through a slightly hidden door in the vibrant and trendy Agora Floreasca. Once you've climbed the few steps to the first floor, you'll discover a huge designer loft in which designer Alexandru Popescu has collected pieces from his many travels (wooden sculptures, ropes on the ceiling, tapestries...). This multicultural inspiration is reflected in a highly creative menu that blends flavors from the four corners of the globe. The cocktails are among the best in town. A delightful experience for the eyes and the taste buds.

The Aurilor Passage that leads from Piața Aurarilor to Piața Mică is perhaps Sibiu's prettiest, and the discreet pizzeria at the top of it, surely one of the city's best. For less than €8, you can enjoy an excellent (and hearty) pizza with thin, crispy dough. The ingredients are top quality and you can feel it. You'll have the choice of sitting in the cosy little room downstairs or on the terrace overlooking Piața Mică. Service is also very pleasant.

This very small restaurant of about twenty covers impresses with its creative cuisine of French influence: beef filet mignon with truffle sauce, terrine of foie gras with port and armagnac, monkfish with spinach, lemon meringue tart... Excellent wines can also be served. The plates are neat, very well presented, and the service is impeccable. The sophisticated decor, in a cellar all in bleached dry stone, with candles, immaculate tablecloths and touches of red, is perfect for a romantic dinner.

Tucked away in a small passageway leading down to the lower town, this wine cellar-restaurant is excellent. We love the subdued atmosphere under the red brick vaults. Ideal in the evening, it serves exquisite Transylvanian food: sarmale, Saxon beef stew, smoked knuckle of pork with cabbage... The menu is short but changes every week. The wine selection is equally outstanding. The service is professional and smiling, and the prices affordable. In fine weather, a small terrace is set out on the cobblestones.

This Hungarian restaurant, named after a famous café in Budapest, serves excellent Magyar and Transylvanian specialities in a cosy, vintage and trendy atmosphere. The service is perfect, the Hungarian, Romanian or international wine list is very extensive, not to mention the cuisine, very successful. Of course, you can eat the famous goulash there. But the menu, which is quite tight, offers other meat and fish specialities, as well as a good choice of vegetarian dishes. One of the best restaurants in town.

In the midst of the tourist traps and pretentious, often short-lived restaurants in the old town, it's not easy to make the right choice, but if you're looking for an authentic restaurant at very affordable prices, La Mahala is a sure bet. This bodega (which has nothing Spanish about it) is a little hidden away, but once you've passed the porch, you'll feel right at home. The menu features Romanian dishes (soups, meats, fish and salads) served in a simple, popular atmosphere to the sound of old Bucharest romances.

If the taco were Romanian, it would have been born in this restaurant. Here, tacos come in all shapes and sizes, from the most classic to the most inventive, such as the shrimp and mango taco. The chef prepares the patties from his own corn before baking them in a traditional Mexican oven. Apart from the chillies, which come from Mexico, the recipes are based mainly on local produce, which is why the menu varies according to the season. A very good address, but beware, the restaurant doesn't take reservations and is often full!

It's the city's chic restaurant, located in the hotel of the same name, in a stunning brick building close to the main square. In a sophisticated setting, you'll enjoy innovative Transylvanian and international cuisine, at prices that remain reasonable. You'll also find a fine selection of wines. Tastings are organized on a regular basis. On some evenings, you can dine while listening to live Armenian music. The establishment also boasts a pleasant courtyard at the rear.

Kombinat is a Soviet-era term used to designate an industrial complex: this is what the decor of this place reminds us of, with a few sections of red brick wall and an exposed metal structure. This restaurant, a little out of the center and popular with locals, offers highly creative contemporary Romanian cuisine. Ingredients are mainly sourced from local and organic producers, so the menu is seasonal. If you're not too hungry, you can enjoy a local sausage hot dog on a bed of leeks.

An excellent address, in the heart of Pitești. Opened in 2016, this establishment offers a contemporary setting with a meticulous design. You can just have a drink here, but it would be a shame to miss its extra cuisine: original, high-quality pizzas and pastas, paella, calamari... Try the matured Angus beef, it's simply delicious. The menu also offers a fine selection of wines and fresh fruit juices. Concerts (folk, piano bar, covers, DJ...) are regularly organized in the evenings. What's more, the staff are very friendly.

You feel at home in this restaurant, which occupies three rooms in a row, in a beautiful old house 10 minutes walk from the city centre. Homemade offers a relaxing and comforting setting, with its sofas, mismatched family furniture, multiple lights and soft jazzy music in the background. We eat an original and unpretentious cuisine: burgers, soups, duck legs and mashed potatoes, mushroom risotto, cream puffs... Vegetarians will also find interesting proposals.

Not far from the center, in a beautiful old building, this restaurant-pizzeria combines good atmosphere and good food. It's particularly renowned for its meats, which are grilled over a wood fire, making them particularly tasty. Also on the menu: salads, pastas, soups, fish, tapas... and around twenty pizzas, also cooked over a wood fire. The wine list gives pride of place to Romanian vintages. The setting is pleasant, with a contemporary style punctuated by elegant retro touches: wood panelling on the walls, fireplace and period stove... A play area is dedicated to children.

A young and trendy restaurant, right next to the theater, where prices are quite reasonable. The bright, Scandinavian-style decor makes for a pleasant, relaxed setting. A word of advice: try the burgers! It's the house specialty. Also on the menu are meat specialties, mainly chicken but also pork and beef, cooked Mexican-style, Italian-style or with curry sauce. For non-meat lovers, there are also fish dishes, pastas, pizzas and salads.

This fine restaurant is part of a complex on the southern edge of town, which also includes a hotel, nightclub and swimming pool. The medieval decor is rather elegant, with exposed beams, chandeliers, carved wooden chairs and white tablecloths. International and Romanian cuisine is served here: burgers, pizzas, pastas, Angus beef, ciorbă de burtă, sarmale, trout en croûte... The choice is varied! The products, often local, are prepared using traditional methods: smoking, slow-cooking or charcoal-burning..

A little outside the village, this large inn is a good place to stop off for a meal or an overnight stay. This recently-built inn, with its original architecture inspired by that of the Bârsana monastery, is run by a local farming family. Here, you can dine in a traditional setting, enjoying local specialities concocted from farm produce. The sausages, for example, are delicious. The bread is homemade, and the trout comes from the pond at the back. Upstairs are 8 bright, modern bedrooms.

One of the city's most popular nightlife venues. Located in a magnificent historic building on the central square, the Millenium complex includes a café with a beautiful terrace, a patisserie, a pub-club and a cosy cellar restaurant. The extensive menu offers a wide choice of dishes and prices: pizzas, sandwiches, pastas, soups, fish, meats, Romanian and Hungarian stews, as well as less common specialties such as turkey with apples or venison with mushrooms. Egg-based breakfasts are also served.

Quite simply, it's the best bakery in town, located on the main boulevard running through the center of town. The proof: it's always busy! At any time of day, you can indulge in a delicious cake, viennoiserie, tiramisù, cookies and all kinds of delicacies, accompanied by a speciality coffee, homemade lemonade or natural fruit juice. You can even have lunch here, with a wide variety of excellent sandwiches and salads to choose from.

Of course, this restaurant dedicated to the most famous inhabitant of Sighişoara is a little kitsch and touristic, but the location is ideal and the cuisine is quite honest. You can enjoy a Dracula stew, a Dracula dinner (very meaty) or more classic Romanian specialities (sarmale, mici, gulaș....). For 2 €, you can go up to visit the room where Vlad Țepeș was supposed to be born. You will find an uninteresting staging. However, don't miss the 15th century fresco depicting Vlad Dracul, Țepeș's father.

Here's a place for a good breakfast, brunch or a quick bite to eat. Nestled in a quiet street in the old town, "Au bureau" is a bistro dedicated to the first meal of the day! The food is homemade, using fresh produce, and the flavors are just right. You'll find a wide choice of small dishes, with multiple influences: sandwiches, salads, eggs, bruschettas, sweet or savory croissants, pancakes, granola... The place has a lovely atmosphere and the service is impeccable. Pleasant terrace on the cobblestones.

This top-quality gourmet restaurant is located within the hotel of the same name, slightly set back from the city center. Its contemporary, minimalist decor and large bay windows overlooking the park create an elegant, bright atmosphere, perfect for enjoying the dishes: duck breast with cranberry sauce, wild boar goulash, Asian-style roast quail, free-range lamb shank... The presentation of the plates is extremely meticulous. Prices may be a little high, but the culinary experience is well worth it.

Fancy a good pasta dish after climbing the endless stairs of the citadel? Go down a few steps and you'll arrive in a little corner of Italy. This Romanian couple opened this restaurant after twenty years in Florence, where Alexandru, the husband, worked as a chef. He took the opportunity to bring with him the secrets of Italian cuisine and create a simple but tasty menu. In addition to traditional pasta dishes, the menu includes grilled meats, fish and a wide selection of Italian wines.

At the foot of the upper town, this pleasant café-restaurant offers coffee specialities, beers, teas, apple juices and other natural syrups. You can eat there at any time of the day: good breakfasts in the morning and, the rest of the time, omelettes, sushi and a few other dishes, according to the chef's inspiration. The products are local, for many. The large room is decorated with green plants, white lanterns of all shapes, a grand piano and a large wooden counter designed with vegetables. Beautiful terrace on the cobblestones.

A pocket-sized, quality restaurant, perfect for snacks, brunches or quick lunches. The menu is reduced: soups, gourmet bread, fried eggs, a salad and two desserts. Vegetarians and vegans will benefit from it. The dishes are prepared with local products and the small restaurant also offers a good selection of homemade beers and Romanian wines, as well as homemade lemonades. The setting is pleasant, cosy and vintage: enough to make you want to hang out a little longer.