What's the typical food in Romania?
I lived in Romania for two years and I can say that Romania reminds me the north of Spain. Those montains, those trees... and they also eat a lot of meat and cheese; many kinds of cheese.
In Romania you can eat a lot, and It is still cheaper than in Spain.
Some specialities are:
-"Mămăliguţă cu brânză şi smântână", that is, polenta with cheese and cream.
-"Ciorbe de burta", "Ciorbe de fasole", that is tripe sour soup and beans soup (with bacon).
- "Chioftele", that is meatballs.
- "mititei" or also called "mici"; Romanian sausages, served with bread and sauce. A kind of hot dog.
-"Sãrmãlute în foi de varzã", that is mixed minced meat rolled in cabbage.
-"Papanas"; homemade doughnuts with sweet cheese, sour cream and jam.
- "Clatite cu...", crepes filled with...
Normally you order meat and you have to order also: "GARNITURI", that is something that goes with the meat: chips, boiled potatoes, white rice, rice with vegetables, etc. Otherwise you will eat just a steak or whatever without chips/rise or anything else. Salads are also ordered separately.
Take a look to the menu of "Caru cu bere", one nice and famous restaurant in the center of Bucharest. You can eat vegan or vegetarian here, because the vegetarian dishes are marked with a green leaf.
If you want to go to "Caru cu bere" in Bucharest, it will be a good idea to make a reservation. They speak English and it is the way they do it in here. Even in other cities, not just in Bucharest, it is common to make a reservation. This is a cultural thing. I was also impressed (because in Spain is different) with the space for sitting in Romanian restaurants. They are bigger than spanish ones. In Spain you can be in a restaurant without sitting; having "tapas" and drinking beer without even a chair to sit.
What food can I order being vegan? or... Where can I go being vegan?
I would recomend you three options:
a) You can go to a vegan restaurant. You can find some vegan restaurants in Bucharest and in other cities.
I love "Mandala restaurant" at Bucharest. Check the timetable on the Internet. Otherwise you can arrive and It can be closed.
http://www.happycow.net/europe/romania/bucharest/
b) You can go to an special restaurant, not Romanian or vegetarian. For example:
-Lebanese restaurant. You can order falafel or other Lebanese specialities.
-Italian restaurant and order "bruschette de rosi sau ciuperci" (bread with tomatoes or mushrooms, pizza or pasta "de post". Romania is plenty of Italian restaurants. They are on fashion. You can find excellent cheap pizza. In Constanta I recomend you "Marco Polo" or "Tratoria Verdi". They serve pizza "al forno" in both restaurants. Like in "Caru cu bere" I recomend you to make a reservation and to ckeck the timetable.
I love: pasta arabiata (hot tomato pasta), vegetarian pizza and bruschette de rosi.
c) You can order vegan food in a traditional romanian restaurant.
I would recomend you three options:
a) You can go to a vegan restaurant. You can find some vegan restaurants in Bucharest and in other cities.
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| Vegan sarmale: rice with mushrooms rolled in cabbage |
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| Quinoa salad in a vegan restaurant in Bucharest |
http://www.happycow.net/europe/romania/bucharest/
b) You can go to an special restaurant, not Romanian or vegetarian. For example:
-Lebanese restaurant. You can order falafel or other Lebanese specialities.
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| Falafel at Byblos, Constanta, Romania |
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| Garnituri: orez cu legume: Garnituri: rice with vegetables at Byblos, Constanta, Romania |
-Italian restaurant and order "bruschette de rosi sau ciuperci" (bread with tomatoes or mushrooms, pizza or pasta "de post". Romania is plenty of Italian restaurants. They are on fashion. You can find excellent cheap pizza. In Constanta I recomend you "Marco Polo" or "Tratoria Verdi". They serve pizza "al forno" in both restaurants. Like in "Caru cu bere" I recomend you to make a reservation and to ckeck the timetable.
I love: pasta arabiata (hot tomato pasta), vegetarian pizza and bruschette de rosi.
c) You can order vegan food in a traditional romanian restaurant.
If you are vegan and you go to a regular restaurant you can say:
"I am vegetarian (and I don't eat fish, eggs, milk, cheese, honey or any other animal products)." In the case the waiter doesn't speak English you can say:
"Eu țin post. Eu mănânc mâncare de post: fara lapte, fara oua, fara carne, fara peste, fara unt ... fara produse animale". /ieau tsin post / ieu mananc de post / fara lapte, fara oua, fara carne, fara pexte, fara unt... fara produse animale/
You can listen to the Romanian words pressing the listening botton: http://translate.google.es/#ro/es/Eu%20%C8%9Bin%20post.%20Eu%20m%C4%83n%C3%A2nc%20m%C3%A2ncare%20de%20post%3A%20fara%20lapte%2C%20fara%20oua%2C%20fara%20carne%2C%20fara%20peste%2C%20fara%20unt%20...%20fara%20produse%20animale
"I am vegetarian (and I don't eat fish, eggs, milk, cheese, honey or any other animal products)." In the case the waiter doesn't speak English you can say:
"Eu țin post. Eu mănânc mâncare de post: fara lapte, fara oua, fara carne, fara peste, fara unt ... fara produse animale". /ieau tsin post / ieu mananc de post / fara lapte, fara oua, fara carne, fara pexte, fara unt... fara produse animale/
You can listen to the Romanian words pressing the listening botton: http://translate.google.es/#ro/es/Eu%20%C8%9Bin%20post.%20Eu%20m%C4%83n%C3%A2nc%20m%C3%A2ncare%20de%20post%3A%20fara%20lapte%2C%20fara%20oua%2C%20fara%20carne%2C%20fara%20peste%2C%20fara%20unt%20...%20fara%20produse%20animale
This sentence means that you are fasting for religious reasons. This fasting is done in Romania because they are orthodox, and as in other orthodox countries, they can choose fasting that means eating vegan: no meat, no fish, no eggs, milk, etc.
You can choose fasting any time of the year, but there are two special periods where fasting is more compulsary for Romanian orthodox people, and the restaurants, supermarkets and bakeries increase the vegan option called "post".
Sometimes you even say that you are vegetarian and they understand you are vegan, because of the influence of the "post".
Sometimes you even say that you are vegetarian and they understand you are vegan, because of the influence of the "post".
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| Cozonac (typical dessert) that it can be "de post" |
These two periods are:
1º: From the 15th of November to the 25th of December.
2º: 40 days before Easter.
1º: From the 15th of November to the 25th of December.
2º: 40 days before Easter.
During these periods it is common that you can find special options like for example a special menu at he restaurant called "DE POST", where all the dishes are vegan. They use vegan cheese, and they offer many vegan options.
Out of this period you can say that you eat "de post" and the waiter points you the vegan food of the menu, as it was said.
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| Vegan products at the supermarket |
One easy option you can choose when you are in a traditional romanian restaurant any time of the year is to eat "GARNITURY". You can ask for 3 or 4 "garnitury" options, and you "create" your own dish.
One example can be: boiled potatoes, fried vegetables and rise.
Another option: salad, rice with vegetables and chips.
Some "garnitury" options you can find in restaurants:
"Cartofi la cuptor"- baked potatoes (make sure they don't add some cheese) (fara brunza= without cheese)
"Cartofi prãjiti" - Chips
"Legume la cuptor" - baked vegetables
"Mãmãligutã" - polenta (ask "de post": fara brânză şi smântână)
"Cartofi natur" - boiled potatoes (ask "de post": fara unt si fara brânză)
"Orez" - rice
"Orez cu legume" - rice with vegetables (always say "de post")
"Ciuperci" - Mushrooms
Some "garnitury" options you can find in restaurants:
"Cartofi la cuptor"- baked potatoes (make sure they don't add some cheese) (fara brunza= without cheese)
"Cartofi prãjiti" - Chips
"Legume la cuptor" - baked vegetables
"Mãmãligutã" - polenta (ask "de post": fara brânză şi smântână)
"Cartofi natur" - boiled potatoes (ask "de post": fara unt si fara brânză)
"Orez" - rice
"Orez cu legume" - rice with vegetables (always say "de post")
"Ciuperci" - Mushrooms
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| Garnituri: orez cu legume si cartofi prajiti (Garnituri: rice with vegetables and chips) |
Vegan romanian traditional dishes that you can find in any restaurant:
"Salatã de vinete" - Eggplant salad
"Zacuscã" - baked vegetables (chopped) with tomato sauce
"Ciorbã de legume" - vegetable soup (remind them: "de post")
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| Salata de vinete - Eggplant salad |
Salads
There are 2 types of salads. There are "garnitury" salads and complete salads. A complete salad is a salad that is presented as a main course.
"Garnitury salad" is a small salad, normally with just one ingredient. For example: tomato salad, cucumber salad...
If the salad is in the "garnitury" section of the menu indicates that is small.The prize is also small (6-10 lei). If the salad is expensive (20-30 lei) means that is a main course, and taking into account my experience I would say that it's not vegan. It may contain chicken, bacon, cheese, etc.
Some types of "garnitury salads":
"Salatã de sfeclã rosie" - red beet salad
"Salatã de rosii" - tomato salad
"Salatã de varzã" - cabbage salad
"Salatã de castraveti" - cucumber salad
Some types of "garnitury salads":
"Salatã de sfeclã rosie" - red beet salad
"Salatã de rosii" - tomato salad
"Salatã de varzã" - cabbage salad
"Salatã de castraveti" - cucumber salad
"Salatã de ciuperci" - Mushrooms salad
"Salatã verde" - lettuce salad
Pasta and pizza
Romanians are pizza and pasta lovers. I have never tasted so many pizzas and so delicious. If you go to an Italian restaurant and you say you eat "de post", you can always eat there.
As I said before, it is very typical that they bake the pizza in a traditional oven (a "forn"), so the taste is really good!
Supermarkets
There are a lot of big spaces dedicated to big brands and big supermarkets: Carrefour, Mega Image, Real and other big companies are in Romania.
In Carrefour, for example, you can buy vegan food: hamburguers, quinoa, biscuits, chocolate, soja milk, etc., but what it is more surprising is that in all the supermarkets tofu is found, and soja proteine with different shapes. You cannot find tempe, seitan or vegan ice-creams.
Soja yogurts are also found, but not many different types.
I would recommend you not to bring any food from your country because you can find plenty in here.
Small ecological-bio shops are also on fashion. There you can find all you need for eating outside or cooking.
In big supermarkets you can also buy prepaired vegan food although there are not many options.
Tofu
You can find tofu in big supermarkets. So if you go to a big city you will find it easily. There are several types.
In Mega Image there are prepaired meals made with tofu. For example meatballs (vegan) that you can eat without cooking.
However it's more difficult to find tofu at restaurants, unless you go to vegetarian restaurants, vegan ones or it's the "fast" period of the year.
B12 vitamine
I didn't find B12 vitamine at pharmacies or the small ecological shops.
Beverages, beer, sof drinks and coffee
In Romania is more typical the sparking water that the still water
Sparking water: apa minerala
Still water: apa plata
My Romanian friend, Flory, has told me that there are villages where they have to cook with sparkling water, because they don't have any other fountain.
But probably what it is more surpresing and attractive is the limonade. It is make with lemons, water (sparking or still), sugar or honey (you can ask and choose many times).
Wine is famous in Romania and also the local beers: Timisoreana, Ciuc, Silva or Ursus. Local beers are very cheap. You can drink half a liter of beer for 1 euro.
Beverages: Ţuică
"Salatã verde" - lettuce salad
Pasta and pizza
Romanians are pizza and pasta lovers. I have never tasted so many pizzas and so delicious. If you go to an Italian restaurant and you say you eat "de post", you can always eat there.
As I said before, it is very typical that they bake the pizza in a traditional oven (a "forn"), so the taste is really good!
Supermarkets
There are a lot of big spaces dedicated to big brands and big supermarkets: Carrefour, Mega Image, Real and other big companies are in Romania.
In Carrefour, for example, you can buy vegan food: hamburguers, quinoa, biscuits, chocolate, soja milk, etc., but what it is more surprising is that in all the supermarkets tofu is found, and soja proteine with different shapes. You cannot find tempe, seitan or vegan ice-creams.
Soja yogurts are also found, but not many different types.
I would recommend you not to bring any food from your country because you can find plenty in here.
Small ecological-bio shops are also on fashion. There you can find all you need for eating outside or cooking.
In big supermarkets you can also buy prepaired vegan food although there are not many options.
Tofu
You can find tofu in big supermarkets. So if you go to a big city you will find it easily. There are several types.
In Mega Image there are prepaired meals made with tofu. For example meatballs (vegan) that you can eat without cooking.
However it's more difficult to find tofu at restaurants, unless you go to vegetarian restaurants, vegan ones or it's the "fast" period of the year.
B12 vitamine
I didn't find B12 vitamine at pharmacies or the small ecological shops.
Beverages, beer, sof drinks and coffee
In Romania is more typical the sparking water that the still water
Sparking water: apa minerala
Still water: apa plata
My Romanian friend, Flory, has told me that there are villages where they have to cook with sparkling water, because they don't have any other fountain.
But probably what it is more surpresing and attractive is the limonade. It is make with lemons, water (sparking or still), sugar or honey (you can ask and choose many times).
Wine is famous in Romania and also the local beers: Timisoreana, Ciuc, Silva or Ursus. Local beers are very cheap. You can drink half a liter of beer for 1 euro.
Beverages: Ţuică
A good coffee is hard to find. It is also expensive (2 euros, while in Sapin is 1 euro or 1,30). Try to look for restaurants with the symbol of "ILLY" or other trade you like at the entrance of the restaurant. Other option is to ask for a tea. Black tea is not very popular, and sometimes they only offer fruity teas.
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