Must have food experience:Croatia,Bulgaria&Romania

[rojerk]

Hi guys,

Long time listener, first time caller and all that. I travel for food, small villages and (hopefully) to discover the authentic heart of each country I visit (oh, and photography). I was hoping you could help me out. I am backpacking around Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia for 2 months starting in 1 week’s time. I have already done a search on the forum for all entries related to these countries and have some good ideas – thanks! But it can never hurt to have some more. So if you have some ‘must have dining experiences’ for these countries I would love to hear them. Here’s a little list so that you have a better idea of what I am (and aren’t) looking for:

What I am looking for:

Authentic

Good examples of the local cuisine (no matter how poorly you may rate it – its, to me, part of the experience of travelling. I might not eat marinated cabbage stuffed intestines in my own country, but when travelling, if it’s a local cuisine, bring it on!)

Places a local egullet member would be proud to show off as a highlight of ‘their countries’ cuisine)

Cheap places or expensive places – that doesn’t worry me. As long as its worth visiting.

Nice atmosphere

Gorgeous settings are always an advantage (and can always elevate a good experience to a great one)

Breakfast, lunch or dinner – I need to eat 3 square meals a day!

Places which will be an ‘unforgettable’ memory of my time in that country (museums and castles bore me - give me a restaurant or café any day!)

What I am not looking for:

Tourist slanted places

Themed restaurants

Italian, French, Australian cuisine – its needs to be local

Places which are ‘forgettable’

Like I said, I am leaving on the 3rd of August, so I would love to hear your recommendations, or you can even email me on alotarot@bigpond.net.au if you really feel like helping me out after that date.

Thanks guys,

Adam - Australia

If your interested these are the places I am exploring:

Romania

Baile-Herculane

Bucharest

Sighisoara

Viseu de Sus

Budesti

Bulgaria:

Melnik

Sofia

Veliko tarnovo

Arbanasi

Tryavna

Lyaskovets

Koprivshtitsa

Bansko

Croatia (we’ll have car here so are a bit more mobile):

Zagreb

Samobor

Opatija

Volosko

Labin

Rovinj

Motovun

Umag

Veli Losinj

Cres Town

Valun

Tribunj

Trogir

Vis island

Komiza

Milna

Dubrovnik

Mljet island

Korcula

Lumbarda

Ston and Mali Ston

[marlena spieler]

its been awhile since i was there, but the little town/village of melnick had a wonderful restaurant with typical dishes, owned by a lawyer who did the cooking too.

i think its near the house of the wine merchant which is something like a museum......

cheers,

marlena

[Mistinguett]

All I could help a bit with would be Romania.

In Bucharest, there's this terrace I went to several times last September and I really liked. It's 10 minutes (at the most) from downtown either by subway or taxi, but the real challenge is to find it. It's in the so called "Children's little town", a sort of an aging Luna Park. If interested I could e-mail you some pointers on how to get there.

The owner of the place, nicknamed Spaniolul - and the name of the terrace is "La Spaniolul" makes everything on premises. Every time I went there were fresh lambs hanging in hooks, waiting to be butchered and cured and grilled for lamb "pastrama" - that is not really what we know as pastrami, just lightly salt cured and grilled meat, tender and delicious. He also makes fresh grape juice, a fall staple in Romania - but August might be a little early for that. Hard to find tender pork skin can be found here, too (ask for "sorici", makes a great appetizer).

Here's Spaniolul and a platter with lamb pastrama, mici (little sausages without casing) and polenta.

I never heard of Budesti, it's probably a small village and that could be a good thing. Baile Herculane it's a touristy place and I'd avoid eating in restaurants. As with all the other places, I'd ask around for a good place to eat. Heck, I'd try to eat in somebody's home but if not possible I'd look around for a "pensiune" - that's a sort of bed and breakfast.

Ask around for a "stana" that's a sheep pen in the mountains where friendly and lonely shepperds live for months at a time - you'll be more than welcome to share their food, mostly incredible fresh cheeses. IF you're lucky, you might even get to try a lamb "owtlawry" style - that is a lamb that is burried on coals until it "pops". Come to think of it, this would make a good "No Reservations" episode - I could be the guide

Edited to add:

Don't miss: the vegetables and fruits at markets and road stands. The pretzels and (some sort of) doughnuts, hot from the oven/frier - great for breakfast or snack, there are fewer and fewer places in Bucharest but I know of at least 3: the pretzels by Cocor store and Piata Romana, doughnuts by cinema row on the way to Cismigiu Park.

Also, although not food related - I hope you'll get to see the Merry Cemetery in Sapanta, it's just an hour from Viseu.

Excuse the lenghty post, I hope it's been some help though.

Edited July 27, 2005 by Mistinguett (log)

[rojerk]

Thats brilliant Mistinguett! This is exactly what i am after. I will definitely be going there. I did a search on the web and could not find anything (i didnt expect to!) so if you are willing to email me some directions I would greatly appreciate it. From the description and photo provided you have totally nailed on the head what sort of experiences i am after. Thankyou. And yes, we will definitely be staying in pensions - we are both under 30 and this is the way we love to travel. You just met great people and have wonderful experiences doing it this way. Markets and road stands? I never pass them up!

And no - definitely not a lengthly post - feel free to keep going...

marlena - thankyou very much as well. I will hunting down this lawyer as well! Any more specific directions to locate this place?

Thanks guys - wel thats 2 days of eating sorted, only 58 more to go!

Adam

[marlena spieler]

melnik is really small. i'd ask around before i go there.

a friend who sources artisanal cheese has bad news on the cheese front, in that much of the bulgarian cheeses and yogurts are now made by huge companies using powdered milk so that they can make cheese/yogurt all year round.

the way around this is to only eat artisanal cheeses/yogurt if possible. there are little restaurants, oh i forget what they are called. there was one i really loved near the place where the silkworms grow, on the way from varna to sofia, somewhere in the balkans.

its the sort of place that serves traditional foods instead of grills, kebab, rice etc. you'll need to ask around. we had friends in bulgaria and had great experiences food wise. i visited bulgaria about every year or so for much of the nineties, right through all the changes.

cabbage (esp when stewed with beans) is fantastic. stomach soup, yummy, be sure to spoon in the garlic vinegar they'll serve it with. stuffed red peppers, yummy, and of course the cheeses and cured meat if you can get it. they make this weird drink called bohzhah, or something like that, fermented yeasty wheaty stuff, its kinda beige grey and slightly sweet. perhaps an aquired taste but if you see it, try it. probably now everything is cocoa cola instead....feh!

there is a nice dish called skopska cheese in which some cheese and peppers and tomatoes are roasted in a ceramic bowl with an egg or two. its fabulous. also skopska salad which is a pile of raw vegetables topped with grated white cheese. fresh and good, but it needs olive oil for me to fully enjoy, and bulgaria isn't a land of olive oil

one thing you m ight think about is staying in a monestary. not sure if you can still do it, but there used to be monestaries that acted as hotels/b and bs, i went to one in the south, not too far from the macedonia border, somewhere in the rila mountains.

in varna i ate some tasty stuff barbecued in the street. kebaby things, pork mostly, wrapped into rolls and sprinkled with onions.

the wine is quite nice too.

x marlena

[foodie52]

Luggage 386, who posts a lot in the Texas forum is quite familiar with that region I believe.

[zaelic]

Well, I am off to Bulgaria in two days and I don't actually look forward to the food there. It's pretty grim all around, except for the fried sardines. I'm not kidding. Bulgaria is not a gourmet kind of place - everthing is ground pork flavored with cumin. Everything. Basically I eat roast chickens and salad when I am there and let the alchohol fill in the gaps. Actually there is one good restaurant in Varna down by the old town square. Folkloric-looking place, absolutely the only good food I ever found in Bulgaria, and I go almost every year.

I'll be in Koprivshtitsa next week, the big folk festival is Aug. 4-7th. Again, not much to recomend, I actually got food poisoning there at the last festival five yeras ago. Stay away from the kebabche sellers.

For Your Romanian list: Romania is another place you don't go expecting fine cuisine. Be happy with friptura cu prajiti (fried meat and fries) when you can get it. Pizza is fast becoming the national food.

1.Baile-Herculane: A cheesy resort, should have some options.

2.Bucharest : eat Italian. And get out of there - it is the most exp[ensive place in Romania, and you want to see the countryside.

3.Sighisoara: fried meat and chips! Sighisoara is pretty, but try one of the grimier neighbor towns, like Medias or Trnava for a funkier - and equally bad food - experience.

Your next suggestion made me reach for my map: Maramures!!! One of my favorite places in the world! I do hope you like sheep cheese and tripe soup! Basically, while traveling you'll see green agro-tourism signs in villages. For about ten Euro you can sleep, and for about three euro your hosts will cook up a meal: wanna bet it is mamaliga with sheep cheese again? Or shnitzel, if you are lucky. Go to www.antrec.ro for a very good web page on booking village accomodations in Maramures. Stay about a month and learn Romanian. Noroc!

4. Viseu de Sus: Make sure you are in de Sus, not de Jos - the only option in Viseu de Jos is beer and pretzel stix at the train station... There is one restaurant in town, shnitzel, mititei or mici (say "meech") and tripe soup (ciorba de burta). Maybe a pizza place. Do not stay at the ugly state hotel, but directly next door (on the street where the Hotel entrance is) is a three story modern house (entrance next to the hotel - a gate into somebody's funbky peasant garden) you can rent cheap, very nice rooms in - sometimes the hotel under-help will tell you about this after the disagreeable platinum blonde at the desk sends you away for bothering her siesta. They also make fine food and home made brandy.

5. Budesti: no resturant. At all. Beer and pretzel stix again! Why Budeasti? Master Fiddler Ion Pop has a guest house in Hoteni.

In Sighet and in Borsa there are decent restuarants at the Perla hotels.

Outside of Sighet, Borsa, Moisei, Bogdan Voda and Viseu there are no restaurants in Maramures. The one in Saliste is usually closed.... buy a salami and carry it with you. You will eat what your hosts cook where you stay. It isn't Club Med, but it is a better experience.

As for Croatia... you get lucky. Excellent food all along the coast. Everywhere. Really fine dining, don't need to do more than stroll around and watch what people eat on the terraces.

[Mistinguett]

Zaelic, I don't agree about going for italian in Bucharest. If I had to eat just to feed myself, I'd rather buy a lb. of tomatoes, a cucumber, 200 gr. of ham and a bread (excellent bread everywhere) - that would be 10 times cheaper and better than the best italian restaurant in the city.

And what's wrong with grilled meat and french fries? Nothing, I say.

Bucharest might be the most expensive city in Romania (it's the capital, what can you do) but it's still cheaper than U.S. or Australia (I'm guessing about Aus., haven't been there yet).

Worst come to worst, there's always "La Mama" (one location behind Eva store in the center of the city) - amazing white bean soup with smoked ribs, eggplant salad, fresh mixed salads, in-season fruits and what else.

Rojerk, try the stuffed cabbage/cabbage rolls ("sarmale") - if you see them on the menu.

[rojerk]

Thank you very for the further information guys. I will be printing this out and taking it with me to help in my food journies.

zaelic

Thanks for your info. We are going to Budesti because its meant to be a one of the better villages to explore around the Maramures region. I (unfortunately) know that Baile-Herculane is meant to be a little touristy but its convient for our entry into Serbia and, well, a dip in a thermal pool sounds ok. Plus it does look rather pretty. Is there a better place close to Timosoria (I am currently at work and cant remember the spelling precisely but its a large city on the train line into Belgrade) you'd recommend? And I understand what you mean by not expecting 'fine cuisine' as I dont! I can get wonderful truffle encrusted foie gras with a caviar sauce her in Oz. I dont mind how 'unexciting' the food may be, but as long as its local Im happy because that to me, when travelling, is exciting. Im definitely not a tripe fan, but when in Rome...!

We are also going to Sinaia for some hiking and potentially Garda De Sus for some more hiking.

marlena,

You can still stay in a few of the monestaries and the one I think you may be think of is the Rila monestaries which is on the way (kind of) to Melnik.

Ive also been put onto a couple of good Croatian places on the coast by people I know:

Restaurant Nada in Vrbnik http://www.nada-vrbnik.hr/EN/Index.htm

Restaurant Kapetanova kuća” in Mali Ston http://www.ostrea.hr/engleski/konoba_en.htm

Hotel Kastel in Motovun (truffle region) http://www.hotel-kastel-motovun.hr/eng/Index.aspx?lang=eng

Thanks,

Adam

[Mistinguett]

In Sinaia don't miss the Peles Castle, some extraordinary views of the mountains from there. Also on the way up (a nice walk) there's a great restaurant ("crama") I wish I remembered the name... but you might be able to recognize it - all white walls with dark brown/black wood, it's a rather striking building. I remember having the most wonderful deer sausages there.

Edited 'cause "sausage" it's such a hard word to spell... duh!

Edited August 1, 2005 by Mistinguett (log)

[magnolia]

Rojerk - I'm going to Croatia at the end of the summer, Dubrovnik & Orebic - so if you happen to be reading this and happen to have eaten well in either of those places - please post !