Bucharest Mai 2016

Maps Events Restaurants Cafs Bars Pubs Clubs Sightseeing Shopping Hotels
Bucharest
April - May 2016
BIYP 100
Celebrating a century of
half-decent city guides
Rediscover
Bucharest
A walk around
delightful Cotroceni
N100 - 15.00 lei
Contents
E S S E N TI A L
C I TY G U I D E S
Getting Around & The Basics

Quick Picks
6
16
Bucharest at a glance
Childrens Bucharest
17
Restaurants
18
The citys best restaurants
Cafs
32
Coffee, tea, cakes and cocktails
Nightlife 36
Bars, pubs and clubs
Whats On 46
Your complete guide to Bucharests events
Sightseeing
48
Essential Bucharest
An Easter service at a Bucharest church. Easter is the most important holiday in the Orthodox calendar, and this year falls on May
1st. Find out more about how and where Romania celebrates
Easter with our handy little guide on page 15. Then jump to the
Sightseeing section (from page 48) to find a historic church where
you can take part in a service.
facebook.com/bucharestinyourpocket
Shopping
66
Souvenirs, local designers and local wine
Maps
Street register
78-81
82
April - May 2016
Foreword
If anyone had told us when we began our Bucharest adventure back in 1999 that smoking would one day be banned
in Romania, wed have considered them quite mad. Then
again, we never thought we would see the day that stray
dogs were no longer a problem for pedestrians and cyclists.
Indeed, the very idea of seeing a cyclist was absurd back in
1999. Today, not least during spring and summer on Calea
Victoriei, you cant move for families on their bikes.
These are just a few of the many, many changes we have
witnessed over the past seventeen wonderful years publishing our essential guide to the Romanian capital. There
are more memories - and a couple of snippets from issue
one - in our look back at the beginnings of Bucharest In Your
Pocket, on pages 6-7.
Meantime, Bucharest moves forward. Not always coherently, but move forward it does. We may moan about the
place (not least when the citys only airport introduces new
rules designed to prevent cheap taxis from picking up arriving passengers, as it did on April 1st - and no, it wasnt
an April Fool) but we love it. Bucharest is our home, and we
are here to stay. Besides, todays city is incomparable to the
bleak place we first arrived in, and all the better for it.
Now, if we could only elect a progressive mayor come the
local elections in June...
E S S E N TI A L
Bucharest In YourCPocket
I TY G U I D E S
IYP Romania Srl
Str. Jiului 93, Ap. 14
Bucuresti, Sector 1
Romania
Tel. (+4) 0372 73 02 64
bucharest@inyourpocket.com
ISSN 1454-5276 IYP Romania Srl. Printed at MEGAPress SA,

Bucharest (tel. (+4) 021 461 08 08/09). Published six times per
year, up to 20,000 copies produced each issue. Bucharest In
Your Pocket is a member of the Romanian Audit Bureau of
Circulation (BRAT).
Editorial
Editor Craig Turp All Photography IYP Romania Srl or
Dreamstime unless otherwise stated.
Sales
To contact a member of our sales team send an email to the
address bucharest@inyourpocket.com, or call our office and
ask for the sales department.
In no particular order, Bucharest In Your Pocket would like

to thank the following people for their help and support
over the past seventeen years. Without them, we would
not be here today: Matthias Luefkens; Jeroen van Marle;
Tim Johnson; George, Oliver & Nicolas Ortiz; Martin Kitson; Marty Zaprauskis; Leeore Schnairsohn; Craig & Scott
Young; Catalin Cazacu; Eduard Cristea; Magda Pata; Alex
Sirbu; Miruna Popescu; Anca Bucataru; Raluca Tanasa;
Remus Mesar; Cristi Iacob; Angela Arustei; Oana Sav;
Loredana Orosan; Adrian Ojog; Adriana Doltea.
Copyright notice
Text, photos copyright IYP Romania Srl 1999-2016 unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved. No part of this publication
may be reproduced in any form, except brief extracts for the
purpose of its review, without written permission from the
copyright owner. Maps are copyright OSM Contributors. The
trademark In Your Pocket is used under license from UAB In
Your Pocket (Bernadinu g. 9-4, Vilnius, Lithuania tel. (+370-5)
212 29 76).
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4 Bucharest In Your Pocket
In Your Pocket, the worlds leading publisher of locally-produced city guides since 1992, recently launched a brand new
smartphone app: In Your Pocket City
Essentials. Featuring only hand-picked
venues and sights alongside essential
travel information, these city guides
have been carefully crafted by our local editors and include only the places
they are happy to recommend. The
app - available on both iOS and Android
- is free, and works offline. Go to iyp.me/
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bucharest.inyourpocket.com
Bucharest IYP 100: Then & Now

When we researched the first issue of
Bucharest In Your Pocket we had a feeling that the city was too big to be put
in your pocket. Seventeen years and 100
issues later we have proven that we can
actually put the essence of this city in our
handy guide.
Matthias Luefkens, Founder
The cover of BIYP Issue No. 1. You can take a look at the whole
guide at: iyp.me/biypone
Happy birthday to us.

What can only be described as Eclipse Fever was gripping the nation when the first Bucharest In Your Pocket was
published, at the end of May, 1999. Bucharest was, you see,
being heralded as the best place in the world to view one
of natures rarities: a total eclipse of the sun scheduled for
August 11th of that year, an eclipse which would darken the
sky for three minutes and make the stars visible at midday.
Bizarre as it may seem now but many people in Romania were counting on the eclipse kick-starting the countrys tourist industry. Official projections of visitor numbers
went into the zillions, with Interior Minister Dudu Ionescu
telling Reuters in April 1999 that he expected crowds to
overwhelm the capital. He neednt have worried. For as it
turned out almost nobody came, and the eclipse passed
overhead without event. Indeed, a fair bit of cloud cover
meant that many people in the capital - the majority of
whom had assembled on rooftops and balconies wearing
ridiculous sunglasses emblazoned with Coca-Cola logos
saw very little.
As the first genuinely objective Bucharest city guide, the
welcome we received was muted, to say the least. Many locals didnt quite get what we were about. Nationalists, such
as the late Vadim Tudor of the fascist Greater Romania Party
called the first issue of our guide a swinery against Romania. The problem was that back then - as now - we told it
as it is. We were not blind to Romanian realities. We printed
the national average wage (1,172,000 lei, then US$82), and
noted how pensioners were expected to scratch out a living on US$35.
We also a publishing first in Romania, we believe

stated the price charged by the high-class hookers that
frequented the citys top hotels (US$200), as well as that
charged by the less classy ladies at the bottom end of Calea
Victoriei (US$50). It was that piece of information above all
others which won us our first friends, not least amongst the
diplomatic community.
Bucharest has changed immeasurably since 1999 and
despite what the naysayers will have you believe it has
primarily changed for the better. Back then there was little choice of anything: few restaurants, few bars, few clubs,
few supermarkets and few shops in general. Bucharests
first shopping mall didnt open until we were on issue
three. Homosexual activity was punishable with a prison
sentence. Today there is an annual Pride parade through
the city centre. To compare todays increasingly hedonistic
24-hour city, packed with bars, pubs, restaurants, clubs, casinos, malls, massage parlours and just about anything you
could want with the rather bleak Bucharest of 1999 is to
compare two almost entirely different places.
Bucharest remains far from perfect of course. Endemic
corruption - only now being stamped out by the courageous Laura Codruta-Kovesi, head of Romanias anti-corruption unit, the DNA - has stifled the citys development
and incomplete infrastructure projects litter the urban
landscape. Public transport is in a shocking state. The
tragedy at Colectiv in October last year, when more than
60 young people died in a fire at a rock concert, was the
culmination of years of negligence on the part of the local authorities. An election to replace the disgraced former
mayor Sorin Oprescu (currently awaiting trial for graft) will
be held in June, but with Gabriela Firea-Pandele of the
eternally corrupt PSD the likely winner (its party machine
is powerful) real change appears unlikely. BIYP by the way
backs Nicusor Dan, leader of the Union to Save Bucharest,
an organisation committed to clean, transparent, bestpractice administration.
In the seventeen years we have been publishing our reviews - not all of which are of course complimentary - we
have had far too many threats of legal action to remember.
Only twice, however, have we actually been brought before
a court on libel charges. And we are happy to report that on
both occasions we won. The first case, in 2002, was brought
against us by the Becker Brau Brewery on Calea Rahova, after
we dared to criticize the service. The second case, in 2004,
Bucharest IYP 100: Then & Now

FROM THE ARCHIVES
Choice snippets from issue one. You can take a look at
the whole of BIYP 1 at: iyp.me/biypone.
Founder Matthias Luefkens with a huge batch of Bucharest In Your

Pockets. Still an avid reader, he now reads the guide online
was brought by the Marele Zid Chinese restaurant in Brasov,

after we told the readers of a special Brasov supplement to
run, run away before they were tempted to go inside and
eat. In both cases the two judges dismissed claims of libel,
invoking our right to criticise.
Over the years though, no subject has been more controversial than the shaggy dog story that is (or was) Bucharests stray dog situation. We have gained a certain reputation for being outspoken on the subject, going all the way
back to issue one, when we wrote: In this town, you cant
swing a cat without hitting a stray dog.
What had happened was that one of the writers of issue one, Leeore Schnairsohn, had been bitten by a stray dog
in the city centre and was subjected to some nasty rabies
shots, turning opinion in the office against the mutts, and
the misguided fools who fed them. Lazy television journalists picked up the topic and broadcast nonsense, with Pro
TV being the only station that bothered to come and interview us on the subject, running the full story on the evening news. Our comments in subsequent issues (including
one which suggested all strays should be exterminated and
perhaps served as a national dish) got us angry letters from
a French animal rights association. One advertiser pulled an
ad in objection to our stance. It is a sign of how far Bucharest has come that stray dogs no longer present a problem.
These days you will likely not see any.
Of all the changes we have witnessed over the past 100
issues however, perhaps that which demonstrates most
of all just how far the city has come is the smoking ban
which came into force in March. Until not so long ago such
a ban would have been unthinkable: Bucharest had become known as Europes Smoking Section, one of few places
where innocent people who simply wanted to go out for a
drink or a meal were still forced to breathe in the cancerous
fumes of inconsiderate smokers. Now, everyone can enjoy
Bucharest without risking their health. Progress is a wonderful thing.
Finally, a genuine word of thanks to the two groups of
people who make the guide possible: our readers and our
advertisers. Without the support of both groups we simply
wouldnt be here. Now wouldnt Bucharest be the poorer
for our absence?
Our advice on arriving at Otopeni Airport in 1999. The

eager taxi-drivers may still be there, but it is far easier to
avoid them these days.
Our list of scams visitors to Bucharest had to look out for

back in 1999. Incredibly, there are still people at Gara de
Nord trying to woo newly-arrived backpackers. Pickpockets remain a real issue on public transport.
April - May 2016
Arriving & Getting Around

OTOPENI AIRPORT
Otopeni Henri Coanda is Bucharests only international
airport, located 17 kilometres north of the city. When arriving, avoid the currency exchange desk placed directly
before passport control: the rates are very poor. To get
your hands on local cash use one of the many ATMs in
the main arrivals hall. The pedestrian walkway which connects the arrivals and departures terminal contains car
hire desks, a newsagent and a chemist. Downstairs is the
internal flight arrivals terminal, and a small supermarket.
GARA DE NORD (TRAIN STATION)

Bucharests only major railway station is close to the city
centre, one stop from Piata Victoriei on the M1 metro line.
It is not being too unkind to suggest that the station has
seen better days, and that it is not the friendliest place in
the city. Fortunately, Gara de Nord is relatively small and
easy to navigate: you will not need to spend any great
amount of time here. All of the platforms lead to the same
main concourse, where you will see signs for buses, taxis
and the metro. There are a number of press/refreshment
kiosks, left-luggage lockers, a supermarket and even a
McDonalds and a KFC. The public toilets are acceptable
(and cost 1 leu to use). Avoid all of the currency exchange
kiosks - they offer appalling rates of exchange. Use one of
the many ATMs instead.
To get to the city centre, take an honest taxi from the
official taxi station outside (ignore anyone who approaches you inside the station). If no taxi is waiting,
use one of the two touch screens to order one. You can
also hop on the metro, or take the bus: No. 123 goes
to Piata Unirii, No. 85 to Piata Universitatii and No. 780
goes to the airport. Bus tickets (in the form of an Activ
or Multiplu card) can be bought from the little metal
kiosk next to the bus stop (which is itself next to the taxi
rank). Note that both the last buses and the last metro
services leave Gara de Nord at around 23:00.
When departing from Gara de Nord, note that queues
at the ticket office can be long: do not leave buying a
ticket until the last minute, as you may end up missing
your train. Indeed, you are advised to buy train tickets
well in advance, especially if you are planning on taking
a sleeper service.
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To get to the city centre, your best bet is to take a taxi.

To do so, look for the touch screens in the arrivals hall.
They are easy to use, and you can choose from the full
range of Bucharest taxi companies: all have their tariffs
clearly displayed. Once the taxi company of your choice
has informed you (via the screen) how long the taxi will
take to arrive, and what ID number the taxi has (take the
ticket which will be printed: you need to hand it to the
driver), you simply go outside to wait for your taxi. Just
make sure you get into the right taxi: check the company
name and ID number with the one on your ticket.
Unfortunately, as of April 1st, a new rule on which type
of taxi can pick up passengers at the airport (cunningly
designed to keep the cheapest taxis away) has seen long
queues form at the touch screen machines. As such, the
best way to get a cheap taxi (during the day at least) is to
walk through to departures and pick one up as it drops
other passengers off.
Ignore the sign saying Rapid Taxi. These are overpriced
taxis which are allowed to wait downstairs, directly outside the internal arrivals terminal. The journey into the
city centre should cost from 40-50 lei. For those who
want to head into town in a bit more comfort, there are
good private car options: TransVision (airport-transferbucharest.com) and VMS City Shuttle (cityshuttle.ro).
Both offer a reliable airport transfer service at decent
prices. You can also get to town by taking bus No. 783,
which stops underneath the arrivals hall and leaves for
the city centre every 30 minutes during the day, and
then every 40 minutes through the night. Another bus,
No. 780, runs to Gara de Nord from 05:30 - 23:05. You
need to purchase an Activ card before boarding either
bus (get it from the little booth which youll find on
your right hand side as you exit the arrivals building).
A return journey into the city and back costs 7 lei (no
singles are available). You also need to pay 3.70 lei for
the card, but it can be recharged as often as you like at
any ticket kiosk in Bucharest, and used on all Bucharest
buses and trams. The cards cannot be bought on board.
When departing from Otopeni, allow yourself plenty
of time to get there: at least an hour if you are taking
the bus, particularly during the morning and evening
rush hours.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Bucharests public transport network is extensive, covering all of the city as well as much of its surroundings. It is
also very cheap to use. Services are often poor however,
and during the week most forms of transport are horribly
overcrowded.
METRO
First opened in 1979, Bucharests metro was built to ship
workers from the vast housing estates of Titan, Berceni and
Militari out to the huge industrial plants at Pipera, IMGB, Republica and Industriilor. Thats all very well if you are resident
of Titan working at IMGB, but useless to everybody else. The
city centre is poorly served by the metro and only the northsouth M2 line, from Pipera to Berceni, which passes through
Piatas Victoriei, Romana and Unirii, and the M1 branch to the
Gara de Nord, are likely to be of any use to visitors. In our listings, all venues which are within walking distance of a metro
station carry the M symbol.
METRO TICKETS Tickets for the metro can be purchased
at all metro stations. Tickets valid for two journeys cost 5 lei,
while tickets valid for ten journeys cost a bargain 20 lei. You
can also buy a daily ticket for 8 lei, while a weekly season
ticket costs 25 lei.
TRAMS, BUSES & TROLLEYBUSES (RATB) Most main
roads in the city centre benefit from three or four different
transport routes. Many buses are overcrowded, however, and
travelling on them can often be a less than pleasant experience. Buses, trolleybuses and trams run from very early in
the morning (around 04:30) to around 23:00 (earlier at weekends), after which the extensive night bus network takes
over. All night buses depart from Piata Unirii.
RATB TICKETS To use a bus, trolleybus or tram you will
need to buy an Activ card before climbing aboard. These
cards cost 3.70 lei, and can be bought from the little kiosks
next to major stops. They need to be loaded with credit
(minimum 5 lei) and are reusable. The card is then debited
each time you validate it at one of the orange devices located
on buses, trams and trolleybuses. One trip costs 1.30 lei. On
all forms of public transport in Bucharest children under the
age of seven travel free. After that they need a full-price ticket.
April - May 2016

relatively cheap, but are rising fast. An InterRegio adult
single from Bucharest to Brasov costs 73 lei. To buy train
tickets visit either the station, a CFR agency or buy online
at cfrcalatori.ro. (Note that if buying online you need to do
so at least 24 hours in advance). Tickets cannot be purchased on board CFR trains, though you can try bribing
the guard. Many locals do this habitually. On the privately
run Hyperion trains, however, which depart Bucharest for
Brasov at 09:40 each morning, and for Constanta at 10:00,
you can buy tickets on board. There is also free Wifi and a
coffee machine: a refreshing change to CFR. Tickets cost
just 30 lei to Brasov, 40 lei to Constanta. For more info, see
the website softrans.ro. The full Romanian train timetable
is online at cfrcalatori.ro.
AGENTIA DE VOIAJ CFR CFRs advance booking offices.
QF-10, Calea Grivitei 139, MGara de Nord, tel. (+4) 021
313 26 42, www.cfr.ro. Open 08:00-18:00. Closed Sat, Sun.
CAR RENTAL IN BUCHAREST

AVIS
QB-dul Theodor Pallady 51, tel. (+4) 021 210 43 44,
www.avis.ro. Open 09:00 - 17:30. Closed Sat, Sun. Also
at K-13, Hotel InterContinental, tel. (+4) 021 314 18 37,
Open 08:00 - 20:00; Henri Coanda Airport, tel. (+4) 021
204 19 57, Open 07:00 - 02:00; and Avis Porsche Bucharest North, tel. (+4) 0723 612 011. Open 07:00 - 19:00,
Sat 09:00 - 15:00, Closed Sun.
TRAINS
Given that Romanias roads are terrible, its comforting to
know that the countrys railways are equally crap. Having said that, many long years of upgrade work on the
Bucharest - Brasov and Bucharest - Constanta routes are
now complete, and journey times are back to something
approaching 1989 levels: around two hours and 30 mins
to Brasov, just under two hours to Constanta. Should you
have to take a train, always try to get an InterCity (IC - note
these are few and far between) or InterRegio (IR) as they
are the fastest and usually have the most modern rolling
stock. Regio (R-) trains are very slow. You will also see trains
designated as ICN: these are InterCity trains which stop at
more stations than usual. Prices on all types of train are
BUDGET QH-10, Str. Mihail Moxa 9, tel. (+4) 021 210 28 67,
www.budget.ro. Open 09:00 - 18:00. Closed Sat, Sun. Also
at J-10, Calea Dorobanti 5 - 7 (Sheraton Hotel), tel. (+4) 021
201 50 89. Open 09:00 - 17:00. Closed Sat, Sun; and Henri
Coanda Airport, tel. (+4) 021 204 16 67. Open 08:00 - 20:00.
CARS4RENTQStr. Drumul Odaii 1D (Hotel Charter), tel. (+4) 0723 34 71 92/(+4) 0372 99 99 99, www.
cars4rent.ro. Open 24 hrs.
COMPACT RENT-A-CAR Q G-9, B-dul N. Titulescu 1,
bl A7, sc. 1, et. 6, ap. 16, tel. (+4) 0744 58 67 24, (+4) 021
312 98 57, www.compact-rentacar.ro. Prices from 18/
day.

TOURIST INFORMATION
BUCHAREST TAXIS
INFO TOURIST CENTER

Privately-run centre on Calea Victoriei which is phenomenally helpful and perhaps even better than the
citys official tourist information office.QJ-13, Calea
Victoriei 68-70, tel. (+4) 021 211 33 66. Open 9:00 19:00, Sun 10:00 - 16:00.
By and large, Bucharests numerous cheap and trustworthy yellow taxis are easy to spot as they are emblazoned with the name and phone number of the company they are associated with. To counter this, however,
dodgy taxis also plaster phone numbers over their cars,
alongside copy-cat logos. Be extra careful when getting into a taxi around Gara de Nord, Piata Universitatii,
Piata Unirii and the Old Town / Lipscani area. When
leaving a hotel or restaurant, always have the concierge
or waiter order you a cab. Never pay more than 1.69 lei
per kilometre in any taxi.
EUROPCAR
QH-6, Str. Grigore Mora 17, tel. (+4) 021 310 17 97, (+4)
0747 28 06 49, www.europcar.ro. Open 09:00 - 18:00.
Also at Henri Coanda Airport tel. (+4) 0374 00 40, Open
08:00 - 22:00. Service also available in Cluj, Constanta,
Craiova, Iasi, Satu Mare, Sibiu, Targu Mures, Timisoara.
HERTZ QHenri Coanda Airport, Sos. Bucurestilor 224E,
Clad. Corp AS4, etaj 1, tel. (+4) 021 204 12 78, Open 08:00
- 22:00. tel. (+4) 021 407 82 00, www.hertz.ro. Also at Str.
Drumul Garii Odaii 1A, int. A, et. 2, tel. (+4) 021 407 82 00.
As an alternative to standard taxis, Uber is also now present in Bucharest, so if you have an Uber account and the
app on your phone you can use it while in the city.
SIXT NEW KOPEL

QSos. Bucuresti-Ploiesti 145, tel. (+4) 021 9400, (+4)
0372 37 20 05, reservation@sixt.ro, www.sixt.ro. Open
09:00 - 17:30. Also at F-16, Calea 13 Septembrie 90 (JW
Marriott), Open 09:00 - 17:00, Closed Sat, Sun; and Henri Coanda Airport. Open 24hrs.
TRUSTED TAXI COMPANIES: Apolodor (+4) 021

9499, Cobalcescu (+4) 021 9451, Cristaxi (+4) 021
9461, Meridian (+4) 021 9444, Mondial (+4) 021 9423,
Pelicanul (+4) 021 9665. Most of these companies have at
least one operator who speaks English.
Bucharest Basics
WHEN THINGS GO WRONG
In an emergency call 112. You do not need to use the
city code. You will be asked which service you require
(Politia/Police, Ambulanta/Ambulance or Pompierii/
Firemen). Emergency call centre operators should speak
English or French but in our experience they do not always do so. At least make sure you know the name of
the street you are calling from. If you get into trouble
with the Police, demand to call your embassy. There is a
list on page 77. The citys main police station is at (B-4)
Str. Lascar Cartagiu 22, tel. (+4) 021 212 56 84. The best
Casualty Unit (Emergency Room) in the city is at Spitalul de Urgente, (K-8) Calea Floreasca 8, next to Dinamo
Stadium. There is a list of Pharmacies on page 77, and
an English-speaking Dentist on page 75.
CRIME & SAFETY

We do not exaggerate when we say that Bucharest is one
of the safest capital cities in Europe in which to walk the
streets. Violent crime is rare and almost always carried out
exclusively between rival gangs in the citys less-salubrious
areas. If you do not go looking for trouble, the chances of
you getting into any are small. While pickpockets are everywhere (you should be particularly careful on crowded
buses), violent crime is almost unheard of, and anyone can
walk the citys streets alone at night in relative safety. The
Romanian police force is also far better and less corrupt
than it used to be and keeps a visual presence on the citys
streets, especially in busy areas such as Old Town at night.

However, the fire at Colectiv on October 30th last year
brought home the fact that many Bucharest clubs have
been operating for years in less than ideal surroundings. As
a result of the fire, most of those considered to present a
risk have been closed by the authorities, or have closed voluntarily until they are consolidated. As such, those venues
which remain open can by and large be considered as safe
as any venue anywhere.
The main police station in Bucharest is on B-dul Lascar Cartagiu (I-10), halfway between Piata Romana and
Piata Victoriei. If you are driving, or are out late at night, it is
a good idea to carry at least a photocopy of your passport
and driving license. Drinking in public (except in designated
areas) leaves you open to a fine, and despite appearances to
the contrary, prostitution is illegal. If you are arrested ask to
speak to your embassy. There is a list on page 77.
In a nutshell though, do not worry. Of all Bucharests
many problems, crime really is the least of them.
TAKING A PEE
The Universitate underpass (K-13) and Piata Victoriei metro
station (H-9) offer public loos, as does Gara de Nord (F-10).
Otherwise, youll have to head for the nearest McDonalds.
April - May 2016
13
Bucharest Basics
STRAY DOGS
Theyve gone. Yep, while you may still spot the odd
stray here and there, the number of strays terrorising
the Romanian capitals streets is now negligible and
many areas of the capital are entirely dog free. Figures
from the agency responsible for dealing with stray
dogs, ASPA, published in January 2015, suggest that
the dog problem is indeed a thing of the past: it estimates the number of strays in Bucharest to now be
as low as 4,000: thats a huge decrease since the last
major dog census was carried out in 2013, when there
were almost 65,000. This of course begs the question:
Where have all the dogs gone? To be perfectly honest, we dont really care, but according to ASPA around
20,000 have been adopted, 2,000 remain in shelters
and 26,000 have been put down. Whats important of
course is that the dogs are no longer on our streets.

Should you be bitten during your time in Bucharest, present yourself at once to the casualty unit (Camera de Garda) at the Institutul Matei Bals, (M-8) Str. Dr.
Calistrat Grozovici 1, tel. (+4) 021 318 60 90. The wound
will be cleaned up, and you will be administered both
an anti-tetanus and the first of three anti-rabies jabs
(the others must be done seven and then 21 days afterwards). You will also get a prescription for a course of
antibiotics.
LEFT LUGGAGE
There are left luggage lockers (which include plugs where
you can charge phones and such like) at Gara de Nord. They
cost from 5 lei (for three hours) to 10 lei (for ten hours).
There is also a conventional left luggage service at the station, close to the main exit, where it costs 5 lei per small bag
per 24 hours. You will need ID.
MONEY
Romanias currency is the leu (plural lei), divided into 100
bani. Leu notes come in denominations of 500, 200, 100,
50, 10, 5 and 1. There are also 50, 10, 5 and 1bani coins. 1
is currently worth 4.44 lei. The best place to get your hands
on lei is at an ATM. If you have to change cash, do it inside
a bank. Never change money at exchange offices (case de
schimb valutar): they offer appalling rates and charge high
commissions. Credit and debit cards (MasterCard and Visa)
are accepted almost everywhere. American Express cards
are less widely accepted, but can be used in Bancpost ATMs.
POLITICS
In November 2014 the Mayor of Sibiu Klaus Iohannis
caused a major surprise by defeating Victor Ponta i(at the
time Romanias prime minister) n the second round runoff of the countrys presidential election. Ponta held on as
PM for a year, but was forced to resign after massive public demonstrations against his government immediately
SO WHERE AM I?
Situated in that part of the world which will perhaps
always be known as eastern Europe, it would be more
accurate to describe Bucharests geographical location
as south-eastern Europe. Founded, legend has it, in the
14th century, Bucharest is in a part of Romania known as
Wallachia, one of the three historic principalities which
make up the modern country (the others are Moldavia
and Transylvania). The official population of Bucharest is
just under two million, but as many migrants from the
rest of the country do not register as citizens of the capital, the true number is probably closer to three million.

Bucharest is not far from the Danube (just 69km to
the south), the border between Romania and Bulgaria.
The main crossing point is at Giurgiu, linked by a bridge
with Ruse, the Bulgarian town on the other side of the
river. Bucharest is around 240km from Constanta and the
Black Sea coast. To the north of Bucharest is Ploiesti, and
beyond that the Carpathian Mountains, a two hour drive
away from the capital.
after the fire at Colectiv in October 2015. He was replaced
by Dacian Ciolos, an independent former European Commissioner who now heads a non-political government of
independent experts. Bucharest will elect a new mayor in
June (the incumbent, Sorin Oprescu, was suspended pending trial for corruption): you will see campaign posters for
the various candidates all over the city.
A Romanian Easter
The best of
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E S S E N TI A L
C I TY G U I D E S
Easter in Romania is a big deal. Seriously big. Make sure you

are well prepared for traditions old and new, endless plates
of food and religious significance with our essential look at
Easter in Romania.
For most of the world, Easter fell on March 27th this year. For
the orthodox Christian world, however, of which Romania is
a part, Easter doesnt arrive until May 1st. Why? Well, because
when calculating the date of Easter, the starting date used by
Orthodox priests is taken from the Julian calendar, and not
the Gregorian calendar.
In Romania only Easter is affected: in Russia, Serbia,
Belarus and Ukraine (and other major orthodox countries)
Christmas is also calculated using the Julian calendar. In
Romania - in keeping with its half-knacked way of doing
things - Christmas is calculated with one calendar, Easter
another. All that really matters is that in Romania, Easter
Sunday this year falls on May 1st. Good Friday is not a public holiday in Romania.
According to tradition, there shall be no partying, no
weddings and not a great deal of anything in fact during
Lent, unflinchingly observed by many in Romania (where
it is known as post) right up until midnight on April 30th.
Only when the priest emerges from his church with a candle
(around 00:10) to declare that Hristos a nviat (Christ has
risen) can the faithful who have abstained from meat, dairy
products or booze (or all three) for the past 40 days once
again indulge themselves. And they do so with the biggest
meal of the year.
That meal will invariably be centred on lamb (miel). Indeed, Easter is the one time of the year Romanians eat lamb,
and it can easily be found in shops. Every part of the lamb
is used: the head goes in the soup, the organs are used to
make drob (a kind of pat), and the legs are slowly roasted
in red wine and served with roast potatoes and spinach.
You should also be prepared to eat more than a few hard
boiled eggs. Before the main meal (which, we have yet to
mention, gets eaten after the return from midnight mass,
at around 1am) eggs are cracked. Dyed in bright colours
(and in some parts of the country intricately painted) , hard
boiled eggs are cracked between family members with
the words Hristos a nviat (Christ has risen). The correct
response is Adevrat a nviat (He has truly risen). The eggs
should then be eaten. As each family member should crack
at least one egg with every other member of the family, it
can all go a bit Cool Hand Luke very quickly. Pudding is
usually pasc: a flat cheesecake with raisins.
The best place to witness an Easter service in Bucharest
is at one of the historic churches we feature on our Sightseeing pages.
Note that while the service notionally gets underway
shortly before midnight, if you want a seat, or even just
want to get inside, you will need to be at the church by
around 22:00. Even Romanians who consider themselves
secular, non-observant orthodox Christians usually make
the effort to go to church at Easter. If you are in town, you
should too: its a genuinely collective, cultural experience
you shall not forget. Bring a candle: the priest will light it at
midnight.
April - May 2016
15
A Bit Different
Luxury
Couples
Stag Parties
On the Cheap
Local
Quick Picks
Eat
Drink
Do
The first place Romanians new

in Bucharest head for is the
legendary Caru cu Bere (see
p.27). Boasting stunning interiors
and a decent menu of good local
food, it also serves a cracking
pint of home-brewed beer. An
essential local experience.
Control (see p.45). is a place we have

long labelled as a club for people
who dont like clubs. Popular with
young locals fed up with the more
flashy venues that now litter the
capital, you can even eat here (well
into the night) at Alt-Shift upstairs.
If your idea of Romania is old women

selling sheepskins on street corners,
then head for the mayhem and chaos
that is the citys biggest market, Piata
Obor (take the metro to Obor). Youll
find all sorts of delicious local produce
- look out for some pungent cheeses alongside pointless knick-knacks and
shedloads of cheap Chinese tat.
Crama Domneasca (see p.28)

serves huge portions of tasty local
food at more than decent prices.
If you are really on a tight budget,
then one of the citys many kebab
shops could well be what you
are looking for. The best is Gyros
Thessaloniki on Strada Selari in
the Old Town.
Big, happy to accommodate large
groups and serving great food
often accompanied by some
decent live music, look no further
than the Hard Rock Cafe (p.18).
Oktoberfest (p.45) sells possibly

the cheapest pint in the city centre:
it is a more than drinkable bargain.
Not brewed on the premises its
nevertheless a beer you will only
find here. The crowd is young and
during term-time mainly made up of
students.
None of Bucharests sights charge

very much for entrance: even the tour
of Casa Poporului (p.48) only costs
25 lei. If you want free, however, try
the rather pleasant George Enescu
Museum (p.54): free on the 26th of
each month.
Bucharest has its fair share of lively

pubs and Bordello (p. 40) is a
prime choice for ale, cocktails and
big-screen sports. Gets very loud and
down-right raucous late on weekend
nights. The vintage soft-porn on the
walls is a bonus.
The Romanian football league is

reaching its conclusion, so why not
watch one of the city's two main
football teams? Dinamo are at home
(Dinamo Stadium) on April 17 and
May 7, while Steaua play at the Arena
Nationala on April 10, 23 and 30.
Laboratorul de Cocktailuri (p. 36)

(the name means Cocktail Factory)
serves a top range of long drinks in
a quirky setting perfect for dates.
Upmarket without overdoing it, the
location - above a restaurant - also
allows you to show off your inside
knowledge of Bucharest.
Fantastic flavours, perfect textures, If you are young, rich and beautiful
harmonious combinations. Every or want to party with those who are,
cook aims for them, Il Villagio
BOA (p. 44) club might be the right
(p.23) hits the mark. Its hard
choice for you. Dress up and have
to be too exuberant about this
plenty of cash or a credit card handy,
restaurant, where the service is
as the standard practice here is to
just as warm and professional as order your spirits by the bottle.
the food is exciting.
Pamper yourselves at the swimming

pool, gym and steam rooms on the
top floor of the InterContinental. If
the weather is good (and it should be
at this time of year), you can sunbathe
on the terrace, complete with amazing
views.
If youre looking for a nice place

for a romantic tte--tte,
LAtelier (p.20) at the elegant
Epoque Hotel has the right
atmosphere, as well as a very
tempting French menu.
You probably didnt come to

Bucharest to eat German food,
but the Deutsche Kneipe (see
p.20) is an institution not to be
missed. It serves great homemade
sausages and schnitzels the size
of the Bismarck. Good German
lager on tap and a lovely beer
garden to drink it in.
Corks (p.42) is a great place to have

a few glasses of wine at unusually
decent prices. Whats great about this
place is that just about every wine is
available by the glass, allowing you to
try a number of different grapes from
all over the world. Its a lovely little
venue too, situated on a quiet Old
Town street.
Take a lavish Sunday Brunch at

one of the big five-star hotels.
For a fixed price (around 40 per
person) you can feast for hours on
an amazing selection of fine food
while a live jazz band plays in the
background. The best brunches are
at the InterContinental, Hilton, JW
Marriott and Radisson Blu.
The Bellu Cemetery (p.52) is where
just about every great Romanian
writer, actor, artist and academic
is buried. Some of the graves are
veritable tombs, extravagant affairs
well-tended to this day. To walk
around here is to walk through
centuries of Romanian culture.
Childrens Bucharest
Spring and summer are the best seasons to visit Bucharest

with kids, and there is plenty to keep children of all ages
entertained.
The outdoor Village Museum is as good a place as any
to start: its many houses, windmills and wooden churches
- all of which can be explored - will fascinate young minds,
while there are often activities at weekends for children
who want a more hands-on experience. The excellent confectionery stall at the entrance, selling home-made sweets
and cakes, will also be a hit. Of the citys other museums,
the Peasant, Grigore Antipa Natural History and Technical are probably the most suited to children, particularly
older kids. The Romanian National Opera puts on childrens matinees most weekend mornings at 11:00, while
the opened-topped Bucharest City Tour buses - which
start running again on May 1st - are a winner with kids (see
p.59).
Bucharest is blessed with a number of good parks, and
all of them have lots to offer. There are playgrounds in all of
them, pleasure boat rides on the lake in Herastrau, rowing
boats in both Herastrau and Cismigiu. Perhaps the park
most suited to children however is Tineretului in the south
of the city. It has loads of very good and big playgrounds,
and you can hire bikes at the main entrance. On the far side
of the park (take the metro to Constantin Brancoveanu) is
Oraselul Copiilor (Childrens City) - a large funfair whose
attractions include a big wheel and some very scary rides
strictly for the brave.
You can hire bikes at one of three IVelo rental centres
located at the entrance to Herastrau and Tineretului parks.
Bikes cost 4 lei per hour, or 15 lei for a full day. The under16s and over-65s can hire bikes for free (but for a maximum
of two hours). You will need ID.
If the kids want to get even more active there are also a
couple of adventure parks to head for. The one we recommend is Edenland in Balotesti, north of the city. It offers
a range of adventure trails for kids and adults, as well as
paintball, archery and other outdoor activities. There is also
a smaller adventure park in Herastrau, with four trails, open
10:00-20:00.
Bucharest has a couple of water parks. The largest is
Therme, some way outside the city (you will need your
own transport) although much of it is rather disappointingly off-limits to kids. Another water-park (usually open from
mid-May onwards) is Divertiland on the western edge of

the city: bus No. 237 from Piata Operei stops right outside
the entrance. Tickets cost 50 lei for adults, 30 for kids Monday to Friday; 80 lei (adults), 70 lei (kids) at weekends.
For kids who just want to swim there is Daimon, a good
sports club in Parcul Tineretului. There are also pools open
to the public at most of the five-star hotels, including one
on the top floor of the InterContinental.
Most restaurants in Bucharest are child-friendly, even
more so now that the smoking ban has made them all accessible to parents who would rather not have their children eat while inconsiderate smokers breathe cancerous
fumes all over them.
A few places deserving a special mention include the
big hotels, all of which have kids entertainers during their
fabulous brunches, the Hard Rock Cafe: always happy to
see kids and packed with them at weekends, Osho and Vacamuu, both of which have a great kids menu.
EDENLAND
The best adventure park close to Bucharest. Edenland offers a range of adventure trails for kids (and adults, for that
matter) of all ages, as well as paintball, archery, horse-riding and other outdoor activities. You will need your own
transport to get here, for while a taxi will be happy to take
you, it might be tricky finding one to bring you back again.
They even have family-sized tree houses for hire (390 lei
per night) if you want to sleep here.QStr. Cantonului,
Balotesti, tel. (+4) 0733 36 52 63, www.edenland.ro.
Open 10:00 - 21:00. Adults 50 lei (for three hours), children (aged 11-18) 40 lei, children (aged 4-10) 30 lei. Bike
hire 30 lei for one hour.
HOUSE OF BOUNCE Trampolines, and lots of them.
Whats more, this place is not reserved for kids: indeed,
you will find many visitors to be adults. Jumping is the new
black, it would appear. You will find the House of Bounce in
Baneasa, close to the old Baneasa airport. Tram No. 5 runs
close by.QStr. Biharia, www.houseofbounce.ro. Open
09:00 - 21:00. Adults 35 lei, children (under 5 years) 25 lei.
IVELO Free bike hire for pensioners and the under 16s (for
up to two hours). Everybody else pays 5 lei per hour, or 15
lei for 24 hours. There are iVelo centres at the entrance to
Tineretului Park (close to Tineretului metro station), Herastrau Park (Aviatorilor metro station), the Arc de Triumf
and Titan Park.QL19, Parcul Tineretului, MTineretului,
www.ivelo.ro. Open April 11:00-20:00, Sat, Sun 10:0020:00; May 11:00-21:00, Sat, Sun 10:00-21:00.
ORASELUL COPIILOR Huge funfair in the south of the
city, close to Constantin Brancoveanu metro station, and
accessible even if you do not have your own transport.
There are rides of varying scariness (all of which have to
paid for separately), a big wheel offering great views, boat
rides and a miniature train. There are also some large, free
playgrounds (both indoor and outdoor).QCalea Piscului
(Parcul Tineretului), MConstantin Brancoveanu. Open
10:00 - 22:00.
April - May 2016
17
Restaurants
Restaurants
AMERICAN & BURGERS

BUFFALO BAZ Seriously good burgers of a size just
about unsurpassed anywhere else in the city. Not the biggest place in the world you might have to wait for a seat at
busy times, but wait you should: the quality of the burgers
is outstanding and while far from cheap, for what you get
you are paying relatively little. Good choice of side dishes
too (the fries are way above average) and the noodles are
well worth trying. For dessert, the cheesecake awaits (if
they have any left: it goes fast). Oh, and bring the kids: they
will love the place.QK8, Calea Floreasca 49, tel. (+4)
0736 36 83 35. Open 12:00 - 23:00, Fri, Sat 12:00 - 24:00,
Sun 15:00 - 23:00. . PLSW
BURGERBAR This place could well be the Bucharest
burger bar. Served with fantastic, chunky, Belgian-style
fries, crispy onion rings, four homemade sauces and Heinz
ketchup it has gone the extra mile. The burgers are made
on the spot from fresh ground beef, and there are loads
of toppings to choose from. Your kids will love the miniburgers. The desserts are OK too: you havent eaten a fudge
in Bucharest until youve tried the one served here. Add in
funky contemporary decor and you have a place we are
more than happy to recommend. Open late at the weekends.QK14, Str. Lipscani (Pasajul Selari), MPiata Universitatii, tel. (+4) 021 313 03 76. Open 11:00 - 24:00, Fri,
Sat 11:00 - 04:00, Also at (I-7) Calea Dorobantilor 182, tel.
(+40) 21 233 90 96. . PJVSW
CHAMPIONS Still serving one of the very best burgers in
Bucharest (you can choose one or design your own from
an endless choice of toppings), a fact undisputed by anyone weve ever met. It is also one of the biggest. In fact,
now we think of it, the portions of everything here are
enormous: even the childrens servings are very healthy
indeed. Besides the burgers you will find a great selection
of American pub food, as well as Tex-Mex treats and even
some more refined, slow food options. Famously good
cocktails, and more televisions showing sport than you
could ever hope for.QF16, Calea 13 Septembrie 90 (JW
Marriott Bucharest Grand Hotel), tel. (+4) 021 403 19 17,
www.championsrestaurant.ro. Open 12:00 - 24:00. .
PTLSW
HARD ROCK CAFE

One of the largest Hard Rocks in Europe, you cant go
wrong here, whatever time of day you visit. Come for
lunch with the kids (who are always well looked after, and
have their own menu), dinner with the crowd from work or
late drinks and live music with your mates. All things to all
people the burgers and ribs are a cut above the usual, desserts are as outsized and sweet as they should be, and the
service comes from smiley waitresses and expert bar staff.
We love it. Lets rock.QF3, Sos. Kiseleff 32, tel. (+4) 021
206 62 61, www.hardrock.com/bucharest. Open 12:00
- 24:00, Fri, Sat 12:00 - 01:00. . PTLESW
VIVO Burgers - big, tasty ones - and much more besides.
We tried the Game of Dijons burger, a right monster
packed with all sorts of treats, from Parmesan and cheddar
to truffle oil and a seriously good mustard sauce. You will
do well to finish it. There are also fine ribs, chunky soups
and even salads. Desserts as immense as everything else,
and the only disappointment were the fries: not the best in
the city. Worth going though, for the burgers alone, if you
can get a table: this place is popular.QK7, Calea Floreasca 60, tel. (+4) 021 233 96 88, www.vivofoodbar.com.
Open 12:00 - 23:00. . PSW
BRITISH
PETERS KITCHEN BISTRO
Serves the best fish and chips in all of Romania. If that isnt
reason enough to get yourselves here pronto, then we
might add that the burgers are equally superb, while the
pork belly - served with a gorgeous beer-infused gravy - is
a genuine taste sensation rare for these parts. Prices are
low given the quality, and the place itself is a little old Bucharest house oozing with charm. We love it.QL13, Str.
Sperantei 6, tel. (+4) 0742 58 06 86/(+4) 021 312 02 42,
peterskitchenbistro@yahoo.ro, www.peterskitchen.ro.
Open 12:00 - 22:00, Sat, Sun 13:00 - 22:00. PVSW
THE TRAFALGAR PUB
Popular with expats who have a regular rendezvous here,
this place is a pub and bistro in one, where you can get
a tasty meal for a decent price while enjoying excellent
company. The menu is international with a choice of Britbucharest.inyourpocket.com
Restaurants
SYMBOL KEY
P Air conditioning
N Credit cards not accepted
T Child-friendly
U Facilities for the disabled
L Guarded parking E Live music

B Outside seating
S Take away
W Wifi
ish dishes - we can recommend both the beef and chicken

pies - but best of all we like the beef sour soup (ciorba de
vacuta) - one of the best in the city. There is Guinness and
Kilkenny on draught: both at a good price. You really cant
go wrong. Get there now.QK9, Str. David Emmanuel
4A, tel. (+4) 021 211 31 51, www.trafalgarpub.eu. Open
12:00 - 22:00, Fri, Sat 12:00 - 01:00. . PLVE
SW
FINE DINING
MULANRUJ DINING THEATRE & CLUB
Upstairs at Bordellos is the Mulanruj Dining Theatre, a
dinner and events venue where there is regular cabaret including burlesque, magicians and such like - stand-up
comedy, live music and theme parties. Tickets usually include both the show and an excellent dinner, and there
is usually a wide range of dining options. The food - as
you would expect from the people who run Bordellos - is
always excellent. You can get all the details about coming events direct from Bordellos or the venues Facebook
page.QK15, Str. Selari 9-11, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4)
0748 88 10 85, www.bordellos.ro. Open 19:00 - 24:00.
Closed Mon, Tue, Wed, Sun. . PEWJ
DACIAN
LA BORDEI Dacian - not Romanian, note - although
there is much on the menu will be instantly recognisable to anyone who knows their way around Romanian
food. Pleasingly, however, there will be much which is
new, genuinely different and - we think - unique to Bucharest. Braised duck leg on a bed of red cabbage, stirfried beef tongue, cabbage pie and much else besides
are all original Dacian recipes, once cooked in various
parts of the country (the menu even makes a point of
telling you where: commendable). They even serve no
fewer than three different kinds of mamaliga. Hosts
lots of live music, including jazz evenings.QA14,
B-dul Iuliu Maniu 7, MPolitehnica, tel. (+4) 0747
013 386/(+4) 0747 063 249, rezervari@la-bordei.ro,
www.la-bordei.ro. Open 10:00 22:00. Closed Sun.
. PESW
April - May 2016
19
Restaurants
GERMAN
FRENCH
LATELIER LART CULINAIRE A truly amazing restaurant offering food lovers fine French cuisine in an ambiance of rare charm, hidden in plain sight in downtown Bucharest (its just minutes from Cismigiu). The French chef,
Samuel le Torriellec, offers a rich and vibrant cuisine d auteur, created for the pure enjoyment of the palate. Seasonal specialities currently include the baby squid filled with
vegetables and served in Bouillabaisse style, with spicy
garlic Rouille, the creamy chocolate with homemade powdered green tea ice cream or the blueberries and Provence
lavender coulis, topped with mini meringues and homemade vanilla ice cream. The wine list is equally exceptional. Find it in the Hotel Epoque: it is as fine and elegant as
the hotel itself.QH13, Str. Intrarea Aurora 17C (Epoque
Hotel), tel. (+4) 021 312 32 32, www.latelier-restaurant.
ro. Open 12:00 23:00. . PLBSW
LES BOURGEOIS A veritable Strada Smardan legend of
a venue, whose longevity is a credit to its management
who keep rethinking and reinventing the vast international menu packed with cracking dishes of all flavours
and making sure there is always good reason to come and
eat, drink or just have one of over 30 coffees here. Indeed,
there is so much to choose from here that making individual recommendations is pointless. Everyone will find
something they like, and we might add that the desserts
are fab too. It also occupies one of the very best locations
in the Old Town. Go there.QK15, Str. Smardan 20, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 0720 13 29 94, www.lesbourgeois.ro.
Open 09:00 - 02:00, Fri, Sat 09:00 - 04:00. PJSW
FUSION
FORM FUSION Rather good. A short way outside the
city centre this place warrants the trip. Boasting a large
courtyard perfect for long evenings the interior is worth a
look too: minimalist and yet with enough quirky touches
to perk your interest. The menu is terrific: a mix of simple
yet delicious classics (ribs, burgers: all given a bit of a
unique twist) alongside more inventive fare. The staff are
outstanding and happy to talk you through the wine list.
Not exactly cheap, it is a little more accessible than a few
DIE DEUTSCHE KNEIPE

This place has remained more or less unchanged in
20 years (it opened in 1996), and thats just the way
that we and all the other happy regulars like it. Serving giant portions of great German sausages (all made
on the premises) as well as huge pork knuckles, seriously good kraut and a Hunter Schnitzel the size of
the Bismarck it also has a couple of cracking German
beers on draught. Service comes with a smile from
the family team who own and run the place, and you
will usually need a reservation at weekends. Tuesday
and Thursday theres a business lunch: one of the best
value feeds in the city. On sunny days head for the beer
garden, which comes complete with one of those German beer flagpole things. Brilliant.QJ8, Str. Stockholm 9, tel. (+4) 021 233 94 62/(+4) 0722 28 45 60,
www.diedeutschekneipe.ro. Open 15:00 - 23:00,
Sat 14:00 - 23:00. Closed Sun. . PNBSW
other gourmet locations around town. We shall be regulars this summer: see you there.QM10, Str. Vasile Lascar
173, tel. (+4) 0773 753 667, www.form.ro/. Open 12:00
- 24:00. . PBW
GREEK
MEZE TAVERNA Another excellent Greek restaurant. It
even looks the part - we love the lampshades made from
empty olive oil cans - while the food itself is seriously, seriously good. There is tons of seafood on the gorgeous menu
(the fish soup and the prawns with tomatoes and cheese
are musts), alongside what is some of the best lamb weve
eaten in Bucharest. The Greek burger is a nice treat too. The
chef, Georgios, is always coming up with tasty daily specials, so ask your waiter whats cooking. The house red is
a drinkable bargain.QJ15, Str. Nicolae Tonita 6, MPiata
Unirii, tel. (+4) 021 539 53 53, www.mezetaverna.ro.
Open 10:00 - 02:00. . PJESW
INTERNATIONAL
NEW
CHEFS EXPERIENCE Fresh, no nonsense yet delicious
food in yet another new Floreasca venue well worth your
time. Dishes such as calves liver with mash, lamb shanks
with pomegranates and a simple steak with tomatoes all
come at prices which, given the upmarket location and
nature of the place, are very reasonable indeed. There is
loads of seafood on the menu too (mussels something of a
speciality, and on our visit half the restaurant had ordered
them) as well as a good range of burgers. A smart venue,
it looks set to be one of the fashionable hits of the summer.QCalea Floreasca 55, tel. (+4) 0723 85 69 16, www.
chefsexperience.ro/. Open 10:30 - 02:00. . PT
BSW
Restaurants
ROMANIAN FOOD
Romanian food, rich in Turkish, Hungarian and German
influences, is rather good. An example of top Romanian
fare is the classic sour soup, ciorba. Made of bor (a sour,
honey-coloured liquid made of wheat and cornflour),
the tradition of making sour soups is Ukrainian, but was
perfected in Moldavia and later Muntenia. In theory
anything can go into a ciorba, though the most popular are ciorba de legume (made with vegetables), ciorba
de vacuta (made with beef), ciorba de burta (made with
tripe) and ciorba de perioare (made with pork meatballs).
While you will often see ciorba de pui (ciorba made with
chicken), chicken is more popular in clear soups, served
with dumplings (galute), carrots and parsnips.
At more formal meals a number of cold appetizers
known as gustare reci will usually be served before the
ciorba. These include cheese, olives, spring onions, salami,
tomatoes and boiled eggs. Sometimes there may also be a
platter of warm appetizers (gustare calde), such as carnai de
plecoi (mutton sausages), ficaei de pui (chicken livers), ciuperci umplute (stuffed mushrooms), or mici. These are spicy
little sausage-shaped meatballs made of mutton, beef and
pork. They are delicious.
While main courses can sometimes be a disappointment,
there are always some superb options in good restaurants,
such as the celebrated sarmale (cabbage or vine leaves
stuffed with mince and rice), or tocania (thick stew, usually pork). If you see ciolan afumat on a menu, it is worth
trying: smoked pork knuckle served with beans. Romanian
pork in general is superb. Mamaliga is a Romanian version
of polenta made of cornmeal, whose stodginess has long
been compared to the Romanian temperament.
Though Romania boasts a not insignificant coastline along
the Black Sea, the standard of its seafood can be poor. There
is, however, an increasingly large number of specialist seafood restaurants in Bucharest, although much of the fish
they serve will be imported and priced accordingly. Look
out too for hamsii: tasty, deep fried anchovies.
Sweets in Romania are sweet indeed. Pancakes (clatite)
served with chocolate or jam and covered in sugar are a
popular dessert, as are papanai: deep fried doughnuts
filled with jam, or sometimes cottage cheese. Look out
too for Romanian cakes (prjituri), usually made with
lashings of fresh cream and smothered in rum.
Finally, a note about some culinary habits you may come
across in the countrys restaurants. Fries, for example, often
come covered with grated cheese. When ordering you can
avoid this by stating fara branza pe cartofi prajii. There is
also a local habit of throwing sour cream (smntana) on
everything, especially in ciorbe and soups. A simple fara
smntana, v rog will suffice. Most bizarre however is the
local tendency to cover perfectly good pizza with ketchup.
April - May 2016
21
Restaurants
CHEZ MARIE
Popular with the crowd from the UK embassy, including
the ambassador himself, Chez Marie serves perhaps the
widest variety of dishes you are likely to find in a Bucharest
restaurant. Both the steak with Gorgonzola and the beef
stroganoff are top efforts, while we have long thought
that the goulash is one of Bucharests very best. Good
drinks list and the place itself is rather nice, with a large
terrace in the right weather.QK12, Str. Dionisie Lupu
48, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4) 031 107 20 33, www.
chezmarie.ro. Open 11:00 - 24:00. . PLBSW
DONCAFE BRASSERIE Magnificent place - one of
our favourites - just off Piata Dorobanti. Open early for
breakfast (they do a more than decent English fry-up and
delicious pain chocolat) its busy throughout the day, catering to lunching ladies and business types as well as a
trendy crowd in the evenings. Great salads, a good range
of homemade pasta (and we mean homemade: it is put
together on the premises), a terrific osso bucco and a divine cheese cake are our fave dishes from the menu. You
go pick your own.QI7, Str. Ankara 7, tel. (+4) 0746 22 24
44, www.doncafe-brasserie.ro. Open 08:30 - 24:00, Also
at Str. Erou Iancu Nicolae 41 Bis. . PLSW
GARGANTUA Bright and airy place that gloriously lets
the light in through its huge windows. Fine food, including a luscious fried brie with onion marmelade, an outstanding chicken and artichoke salad, a couple of duck
dishes and good steaks. Prices are more than fair given the
location, setting and quality of food. Find it on the corner
of Stradas Calderon and Verona.QL11, Str. J. L. Calderon
69, tel. (+4) 0726 55 56 93, www.restaurantgargantua.
ro. Open 09:00 - 24:00, Also at (I-5) Str. erban Petrescu
8, tel. (+4) 0726 55 56 79. . PVBSW
ITALIAN
ALT SHIFT When you walk in you immediately see why
this place is the current choice of many designers and arty
types: the interior is as contemporary as it gets, the high
ceilings giving the place the feel of a New York loft. The
food is much like the place itself: contemporary with a
traditional twist, and with plenty for vegetarians to enjoy.
Found above our favourite Bucharest club, Control, the
place stays open - with a limited menu - into the early
hours on club nights for those hungry clubbers looking for
snacks.QJ13, Str. Constantin Mille 4, MUniversitate,
tel. (+4) 0372 98 02 25/(+4) 0727 31 62 45, www.altshift.
ro. Open 12:00 - 05:00, Fri, Sat 12:00 - 06:00, Sun 12:00 03:00. . PW
CAFFE CITTA Styled as a Northern Italian city centre
caf/bistro the emphasis here is on good, simple, urban
food. Try the risotto with saffron, the saltim bocca and the
tiramisu: all signature dishes and all done to perfection.
The drinks menu is a bit special: go for the apple mojito (as
delicious as it sounds) or try any number of great wines, all
available by the glass. Keep the kids happy with the freshly
LUNCH & EARLY EVENING

NEW
AROME Coffee shop serving lunch and light meals
in a bright, contemporary and really rather charming
setting opposite the Novotel. There are fresh daffodils
on every table (or there were when we visited) and the
staff are young, friendly and efficient. There are tables
on the ground floor and downstairs in the cellar, where
you will find more than a few nice touches, such as a
swing hanging from the ceiling. The food is mainly
limited to soups, sandwiches and cakes, but what
food! The double-coloured carrot soup was a tasty
treat, while the desserts are all homemade and equally
good. Perfect for vegetarians but everyone will find
something they like.QJ13, Str. Ion Campineanu 22,
MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0749 10 96 39. Open 08:00
- 20:00, Sat 10:00 - 18:00. Closed Sun. . PNW
BE NAT A light and spacious diner overlooking Piata
Victoriei serving excellent value hot lunches, salads,
tea, coffee and cakes. Look out for the daily specials,
while - if they have it - the gazpacho is as good as any
in the city. Sit upstairs for the best views of the street
below.QG9, B-dul Nicolae Titulescu 4-8, MPiata
Victoriei, tel. (+4) 031 437 96 03/(+4) 031 437 96 01,
www.benat.ro. Open 08:00 - 22:00. Closed Sat, Sun.
. PVSW
FRATELLINI
Serves breakfast, brunch and early evening meals.
Likely to win as many awards for design as for food this
is the best place to open in Bucharest this summer.
Attracting a crowd of the rich and successful it is not
for everyone (prices are high) but the quiet, lakeside
location is amazing and the place warrants a visit from
anyone fed up with the chaos of the Old Town and
the dust of the city centre. Expect first class modern
European food and a wide range of well-made drinks,
from smoothies to cocktails. The aprons are suitably
efficient.QL3, Str. Gheorghe Titeica 212-214, tel.
(+4) 0733 22 92 29, www.fratellini.ro. Open 08:00 20:00. . PLBSW
OMNIVORES DILEMMA
Tiny place serving perhaps the best cooked lunch in
central Bucharest. There are just a few dishes to choose
from each day: ask the staff whats good, hand over a
pittance and try and bag a seat at one of the tables
(there are only three or four). You can take away if there
is no space. The kind of place Bucharest needs loads
more of.QH9, Calea Victoriei 214, MPiata Victoriei,
tel. (+4) 021 212 56 66, www.omnivores.ro. Open
08:00 - 20:00. Closed Sat, Sun. . PVBSW
Restaurants
made ice cream.QI12, Calea Victoriei 63-81 (Radisson

Blu), tel. (+4) 021 601 34 36/(+4) 021 311 90 00, www.
caffe-citta.ro. Open 11:00 - 23:30. . PLBW
CASA DI DAVID You can say what you like about this
legendary, high-class place (and most people in Bucharest
have some kind of opinion), but to us it remains a very nice
place to spend the evening. The food is ristorante Italian
with a twist (the duck breast with citrus fruits is our pick of
the current menu) and outstandingly good, with enough
fish dishes to make it appealing to sea food lovers. Staff
are good and the wine list a cracker.QI2, Sos. Nordului
7-9, tel. (+4) 021 232 47 15, www.casadidavid.ro. Open
12:30 - 23:30. . PLSW
CUCINA Bright and breezy, Cucina at the JW Marriott is
a wonderful Italian restaurant where you can find probably the best (and perhaps only) butterfish steak in the
city. All of the other fine Italian dishes are equally memorable, and note that all of the pasta is homemade on the
premises. No fewer than 26 good Italian reds grace the
wine menu.QF16, Calea 13 Septembrie 90 (JW Marriott
Bucharest Grand Hotel), tel. (+4) 021 403 19 02, www.
cucinarestaurant.ro. Open 12:30 - 16:00, 18:00 - 23:00,
Sun 18:00 - 23:00. . PLESW
GRANO An Italian the likes of which many of the other
so-called Italian restaurants in Bucharest can only dream
of becoming. Serving simple yet delicious food - such
as the saffron risotto - that will have you telling all your
friends to come here, you can also buy many of the
special ingredients it uses in its little shop. Oh, and did we
mention the chocolate cake?QJ7, Str. Putul lui Zamfir
40, tel. (+4) 0743 03 50 74/(+4) 021 231 23 86, office@
grano.ro, www.grano.ro. Open 09:30 - 23:00, Mon
12:00 - 23:00, Sun 10:00 - 23:00. . PBSW
IL VILLAGIO Italian food done right. Simple, delicious
and made with only the best, freshest ingredients. The
pasta is all made on the premises, and if you like what you
taste (and you will) you can even buy some homemade
sauces, as well as oils and vinegars, in the trattorias shop.
The place itself is bright and contemporary, and even the
pizza is a gastronomic treat. A cut above must Bucharest
Italians, so are the prices. Worth it though.QK11, Str.
Xenopol 8-10, tel. (+4) 0753 50 06 00, www.ilvillagio.ro.
Open 12:00 - 24:00. . PLBSW
ISOLETTA Sublime Italian and seafood eatery on the
shore of lake Herastrau, correctly regarded for some time
now as one of the finest restaurants in the city. The range
of quality of food is almost unmatched in these parts.
There is a range of fish carpaccios as long as your arm (take
the mixed one if you cant decide), as well as more fresh
fish than we think weve seen on any Bucharest menu. It
all costs a fortune (we are talking Paris prices here) but the
cashed-up crowd that comes here doesnt appear to mind.
Indeed, we think its part of the attraction. The wine list
April - May 2016
23
Restaurants
features a Chateau Lafite Rothschild 2004 for a bargain
8900 lei if you are feeling flush.QH2, Sos. Nordului 7-9,
tel. (+4) 021 232 21 88, www.isoletta.ro/. Open 12:00 24:00. +. PLBW
MODIGLIANI PASTA/CARNE
Amazingly good Italian restaurant which simply knocks
our socks off every time we come. Boasting new chef Cristian Marino in the kitchen, there is a new menu too and the
place is quite simply better than ever: the InterContinental
is one of very few hotels in Bucharest which really does go
the extra mile to make sure that us diners are kept happy.
All the pasta here is made fresh, the meat is the finest Argentine and Scottish beef or New Zealand lamb, the giant
prawns come from Indonesia and the wine is a selection
of the best the world has to offer. There is usually a pianist
too. We love the place.QK13, Str. Batistei 9 (InterContinental), MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0730 64 48 06, www.
restaurantmodigliani.com. Open 18:00 - 23:00. Closed
Sun. . PLBW
ROBERTOS & LA STRADA A fabulous place. Boasting
an open kitchen, three distinct dining areas and a private
dining room (as well as possibly the best terrace in Bucharest, La Strada, Robertos also has a fantastic chef: Marco
Magri. The food is classical, with the menu boasting the
best dishes from a number of Italian regions. Its not cheap,
but prices reflect the high quality, and note that the lunchtime set menu is in fact very competitively priced. In a nut-
PRICE GUIDE
Each of the restaurants featured in this edition of Bucharest In Your Pocket includes a rough guide as to how
much you should approximately expect to pay for a threecourse meal, with a decent local wine (if applicable):

- Under 10 per person

- 10-20 per person
- 20-30 per person
- Over 30 per person
shell, its worth every penny: this is one of the top five restaurants in the land, and the outstanding Sunday Brunch
(held every second Sunday of the month) complete with
lobster Thermidor and New Zealand lamb is seriously top
notch. The terrace, La Strada, is perhaps the best in the city.
QJ12, Str. Episcopiei 1-3 (Athenee Palace Hilton), tel.
(+4) 021 303 37 77, fax (+4) 021 315 21 21. Open 06:30
- 10:00, 12:00 - 23:00. . Sunday brunch (held every
second Sunday of the month) 12:30-16:00, 200 lei per
person. Free for children 10 and under. PTSW
TRATTORIA DON VITO RISTORANTE
They get a lot right here, not least the bean soup that is
a meal in itself. Excellent salads, and the seafood-packed
signature Don Vito pasta was memorable. There is pizza
Restaurants
too, the sweets are delicious and the place itself is decked
out well without ever overdoing it. Well worth a look. Note
that downstairs is a totally non-smoking section. Commendable.QJ11, Str. Mendeleev 1, MPiata Romana,
tel. (+4) 0733 33 30 21, www.trattoriadonvito.ro. Open
12:00 - 24:00, Fri, Sat 12:00 - 01:00. . PBSW
JAPANESE
ZEN SUSHI Sushi - and then some. There is sushi nigiri,
sashimi, maki and temaki: all of which is excellent and relatively well-priced. There are various set menus at a wide
range of prices and genuinely something for all pockets,
not least the sashimi menu for two which is a bargain at
120 lei. There is a full teppanyaki menu too, and unlike
certain other Japanese restaurants in Bucharest we could
mention the food at this elegant place does not cost a
fortune.QJ6, Str. George Calinescu 15, tel. (+4) 0722 16
17 18/(+4) 0735 93 69 36, www.zensushi.ro. Open 12:00
- 23:00, Sun 13:00 - 22:30, Also at (I-9) Str. Grigore Alexandrescu 56, tel. (+4) 0752 02 25 94, (+4) 0721 75 54 55;
and (K-18) Str. Calea Serban Voda 86, tel. (+4) 0722 96 16
43, (+4) 0767 23 20 94. . PVBSW
worth trying too: filled with ground beef the portion is big
enough to serve as a main course. In fact, beware: all the
portions here are supersized. Though you would be a fool
to forego a nosh here, if you just fancy a drink at the bar
nobody seems to mind. Let the margaritas and the mojitos
flow.QO12, Str. Iancu Capitanu 30, tel. (+4) 021 252 66
88/(+4) 0728 17 60 59, www.eltorito.ro. Open 12:00 24:00. . PVESW
MODERN EUROPEAN
CAFE ATHENEE We love it. This is Bucharests village
pub, where the city comes to meet and have a terrific
breakfast, lunch or early dinner. The new breakfast menu
LEBANESE
CHEZ TONI Terrific Lebanese food in the leafy, awayfrom-it-all setting of the Pescariu Tennis and Sports Club.
All your Middle Eastern favourites are here, from Antaki,
Adana and Beiti kebabs to sujuk (those tangy, spicy little
sausages) and simple yet perfectly grilled sea bass (and a
ton of other fresh fish). Everything is cooked by the resident Lebanese chef.QM4, Str. Glodeni 3, tel. (+4) 021
242 02 04/(+4) 0740 00 78 78, www.cheztoni.ro. Open
12:00 - 24:00. . PLBSW
MEXICAN/TEX MEX
EL TORITO Tex-Mex as it should be: spicy, tasty but free
of frills. Expect the biggest and best burritos in the city,
topped with lashings of tangy cheese; sizzlingly hot fajitas,
no fewer than eight types of taco and - best of all - that
splendid Mexican staple so often forgotten or passed over
as being dull: cream of corn soup. The super nachos are
April - May 2016
25
Restaurants
SLOW FOOD
BEAUTYFOOD
Love it. Another brilliant little Slow Food venue pops
up in Bucharest, this time on the site of the old Violetas. Check the blackboard for whats on the menu - if
they have it we can recommend the burger with the
home fries. Always has a good lunchtime deal on: two
delicious courses usually priced around 20 lei.QL12,
Str. Jean Louis Calderon 34, tel. (+4) 0759 03 06 09,
www.beauty-food.ro. Open 9:00 - 22:00, Sat 10:00 22:00, Sun 12:00 - 22:00. Closed Mon. .
BECAS KITCHEN
Following much the same path as that trodden by
Violetas Vintage Kitchen, this restaurant is a magnificent place serving wonderful, home-cooked food.
The place itself is gorgeously simple in its dcor, at
once homely and welcoming. The food is fantastic, with the menu changing more or less every day:
check the blackboard for todays specials. You can
also buy homemade jams, pickles and the like. Terrific.
QK10, Str. Mihai Eminescu 80, MPiata Romana,
tel. (+4) 0744 34 47 00/(+4) 0722 30 89 60, www.
becaskitchen.ro. Open 16:00 - 22:00, Sat, Sun 11:00
- 22:00. Closed Mon. . PSW
offers something for everyone, from a full English to nasi
goreng, while the legendary Hilton burger - perhaps the
first gourmet burger ever in Bucharest - remains one of the
best in the city. There is also a bites menu of substantial
finger food for executive snacking, and a bigger, wider
range of beers, wines and cocktails then ever, which is why
it is now as popular as an after-work venue as it is at lunchtime. Lazy Sunday Brunch - a new twist on the brunch
concept, offering a variety of set menus - every week from
11:00-17:00.QJ12, Str. Episcopiei 1-3 (Athenee Palace
Hilton), tel. (+4) 021 303 37 77, www.hiltonbucharest.
com. Open 08:00-20:00. . Sunday Brunch 11:0017:00, set menus from 95 lei per couple. PESW
METUKA
Slow Food in every sense of the phrase: the food is
seasonal, all prepared fresh, and made from locallysourced ingredients. It also comes at a fair price: both
to you and to the suppliers. The menu changes every
day, but there is always a good choice for either lunch
or dinner (soups, finger food and more substantial
dishes), as well as some terrific desserts. Well worth
a visit.QJ10, B-dul Lascar Catargiu 7, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4) 021 311 40 48/(+4) 0740 05 55 49,
www.metuka.ro. Open 11:00 - 22:00. Closed Sun.
. PVBSW
PRIME STEAKS & SEAFOOD

Boasting a menu put together by Executive Chef Bernd
Kirsch, who has been in charge of the kitchen here since
Prime opened more than six years ago, what is perhaps
Bucharests best restaurant recently got better. Now serving the finest fillet steak in the world (the Irish Hereford
Prime - which we can tell you, as we have eaten it, is amazing), we can also recommend the duet of foie gras with
raspberry mousse and caremelized pineapple, the grilled
scallops and the lobster bisque. And just about everything
else. Its genuinely amazing this place, and worth every last
penny.QI12, Calea Victoriei 63-81 (Radisson Blu), tel.
(+4) 021 311 90 00/(+4) 021 601 34 02, www.tasteofblu.
ro. Open 12:30-15.00, 18.00-23.00, Sat 18:00-23:00.
Closed Sun. . PL
PUKKA TUKKA
No bigger than a coffee bar this place serves a limited
selection of food (salads, soups and a couple of main
courses - including a decent steak). Its all a little pricer
than you might expect, although the management
claim that everything - from the meat to the coffee,
juice and even the beer - is organic and ethicallysourced. Thats its main selling point really, a fact that
the hipsters who throng here appear to confirm. Prices
are cheaper if you take-away, and there is also a shop
next door selling a huge range of organic produce.
QJ11, Str. Piata Amzei 13, tel. (+40) 733 14 50 34,
www.pukkatukka.ro. Open 09:00 - 24:00. .
PBSW
Restaurants
UPSTAIRS ROOFTOP
Food with a view. And unlike a few other places claiming
to offer the same, just about every seat at every table here
has a view thanks to the huge windows. Leaving the view
to one side, what you have here is cutting edge design
meets good food and drink. Popular with young, successful types from the nearby office blocks its as cool as Bucharest gets, and prices are not as high as they might be.
Decent set menus at lunchtime, and a refreshingly wide
range of veggie dishes.QH10, Str. Sevastopol 24, MPiata Victoriei, tel. (+4) 0723 30 79 30, www.upstairs.
ro. Open 12:00 - 24:00, Thu, Fri, Sat 12:00 - 01:00. .
PEBSW
MOLDOVAN
LA PLACINTE Popular Moldovan chain of eateries (there
are more than 10 of these restaurants in Chisinau) comes
to the centre of Bucharest. Charmingly decorated in a brilliant mix of traditional and hip you will love it the moment
you walk in. The food is good, and as the name suggests
(placinte means pies) there is a big range of pie on offer:
potato pie, cheese pie, pumpkin pie and even apple pie.
They are all good, made fresh (so you might have to wait
a bit) and come served piping hot. There is much else
besides, including the entirely recommended pelmeni,
and the Moldovan version of mici. Part of the same place
is Andys Pizza: while good, the pies are better.QJ10, Bdul I. C. Bratianu 10, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0753 04
55 66, www.laplacinte.ro. Open 10:00 - 23:00, Also at
J-10, B-dul Dacia 20; J-11, B-dul Magheru 26; K-9, Sos.
Stefan Cel Mare 38; and I-1, Str. Nicolae Caranfil 49. .
PJSW
PIZZA
PIZZA DA LORENZO
The best place to eat pizza in the Old Town. The place
is relatively small, but has a contemporary feel and in
summer there are tables outside on the pedestrianised
street and space for everyone. Beyond the pizza (which
is excellent: light bases topped with fresh ingredients to
order) there is much else, from a great burger (with grilled
aubergines) to fish and seafood. Prices more than reasonfacebook.com/bucharestinyourpocket
able for the Old Town. You can do a lot worse.QK14, Str.
Gabroveni 3, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 031 425 35 80/(+4)
021 313 47 65. Open 09:00 - 22:00. . BSWJ
ROMANIAN
CARU CU BERE
Should probably be the first stop on the food and drink list
of any visitor to Bucharest. Wonderful interiors - painted
ceilings, ornate woodwork - make the place an attraction
in itself, but do not leave without trying some food. The
breakfast is worth getting up early for, the sarmale with
mamaliga terrific, and the baked apple a simple, tasty
treat. They even serve their own rather good beer. The
service is usually good (now: it never used to be; back in
the 1980s and 1990s it was infamously bad) and there is
a terrace in summer. We should also mention the touristy
but nevertheless enjoyable folklore show which takes
place most evenings.QJ14, Str. Stavropoleos 5, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 313 75 60, www.carucubere.ro.
Open 08:00 - 24:00, Fri, Sat 08:00 - 02:00. . PJ
ESW
CASA DOINA
Alma mater of Romanian restaurants, an integral part of
the citys rich tapestry. This classy place pulls in the cream
of Bucharest society, served by charming, splendid waiters in smart dress. The food is superb, and in a city where
standards rise only to fall so often, Casa Doina can be
considered a paragon of consistency. The location is worthy of the food, on posh Soseaua Kiseleff in a quiet, leafy,
withdrawn setting. The splendid terrace is an absolute joy
when the weather allows.QG7, Sos. Kiseleff 4, tel. (+4)
021 222 67 17, www.casadoina.ro. Open 11:00 - 01:00.
. PLEBSW
CITY GRILL
They call these places your dining room in the city, and
given the homely food and cheap prices (the lunchtime
deals are just about unbeatable) they might just be right.
You can expect big portions of delicious, often rather adventurous Romanian food, cooked and presented wonderfully and always served with a smile. We like the carnati de plescoi, tasty smoked sausages made with mutton
April - May 2016
27
Restaurants
MEDITERRANEAN
AQUA There is a string of restaurants along the northern side of Herastrau Lake (all of which, strangely, share
the same address: Sos. Nordului 7-9). This place is, in
our opinion, the best of them. A fine range of Mediterranean food, with one of the best selections of fish and
seafood in the city. The vibe is fashionable yet very casual, and attracts a crowd of both young and old who
have had enough of the dust and crowds of the city
centre. Top cocktails and wine list, and while the prices
are by no means cheap, the high quality is well worth
the extra: value for money guaranteed. Well worth
your time.QI2, Sos. Nordului 7-9, tel. (+4) 0749 049
049, www.aqua-herastrau.ro. Open 12:00 - 24:00.
. PBW
AUBERGINE Looks quintessentially Parisian from
the outside, but this coquette little place (which has
an upper floor and is not, in fact, all that small) serves
terrific Mediterranean food, drawing inspiration all the
way from Morocco to Israel. From homemade humus
and sabih to tender beef in a wild mushroom sauce
served with nutmeg poatatoes, its all very good.
There is plenty of seafood, and loads for vegetarians
(including a number of aubergine dishes, of course).
Prices are very good given the quality. Service can be
patchy.QK15, Str. Smardan 33, MPiata Unirii, tel.
(+4) 021 313 75 48, www.aubergine-restaurant.ro.
Open 12:00 - 03:00. . PJSW
JOSEPH BY JOSEPH HADAD
Looking for gems such as a homemade ravioli with
fillet of sea bass? Then get yourself here. This is an
outstanding place in every way: not only is the food
sensational - the menu is mainly Mediterranean but
there is more than a hint of France too - but the villa
in which it is served is also something of a Bucharest
treasure. In brief, this is as good as modern, contemporary dining gets in this city and a visit here is worth
every penny (speaking of which, the set two-course
lunch is a bargain).QG6, Str. Prof. Dr. Ioan Cantacuzino 8, MAviatorilor, tel. (+4) 0753 99 93 33, info@
josephrestaurant.ro,
www.josephrestaurant.ro.
Open 12:00 - 24:00. . PLSW
SHARKIA Sharkia blows in to the Radisson like the
eponymous wind and brings with it some top class
dining at the hotels latest restaurant. In place of Le
Bistro what we have here is a dining room where the
focus is on Eastern Mediterranean food, the freshest
seasonal ingredients and supremely healthy eating.
You can feast on a great range of dishes from across
the region, there are some fine wines and its all done
with that magical Radisson swish.QI12, Calea Victoriei 63-81 (Radisson Blu), tel. (+4) 021 311 90 00.
Open 12:00 - 23:00. . PL
and pork, while there are also no fewer than five types of
mici on the menu. Theres a good selection of local beers
to choose from too. Recently renovated, the place itself
looks better than ever and as a reliable, good value diner
its hard to beat.QJ14, Str. Covaci 19, MUniversitate,
tel. (+4) 0727 62 62 62, www.citygrill.ro. Open 08:00 24:00, Fri, Sat 08:00 - 02:00, Also at (B-2) B-dul Primaverii 3, tel. (+4) 021 233 98 18; and Calea Floreasca 175, tel.
(+4) 0727 54 33 33. . PVEBSWJ
CORSO BRASSERIE & TERRACE
The feather in the InterContinentals cap? Quite possibly.
Occupying the best location in the city centre, with views
on to Bucharests busiest street, this gem of a restaurant is
open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and offers outstanding value for money. The lunch - often a buffet - is a hit
with business types, while the seats by the window offer
one of the most romantic evening dinner spots Bucharest
has to offer. And then theres the Sunday Brunch, which
is consistently the finest in the city. And given the high
standard of the opposition, thats praise indeed.QK13,
B-dul Nicolae Blcescu 4 (InterContinental), MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 310 20 20. Open 06:30 - 10:30, 12:00
- 23:00, Sat 06:30 - 11:30, 12:00 - 23:00, Sun 06:30 - 11:00.
12:00 - 23:00. . Sunday Brunch 12:00 - 16:00, 195 lei/
pers, children under six free, children between six and
12 half price. PTLEBW
CRAMA DOMNEASCA Right in the heart of Bucharests historic centre, this is Romanian food of indeed historic proportions. You can expect right royal portions of
all your Romanian favourites, from spare ribs and mutton
to tender pork steaks. The home baked bread is always
served warm (if it is not, send it back) and the wine flows
copiously as evenings get longer and longer. Its the kind
of place where you will be discretely but contentedly loosening your belt before the night is done.QK15, Str. Selari 13-15, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 0758 33 30 00, www.
cramadomneasca.net. Open 12:00 - 24:00, Mon 14:00
- 24:00. . PJESW
GOOD OLD TIMES (GOLDEN TULIP TIMES HOTEL) A very good restaurant indeed. Featuring a very
wide range of Romanian and international dishes, the
menu here changes regularly, usually in time with the seasons. Of the perennials, the lamb chops encrusted with a
mix of herbs and served with minted peas are fabulous.
The young chef is not afraid to try something new and
different, and note that if you fancy something which is
not on the menu, dont be afraid to ask. Good local wine
list, and they even run cooking classes if you want to learn
even more about local food. Note the last kitchen order
is at 22:30.QE6, B-dul Decebal 19, MPiata Muncii,
tel. (+4) 021 316 65 16, www.restauranttimes.ro. Open
12:00 - 23:00. . PLSW
Restaurants
HANU BERARILOR CASA ELENA LUPESCU

Offering much the same as the other Hanul Berarilor
closer to the city centre this place (run by the same group,
who also look after Caru cu bere) is located in a house
that was once the property of Elena Lupescu, mistress of
Romanias controversial King Carol II. Huge, set over two
levels, the house is surrounded by a large courtyard and
garden, which is superb in the right weather. Pick of the
serviceable menu is unquestionably the Ciolan la protap:
an enormous, slowly roasted pork knuckle served with
sauerkraut and mamaliga; its big enough for two to share.
They serve their own beer, which is highly drinkable and
a bargain at 7.90 lei per pint.QO12, Str. Pache Protopopescu 51, tel. (+4) 0725 00 80 05, www.citygrill.ro/
home-hanu-berarilor. Open 08:00 - 24:00, Fri, Sat 08:00
- 02:00. . PEBSW
HANUL LUI MANUC (HANUL MANUC, MANUCS
INN)
Built in 1808 the enormous, three-level Hanul lui Manuc
(Manucs Inn) is one of Europes last remaining caravanserai. The interior courtyard is a spectacular sight and
essential for any visitor to Bucharest, not least the grand
staircase to your left as you enter from Strada Franceza.
A hostelry ever since it opened the Han is now run by
the City Grill group and has seldom been better. Serves
good, simple Romanian food (the mici are excellent, as is
the enormous lamb shank - enough for two people) and
a more than decent pint. A must.QK15, Str. Franceza,
MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 021 313 14 11/(+4) 0769 07 58

44, www.hanulluimanuc.ro. Open 11:00 - 01:00. .
JEBSW
LACRIMI SI SFINTI
Romanian poet, revolutionary and raconteur Mircea Dinescus latest culinary adventure is this classy and rather
big place in the Old Town. As much a showcase for the
(very good) wines Dinescu produces on his country estate
as anything else, the food is good: a selection of traditional
Romanian dishes given a playful twist, with a big focus on
game. Indeed, just about everything served here comes
from Dinescus own estate. The roasted duck with cabbage and the courgette patties are our particular favourites on the menu: look out for the daily specials (chalked
up on a blackboard) too. The prices are decent enough
- although not cheap, but quality this high never can be
- and the place is charmingly decorated (look out for the
quirky signs for the loos, made from Lego). You will want
to stay way after you have finished your meal.QK15, Str.
Sepcari 16, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 0372 77 39 99/(+4)
0725 55 82 86, www.lacrimisisfinti.com. Open 12:30 02:00, Mon 18:00 - 02:00. . PJESW
LOCANTA JARISTEA This is that rarity in Bucharest
(and indeed Romania): an upmarket Romanian restaurant.
The surroundings, location, exquisitely decorated dining
rooms, service and choice of high quality food will convince you of that. This is one of very few places in RomaApril - May 2016
29
Restaurants
nia where you can enjoy an entire suckling pig (though
note that you will need to phone ahead and ask them to
start preparing it a day in advance) and sample some of
the best vintage wines Romania has ever produced.QI16,
Str. George Georgescu 50-52, tel. (+4) 021 335 33 38/
(+4) 0721 96 19 36, www.jaristea.ro. Open 12:00 - 02:00.
. PLESW
SEAFOOD
CHERHANAUA ANCORACherhana in Romanian
means fishery, so you will already know what to expect
here: fine fish and seafood. The interior is rather special:
bright and contemporary, with more than a hint of local
flavour. In a city now boasting more than a few seriously
good interiors, this is up with the best of them. The food
is very good too, from simple yet brilliantly executed local fish dishes (hamsii, carp and pike) to more exotic fish
shipped in direct from the Mediterranean and beyond: sea
bass, prawns, fresh tuna and much more. We should add
that there are some fine meat choices for those who are
not fish fans. Desserts as good as everything else. Prices
high.QG2, Sos. Nordului 7-9, tel. (+4) 0721 33 55 55/
(+4) 0724 33 22 33, www.ancora-cherhana.ro. Open
12:00 - 24:00. . PLSW
PESCARUS The City Grill boys have done it again. Having
previously transformed Caru cu bere from a disaster into a
decent restaurant they have done the same with Pescarus,
an iconic fish restaurant on the shore of Lake Herastrau.
Big money has been spent making the place look fantastic,
and the menu is a superb mix of local and imported fish
and seafood. As with all City Grill venues, prices are kept
as reasonable as possible, and given that this is one of the
locations of any restaurant in the city, we expect it to be
a hit.QH3, B-dul Aviatorilor 1, tel. (+4) 0731 33 00 34/
(+4) 0737 99 90 69, www.restaurantpescarus.ro. Open
08:00 - 24:00, Fri, Sat 08:00 - 02:00. . PESW
STEAK HOUSES
JW STEAKHOUSE BUCHAREST
The JW Marriott hosts one of Bucharests best chophouses: the JW Steakhouse, only the second such signature
venue to open in Europe. You can expect a very American
steakhouse experience, right down to the Black Angus
beef imported from the US. The Tomahawk steak - weighing in at nearly a kilo - is the pick of the steaks, but there
is much more besides, including broiled lobster and Australian lamb chops. There is a great selection of new world
wines, and they open early for breakfast: the American
pancakes and eggs Benedict are a great option to start
the day with. Note that JW is closed Saturday lunchtime,
and for dinner Sunday evening.QF16, Calea 13 Septembrie 90 (JW Marriott Bucharest Grand Hotel), MIzvor/
Eroilor, tel. (+4) 021 403 19 03, www.jwsteakhouse.
ro. Open 06:30 - 11:00, 12:30 - 16:00, 18:30 - 23:30, Sat
06:30 - 11:00, 18:30 - 23:30. . Sunday Brunch 12:30
- 16:00, 210 lei/pers, children between six and twelve
half price, children under six free. PLESW
OSHO Sometimes when writing a review, all you really
want to write is this place is brilliant. This is a butchers
shop and restaurant serving a range of fine steaks you
would walk an awfully long way for. There is more than
steak on the menu though, such as a top burger (which
comes in a number of sizes), tangy lamb chops and an outstanding selection of fresh fish. Plus, theres a great kids
menu. We also have to admit to being pleasantly surprised
about the prices: given the location (this is Beverly Hills,
Bucharest) they are more than reasonable considering you
get the best of the best. Packed at lunchtime, in the few
years it has been open it has become a Bucharest legend
of a restaurant.QH5, B-dul Primaverii 19-21, MAviatorilor, tel. (+4) 021 568 30 31, www.osho-restaurant.ro.
Open 10:30 - 23:00, Sat 10:00 - 24:00, Sun 10:00 - 22:00.
. PTVBSW
SERB
SUNDAY BRUNCH
TAVERNA SARBULUI The fact that this fine restaurant

has been around for more than a decade, in a city where
restaurants come and go so easily, should be testament
enough to its qualities. In a surprisingly quiet location behind the enormous Casa Scanteii, the setting is fantastic:
big wooden tables set over two levels, with a wonderful
covered terrace, so you can eat al fresco even when it rains.
The food? First class Serb fare, from Serbian mici (longer
and a bit spicier than your average Romanian variety) to
great ribs and steaks. Theres even a vegetarian and kids
menu, while for dessert the donuts are amongst the citys
best.QD1, Str. Tipografilor 31, tel. (+4) 021 490 60 50,
www.tavernasarbului.ro. Open 09:00 - 24:00. .
PTLVEBSW
A lavish Sunday Brunch at one of the five-star hotels is

something of a Bucharest institution for many locals and
long-term foreign residents. All trying to out do each
other, the hotels go to great lengths to ensure that their
brunch is the very best. Besides an amazing selection of
food all of the hotels offer complimentary sparkling wine
and often even lay on jazz bands and childrens entertainers. As such, you really cant go wrong: just pick one
of the big hotels (Hilton - at Cafe Athenee and Robertos),
InterContinental - at Corso, JW Marriott - at the JW
Steakhouse, or at the Radisson Blu) and reserve a table
for next Sunday. Brunches usually start at around 12:00,
and run until 16:00 or 16:30 (check the individual venue
listings for exact times). Prices for the full brunch (there
are cheaper options at a couple of places) are all much
the same, around 40 per person.
vine.co/inyourpocket
Restaurants
RED ANGUS STEAKHOUSE

Does exactly what the name suggests: serves great steaks
to customers who like their meat cooked to order. The
steaks come from all over the world, from the US to New
Zealand, and there is more than just classic steaks (like the
Rib-Eye): there are great baby back ribs too, a magnificent
burger, and the desserts - if you still have room after a big
meaty feast - are well worth trying, not least the lemon
merengue pie. And they have a childrens menu. Admirable.QK15, Str. Franceza 56, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4)
0756 60 00 00, rezervari@redangus.ro, www.redangus.
ro. Open 12:00 - 24:00. . PVEBSWJ
VACAMUUU One of the most talked-about chophouses
in the city. Serving a range of steaks so wide and so good
that even the most jaded of beefeaters will be drooling,
you can also feast on lamb, veal and pork chops, while
the burgers are a match for anywhere else. There is a kids
menu, and the weekend all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet
is top value. Most of the meat can be bought to take home
and cook yourself should you wish, and then theres the
wine list: a surprise we will let you discover yourself when
you come here.QK7, Calea Floreasca 111, tel. (+4) 0731
35 11 35, www.vacamuuu.com. Open 09:00 - 23:30.
. PTSW
TURKISH
DIVAN From the Middle Eastern atmosphere and superb
dcor to the great service, Divan is a lesson in creating a
good restaurant. The well-priced food is good value Turkish/Middle Eastern, and its very good indeed. They will
even cook you a whole lamb if you give them 24 hours
notice. We opted for the less Sultan-like beef and lamb
kebabs. Very good they were too. After your meal you can
enjoy a smoke on a hookah pipe: theres a huge range of
flavours to choose from.QK7, Calea Floreasca 111-113,
tel. (+4) 021 539 19 19, www.thedivan.ro. Open 10:00 02:00. . PBSW
pinterest.com/inyourpocket
URBAN CONTEMPORARY
RESTAURANT MADAME POGANY Fine, upmarket yet
effortlessly casual restaurant of the new school in Floreasca/
Dorobanti. The spacious, modern, well-lit dining room gives
you a real sense of grandeur without ever becoming kitsch:
a trick few restaurants have managed to genuinely pull off
in Bucharest. There is little point telling you about the food
as the menu changes almost daily: what we can say with
certainty is that whatever you order you are likely to be happy with it. As the evening wears on the music gets louder
and the place becomes a very trendy night spot.QK6, Str.
Banu Antonache 40-44, tel. (+4) 0744 10 56 13, www.
madamepogany.ro. Open 09:00 - 24:00, Fri 09:00 - 04:00,
Sat 11:00 - 04:00, Sun 11:00 - 24:00. . PLBSW
VEGAN
BARCA Vegan and raw vegan food like youve never
tasted. So good in fact that even the most fervent meat
eaters will leave happy. There is a wide range of soups (the
coconut soup being our favourite) as well as pasta and salad. Of the main meals the lentil risotto with avocado was
fabulous, and the desserts are an inventive treat. Barca will
deliver - to home or office - and many of the ingredients
can be bought should you wish to try cooking some of
this stuff at home. Closes early.QG7, Str. Emanoil Porumbaru 9, MAviatorilor, tel. (+4) 0720 92 82 78/(+4) 0747
59 47 18, www.restaurantbarca.ro. Open 12:00 - 21:00.
Closed Sun. . PVBSW
LOVEGAN Vegan and raw-vegan food prepared with just
a little extra care than usual, at prices which are also a tad
higher than usual. We think the extra is well worth it, however. The food here is as tasty and inventive as it gets, from
the simple yet delicious risotto with asparagus to the more
complex kokopelli: quinoa with sauteed vegetables and a
surprisingly hot sauce. The menu of the day is always good
value, and note that they deliver (although there is a small
charge). Closes at 20:00, so get here well in time. But do get
here: its as un-Bucharest as they come. A real treat.QJ10,
B-dul Lascr Catargiu 1, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4) 0742
12 11 03/(+4) 021 367 23 66, www.lovegan.ro. Open 11:00
- 20:00, Sat 11:00 - 15:00. Closed Sun. . PVSW
April - May 2016
31
Cafes
CAFE & GRADINA VERONA At the Carturesti bookshop is this delightful place serving coffee, teas, cocktails,
beer and a vast range of fabulous lemonade. There is also
good food, a la carte as well as terrific value set lunches.
We should point out that it has one of the best selections of
vegan dishes in the city (including delicious vegetable noodles, a good korma and decent humus). Service is always
great from top staff, and there is often a cultural event happening (including occasional live music). Given how popular
the place is (particularly the amazing garden/courtyard) we
suggest making a reservation if you want a table.QJ11, Str.
Pictor Arthur Verona 13-15, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4)
0732 00 30 60. Open 09:00 - 24:00. PEBSW
CAFE TIMES
Serves one of the best breakfasts in Bucharest, and plenty
more besides. There is top coffee and a can-do attitude
from the staff who appear to realise that sometimes people are busy, and need their fix double quick. Not every
cafe in Bucharest does realise that. Having said all that
however, this is the kind of laid-back place that you end
up spending the whole afternoon in, no matter how busy
you are, not least as the chef, Constantin Ianculescu, has a
number of treats waiting on his new menu.QB-dul Decebal 19, MPiata Muncii, tel. (+4) 031 224 80 16, www.
cafetimes.ro. Open 07:00 - 24:00, Open 07:30 - 24:00.
PLESW
CAMERA DIN FATA
One of the best cafes in Bucharest. The name means
Front room, and being here is in many ways just like being somebodys front room. Great coffee and tea served
in great mugs from gorgeous tea pots at tables which fill
up early as the world pops in for espresso on its way to
work. Theres wine, and cocktails, too, and many people
will insist the place is even better in the evening. You will
usually need a reservation.QJ11, Str. Mendeleev 22, tel.
(+4) 021 311 15 12, www.cameradinfata.ro. Open 08:00
- 22:00, Fri 08:00 - 23:00, Sat 09:00 - 23:00, Sun 09:00 22:00. PSW
Coffeeshop Company
Piata Dorobanti
Str. Putul lui Zamfir No. 2
facebook.com/coffeeshopcompanybucharest
NEW
COFFEESHOP COMPANY
The best coffee shop to open in Bucharest for years, and
the only Coffeeshop Company franchise in Romania. The
setting in Dorobanti is as good as it gets, but to be honest
the coffee here is so good youd go to the moon for it. A
family-run business the staff are all as friendly as it gets,
while the place itself, complete with leather sofas no less,
is just fantastic. Whats more, there is some very good food
on offer as well as great coffee. Superb sandwiches, tasty
pizza and great desserts. Its not been open long and yet
is already a smash hit. Get there and you will find out why.
You might also find the Bucharest In Your Pocket team
hard at work doing research...QJ-7, Str. Putul lui Zamfir
2, www.coffeeshopcompany.com. Open 07:30 - 23:00,
Sat, Sun 08:00 - 23:00. PSW
Cafs
day fresh, warm waffles are served with a choice of toppings. Good hot chocolate, and a wide range of exotic teas.
Nice.QK14, Str. Smardan 11, MUniversitate, tel. (+4)
021 313 93 15/(+4) 021 313 93 16, www.rembrandt.ro.
Open 07:00 - 23:00, Sat, Sun 08:00 - 23:30. PSWJ
M60 Elegant, contemporary cafe in an enviable city centre location. Eclectically furnished, parts of it feel like an
office, parts of it feel like your living room and other bits
resemble an upmarket diner: there is something for everyone. Coffee (their own blend), a craft beer and wine by the
glass, alongside light meals and desserts. All very nice, all
very chic and all very popular: at weekends the place is
full. Worth your time.QJ11, Str. Mendeleev 2, MPiata
Romana, tel. (+4) 031 410 00 10, m60cafe.tumblr.com.
Open 08:00 - 01:00, Sat, Sun 10:00 - 01:00. PW
ORIGO This place is all about great coffee from all over
the world, as well as a fairly decent selection of tea too.
Many of the more exotic coffees can be bought by the
packet to make at home, and the design of the place is not
too shabby either: its contemporary, bright and the coffee
cups hanging down over the bar are a nice touch. Theres
relaxing music, cocktails and usually a good crowd.QJ14,
Str. Lipscani 9, tel. (+4) 0757 08 66 89. Open 07:30 02:00, Sat 09:00 - 04:00, Sun 09:00 - 02:00. PSW
GRAND CAFE VAN GOGH

Very much Bucharests default meet you there venue. Its
genius is that its ideal at every time of day: morning coffee or breakfast sat in front of one of the long windows,
a casual lunch at one of the wooden tables, a meal and
a late night at the bar. The food is good - simple and very
reasonably priced - and this Dutch owned, friendly caf is
a winner: you will go back more than once. It does a great
brunch on Saturday and Sunday from 10:00-16:00 (way
cheaper than the big hotels, and free for under-10s) and
we should also mention that van Gogh stays open late
at the weekend, offering a very decent after-party food
menu.QK14, Str. Smardan 9, MUniversitate, tel. (+4)
031 107 63 71, www.vangogh.ro. Open 08:30 - 24:00, Fri
08:30 - 01:00, Sat 10:00 - 01:00, Sun 10:00 - 24:00. P
SWJ
STARBUCKS HANUL LUI MANUC

Starbucks has been a feature of Bucharests malls for some
time now, but this is the first city centre location, and al-
KLEIN CAFE
Good cafe situated on the mezzanine floor of the Rembrandt hotel; it is the only non-smoking cafe in the Old
Town we believe. They serve a great continental breakfast until 10am, with a vast selection of croissants, muffins, Dutch cheeses, meats, yoghurts, cereals and freshly
squeezed orange juice, while throughout the rest of the
youtube.com/inyourpocket
Cafs
ready its the franchises most popular. Doesnt look much
like your average Starbucks - possibly part of the attraction - it is situated in the historic Hanul lui Manuc, an inn
dating from the 19th century. Rest assured you can still get
your hands on a superb Starbucks coffee, however, and all
in the company of the citys trendiest people, who throng
here.QK15, Str. Franceza 62, MPiata Unirii, www.
starbucksromania.ro. Open 08:00 - 23:30. PSWJ
SUBSOL BAR Perhaps the most iconic building in Bucharest. Inside the shell of an old house destroyed during the
1989 revolution a new building has risen, home - fittingly
- to Romanias architectural association. The cafe (and bar)
which occupies part of the building is more than worthy
of its location, a contemporary space with walls decorated
with scenes from the revolution, where you can enjoy coffee and cocktails in the company of a good young crowd.
There are tasty sandwiches too, which can be taken away
if you are in a hurry.QJ12, Str. Demetru Ion Dobrescu 5,
MUniversitate, tel. +(4) 021 315 60 98, www.subsolbar.
ro. Open 10:00 - 24:00. PSW
TUCANO COFFEE One of Bucharests most talkedabout cafes, not least for the fact that it serves amazing
cheesecake and its freshly roasted speciality Arabica coffee. This is much more than a simple caf however: it puts
on all sorts events, both for kids at the weekends and for us
grown ups in the evenings. It hosts yard sales, book clubs,
workshops, music evenings and film nights. Bohemian
and non-conformist it is Bucharest at its best. Oh, and
we should add that it is non-smoking. Hurrah! Find the
original next to the British Council, and a newer but no less
excellent branch in the Old Town.QK10, Calea Dorobantilor 18, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4) 0769 27 15 52, www.
tucanocoffee.com. Open 08:00 - 22:00, Fri 08:00 - 24:00,
Sat 09:00 - 22:00. Also at K-14, Str. Lipscani 79, tel. (+4)
0763.032.930. PEBSW
CARTURESTI CARUSEL
Bucharests most impressive bookshop is this wonderful building on Strada Lipscani. Dating from the latter
part of the 19th century the building was home to a
department store during the communist era, before
standing neglected for almost a quarter of century until reopening earlier this year after a long renovation.
And what a renovation: the building has been brought
back to life by Carturestis team of architects and is that
impressive that even if you are not in the market for
any books, you must pop in to have a look. It is also
perhaps the only shop in Bucharest where the staff do
not tell you off for taking photos: indeed, its positively
encouraged. Besides the tens of thousands of books
and gifts on sale there is gallery and exhibition space,
and a rather good bistro on the top floorQK-14, Str.
Lipscani 55, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0728 82 89 22,
www.carturesticarusel.ro. Open 10:00 - 22:00, Thu,
Fri, Sat, Sun 10:00 - 24:00. J
April - May 2016
35
Nightlife
BARS: COCKTAILS & QUIRKY
NEW A3
Successor of the hipsters favourite, A1, which closed earlier
this year, A3 is located in the rather splendid house which
was once home to Cafepedia. Going for exactly the same
look and feel as the original (they have even brought over
much of the A1 decor, including the pinball tables) this
latest incarnation is of course much bigger and not quite
as quirky. That said, the crowd is still the same: young,
friendly, hedonistic and impeccably well-dressed. There is
also more food than before: some of the pasta is excellent,
in fact. Relaxed and cool without ever quite hitting the
heights of the original, we nevertheless recommend the
place as somewhere to get to know open-minded locals.
QJ11, Str. Artur Verona 2, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4)
0728 62 68 44. Open 8:00 - 01:30. PENBSW
BICICLETA The name means Bicycle, and it will not take
you long to work out why: the place is by and large furnished and decorated with parts of old bicycles. On the
second floor of a Lipscani house the place boasts a good
long bar, plenty of stools (some of which incorporate old
bike seats) and a couple of leather sofas for those who
want something a bit more comfortable. Coffee by day
and cocktails by night is the order of things, and at the
weekend the place has a DJ and quite frankly rocks.QK14,
Str. Lipscani 38, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 0735 61 62 98.
Open 16:00 - 02:00, Fri, Sat 16:00 - 05:00. PWJ
NEW DISTRIKT 42 Bucking the trend in Bucharests Old
Town (which has seen more closures than openings of
late) is this rather striking new establishment, which claims
to be the first steam punk bar in Romania. It is certainly
quirky, packed as it is with all sorts of weird and wonderful
objects that could well end up being used as props in the
next Mad Max film. Far more than a cocktail bar there is a
decent range of food, including some reasonably priced
burgers, great salads and a decent attempt at fish and
chips. The terrace out front is enormous, and its the kind
of place you could well spend the entire evening.QJ15,
Str. Sf. Dumitru 3, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 021 315 66
99, www.distrikt42.ro. Open 10:00 - 24:00, Thu, Fri, Sat
12:00 - 04:00, Sun 12:00 - 24:00. PTBSWJ
(NO) SMOKING
Once considered very much the smoking section of
Europe, smoking has been banned in Romania in all
indoor public places since March of this year. So far, the
ban has been impeccably observed, contrary to what
many people expected. One reason for this is the heavy
fines which await those who flout the law: up to 500 lei.
The warm weather has also helped: smoking is still very
much allowed on terraces, and given that few people
like eating and drinking al fresco quite as much as the
Romanians, the full effect of the ban has perhaps not
quite been felt. We will see how things go come October, when the weather gets nasty and everyone heads
inside again. Meantime, enjoy what is increasingly a
smoke-free city.
INTERBELIC Having moved from its previous, hidden location you could have forgiven this now legendary bar for
going mainstream: the good news it that it hasnt. Interbelic
still has that speakeasy feel, like a well-kept secret amongst
people in the know. The new location is bigger, serves food,
has live music some evenings but is still first choice to bring
somebody you really want to impress with your Bucharest
insiders knowledge.QK14, Calea Victoriei 17, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0722 10 01 93, www.interbelic.ro. Open
17:00 - 02:00, Fri, Sat 17:00 - 05:00. PENWJ
LABORATORUL DE COCKTAILURI
A cocktail bar (there is beer too, of course, on tap, as well
as hundreds of teas) where everything has been thought
out to the minutest detail. The name means Cocktail Factory, so you get your Tom Collins or Mojito or whatever
takes your fancy in a conical flask, while the bar itself looks
like an old pharmacy. Unusually, they have even invested
in decent bar stools. Trendy without overdoing it. Commendable.QK14, Str. Stavropoleos 8, MUniversitate,
tel. (+4) 0737 35 67 46, www.laboratordecocktailuri.
ro. Open 17:00 - 24:00, Fri, Sat 17:00 - 06:00. PEN
WJ
SHOTERIA
No bigger than a train carriage this travel-themed shot
bar is nevertheless terrific. With a good selection of shots,
cocktails, smoothies, hangover cures and much else it is
nevertheless the place itself which will grab your attention
the most. One wall is covered with outsized, old-fashioned
Romanian train tickets, while the menus are in the same
style as the departures board at Gara de Nord. No seats,
its a genuine shot bar: stand and deliver.QK15, Str. Selari
17, MUnirea, tel. (+4) 0735 40 05 04, www.shoteria.ro.
Open 21:00 - 05:00. Closed Mon, Tue, Wed, Sun. J
@InYourPocket
Nightlife
150 wines served by the glass Cozy events each week Staff always friendly
1 Bacani Street, Old Centre (entry from Lipscani Street, Lupoaica Statue area)
Reservations at: +4021 311 22 65 hello@corks.ro www.corks.ro fb.com/CorksCozyBar
BARS: UPMARKET
E3
How popular is this place? Well, to give you an idea, we
know for a fact that if you do not make a reservation on Friday or Saturday night it will require the personal intervention of the owner to get you a table: if youre lucky. If Floreasca is the new throbbing heart of Bucharest nightlife, this
place is the throbbing heart of Floreasca. Serves simple yet
delicious modern European food (the E3 cheeseburger is
a winner) alongside a range of drinks as cool as the venue.
Top wine list, as you would expect. Not cheap, that is kind
of the point. Get there.QK7, Calea Floreasca 111-113, tel.
(+4) 0734 96 68 89, www.byentourage.ro. Open 12:00 01:00, Thu 12:00 - 02:00, Fri, Sat 12:00 - 03:00. PBW
EDEN
Boasting one of the best addresses in the city this effortlessly middle class venue is perhaps the most popular
place in Bucharest right now for arty types, fashion people
and general trendies. Situated in the grounds of the early
19th-century Stirbei Palace this place is perhaps a caf, bar
and late-night drinker. There is also often music, either
from a DJ or a local act. As such it does get very clubby late
on. Well worth your time, if only to see how the Romanian
other half live: prices are, accordingly, relatively high, but
still cheap by western European standards.QI11, Calea
Victoriei 107, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4) 0726 57 78 98.
Open 13:00 - 05:00. EB
ENGLISH BAR
One of our regular haunts. This little corner of the Hilton
that will forever be associated with intrigue and spies (it
has been around for nearly a century, as long as the hotel)
remains today a classy bar serving champagne by the glass
and much else besides (including a tremendous pint of
Guinness). Packed most days with business leaders it also
regularly hosts sophisticated parties, and on some Thursday nights this little bar becomes the most happening
venue in town, a favourite of Bucharests fashionistas. Essential, get here now.QJ12, Str. Episcopiei 1-3 (Athenee
Palace Hilton), tel. (+4) 021 303 37 77 ext. 6759. Open
11:00 - 02:00. PLW
VICE ADVICE
For visitors to Bucharest looking for a little debauchery,
there are three options, of which - take note - only one is
legal. Read this box carefully to make sure you get pulled
off and not ripped off.
The legal option (and the only option we would recommend) is to head for an erotic massage at a reputable
massage parlour. You will almost certainly not be offered
sex at these places, but there is still much fun to be had,
from happy ending massages to full body massage from
one, two or even three nubile young ladies. Prices start at
around 35 though climb higher at the more central, luxurious (and generally more trustworthy) establishments.
The second option is to simply go to a brothel. These
establishments usually advertise themselves as being legitimate strip clubs or nightclubs, but act mainly as fronts
for illegal brothels. The deal at these places is usually as
follows: after sitting yourself down at a table you will be
served expensive drinks, before being joined by some
young ladies who will try to convince you to buy them
cocktails (usually orange juice with an umbrella, costing a fortune). After half an hour of bored conversation
you may be asked if you would like to retreat to a more
intimate location, usually a room above, or even in, the
nightclub itself. Expect to pay a minimum of 100 for the
privilege, as well buy an obligatory bottle of sparkling
wine, which usually costs at least another 50. All this
on top of your already huge tab. We suggest avoiding
anywhere calling itself a nightclub and promising girls.
Be particularly circumspect in and around the Old Town.
The third option is to call one of the escorts who advertise in many of the poor quality city guides found around
town. This is completely illegal and you really ought to
think twice before picking up the phone.
Nightlife
INTERMEZZO PIANO BAR
Legendary and rather historic hotel bar in the lobby of
the Inter, which was a den of iniquity and intrigue during
the communist period, all spies and journalists, plots and
honey traps. Now its merely a very cool place to meet
and have a drink in superb surroundings. Another one of
the many reasons why the InterContinental is once again
one of the top places in Bucharest to spend time.QK13,
B-dul Nicolae Blcescu 4 (Hotel InterContinental), MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 310 20 20. Open 08:00 - 01:00.
PLEW
KLEIN BAR & BISTRO
Bar and bistro inside the Rembrandt hotel. Its a great place
to enjoy a drink with friends, and the location at the edge
of Bucharests newly-formed pedestrian zone makes it a
favourite for those looking for something just a little more
restful. Good bistro food too, and like the hotel itself, everything comes at very reasonable prices. Even acts as an
ad hoc Tourist Info Centre.QK14, Str. Smardan 11, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 313 93 15, www.rembrandt.ro.
Open 07:00 - 23:00, Sat, Sun 08:00 - 23:00. PJW
SILK SKY BAR One of Bucharests genuine hidden gems.
On the top floor of the itself rather discrete Z Boutique Hotel you are unlikely to see this place in passing: you need to
know about it in advance. You can therefore really impress
people with your inside knowledge of Bucharest by bringing them here. Expect drinks, good food, an in-the-know
crowd and fine views over Piata Universitatii.QK14, Str.
Ion Nistor 4 (Z Boutique Hotel), MUniversitate, tel. (+4)
0722 55 55 05. Open 10:00 - 2:00. J
THE DRUNKEN LORDS Its more than alright this place:
well worth looking out for. In a side street between Lipscani
and Blanari, you will find a good, lively pub playing decent
music and offering a vibe a little more upmarket than
most other places in the Old Town (especially those in and
around this little alleyway). Hosts live music, sports and
regular cultural events. Very cool, and in warmer weather
everyone gathers outside for a drink, smoke and a chat.
Youll like it.QK14, Intr. Nicolae Selari 3-5, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0736 23 88 15, www.thedrunkenlords.ro.
Open 12:00 - 5:00. PJEBSW
April - May 2016
39
Nightlife
PUBS
BEER OCLOCK
This little pub in Pasajul Villacrosse has probably the biggest selection of bottled beers in the city: so it is aptly
named. With brews from all over the world you could drink
a different beer every night for a month and not try the
same one twice. Whats more, besides the beer they also
have the appropriate glass in which to serve it: great attention to details. Tiny, with only a few places to sit, its worth
reserving if you want to be sure of a seat. Note: there is
now a much bigger Beer OClock on Strada Gabroveni further down in Old Town, with a large terrace on the street.
Nevertheless we prefer the tiny original.QJ14, Pasajul Vilacrosse, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0767 23 33 35, www.
beeroclock.ro. Open 17:00 - 02:00, Also at K-15, Str. Gabroveni 4, Open 17:00 - 02:00. PJBSW
BIUTIFUL
Biutiful is back. Forced to abandon its Old Town location
by a new law that forbids commercial activity in earthquake-risk buildings, you cant keep a Bucharest legend
down: Biutiful has decamped to leafy Floreasca, and looks
better than ever. It has managed to hang on to its industrial chic feel, while adding an extra layer of luxury - much
as you would expect from a venue run by the Fratelli people. Good food menu - the reasonably-priced burgers are
a great pre-clubbing feed - while there is a range of finger
fare if you get peckish late at night. If youve just come to
drink, no worries: there are cocktails-a-plenty and some
first class wines.QM3, Str. Glodeni 1-3, tel. (+4) 0737 29
72 97, www.biutiful.ro. Open 15:00 - 02:00, Mon 17:00 02:00, Sat, Sun 12:00 - 02:00. PBSW
GAY BUCHAREST
QUEENS
Every Friday and Saturday night Queens welcomes
girls and boys of all persuasions, and usually puts on
some kind of live show - often a no-holds-barred affair - at least once a week.QM13, B-dul Carol 61, tel.
(+4) 0721 01 21 00. Open 10:00 - 05:00. Closed Mon,
Tue, Wed, Thu, Sun.
BORDELLO There is always something going on here,

every night of the week. From quiz nights and live music
to the burlesque every Friday night, this is a one-stop shop
for great nights out. Theres one of Bucharests best pints
of Guinness on tap and sports on four screens. The food
is great, with some rather special tapas, including the ribs
which are just about the best weve ever had in Bucharest.
At the weekends, head downstairs to the Boudoir, and
note that upstairs is the Mulanruj Dining Theatre, with
live cabaret on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. You
cant miss this place by the way: just look for the tarts in
their underwear beckoning you in.QK15, Str. Selari 9-11,
MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 0748 88 10 85, www.bordellos.
ro. Open 12:00 - 02:00, Thu, Fri 12:00 - 05:00, Sat, Sun
13:00 - 05:00. PESWJ
ENERGIEA We like this place a lot: the high ceilings and
big windows make it a good choice day and night, the
original (we think?) tiled floor looks great and there are a
number of different rooms, not all of which carry the industrial-chic look of the main bar, good for get togethers with
larger groups. Best of all though we like the raised interior
balcony, which is top cocktail-sipping territory. QJ14, Str.
Brezoianu 4, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0736 37 44 32,
www.energiea.ro. Open 12:00 - 01:00. PLBSW
IRISH PUB
THE HARP IRISH PUB & RESTAURANT
The Harp is better than ever before. In fact, if you
havent been here for a while you might hardly recognise the place. Set over two levels, with two great
bars, the Guinness is as exemplary as ever, and the
food is fabulous, a cut above your usual pub grub and
bordering on the outstanding. The enormous burger
they have started serving here might be a contender
for the citys biggest. There is live music some nights,
and be warned: as big as this place is it has become
rather popular again. If you want a table (especially at
the weekend) make a reservation.QK16, Str. Bibescu
Voda 1, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+40) 735 55 44 55, www.
theharp.ro. Open 10:00 - 02:00. PEBSW
Nightlife
EXPAT PUB A year or so after opening, this place is now

one of Bucharests leading after-work and expat venues. A
venue which has plenty going for it, not least the hands-on
owners and the great staff, all concerned clearly know what
an actual pub should look and feel like, which is nothing
less than revolutionary for this city. For instance, its got a
great wooden bar and proper stools so you can sit at the
bar itself. (We are fed up with Bucharest pubs telling us we
cant sit at the bar). Serves plenty of bitter and hosts regular
events, from theme parties and gaming nights to karaoke.
You will find this place at the northern edge of the Old
Town, at the end of the little alley that runs from Lipscani to
Blanari, opposite the church.QK14, Str. Blanari 21, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0729 72 87 82, www.expatpub.ro.
Open 19:00 - 07:00. Closed Mon. PWJ
LA 100 DE BERI
The name (as you might have guessed) means 100 Beers,
and thats exactly what they have here: beer, and lots of
it, from all over the world. In fact, looking at the menu it
would appear that they stock considerably more than 100
beers, and there is more besides: shorts and cocktails for
those who dont fancy a beer. Nice long, English-style bar
at which you can sit all night and sample as many beers
as you can.QK15, Str. Covaci 8, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4)
0784 24 60 46. Open 12:00 - 02:00, Fri, Sat 12:00 - 05:00.
PBWJ
WINE BAR
CORKS COZY BAR
Nice little wine bar tucked away on an Old Town side
street which quickly won itself a handy following of
admirers and regulars. A look at the wine list will be
enough to tell you why, offering as it does a vast range
of wines from across the world. Almost all of them are
available by the glass. The idea behind this place was
to create a wine bar where anyone - no matter how
little they know about wine - would feel welcome,
comfortable and not be intimidated. In that regard, its
a total success.QK14, Str. Bacani 1, MPiata Unirii,
tel. (+4) 021 311 22 65, www.corks.ro. Open 15:00
- 02:00, Fri, Sat 15:00 - 04:00, Sun 15:00 - 24:00.
PSWJ
Nightlife
ROMANIAN BEER
Romania has a long, proud history of brewing good beer,
and while today there are just 20 breweries in the country (there were more than 120 breweries in 1989), such
statistics do not tell the whole story of beer in Romania,
which is far from being a sorry one. With large amounts of
investment from big foreign brewers the countrys best
known beers have been saved from extinction and improved, and in a number of cases new brews launched:
the current trend for unfiltered and lemon beers is one
such example. Fortunately for the visitor, improvements
in quality have not increased prices: Romania remains
home to one of the cheapest pints of beer in Europe.
The best known local brands of beer are probably Ursus,
Ciuc and Timisoreana. Ursus has been brewed since the
1870s, and if you ask locals what the national beer is, most
will respond Ursus. Both Ursus and Timisoreana (brewed
since 1718) are now owned by SAB Miller, which also produces the smaller brands Ciucas, Azuga and Stejar. Ciuc
(along with Silva) is owned by Heineken, while Carlsbergs
locally brewed Tuborg is also ubiquitous and popular. Other notable beers include Interbrews Bergenbier.
Unfiltered wheat beers (bere nefiltrata) are very popular
in Romania, the best probably being Ciucs, though you
should also keep a look out for Paulaners white beer, found
on tap in a number of Bucharest bars and pubs.
Also worth trying is the dark, bitter Ursus Black, a very
different beer to most local brews. Silvas Strong Dark
is similar and equally good. A few venues in Bucharest
have microbreweries, producing their own beer, or at
least serve their own bespoke brew made elsewhere:
Caru cu bere and Oktoberfest are two such places. There
arent that many craft beers in Romania, but there are a
few if you know where to look. If you get the chance,
Zaguna is excellent. There is also an outstanding local
cider to look out for: Clarks, made in Transylvania by an
Englishman using 100 per cent Romanian apples.
Imported beers are popular amongst young, wealthy
urbanites, and you should never have too much trouble finding the major international brands: Heineken,
Carlsberg, Peroni, Leffe, Hoegaarden and Stella Artois are
all popular in Romania. And while imported beer is usually a couple of lei more expensive than the local stuff,
no beer in Romania is likely to cost more than 10-12 lei,
even in a club or trendy bar. A pint (or the local equivalent) of local draught beer costs from 7-8 lei, often even
cheaper. The one exception is Guinness. Found all over
the country (it is very popular amongst Romanians) it is
also relatively expensive, upwards of 15 lei per pint.
Key Romanian words on the beer front include la halba
(draught) and la sticla (bottled). In most bars and restaurants the menu lists draught and bottled beers separately.
April - May 2016
43
Nightlife
SHIFT
Its doubtful that youve seen anything like this place in Bucharest before. Shift is a Bohemian restaurant/bar/club of
some style. It is, in a word, gorgeous, and has been packed
since opening day with the hippest and coolest people in
the land. Late at night this is the smartest chill-out venue
in the city, and we (and just about everybody else) love
it.QK11, Str. Eremia Grigorescu 17, tel. (+4) 021 211 22
72, www.shiftpub.ro. Open 12:00 - 01:00, Fri, Sat 12:00 03:00. PBSW
UPMARKET CLUBS
BOA - BEAT OF ANGELS BUCHAREST
Very much an essential Bucharest experience these days.
From the outside you could be forgiven for thinking that
this is a fairly nondescript building, as it looks vaguely like a
warehouse. Once you are in, however... Wow! It is an enormous place that mixes luxury with great music courtesy of
two top local resident DJs who know how to work a crowd
of party people. There is plenty of space to dance, plenty
of places to chill out and even the toilets are spacious and
damn well luxurious. You will leave wanting to go back
and cursing your luck that it is only open twice a week.
Oh, and wear sunglasses, everybody else seems to.QF3,
Sos. Kiseleff 32 C, tel. (+4) 0736 30 07 00, www.boabeatofangels.com. Open 23:00 - 06:00. Closed Mon,
Tue, Wed, Thu, Sun. PLEW
CLUB BAMBOO Romanias original super club. Quite

frankly, until you have been to Bamboo you havent been on
a proper night out in Bucharest. No small amount of money
has been invested in creating a club which is quite simply
something else, and really has to be seen to be believed.
The latest addition is an amazing 360 screen which surrounds the entire place. Its always packed with a very good
mix of people (including plenty of foreigners: it is renowned
far and wide). It is certainly not just for the rich and famous,
as others may have you believe. Indeed, given the quality of
the place prices are more than decent. Always puts on loads
of good live entertainment, including decent acts from
around the world, a touch of cabaret and plenty of seriously
underdressed dancers.QN5, Str. Tuzla 50, tel. (+4) 0726
22 62 66/(+4) 0723 22 62 66, www.bambooclub.ro. Open
23:00 - 06:00. Closed Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Sun. PLW
LA MUSE
Last time we popped in we met up with almost everyone
we know in Bucharest. Thats the kind of place this is: on the
surface it looks posh and flash and out-of-your-league (the
lady at the entrance clutches a clipboard as though her
life depends on it) but it is in fact a down-to-earth, comeas-you-are venue playing dance floor hits from across the
decades to a crowd a bit older than elsewhere, which can
afford the prices of the drinks. We love it.QK14, Str Lipscani 53, MPiata Unirii/Universitate, tel. (+4) 0734 00
02 36/(+4) 0745 02 42 17, www.lamuse.ro. Open 09:00
- 03:00, Thu, Fri, Sat 09:00 - 06:00. PBWJ
STUDENT & UNDERGROUND

FIRE CLUB A much-changed venue which over the past
year or so has shed its shabby-chic look and which has become a bigger, brighter and simply better venue than ever
before. Still plays mainly rock for a crowd of the young and
not-so-young, and to be honest it is as good as ever. We
have always liked the place and if you want to go local it
is one of your better options in the Old Town. There is also
now Fire Pub out the back (although the entrance is from
Strada Covaci): a small yet rather good boozer with a huge
and very nice covered terrace/atrium.QK15, Str. Gabroveni
12, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 0732 16 66 04,, www.fire.ro.
Open 10:00 - 04:00, Fri, Sat 10:00 - 06:00. PJBSW
Nightlife
OKTOBERFEST What makes this place so special is how

very ordinary it is. You will find the crowd more local than
foreign - never a bad thing - and ordinary out for a drink and
a good time locals at that, not the fitze crowd. The owners try to make something happen every night, whether its
football on the television or impromptu drinking competitions. The house Oktoberfest beer is a bargain. Upstairs is
Oktoberfest 2, which has a small terrace.QK15, Str. Selari 9 -11, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 0724 33 32 33, www.
oktoberfest-pub.ro. Open 24hrs. Also Oktoberfest 3 at
J-15, Str. Franceza 3. Open 10:00 - 07:00. PJNBW
LIVE MUSIC CLUBS

CONTROL CLUB
Still tops our list of clubs for people who do not like clubs.
It is a brilliant place where there is always something going
on, be it a DJ or live music supplied by one of Bucharests
better live acts. Note also that it opens early afternoon: it
is now a pub as much as a club, and when the weather is
good enough it has a smart terrace. Food upstairs at Alt
OLD TOWN J
Bucharests Old Town area is home to what is perhaps
the Romanian capitals highest concentration of bars,
cafes and restaurants. All Old Town venues in our guide
are marked are marked with the symbol: J
Shift. Fantastic.QJ13, Str. Constantin Mille 4, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0733 92 78 61, www.control-club.ro.
Open 12:00 - 06:00. PEBW
OLD CITY Pay attention: its moved. No longer on Lipscani, you will now find Old City on Strada Selari. The rest
you know: it remains a very good, always lively gastro pub
and club with regular live music and other events. Serves
a decent range of very good cocktails (a sweet-as-you-like
mojito went down very well with Mrs. In Your Pocket on
our last visit) and some pub grub that is far better than you
would expect. The Sunday Brunch is fabulous. Big screens
show football and the like, and it hosts loads of theme
nights, live music and other events.QK15, Str. Selari 14,
MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0729 37 77 74, www.oldcitybucharest.ro. Open 10:00 - 05:00. PEBSWJ
OLDIES BAR & CLUB
This centrally-located cafe, bar and live music club is the
kind of place that grown ups who still have plenty of party
left in them (like us) are going to love. Open from early evening for coffee as it gets dark it turns into a club, with karaoke on Wednesday and Thursday alongside stand-up comedy. Friday and Saturday there are usually good local acts
performing live. There arent many clubs in this city we are
happy to send people: this, however, is one.QJ13, Str. Ion
Campineanu 16, tel. (+4) 0728 21 96 01/(+4) 0725 21 96
30, www.oldiesclub.ro. Open 20:00 - 02:30. Closed Mon,
Tue, Sun. PJEW
April - May 2016
45
Bucharest Whats On
BALLET & DANCE
09.04, 10.04, 16.04, 17.04 & 20.05 19:00 MANON
Ballet in three acts. Music by Jules Massenet, orchestra
conducted by Martin Yates.QG13, Romanian National
Opera (ONB), B-dul Kogalniceanu 70-72, MEroilor, tel.
(+4) 021 314 69 80, 12-200 lei. Starts 19:00.
OPERA
06.05, 08.05, 18.05 & 28.05 GISELLE

Adolphe Charles Adams ballet in two acts. Sena Hidaka
dances the lead role.QG13, Romanian National Opera
(ONB), B-dul Kogalniceanu 70-72, MEroilor, tel. (+4)
021 314 69 80. Starts 19:00.
14.04 THE BARBER OF SEVILLE

Opera in two acts by Gioachino Rossini. Ciprian Teodorascu conducts.QG13, Romanian National Opera (ONB),
B-dul Kogalniceanu 70-72, MEroilor, tel. (+4) 021 314
69 80, 6-55 lei. Starts 19:00.
14.05 TANGO, RADIO & JULIET

Contemporary dance featuring music by Edward Clug
and Radiohead, amongst many others.QG13, Romanian National Opera (ONB), B-dul Kogalniceanu 70-72,
MEroilor, tel. (+4) 021 314 69 80, 6-55 lei. Starts 19:00.
15.04 & 26.05 FAUST

Charles Grounds opera in five acts, sung in French. Note
that the performance (four and a half hours, with three
intermissions) starts at 18:00.QG13, Romanian National
(+4) 021 314 69 80, 6-55 lei. Starts 18:00.
LIVE MUSIC
20.04 & 21.04 FALSTAFF

Giuseppe Verdis opera in three acts, with a libretto by Arrigo Boito. Guillermo Garca Calvo conducts.QG13, Romanian National Opera (ONB), B-dul Kogalniceanu 70-72,
05.05 & 07.05 COSI FAN TUTTE
Mozarts opera bufa in two acts. This particular production has been put together in cooperation with the UKs
Garsington Opera. Adrian Morar conducts.QG13, Romanian National Opera (ONB), B-dul Kogalniceanu 70-72,
12.05 AIDA
Alexandru Samoil directs Mihnea Lamatic as the king in
Giuseppe Verdis classic, with a libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Sung in Italian.QG13, Romanian National Opera
021 314 69 80, 6-55 lei. Starts 19:00.
14.04 ZDOB SI ZDUB

Moldovas finest band, mixing rock, rap and traditional
ethnic beats. They never fail to put on a top live show. Essential.QF3, Hard Rock Cafe, Sos. Kiseleff 32, tel. (+4)
021 206 62 61, 65-120 lei. Starts 21:30.
14.04 PIXELS
Good Romanian rock band, launching their new album,
ROK.QJ13, Control Club, Str. Constantin Mille 4, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0733 92 78 61, 25 lei in advance, 30 lei
on the door. Starts 21:00.
15.04 SPEAK FLOYD
Half-decent Romanian Pink Floyd tribute act.QF3, Hard
Rock Cafe, Sos. Kiseleff 32, tel. (+4) 021 206 62 61, 40-50
lei. Starts 22:30.
16.04 STARS OF ROMANIAN ROCK
Six of Romanias best rock bands for the price of one:
Trooper, Negura Bunget, Bukovina, Luna Amara, Truda,
Altar. Nicu Covaci, of legendary Romanian rock outfit
Phoenix, will also perform.QI20, Arenele Romane, Str.
Cutitul de Argint 26 (Parcul Carol), MEroii Revolutiei,
60 lei. Starts 19:00.
19.05 NABUCCO
Opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi with a libretto by
Temistocle Solera. Sung in Italian. Iurie Florea conducts.
QG13, Romanian National Opera (ONB), B-dul Kogalniceanu 70-72, MEroilor, tel. (+4) 021 314 69 80, 6-55
lei. Starts 18:00.
21.05 & 22.05 LA TRAVIATA
A new interpretation of Verdis classic, directed by Paul
Curran.QG13, Romanian National Opera (ONB), B-dul
Kogalniceanu 70-72, MEroilor, tel. (+4) 021 314 69 80,
10-150 lei. Starts 19:00.
Zdob si Zdub
Bucharest Whats On
21.04 KENNEY GARRETT
American jazz saxophonist.QG12, Sala Radio, Str. Berthelot 60-64, tel. (+4) 021 314 77 70, 105-185 lei. Starts
at 20:00.
21.04 CARGO
Legendary Romanian rock band, founded in Timisoara in
1985.QF3, Hard Rock Cafe, Sos. Kiseleff 32, tel. (+4) 021
206 62 61, 55 lei. Starts at 21:30.
22.04 LARA FABIAN
Best-selling Belgian singer of all time.QJ12, Sala Palatului, Piata Palatului (Str. Ion Campineanu), 129-380 lei.
Starts at 20:00.
22.04 GENERAL LEVY
British pioneer of jungle. Local acts Subcarpati and Fratii
Grimm are also on the bill.QI20, Arenele Romane, Str.
Cutitul de Argint 26 (Parcul Carol), MEroii Revolutiei,
45 lei. Starts at 21:00.
25.04 ROBERTO FONSECA TRIO
One of Cubas finest jazz pianists - once of the Buena Vista
Social Club - joined on stage by Ramses Rodriguez and
Yandy Martinez.QJ12, Sala Palatului, Piata Palatului (Str.
Ion Campineanu), 50-149 lei. Starts at 20:00.
28.04 CHARLES AZNAVOUR
French crooner still managing to pull a crowd and belt out
a tune at the ripe old age of 91.QD2, Romexpo, B-dul
Mrsti 65-67, tel. (+4) 021 207 70 00, 260-575 lei. Starts
at 19:00.
07.05 CARLAS DREAMS
A Moldovan musical project featuring an anonymous
group of singers and composers who sing in Romanian,
Russian and English.QI20, Arenele Romane, Str. Cutitul
de Argint 26 (Parcul Carol), MEroii Revolutiei, 40-65
lei. Starts at 19:00.
12.05 BOSQUITO
Local band (well, from Brasov in fact) mixing Latin and
Gypsy rythyms with some success.QF3, Hard Rock Cafe,
Sos. Kiseleff 32, tel. (+4) 021 206 62 61, 50-75 lei. Starts
at 21:30.
12.05 ENRIQUE IGLESIAS
Latino megastar comes to Romexpo, complete with some
of the most eye-watering ticket prices ever seen in these
parts.QD2, Romexpo, B-dul Mrsti 65-67, tel. (+4) 021
207 70 00, 198-800 lei. Starts at 20:00.
For more live music, ticket

news & full venue information visit:
iyp.me/bucharestmusic
Romanian singer Delia
16.05 ERIK TRUFFAZ QUARTET

French jazz trumpeter, infusing elements of hip hop, rock
and roll and dance music.QK13, National Theatre, Piata
21 Decembrie 1989 (Piata Universitatii), MUniversitate, 80-120 lei. Starts at 20:00.
18.05 DELIA Probably the hottest Romanian dance act of
the moment. In every sense of the word.QF3, Hard Rock
Cafe, Sos. Kiseleff 32, tel. (+4) 021 206 62 61, 49-80 lei.
Starts at 21:30.
18.05 JULIO IGLESIAS
Like father like son. Following Enriques concert the previous week, this time its Big Daddy Julios turn to croon for a
Bucharest audience.QJ12, Sala Palatului, Piata Palatului
(Str. Ion Campineanu), 140-550 lei. Starts at 19:30.
23.05 ANA POPOVIC
Serbian-born blues star, now based out of Memphis, Tennessee.QK13, National Theatre, Piata 21 Decembrie
1989 (Piata Universitatii), MUniversitate, 100-200 lei.
Starts 20:00.
05.06 MAROON 5 American pop-rock act from California. Unquestionably one of the concerts of the year.QI16,
Piata Constitutiei, MPiata Unirii, 197-572 lei. Starts
18:00.
CHILDRENS EVENTS
15.05 HANSEL & GRETEL
Wonderful childrens opera in three acts, based on the
Grimm fairy tale with music by Engelbert Humperdinck.
Sung in Romanian.QG13, Romanian National Opera
021 314 69 80, 6-55 lei. Starts 11:00.
18.05 PUSS IN BOOTS
A childrens opera based on the classic story of Puss in
Boots. Sung in Romanian.QG13, Romanian National
(+4) 021 314 69 80, 6-55 lei. Starts 11:00.
April - May 2016
47
Sightseeing
ESSENTIAL BUCHAREST
PIATA REVOLUTIEI
The Peasant and Village Museums should probably take

priority, as well as the Grigore Antipa National History
Museum. While still the most famous building in the
city and usually top of the agenda for most visitors, Casa
Poporului/Palatul Parlamentului tends to be a bit of a
let down for most, mainly due to the stilted nature of the
compulsory guided tour. Art lovers - especially fans of
religious art - should pencil in at least an afternoon at the
National Art Museum. Last but not least, half a day at the
Bellu Cemetery is a wonderful trip through Romanian
literary, artistic, political and architectural history.
CASA POPORULUI (PARLIAMENT PALACE; PALATUL PARLAMENTULUI) Construction of Romanias
most famous building, Palatul Parlamentului (known
universally as Casa Poporului) began in 1984, and continued through what were the darkest days of the Nicolae
Ceausescu regime. Standing 84m above ground level on
12 floors, the building has long been shrouded in mystery,
rumour and hyperbole. Originally designed (by a young
architect: Anca Petrescu, who was just 28 at the time) to
house almost all of the apparatus of the communist state, it
today plays host to the Romanian parliament, a conference
centre and Romanias National Museum of Contemporary Art. The public tour of the building is the only way to
see the building, and the commentary alas often consists
of little more than a guide reeling off endless superlative
statistics. Youll see plenty of marble-plated halls and conference rooms, while - if you pay the extra - you may also
have the chance to go on the roof, which offers perhaps the
best view of central Bucharest. You can even now take a trip
into the bowels of the building down below, though again
this costs extra. To join one of the tours, you should make
reservations a day in advance as parliamentary business
means the official opening hours are subject to change.
You will also need to bring your passport or other form
of internationally-accepted ID. Use the entrance on the
right-hand side of the palace (if youre looking at it fronton).QH16, Calea 13 Septembrie 1, intrarea A3, MIzvor,
tel. (+4) 021 311 36 11, www.cdep.ro. Open 10:00 - 16:00
(last tour 15:30). Admission 25 lei adults, 13 lei students
(standard tour); 30 lei adults, 13 lei students (standard
and basement); 35 lei adults, 18 lei students (standard
and terrace); 45 lei adults, 23 lei students (standard, terrace and basement). Free for children under 18 and the
disabled. An additional fee of 30 lei is payable by those
with cameras, either still or video.
CIVIC CENTRE (CENTRU CIVIC) Of all the atrocities
committed on Romanian territory in the name of socialism, few rank as monstrous as the destruction of an entire
district of the capital to make way for the Centru Civic,
or Civic Centre. Str. Uranus was completely razed to the
ground, as were most of the streets running from it. The
centrepiece of the Civic Centre, Casa Poporului, stands on
the site of the Republic sports stadium, a wonderful art
deco construction based on Romes Olympic Stadium.
It was here, at around 10:30 on December 21, 1989,

that the Nicolae Ceausescu regime began to crumble. A large crowd of well over 100,000 which had
been brought in to dutifully cheer Ceausescu in the
time-honoured way in fact jeered him - on live television. The dictators face when he realises he is being
booed is astonishing, and has been called his Dorothy
Moment in reference to the scene at the end of The
Wizard of Oz when the facade of a great, mysterious
power is torn down to reveal nothing more than a frail
old man. A white marble triangle, with the inscription
Glorie martirilor nostri (Glory to our martyrs) points
(slightly inaccurately, in fact) to the low balcony above
the entrance of the former Central Committee building (today the Interior Ministry) from where Ceausescu
held this last public speech. He fled - by helicopter from the roof of the building late the next morning. It
is today difficult to imagine all that went on the not so
distant past, as the area is rather quiet, but the (deliberately preserved) bullet holes on the building opposite
(above the Humanitas book shop) are a reminder of the
madness of those December days. The rather ugly and
ill-fitting monument to the revolution (officially called
the Monument of Rebirth, see photo above) stands in
the middle of the square, and is unkindly referred to by
locals as the olive on a cocktail stick. A far better memorial to those killed is the wall of remembrance, on
which the names of the 1058 victims of the revolution
are engraved. The memorial ensemble also includes a
bronze, seated statue of Iuliu Maniu, a former liberal Romanian prime minister imprisoned by the communists
in 1947 who died in the most appalling conditions at
the notorious Sighet prison in 1953. Piata Revolutiei is
also home to the Atheneum (perhaps Bucharests finest
building, the National Art Museum (p. 49), the Cretulescu
Church (see below left) and the Athenee Palace Hilton
hotel. A statue of Carol I (Romanias first king) stands in
front of the National Library. QJ-13, Piata Revolutiei.
Sightseeing
Churches, houses, hospitals and even a monastery also

had to make way for Casa Poporului, and for the five kilometre long B-dul Unirii, which stand today as little more
than monuments to madness. The northern end of B-dul
Unirii has become a ghost town while the Casa Poporului
itself survives as the site of the Romanian parliament, and
is rather worryingly the citys most popular attraction. It
should also be remembered that the Centru Civic is larger
than most people think: it stretches from the JW Marriott
Grand Hotel in the west (which was designated as a hotel
as part of the original project, although never intended to
be a Marriott) to Piata Muncii in the east. It accounts for
about a sixth of the citys total size. Though intended as
a grand statement of ambition and as a showpiece of socialism (the original name of B-dul Unirii was Bulevardul
Victoria Socialismului - Victory of Socialism Boulevard)
shabby workmanship and use of poor quality materials
mean that the monumental apartment blocks that line
B-dul Unirii, Decebal and Calarasilor are - despite being
just over 25 years old - looking somewhat worse for wear.
Nicolae Ceausescus largest legacy has not weathered well.
QK16, B-dul Unirii, P-ta Unirii, B-dul Decebal, B-dul
Muncii, MPiata Unirii.
GRIGORE ANTIPA MUSEUM OF NATURAL
HISTORY (MUZEUL DE ISTORIE NATURAL
GRIGORE ANTIPA)
One of Romanias finest museums, and one of the best
natural history museums in Europe, which recently benefited from a three year, 14 million refit. Packed with terrific exhibits (including the obligatory dinosaur skeletons)
which will keep kids of all ages and their parents occupied
for the best part of the day, there are all sorts of handson, interactive displays, as well as 3D films, artificial caves
and - in the basement - a thorough guide to the incredible amount of animal and plant life native to Romania.
The building which houses it all is itself worthy of note,
purpose built in 1908 at the behest of Grigore Antipa, a
noted Romanian naturalist who then set-up and ran the
museum for almost five decades until his death in 1944.
QH9, os. Kiseleff 1, MPiata Victoriei, tel. (+4) 021 312
88 26, www.antipa.ro. Open 10:00 - 20:00. Closed Mon.
Admission 20 lei, pensioners 10 lei, children/students 5
lei. Last admission 19:00.
NATIONAL ART MUSEUM (MNAR; MUZEUL NATIONAL DE ARTA) The countrys largest, and most
impressive art collection is housed inside the splendid
former Royal Palace, first built in 1812 as a private home
by the wealthy trader Dinicu Golescu. When his sons fell
into financial ruin some years later, they were forced to sell
the building to the state, which carried out huge modifications, adding a number of new wings. It became a royal
residence in 1859, when it became the site of the court of
the first prince of the united principalities, Alexandru Ion
Cuza. Although slightly remodelled (and further extended)
by Carol II in the 1930s and early 1940s, the building we
see today is more or less the original. There are two permanent galleries, split over three floors of the main building.
National Art (itself divided into Medieval Romanian Art featuring icons, carved altars, illustrated manuscripts and
bibles, and fragments of frescoes, and Modern Romanian
Art, with all of Romanias greatest 20th-century artists well
represented); and European Paintings and Sculpture, which
plays host to a fine collection of Old European Masters from
all of the major schools. The museum is increasingly trying
to attract visitors to the amazing palace itself, opening up
the former royal living quarters and throne room to guided
tours on occasional weekends. These tours (which cost 20
lei per person) have been immensely popular and more are
planned throughout the summer. The museums website
THEODOR AMAN MUSEUM

Recently reopened after a long period of restoration,
this lovely, centrally-located house is one of the finest
old residences in Bucharest, although blink and you
will miss it, hemmed in as it is by tall blocks. Built in
1868 as a home and studio by painter Theodor Aman
it includes a vast number of Amans work: the many
murals and frescoes are not the least of these. Look out
too for the exterior decorations, the work of sculptor
Karl Storck. A charming treat, and really something of
a must.QJ-12, Str. C.A. Rosetti 8, tel. (+4) 021 314 58
12, www.muzeulbucurestiului.ro/muzeul-theodoraman.html. Open 10:00 - 18:00. Closed Mon, Tue.
Adults 5 lei, children, students, pensioners 2 lei.
Photography fee 15 lei.
April - May 2016
49
Sightseeing
usually publishes details of any upcoming tours a couple
of weeks in advance of their taking place. You will need
to reserve a place on one of the tours: call (+4) 021 314
81 19 for more information.QJ12, Calea Victoriei 49-53,
tel. (+4) 021 313 30 30, www.mnar.arts.ro. Open 10.0018.00. Closed Mon, Tue. Admission 8 lei for The Gallery
of European Art, 10 lei for The National Gallery (Treasure
included) and 15 lei for combined tickets (both galleries).
For 20 lei you can purchase a dual ticket also valid at the
Art Collections Museum. Free on the first Wednesday of
the month.
NEW
PALATUL PRIMAVERII (SPRING PALACE)
The former residence of Romanian dictator Nicolae
Ceausescu can now be visited on a guided tour. Built in
the 1960s and known by the codename P50 during the
communist period, the 80-room Spring Palace (to use
the English translation of its name) served as a home for
the Ceausescus for almost two decades. While the building - which came with its own cinema and swimming
pool - is elegant from the outside, the interior is decorated
throughout in a ghastly style. Chosen by Ceausescus wife,
Elena, the decor is perhaps best described as neo-classical
kitsch, complete with solid gold toilet roll holders. To book
a place on a tour, you need to phone a day in advance.
You can also reserve a tour directly on the palaces website.QI4, B-dul Primaverii 50, MAviatorilor, tel. (+4)
021 318 09 89, www.palatulprimaverii.ro. Open 10:00
- 18:00. Closed Mon, Tue. Tours in Romanian cost 30 lei
(adults), 15 lei (children, students, pensioners). Under
sevens are admitted for free. For a tour in English, an
additional 15 lei is payable.
PEASANT MUSEUM (MUZEUL TARANULUI ROMAN) The Peasant Museum is one of the most enjoyable
in Bucharest, although it is difficult not to leave without feeling that it could be so much better. Housed in a
wonderful red brick building designed by Nicolae GhicaBudeti, dating from 1912, the museum offers a range of
exhibitions showing you all you need to know about the
diverse and fascinating history of life around the Romanian countryside over the past four centuries. There are
exhibitions covering all aspects of Romanian peasant life,
from hand-painted Easter eggs and terracotta pottery to
colourful religious icons and a huge range of traditional
clothing. Replicas of some of what is on display can be
bought in the excellent museum shop. Fittingly for the
building that from 1948-89 was home to the Museum
of the Communist Party and Romanian Revolutionary
Workers Movement, there is a collectivisation exhibition
in the basement. The Peasant Museum hosts excellent
craft, gift and antique fairs in its courtyard almost every
weekend. It also has a good caf and bistro, with an open
terrace.QG8, os. Kiseleff 3, MPiata Victoriei, tel. (+4)
021 317 96 61, www.muzeultaranuluiroman.ro. Open
10:00 - 18:00. Closed Mon, Last admission 17:00. Admission 8 lei, students and children 2 lei, pensioners 4 lei.
There are audioguides available in English, French, German and Romanian from 12 lei. Guided tours from 72
lei: phone ahead to book. Last admission 17:00.
VILLAGE MUSEUM (MUZEUL NAIONAL AL
SATULUI DIMITRIE GUSTI)
Outstanding. Founded by Royal Decree in 1936, and covering some 15 hectares on the shores of Lake Herstru,
Muzeul Satului is one of the greatest outdoor museums
in the Balkans. There are more than 60 original houses,
farmsteads, windmills, watermills and churches from all
of Romanias historic regions: Transylvania, Oltenia, Dobrogea and Moldavia. Every exhibit has a plaque showing
exactly where in Romania it was brought from. Some even
now have recorded commentary in four languages (if the
stickers are missing, press the second button for English).
Most of the houses date from the mid 19th-century, but
there are some, such as those from Berbeti, in the heart
of Romania - celebrated for their intricately carved entrances - which date from as early as 1775. The highlight
of the museum is probably the steep belfry of the wooden
Maramure church, complete with exquisite but faded
icons. You should also not miss the earth houses of Straja,
dug in to the ground and topped with thatched roofs,
or the brightly painted dwellings of the Danube Delta.
The museum has a great souvenir shop, and a stall selling traditional Romanian sweets and cakes. It even has a
restaurant, La Francu, set in an original 19th-century inn.
Children love the museum, and it makes for a perfect family outing.QF4, Sos. Kiseleff 28-30, MAviatorilor, tel.
(+4) 021 317 91 10, www.muzeul-satului.ro. Open 09:00
- 19:00, Mon 09:00 - 17:00. Admission 10 lei, pensioners
5 lei, students/children 2.50 lei. Audio guides available
for 50 lei, or 8 lei on your smartphone. There are guided
tours in English, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian 300
lei: call in advance. Note that while the museum is open
on Mondays, the houses are not.
vine.co/inyourpocket
Sightseeing
HISTORIC CHURCHES
Miraculously, a relatively large number of Bucharests magnificent historic churches have survived various earthquakes, war and communism. Whats more, all of those we
list here are still places of active worship, with services usually held at least once a day.
ANTIM MONASTERY (MANASTIREA ANTIM)
The splendid Antim Monastery, with its elegant dome and
gold finish was constructed between 1708 and 1715 on
the orders of polymath Antim Ivireanul, patriarch of the
Orthodox Church in Wallachia at the time. Antim originally
intended the monastery to be a refuge for fallen women
and refugees, as well as a seat of learning. The bell tower
through which we today enter the monastery was added in
1857. The monastery church is particularly worth admiring,
for its sumptuous icons featuring scenes from the Nativity
and Revelations, painted in 1812 by Petre Alexandrescu. The
sculptures on the wooden double doors of the church were
executed by Patriarch Antim himself.QI16, Str. Antim 29.
order to prevent them falling further towards the Dambovita river, just a few metres to the rear. The church is named
for Bucur the Shepherd, the legendary founder of Bucharest.QL17, Str. Radu Voda 33, www.biserica-bucur.ro.
CREULESCU CHURCH (BISERICA CREULESCU)
Probably the most celebrated historic church in Bucharest.
Biserica Creulescu was raised from 1720-2 by Iordache
Creulescu and his wife Safta, a daughter of Wallachian ruler Constantin Brncoveanu. The outstanding paintings on
the entrance are original, the work of an unknown artist,
while the interior icons were added in 1859 by the prolific
Gheorghe Tattarescu. Damaged during the fighting of December 1989, the church has recently been restored to its
full glory, and is a must. The bust which stands in front of
the church is of Corneliu Coposu, a liberal Romanian politician who was imprisoned for decades by the communists
but miraculously survived. He died in 1995.QJ13, Calea
Victoriei 47, MUniversitate.
APOSTLES CHURCH (BISERICA SFINTII APOSTOLI) One of the oldest churches in Bucharest (with parts dating back to the 16th century, when it served as the church of
the Trnovului Monastery) the Apostles Church is notable
for its sublime steeple, built in 1715 and restored in 1936.
Inside the church is brimming with some rather strange
portraits, all of which are well worth seeing. Among the
portraits are those of the churchs founder, Voivod Matei.
QI15, Str. Sfintii Apostoli 33A, MPiata Unirii.
BUCUR CHURCH (BISERICA SFINTII ATANASIE SI
CHIRIL BUCUR CIOBANU) First built perhaps as early
as 1416, this could well be the site of the oldest church in
Bucharest. Nobody is exactly sure how long there has been
a church here, but we do know that it predates the Radu
Voda monastery opposite, which was first constructed in
1506. Today, the Bucur Church is often ignored, hidden
as it is on a hill above the street and hemmed in by two
blocks. The current church was built around 1720 (thoroughly renovated in 1909-10) to serve as a chapel for the
cemetery of the Radu Voda monastery. The church - and
the hill on which it stands - were recently consolidated in
April - May 2016
51
Sightseeing
DOMNIA
BALAA
CHURCH
(BISERICA
DOMNIA BALAA) To say this church has been the
victim of bad luck is an understatement. Built in 1885,
the church is named after Constantin Brncoveanus
sixth daughter, who built an earlier church on the site in
1744, but which burnt down soon after. In 1751 a second
church was built; but that was also later damaged, during
an earthquake in 1838. Building work almost immediately
started on a third church, but that too proved unstable and
just 40 years later it was replaced by the current, orangecoloured, Neo-Romanesque building. Serious cracks that
appeared after another earthquake in 1940 were repaired
in the 1960s, only to be damaged again in the massive
earthquake of 1977. Be cautious when viewing.QK15, Str.
Sfintii Apostoli, MPiata Unirii.
NEW ST. GEORGES CHURCH (BISERICA SF. GHEORGHE NOU) The largest of the churches built in Bucharest during the reign of Constantin Brancoveanu, New St.
Georges Church was consecrated on June 29, 1707. It was
a wonder of the age, having been designed by an Italian,
Vaseleli, and decorated by the great Romanian maestros
of the times: the painter Parvu Mutu, the carpenter Istrate
and the sculptor Caragea. Damaged in a fire in 1847, the
church was renovated from 1852-3 by the Spanish architect Villacrosse. At the same time, new and outstanding interior murals were added by Marian Popp. A further round
of both exterior and interior renovation - including the
restoration of many paintings - ended in 2014, when Brancoveanu was made a saint. Once buried underneath the
church, Brancoveanus remains are now found on display
inside.QK14, Piata Sf. Gheorghe, MPiata Unirii. J
NEW ST. JOHNS CHURCH (BISERICA SFANTUL
IOAN NOU) Entirely hidden by blocks, few visitors to
- or even residents of - Bucharest are even aware of this
churchs existence. It is in fact right in the centre of the city,
opposite Unirea Shopping Centre, behind the Raifeissen
bank on the corner of B-dul Corneliu Coposu and B-dul I. C.
Bratianu. Founded in 1774 the small church boasts two exterior frescoes as well as a richly ornamental interior, complete with golden altar. One of the churchs wooden icons
dates from 1711 and was formerly housed in the Sarindar
Church (situated where the Cercul Militar is today).QK15,
Piata Unirii, MPiata Unirii.
OLD COURT PALACE & CHURCH (PALATUL I
BISERICA CURTEA VECHE) The Old Court, first built
on this site in the second part of the 15th-century by Vlad
epe, was considerably extended during the 16th century, by Mircea Ciobanul, and again a century later, this
time at the hand of Constantin Brancoveanu, who added
a splendid voievodal palace, decorated with marble and
icons. The palace was by and large destroyed by a series
of fires in the 19th century however, and subsequently
neglected. Much of what remains today was uncovered
during archaeological digs that took place from 1967-72,
when the palace ruins were first opened as a museum.
There are fragments of the original 15th century walls, as
BELLU CEMETERY
Founded in the 1850s, this is the final resting place of
just about every great Romanian academic, scientist,
artist, writer, musician and poet you can think of, as
well as the odd politician. Each has his or her own plot,
usually with an accompanying monument (our favourite is that devoted to the comic actor Toma Caragiu,
killed in the Bucharest earthquake of 1977). Next to the
cemetery is the Cimitirul Eroilor, where those killed in Bucharest during the 1989 revolution are buried. QCalea
Serban Voda 249, MEroii Revolutiei, tel. (+4) 021 636
35 71, www.bellu.ro. Chapel open 08:00 - 16:00.
well as remnants of the voievodal palace throne room, in
which most of the relics found on the site are exhibited.
Next door to the palace is the Old Court Church, the oldest in Bucharest, dating from 1545. It was enlarged in 1715,
during the reign of tefan Cantacuzino, and the frescoes
inside, painted by maestros Constantin Lecca and Miu
Papa, were added in 1847. The churchs exterior was recently renovated, and it looks better than ever.QK15, Str.
Franceza, MPiata Unirii. The Old Court site is currently
closed for architectural research. The Old Court church
remains open. J
SCHITUL DARVARI (DARVARI HERMITAGE)
The walled Schitul Darvari - with its lovely grounds - is a
gorgeous oasis of peace and quiet in busy central Bucharest. Founded in 1834 by Mihai Darvari and his wife Elena
- who purchased the site from the Biserica Icoanei - it
was originally a private church for the Darvari family and
their close acquaintances. Renovated extensively in 1894
and again from 1933-4, a community of monks lived here
continuously from 1835 to 1959, when they were forced to
move to Cernica Monastery by Romanias communist authorities. Made a national monument in 1992 the church
is richly decorated both inside and out.QL11, Str. Schitul
Darvari 3, www.schituldarvari.ro. Open 07:30 - 19:30.
STAVROPOLEOS CHURCH (BISERICA STAVROPOLEOS) The church was built in 1724 at the insistence of a Greek monk, Ioanikie Stratonikeas. It is characterized by its beautiful stone and wood carvings, of which
the finest are on the main doors. The courtyard outside
(beautiful on a sunny afternoon) has a curious collection of
tombstones dating from the 18th century, and you might
often see skilled craftsmen working on restoring them.
QJ14, Str. Stavropoleos 4, MUniversitate, tel. (+40) 21
313 47 47, www.stavropoleos.ro. J
ST. NICHOLAS STUDENTS CHURCH (SFNTUL
NICOLAE BISERICA STUDENILOR)
Built in 1905-09 with a 600,000 gold rouble donation
from Tsar Nicholas II, this church is topped with seven
typically Russian onion domes and crowned with an
orthodox cross. The wooden, gold-gilded iconostasis
Sightseeing
(catapeteasm) is allegedly a copy of the altar in Arhangelsk Cathedral, in Moscows Kremlin. The church is currently covered in scaffolding while restoration work on the
exterior is carried out. It remains open, however.QK14,
Str. I. Ghica 9, MUniversitate. J
HISTORIC BUILDINGS
ATHENEUM (ATENEUL ROMN)
Possibly the finest building in the city, the Romanian Atheneum (below), with its sublime baroque cupola, stands
proudly at the flux of the citys busiest public square, competing with the Athenee Palace Hilton hotel, the Royal
Palace and the old national library for attention. The work
of French architect Albert Galleron, who also designed the
National Bank of Romania, the building was inaugurated
on February 26, 1888, and was built almost entirely with
money donated by ordinary citizens of the capital, when a
campaign called Give a penny for the Atheneum (Dati un
leu pentru Ateneu) rescued the project from folly after the
original patrons ran out of funds. Today the seat of the Romanian Philarmonic George Enescu, the auditorium can
seat 800 spectators comfortably, and is renowned worldwide for its outstanding acoustics.QJ12, Str. Benjamin
Franklin 1-3, tel. (+4) 021 315 25 67/(+4) 021 315 87 98,
www.fge.org.ro. Box office open 12:00 - 19:00, Sat, Sun
16:00 - 19:00. Closed Mon.
NATIONAL BANK OF ROMANIA (BANCA NATIONALA A ROMANIEI)

The National Bank (BNR) stands on the site of one of the
most famous buildings in Romania: the Hanul Serban
Voda, which from 1678 until 1883 was the home of various
things, from a pub, to an inn to a dormitory for a nearby
girls school. After two fires gutted the building however,
the land was levelled and in 1883 work began on the BNR,
completed to the designs of French architects Cassien
Bernard and Albert Galleron in 1885. The building boasts a
facade with Corinthian columns, and an enormous central
banking hall. The passing of time has seen the building become rather hemmed in, but it remains a classic worthy of
admiration.QK14, Str. Lipscani 25, MUniversitate. J
NATIONAL SAVINGS BANK (CEC; PALATUL CASEI DE ECONOMII SI CONSEMNAIUNI)
The home of the National Savings Bank (Casa de Economii
si Consemnaiuni; CEC) is one of the most fabulous NeoClassical facades in the city: the enormous arch that
houses the entrance, with its mighty Corinthian columns,
is a highlight of any architectural tour of Bucharest. Built
during the last decade of the 19th-century, to the designs
of French architect Paul Gottereau, the building is no less
impressive on the inside, not least the huge entrance
hall with its sensational glass roof, and dome that nods
towards the style of later Byzantine cathedrals. The main
halls are elaborately decorated with murals by Mihai Simonidi.QJ15, Calea Victoriei 13. J
April - May 2016
53
Sightseeing
BUCHAREST MONOPOLY
We have long said that this should be the first thing on
any list of must-have Romanian souvenirs. The classic
board game has been given a local twist, the streets of
London (or whichever other city you are familiar with)
replaced with the streets of Bucharest. The cheapest
property on the board is Rahova, while the most expensive is Bulevardul Primaverii. Found in most good
toy shops and hypermarkets, it sells for around 90 lei.
NATIONAL THEATRE (TEATRUL NATIONAL A
building in three parts. The original National Theatre was
built between 1967 and 1970 to the design of three Romanian architects, Horia Maicu, Romeo Belea and Nicolae
Cucu, and was rather abstractly styled to honour the architecture of Moldovas famous monasteries. Unfortunately,
the building was then ruined in 1984-5 when a grey, concrete, vaguely Neo-Classical casing was placed over the
earlier structure. That ugly casing, however, was removed
in 2011 when the theatre began to take on its current
shape. As such, the colourful red and white theatre once
again looks much like the construction the original architects envisaged, although there are major differences inside the building. There are now a number of new, smaller
auditoriums alongside the main stage, which is itself more
flexible then before, and more able to accommodate outside-the-box productions. The odd statue in front of the
theatre is called the Caruta cu paiate, a tribute to Romanias best loved playwright, Ion Luca Caragiale. It features
characters from Caragiales plays, and was unveiled in
December 2010.QK13, Piata 21 Decembrie 1989 (Piata
Universitatii), MUniversitate, www.tnb.ro/en.
UNIVERSITATE The twin semi-circular buildings in Piata
Universitatii which are in many ways the entrance to the
Old Town were built in 1906 to serve as the headquarters
of Romanias largest insurance company. In front of them
are four statues, of Gheorghe Lazar (founder, in 1818, of
the first Romanian school in Bucharest), Ion Heliade Radulescu (a founding member of the Romanian Academy),
Mihai Voievod Viteazul (the first person to unite the three
Romanian provinces, in 1600) and Spiru Haret (a mathematician, astronomer and politician who as education
minister in the 1880s and 1890s created the foundations
of the modern Romanian education system). Opposite is
the university building itself, constructed over a twelve
year period from 1857 to 1869 at the behest of Alexandru Ioan Cuza, at the time Prince of Romania. It originally
housed three faculties (Law, Humanities and Science), but
today houses just the Faculty of Letters and Languages,
as well as the universitys administrative departments. The
central corp of the building was entirely rebuilt in the late
1940s after it was destroyed during heavy allied bombing
in 1944. Though rebuilt as an exact replica of the original, many sculptures and basreliefs by Carol Storck were
deemed irreplaceable and lost forever.QK14, Piata Universitatii, MUniversitate.
BUCHARESTS MUSEUMS
ART COLLECTION MUSEUM (MUZEUL COLECTIILOR DE ART) Firstly, a few words about the building.
The Casa Romanit was constructed in 1822 as a private
residence, before being bought by the state in 1883 to
serve as the countrys supreme court. After the communist
takeover in the 1940s it was used as a dumping ground
for the collections of wealthy Romanians not allowed to
retain their art by the regime. There are some fantastic
works on show, including paintings by all of Romanias
greatest artists, from Nicolae Grigorescu to Theodor Pallady. In terms of artistic importance the collections here
are second only to those at the National Museum of Art.
QH10, Calea Victoriei 111, tel. (+4) 021 212 96 41/(+4)
021 212 96 42, www.mnar.arts.ro/Muzeul-Colectiilorde-Arta. Open 10:00-18:00, Closed Thu, Fri. From May
Open 11:00-19:00, Closed Thu, Fri. Admission 7 lei, students/children 3.50 lei.
GEORGE ENESCU MUSEUM (MUZEUL NATIONAL GEORGE ENESCU) Mistakenly believed to be the
great Romanian composer George Enescus former home,
this outstanding Secession house was in fact built for
landowner George Cantacuzino in 1905, and many older
Bucharest residents still refer to it as the Cantacuzino Palace. It became state property in 1955, the year of Enescus
death, and a year later opened as a museum dedicated
to his life and work. You will find rooms full of the usual
memorabilia and artefacts from the eventful life of Romanias most famous composer, as well as a full telling of the
story of Romanian music in general.QH10, Calea Victoriei 141, MPiata Victoriei, tel. (+4) 021 318 14 50, www.
georgeenescu.ro. Open 10:00 - 17:00. Closed Mon.
Admission 6 lei, pensioners 3 lei, children 1.50 lei. Free
entry on the 26th of each month.
NATIONAL HISTORY MUSEUM (MUZEUL NATIONAL DE ISTORIE)
The beautiful, monumental and simply superb NeoClassical building that houses Romanias National History
Museum was constructed from 1894-1900 to the designs
of local architect Alexandru Svulescu. It originally served
as the headquarters of Pota Roman, the Romanian
postal service. When the post office moved away in 1970,
the History Museum moved in. The museums exhibitions
are spread over 60 display rooms, although the vast majority are currently closed for renovation. The museums two
most important collections, however, are very much open:
the Lapidarium and the Romanian Treasury. The Lapidarium includes statues brought from a Bronze Age necropolis
close to present day Cernavoda and what is probably the
museums finest exhibit, a full-scale replica of Trajans Column. The Romanian Treasury includes jewellery from the
time of the Geto-Dacians, as well as the current Romanian
Crown Jewels, including the kings crown and an amazing
selection of emeralds made for Queen Marie, wife of Romanian King Ferdinand and the granddaughter of Queen
Victoria. The bizarre statue on the museums steps - which
Sightseeing
appeared during May 2012 - allegedly represents the emperor Trajan holding a wolf. It has not not surprisingly been
the subject of much ridicule, and is a popular object for
both locals and visitors to have their photo taken with.
Ironically, of course.QJ15, Calea Victoriei 12, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 315 82 07, www.mnir.ro. Open 10:00
- 18:00. Closed Mon, Tue. Admission 25 lei, pensioners
15 lei, students and children 7 lei. J
NATIONAL MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
(MNAC; MUZEUL NATIONAL DE ARTA CONTEMPORANA)
Making excellent use of the wide open spaces of the Parliament Palace, this vast gallery displays the work of Romanias finest contemporary artists. There are also works
on display by international artists, and regular topical exhibitions. We think its one of the highlights of the citys
cultural scene and a visit here has the added bonus of
getting you into the Casa Poporului without taking the
guided tour.QH15, Calea 13 Septembrie 1, entrance E4
(Palatul Parlamentului), MIzvor, tel. (+4) 021 318 91 37,
www.mnac.ro. Open 10:00 - 18:00. Closed Mon, Tue.
Admission 10 lei, children 2.50 lei. Free entrance for the
under-sevens.
NATIONAL TECHNICAL MUSEUM (MUZEUL
TEHNIC DIMITRIE LEONIDA)
Often unfairly derided as an outdated (if amusingly so)
museum of technology, it should be remembered that
the machines, turbines, inventions and gadgets on display here are not meant to be cutting edge. At least not
in this day and age. They were all, however, cutting edge
when they first appeared, with some of the older steam
engines dating back to the beginning of the 19th century.
The museum is housed in something of a cherished relic
itself: the last remaining pavilion (of many) built to host
the 1906 Romania Fair, a showcase of everything great in
and about Romania at the time.QJ18, Str. Gen. Candiano
Popescu 2, tel. (+4) 021 336 93 90, www.mnt-leonida.
ro. Open 10:30 - 18:00. Closed Mon, Tue. Admission 6
lei, pensioners, students, children 3 lei.
STORCK MUSEUM (MUZEUL DE ART FREDERIC
STORCK I CECILIA CUESCU-STORCK)
In a delightful house designed by French architect Andre
Clavel, a short walk from Piaa Victoriei, is this eclectic and
quite superb museum dedicated to the work of the Storck
family. Cecilia Cuescu-Storck (1879-69) was the most celebrated member of the family, and there are more than 150
examples of her work here, from monumental paintings to
avant garde sculpture.QJ9, Str. Vasile Alecsandri 16, tel.
(+4) 021 317 38 89. Open 10:00 - 18:00. Closed Mon, Tue.
Admission 5 lei, children 2 lei.
SUTU PALACE / MUSEUM OF BUCHAREST
Much overlooked museum, despite its location in the very
centre of the city. The main exhibition is on the first floor,
the highlight of which is probably the selection of maps of
Bucharest through the ages, while there is also an original
April - May 2016
55
Sightseeing
SIGHTSEEING TOURS
BOOKTOURSROMANIA Offers a variety of tours
of both Bucharest and Romania. All tours are private
and fully customisable, particularly suitable for couples
and small groups. The tours on offer vary from a one
day walking tour of Bucharest to multiple days spent
throughout Romania.QTel. (+4) 0727 03 29 45, www.
booktoursromania.com.
CULTURAL TRAVEL & TOURS CT&T provides tailormade heritage sightseeing tours of Bucharest (from 29),
a number of themed tours around Wallachia and Transylvania, and several nationwide tours of varying lengths.
Other flexible services and guides in a variety of languages are available on request.QTel./fax (+4) 0747 08 47 18,
tel. (+4) 0724 71 88 48, www.cttours.ro.
MR. TRIPP Offers a number of terrific tours, not the least
of which is the excellent value four-hour tour of Mogosoaia and Snagov for 49, which includes the tomb of Vlad
Tepes (Dracula). There is also a full-day trip to Draculas
Castle (Bran; 79) which also includes Peles, Sinaia Monastery and Brasov. They will even pick you up from, and drop
you off back at, your hotel for free. The price includes all
entrance fees and a guide.QJ-13, Calea Victoriei 68-70,
tel. (+4) 0745 75 27 53, www.traveltobucharest.com.
Open 10:00 - 20:00 , Sun 10:00 - 17:00.
log from the Podul Mogosoaia: the forerunner of Calea
Victoriei in the days when the street was paved with logs.
The exhibition is well captioned in Romanian and English,
and while small an enjoyable hour can be spent here. You
will leave feeling as though you want more, however. Indeed, it could be argued that the real draw is the building
in which the museum is housed: the elegant, Neo-Gothic
uu Palace, built from 1833-4 for the wealthy merchant
Costache uu and recently reopened after a period of renovation. The main staircase is particularly opulent.QK14,
B-dul I.C. Bratianu 2, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 315
68 58, www.muzeulbucurestiului.ro. Open 10:00 18:00. Closed Mon. J
THEODOR PALLADY MUSEUM (CASA MELIK,
MUZEUL THEODOR PALLADY)
Theodor Pallady (1871 - 1953) was an early Cubist artist
widely regarded as Romanias most influential 20th century painter. Schooled in Dresden and Paris, Pallady was
influenced by the Symbolist environment of the late 19th
century, and his paintings before 1916 contain Symbolist
motifs, sometimes with echoes of Moreau and Puvis de
Chavannes. Alas the small museum that today bears his
name has only six of his paintings, a couple of his sketches
and assorted other art. The museums saving grace is the
house in which it is hosted: the oldest in Bucharest. Originally called the Casa Melik, it was built around 1750 by
the rich Armenian Hagi Kevork Nazaretoglu. Walk over the
enchantingly creaky wooden floors and admire the deco56 Bucharest In Your Pocket
RAPSODIA TOURS Offers a range of sleep and drive

packages featuring Bucharest, Sibiu, Sighisoara and Brasov from 140. The prices include two nights four-star
accommodation with breakfast and three days car hire.
QG-9, B-dul Nicolae Titulescu 1, tel. (+4) 0744 63 82
92/(+4) 0744 58 67 24.
TRANSVISION TransVision runs a number of tours, including a Dracula Tour which takes in Peles Castle, Rasnov
Citadel and Dracula (Bran) Castle in Transylvania. The price
is 59/person. Another option is a two-day tour of Transylvania, also including Sibiu, Sighisoara and Brasov. The
price is 159/person and includes a night at a three-star
hotel with breakfast. All tours include free pick-up and
return from any Bucharest hotel, as well as an Englishspeaking guide (other languages available).QTel. (+4)
0755 05 26 21, www.transvision.ro.
TRAVELMAKER
Escorted group tours from and around Bucharest, an airport shuttle service and private transfers. They also provide hotel accommodation all over Romania, city break
packages and short trips. Offers the only daily group tour
(which anyone can join) to Peles and Bran Castles for 69
per person.QStr. Elena Vacarescu 9, bl. XXI-2, tel. (+4)
0735 52 57 10, www.bucharestcitytour.com. Open
09:00 - 18:00. Closed Sat, Sun.
rated tavane (ceilings).QM12, Str. Sptarului 22, tel. (+4)
021 211 49 79, www.mnar.arts.ro/Muzeul-TheodorPallady. Open 10:00-18:00. Closed Mon, Tue. From May
Open 11:00-19:00. Admission 5.00 lei, students and
children 2.50 lei.
ZAMBACCIAN MUSEUM
(MUZEUL ZAMBACCIAN)
A not-to-be-missed chance to see the large collection
belonging to the long deceased Armenian businessman
Krikor Zambaccian (1889-1962; youll see the requisite
portraits) that includes the only Cezanne in Romania, as
well as the best of Romanian painters Nicolae Grigorescu, Ioan Andreescu, tefan Luchian, Gheorghe Petracu,
Nicolae Tonitza, Nicolae Drscu, Theodor Pallady, Iosif
Iser, Corneliu Baba, Alexandru Ciucurencu, Horia Damian,
Alexandru Padina, Ion uculescu, and a smaller yet notable
group of sculptures by Dimitrie Paciurea, Oscar Han, Corneliu Medrea, Ion Jalea and Constantin Brncui. It really is
a thorough look at modern Romanian art. There are also
19 paintings by French artists, including Delacroix, Renoir,
Pissarro, Sisle, Bonnard, Utrillo, Marquet, Matisse and the
only Cezanne in Romania (Portrait of a Little Girl).QI7, Str.
Muzeul Zambaccian 21A, tel. (+4) 021 230 19 20, www.
mnar.arts.ro/Muzeul-KH-Zambaccian. Open 11:0019:00, Open 10:00-18:00. Closed Mon, Tue. From May
Open 11:00-19:00. Admission 7 lei, children, students
3.50 lei.
Sightseeing
PARKS & GARDENS
BOTANICAL GARDENS (GRDINA BOTANIC)
Bucharests fabulous Botanical Gardens were founded in
1860 with the significant financial backing of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza, at the time the leader of the nascent
Romanian state. Completed in 1866 to the designs and
instructions of Ulrich Hoffmann, they were originally in
the grounds of the Cotroceni Monastery, moving to their
present location in 1884. The garden, administratively part
of Bucharest Universitys Botanical Institute, today extends
over an area of more than 17 hectares, and hosts more than
10,000 species of plants, approximately half of which are
cultivated in the impressive glasshouses. Of particular note
are the exotic flowers (more than 1000 are on display) and
the bizarre Symphytum ottomanum, a plant which can
appear to vanish without trace only to reappear up to 50
metres away. The recently renovated glasshouses are fabulous, and kids love the wide variety of strange plants inside,
especially the cacti and the Venus fly traps. Many locals like
to take advantage of the bargain entrance fee and use the
exterior of the gardens as a park, and thus the place can often be far more full with courting couples than with lovers
of more floral delights. Whatever your reasons for going, its
a terrific place to spend a morning.QC13, Sos. Cotroceni
32, MPolitehnica, tel. (+4) 021 410 91 39, www.gradinabotanica.ro. Gardens open 08:00-20:00. Botanical Museum open 10:00-15:00, 09:00-13:00, Sat, Sun, Closed
Fri. Greenhouses open 10:00-13:00, Closed Mon, Wed,
Fri. Admission to the gardens 5 lei, students and children 2 lei. Admission to the museum and greenhouses
costs extra, 2 lei adults, 1 leu children.
CAROL PARK (PARCUL CAROL I/PARCUL
LIBERTII) So close to the city centre yet strangely forgotten by many, this large park was created for the Romania in the World exhibition which was held here in 1906.
(The Technical Museum, to the left of the main entrance,
is housed in one of the original exhibition pavilions). Designed by the French landscape artist Eduard Redont, the
park is today dominated by the massive Monument to
the Heroes of the Struggle for Freedom and Socialism
(it stands 48m high) built in 1963 and which until 1990
was a mausoleum which housed the remains of communist leaders Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej and Petre Groza (it
is today the site of the tomb of Romanias Unknown Soldier). The park offers some pleasant walks along tree-lined
paths, playgrounds and terraces, and a good view of central Bucharest from the monument. The open-air Arenele
Romane in the west of the park, next to the observatory
of the Astronomic Institute of the Romanian Academy is a
popular if rather rundown venue for concerts. Close by is
the gorgeous Cutitul de Argint Church, built in 1796 and
famous for its many exterior icons. On the other side of
the park it is worth looking out for the medieval-looking
Tepes Castle (which in fact dates from 1906), once a water
tower but now used as offices by the Romanian Armys
veterans association.QJ19, Calea Serban Vod, MEroii
Revolutiei.
CISMIGIU GARDENS (GRDINA CISMIGIU)

The most central of the citys public gardens, Cismigiu
is a haven of lawns, trees, flowers and lakes. Often mistakenly referred to as a park, Cismigiu is actually a large
garden, first designed and laid out in 1845 by the German
landscape architect Carl Meyer, but not completed until
1860. More than 30,000 trees and plants were brought in
from the Romanian mountains, while exotic plants were
fetched from the botanical gardens in Vienna. Highlights
of the 17-hectare garden include the Roman Garden, laid
out in the style of ancient Rome, and including busts of
Romanias most famous writers, the lake, which can be
explored by rowing boat in summer or skated upon during the winter, and Ion Jaleas French Memorial in Carrara
marble, which commemorates those French troops killed
on Romanian territory during World War I. The park has a
couple of cafes, refreshment kiosks and - in summer - terraces, as well as some good, large childrens playgrounds.
It can get very busy in good weather, but it is a lovely
place to spend time.QI13, Between B-dul Regina Elisabeta, Calea Victoriei, Str. Stirbei Vod and B-dul Schitu
Mgureanu, MUniversitate.
HERSTRU PARK
Anyone who still thinks that Bucharest is a city of concrete
and cement has clearly never been to the citys lung, the
incomparable Herastrau Park. Quite simply, this glorious
park, spread over 187 hectares around Herastrau lake is
one of the jewels in Bucharests crown, which might explain why half of the city chooses to spend its summer
April - May 2016
57
Sightseeing
Sunday afternoons here. Fear not though, for so big is Herastrau that it never gives the impression of being crowded,
and even on the busiest of days you will always be able
to find a quiet, shady corner somewhere. If you look hard
enough. Herastrau was laid out from 1930-36 on what had
until then been mainly marshland around the (natural)
lake. The Village Museum (pictured, right) - which occupies a large part of Herastrau and which is one of its most
popular attractions was created at the same time. As early
as the late 19th century, however, parts of the lakeshore
served as a promenade for Bucharests wealthy, and the
area surrounding the lake had long since become the
most fashionable in the city. Indeed, the residence of Romanias royal family, the Elisabeta Palace, is found inside
Herastrau (although it is closed to the public). When first
opened the park carried the name of its patron, King Carol
II. For a short time in the aftermath of the second world
war and the declaration of the Peoples Republic of Romania in 1948 it was unfortunate to have the name Parcul I.V.
Stalin. The name Herastrau has been in general use since
the early 1960s. There is a ton to do in Herastrau, far more
than most people - including locals - realise. The park has
two main entrances, although by far the most elegant is
that which borders Piata Charles de Gaulle. It is also conveniently located close to Aviatorilor metro station. The other
entrance, at the far end of Soseaua Kisellef, opposite Casa
Scanteii, is better for those coming by car as there is some
(but not a lot) of parking available. The first thing you will
see when entering the park from Piata Charles de Gaulle is
a tall, bronze, rather bizarre statue of de Gaulle himself. Between 1952 and 1961 a statue of Stalin stood on the same
spot. Charles de Gaulle is not the only historic figure honoured in this part of the park with a statue or bust, however.
In fact, the alleyways and paths which fan out from the entrance are all dotted with famous people, from Romanian
revolutionary Nicolae Balcescu to Bengali literatures most
important figure, Rabindranath Tagore. Look out also for
local artists Nicolae Grigorescu, Constantin Brancusi and
Theodor Aman, as well as writers George Cosbuc, Alexandru Vlahuta and Romanias national poet, Mihai Eminescu.
Other foreigners honoured with statues include William
Shakespeare, Ady Endre, Sandor Petofi and Victor Hugo.
There is even a statue of Prince Charming (Fat Frumos). We
have long suggested that the park should publish a map
of all its statues so that visitors can tick off those they see
as they go around. For kids, there is an adventure park in
Herastrau, open 10:00-20:00, featuring four trails of varying
difficulty, none of which are particularly challenging. One
is reserved for kids aged between four and seven the others are for children aged eight and above. Two hour tickets
(long enough to complete all the trails) cost 35 lei for children. There are boat trips on the lake, as well as a shuttle
that links one side to the other. Boat trips depart from the
jetty (debarcader) behind the Hard Rock Cafe. To get there
from the main entrance you need to cross what is known
youtube.com/inyourpocket
as the Insula Trandafirilor (Island of the Roses). At the right

time of year the paths are quite literally lined with roses and
its one of the most gorgeous sights in Bucharest. You can
rent bikes from IVelo, close to the entrance. Rental costs 5
lei per hour, or 15 lei for a full day. Under-16s and over-65s
can rent bikes for free, but for a maximum of two hours.
There is also a small adventure park suitable for kids. There
are plenty of places to eat and drink in the park. On the
western side of the lake the best place to go is the Hard
Rock Cafe, while in the other side (on Soseaua Nordului)
there is a whole string of excellent, of upmarket and rather
expensive restaurants: Casa di David and Isoletta are the
best. A slightly cheaper option is the less ritzy but no less
good seafood restaurant Pescarus, one of the most historic
eateries in the park, recently renovated and vasty improved
by the team behind City Grill and Caru cu Bere.QH5, Sos.
Kiseleff 32, MAviatorilor.
TINERETULUI PARK (PARCUL COPIILOR, PARCUL VACARESTI) A large, mostly lovely park featuring
some of the best playgrounds in the city. Divided into two
parts, the main section (closest to Tineretului metro) offers a few rides for kids, trampolines and dodgems, as well
as playgrounds and plenty of tree-lined avenues great
for strolling. During the spring and summer you can rent
bikes from IVelo, close to the entrance. Rental costs 4 lei
per hour, or 15 lei for a full day. Under-16s and over-65s can
rent bikes for free, but for a maximum of two hours. In the
middle of the park is the Sala Polivalenta a popular venue
for concerts, exhibitions and big indoor sporting events
- set above a large artificial lake on the shore of which is
a terrace which serves some of the best mici in the city.
Up by Sala Polivalenta you will also find the entrance to
Oraselul Copiilor, a large funfair complete with big wheel
and other rides, some of which are really rather scary and
for over-18s only. Most of the rides cost 5 or 10 lei. It was
recently renovated and is a good choice for families with
kids.QL19, B-dul Tineretului, MTineretului, Constantin Brancoveanu.
Sightseeing
BUCHAREST CITY TOUR
Now in its sixth year of operation the Bucharest City Tour
sightseeing bus - much maligned when it first appeared is more popular than ever and is without question one of
the best ways to explore the city. In all there are 14 stops
along the route (all are well signposted) and every one is
directly outside or very close to a major sight. Leaving Casa
Scanteii (officially now called Casa Presei Libere) the bus
follows Soseaua Kiseleff, passing Herastrau Park and the
Village Museum on the left, and Romanias national rugby
stadium on the right, before arriving at the Arc de Triumf.
From here the bus continues along Soseaua Kiseleff,
passing some of the most expensive real estate in Bucharest. Many of the splendid houses on this street are now
embassies. Pavel Kiseleff by the way, for whom the street is
named, was a modernising Russian general who was the
de facto governor of Bucharest and Wallachia in the 1830s.
A trio of good museums await at the next stop, at the
bottom of Soseaua Kiseleff. The best is the Peasant Museum while the Grigore Antipa Museum of Natural History
and Geology Museum are also worth your time.
Calea Victoriei is Bucharests most famous street, and
you get a very different perspective from atop a bus than
you do at street level. The vast number of architectural
styles on show is immediately obvious, from the Brancovenesque houses at the northern end to the art-deco, 1930s
apartment blocks further south. The biggest attraction on
Calea Victoriei is probably Piata Revolutiei, where the bus
conveniently stops. On this huge square you will find the
Atheneum, the Athenee Palace Hilton, the Former Royal
Palace (now the National Museum of Art), the Former
Central Committee Building and the Revolution Memorial,
which locals call an olive on a stick.
The next stop is the rather amazing CEC building,
home of Romanias national savings bank, CEC. Opposite
is the Post Office Palace, a neoclassical gem built as the
home of the Romanian post office, but since 1970 the
site of the National History Museum. Behind the museum
is the Old Town area. At the bottom of Calea Victoriei is
the river Dambovita, now more a canal than anything, its
embankments little more than ugly concrete slabs. Until
the 1970s the river was a more natural-looking affair, its
embankments covered in trees and foliage. Concrete-fan
Nicolae Ceausescu deemed it untidy, however, and its
fate was sealed. In a similar way the whole area that the
bus now enters was also tidied up: hundreds of houses,
churches, schools and even hospitals were razed in order
to make way for the Civic Centre, of which the most important building is of course the Casa Poporului, where the
bus stops. It is almost impossible to imagine how this area
looked before the demolitions began (in 1984), but you
can get an idea by peering behind the blocks on Bulevardul Unirii at some of the few surviving houses and at the
church of the Antim Monastery, built in 1715 and which
survived demolition only by being moved 25 metres from
its original location.
Piata Unirii itself is one of the largest public squares in Europe. That does not, however, make it one of the nicest. In
fact, the square is an awful place, all concrete and traffic.
Respite can be found up the hill leading southwest from
the square, home of the Romanian Patriarchal Cathedral,
known Mitropoliei. From Unirii the bus makes its way along
Bulevardul Ion Bratianu, named for a former Romanian
prime minister. Look out for the Baratiei Church on your
right, which sticks out quite literally, almost into the street.
First built in 1590 it is one of the oldest churches in Bucharest. Next stop is Piata Universitatii (the bus stop is in
fact outside the Coltea hospital and church). Opposite is
the much-overlooked Museum of the History Bucharest in
the Sutu Palace, while on the other side of the square is the
university building itself, the InterContinental hotel and the
National Theatre.
As you travel north along Bulevardul Magheru towards
the next stop, Piata Romana, look out for two art deco hotels, the Lido on the left (currently closed) and the Ambassador on the right. Both built in the 1930s they are crying
out for five-star refits. Piata Romana is another of Bucharests large public squares that is little more than a mess of
cars and concrete. On the right hand side is the ASE building, home of Bucharests economics university.
From Piata Romana the bus makes its way along Bulevardul Lascar Cartagiu towards Piata Victoriei. Smart villas
and apartment blocks line the avenue, named for another
former Romanian prime minister, Lascar Cartagiu. A large
statue of Cartagiu can be spotted about half way along the
street, on the right hand side. At Piata Victoriei, yet another
Bucharest square that is little more than concrete and
traffic, the only point of any real interest (other than the
museums) is the 1930s Italianate building on your right,
once the foreign ministry but now home to the Romanian
government. Arriving at Piata Aviatorilor, the bus rejoins
Soseaua Kiseleff, stopping once more (at the Village Museum) before ending its circuit back at Casa Scanteii.

The tour buses start running on May 1st, at 15 minute
intervals from 10:00-22:00. Tickets are valid for 24 hours, allowing you to hop-on and hop-off as many times as you like
throughout the day. You do, however, need to validate the
tickets each time you board a bus. Tickets are priced at 25
lei for adults, 10 lei for children, and can be bought either on
board, at RATB ticket kiosks or at selected hotels. Headphones
offer basic recorded commentary in a number of languages.
April - May 2016
59
Rediscover Bucharest: Cotroceni
Carol Davila stands proudly in front of the Medical Faculty of Bucharest University, which carries his name. Photo by Mirela Britchi
Unthinkable just a couple of years ago, when large packs

of vicious stray dogs roamed the city terrorising pedestrians and cyclists, it is now possible to enjoy a number of
pleasant walks around Bucharest by and large unmolested.
You may still have to swerve a fair number of badly parked
cars (many of Bucharests drivers love nothing more than
parking on the pavement), but at least they dont bite. In
the first of a new series of walks, each of which should take
anything from two to three hours, we this issue guide you
around Cotroceni, perhaps the most authentic district in
the city, an area which - like Bucharest itself - is rediscovering its pre-World War II elegance. The streets are lined
with Linden trees and provide welcome respite from the
summer heat. To explore Cotroceni is to explore a Bucharest which has all but ceased to exist. Home to Romanias
president, the citys Botanical Gardens and a mix of architecture as eclectic as you could hope for, from the starkly
modernist to Art Deco, cubist to neo-Romanian, many with
well-tended gardens and courtyards, Cotroceni is often
overlooked by visitors to the Romanian capital. We intend
to put that right.
Begin the walk at the Romanian National Opera (G13), on the far side of the enormous Piata Eroilor. Any bus
heading west from Universitate will get you here: you can
also take the metro to Eroilor.
The opera was built in the early 1950s, opening in 1954
with a performance of Tchaikovskys Queen of Spades (political interests at the time insisting that a Russian composer
have the honour). Vaguely neoclassical in design the building is elegant if rather plain - on the outside at least. The
interior is a different story. The main auditorium is richly
decorated and a superb place to see either opera or ballet
(the building hosts both). The season is currently in fullswing: you can see the schedule and buy tickets online at
the operas website, operanb.ro.
Cross the square and head for the unmistakably Byzantine New St. Elefterie Church, distinctive with its red and
white stripes. Construction on the church - designed by
Constantin Iotzu - began in 1935, but was not completed
until 1971. The impressive wooden altar was carved by
Grigore Dumitrescu and Aurel Obreja, while the stunning
paintings are the work of Iosif Keber and Vasile Rudeanu.
One of the largest churches in the city (it is 36 metres high
at its tallest point) the church was built to complement
the much smaller yet far more charming Old St. Elefterie
Church, which had by the 1930s become too small for the
number of people wanting to attend services here. It was
at this time that Cotroceni was becoming one of the capitals smartest districts, after work on consolidating the embankments of the Dambovita river had created a suburban,
green area where the citys wealthy began building homes.
Bucharest - indeed Romania as a whole - was at the
avant garde of architectural movements throughout the
1920s and 1930s, a fact which explains the extraordinary
number of superb buildings found in Cotroceni.
Directly opposite the church in fact, at Strada Sf. Elefterie Nos. 6 and 8 are two small apartment blocks which
typify the kind of building common in Bucharest at the
time. Note the way the central, arched windows protrude
into the street: a common feature of a style usually dubbed
neo-Romanian. (Note also how the recent modernisation/
renovation of number six has rather spoilt the facade).
Walking along Strada Elefterie, take a look at how the
wall creepers have entirely taken over some of the otherwise elegant houses (a couple of which, you will no doubt
remark, were built with smart Italianate loggias on the upper levels). As the road forks, you will see the Old St. Elefterie Church in the middle of the street. Not always open, if
you can get inside make certain you do: the interior paintings are stunning.
Rediscover Bucharest: Cotroceni

Turn left onto Strada Doctor Jean Clunet (you would
have noticed by now that many of Cotrocenis streets are
named after doctors) and you can make a pit stop at the
rather pleasant Museum cafe and restaurant, housed inside
yet another fantastic building, complete with a gloriously
shaded, cooling courtyard terrace. Cotroceni is a little short
on places to eat and drink: Museum is one of the best options.
Follow the street as it curves around and you will see
what could be called the two faces of Bucharest (indeed of
Romania). On your right is Piata Cotroceni, an ugly monstrosity built during the communist era when little thought
was given to aesthetics, while directly opposite is one of
the many Art Deco buildings found in Cotroceni, built in
the 1930s when style was everything. The original door
remains, as does the distinctive Art Deco window above
it. Notice also how the rounded front of the building (built
on a corner where the street splits into two) resembles the
front of an ocean liner. This was a feature of Art Deco buildings all over Europe, adopted with relish by the architects
of Bucharest. It is a shame that this particular building is not
in better condition.
From the market, head west and cross the wide Bulevardul Eroilor. The modernist building at the far end of
Eroilor, looking not wholly unlike an Italian railway station,
is the Officer Academy of the Romanian Army. It was built
in 1937 to the designs of modernist master Duiliu Marcu,
and was one of few places in Bucharest to see real action
during World War II: Nazi officers based here put up stiff resistance during the palace coup of August 1944 in which
Romanias pro-Nazi dictator Ion Antonescu was deposed.
Follow Strada Doctor Carol Davila until you reach the
remarkable University of Pharmacy and Medicine. Completed in 1903 it was designed by the Swiss architect Louis
Blanc and while the facade is unmistakably neoclassical,
complete with huge Corinthian columns, the rest of the
building incorporates a number of styles, including some
extravagant Baroque carvings above the enormous arched
windows. Directly in front of the main entrance is a large of
bronze statue of Carol Davila, a Romanian doctor of Italian
origin (for whom the university is named) who in the 1870s
developed one of the first treatments for cholera. The ugly
high-rise behind the university is Bucharests Municipal
Hospital. Fully functional it is nevertheless still incomplete
more than forty years after construction began.
Heading west again, three fine and yet very different
neo-Romanian houses all in a row (at Strada Carol Davila
73, and Eroii Sanitari 10 and 12) lead the way towards the
main entrance of Cotroceni Palace and Gardens, home,
since 1991, of the Romanian president. (Note that should
you want to take the tour of the palace - and you should the visitors entrance is on the far right hand side of the palace, a good ten or fifteen minute walk. You will also need
ID, and should book a place on the obligatory guided tour
a day in advance).
The palace was constructed from 1888-93 at the behest
of Romania's first king, Carol I. Built on the site of a former
monastery (the foundations and cellars of which remain,
and form part of the tour), the palace was designed by a
New St. Elefterie Church
French team of architects, led by Paul Gottereau, and would

serve as something of a blueprint for Romanian domestic
architecture for years to come. It was home to the Romanian royal family until 1939, while during the communist
period it was used as a guesthouse for visiting heads of
state.
The part of the palace which is today the president's
office, and official home, however, was added only after the
great Bucharest earthquake of 1977, and bears the stamp
of local architect Nicolae Vladescu.
Part of the palace is open to the public, and can be visited on a tour. You will see a number of function rooms,
many of which were decorated to the whims of Marie, the
English wife of Carol's heir, his nephew Crown Prince Ferdinand. You will also be able to view her astonishing art collection.
During the construction of the new wing in the 1980s,
ruins of the original monastery church were discovered, including part of the original interior frescoes. The church has
been partially rebuilt and can be visited without joining the
full palace tour.
If you are interested in finding out more about Bucharests rich
architectural heritage, one of the best ways of doing do so is to
take one of the walking tours offered by Valentin Mandache, a
local historian who specialises in architecture. His fascinating
walking tours usually take place every Saturday and Sunday
morning, featuring a different area or theme each time. Find
out which tours are taking place by visiting his English-language website: historo.wordpress.com.
April - May 2016
61
An Old Town Walk
Bucharests rather run down yet lively Old Town is described

by the Dambovita river to the south, Calea Victoriei to the
west, Bulevardul Brtianu to the east and Regina Elisabeta to the north. It is more or less all thats left of pre-World
War II Bucharest. What the war didnt destroy (and it destroyed a fair bit: allied bombing was fierce during the early
part of 1944) communism did, most notably in the form of
the grandiose Civic Centre project that saw almost a fifth
of the total area of the city flattened to make way for Bulevardul Unirii and Casa Poporului. That anything survives at
all is little short of a miracle. While we at Bucharest In Your
Pocket tend to call the area Old Town, many will know it
better as Lipscani, with most locals calling it the Historic
Centre (Centru Istoric, in Romanian). The area is historic for
this is where Bucharest was founded. Kind of. According to
legend, Bucur the Shepherd founded the city in the 1300s
when he built a church somewhere on the eastern bank
of the Dmbovia river: nobody is sure exactly where this
church was (or even if it actually existed). What we do know
is that by the first reign of Vlad epe (1459-1462) there
was a palace and court (the Palatul Curtea Veche) in the
area we today call Old Town, and that the city grew quickly
around the palace. By the middle of the 17th century the
area was Bucharest merchant district, which it to all intents
and purposes remained until the end of World War II, when
many of the rightful owners of the houses and businesses
which lined the areas streets were arrested by the communist authorities, and their property confiscated and left
to rot. The entire area - viewed as being far too bourgeous
for communist tastes - was then neglected for decades,
with many of the empty buildings being occupied over the
years by Gypsies. Many of these Gypsies remain today, and
add real character to the area.
WALKING THE OLD TOWN

The best place to start any exploration of Old Town is at
Universitate, at the twin semi-circular buildings (one is a
bank and the other houses a casino) originally built in 1906
to serve as the headquarters of Romanias largest insurance
company. In front of them are four statues, of Gheorghe
Lazar (founder, in 1818, of the first Romanian school in
Bucharest), Ion Heliade Radulescu (a founding member
of the Romanian Academy), Mihai Voievod Viteazul (the
first person to unite the three Romanian provinces, in 1600)
and Spiru Haret (a mathematician, astronomer and politician who as education minister in the 1880s and 1890s
created the foundations of the modern Romanian education system). Opposite is the university building itself,
constructed over a twelve year period from 1857 to 1869 at
the behest of Alexandru Ioan Cuza, at the time Prince of Romania. It originally housed three faculties (Law, Humanities
and Science), but today houses just the Faculty of Letters
and Languages, as well as the universitys administrative
departments. The central corp of the building was entirely
rebuilt in the late 1940s after it was destroyed during heavy
allied bombing in 1944. Though rebuilt as an exact replica
of the original, many sculptures and basreliefs by Carol
Storck were deemed irreplaceable and lost forever. From
this rather drab square its rather a delight to head into Old
Town proper, especially given that the first sight that will
probably grab your attention (it will be difficult to miss it) is
the beautiful, colourful St. Nicholas (Students) Church. It
is known colloquially as the Russian Church Built in 190509 with a 600,000 gold rouble donation from Tsar Alexander II, this Russian orthodox church is topped with seven
typically Russian onion domes and crowned with an orthodox cross. See page 52.
An Old Town Walk

Right of here is the Czech Cultural Centre (Ceske Centrum) a lively hive of cultural activity and (for the brave)
Czech language courses. Walk to the end of the street (Str.
Ion Ghica) and you will see in front of you the unmistakably Neo-Classical exterior of the National Bank of Romania (BNR). It stands on the site of one of the most famous
buildings in Romania: the Hanul Serban Voda, which from
1678 until 1883 was the home of various things, from
a pub, to an inn to a dormitory for a nearby girls school.
After two fires gutted the building however, the land was
levelled and in 1883 work began on the BNR, completed
to the designs of French architects Cassien Bernard and
Albert Galleron in 1885. The building boasts a facade with
Corinthian columns, and an enormous central banking hall.
The passing of time has seen the building become rather
hemmed in, but it remains a classic worthy of admiration.
On the banks far side (on Str. Lipscani) look out for the
remains of a 17th century inn: visible below street level
through hardened glass.
Str. Lipscani gets its name from the large number of traders who, in the 18th century, sold wares here brought from
Leipzig, which at the time was one of the largest trading
posts in Europe. As Str. Lipscani was the main commercial
street in the Old Town, over time it lent its name to the
whole area. Ironically, its name and history aside, modern
Str. Lipscani has little to recommend it, although it does
have a decent pub and club or two, as well as a theatre.
It also has some hidden treasure: if you walk through the
little alley opposite Str. Selari (an alley now packed with
cafes and bars) you will come to Str. Blanari, home to the
St. Nicolas Church. The church was built in the 1880s as a
private chapel for Romanias first royal couple: Note that the
king and queen still have special seats on the left and right
of the churchs 18th century icon kept for them should they
ever return. The icon itself is said by churchgoers to have
magical healing powers.
Back on Str. Lipscani, the Hanul cu Tei is a wonderful
courtyard (once part of a large inn) which today houses
art galleries, antique shops, second-hand book shops, gift
shops, studios and portrait artists, as well as a bar/restaurant, and an excellent souvenir shop.
Retrace you steps to the National Bank, and head for Str.
Stavropoleos, named for the eponymous church found
along its length (Biserica Stavropoleos; Open 08:30 18:00. Services (in Romanian) on Sunday at 09:30, 10:30;
See p56). The building next to the church is the handsome
former headquarters of the now defunct Romanian Credit
Bank, completed in 1904. The building today houses the
offices of a minor state administrative department. For a
beer, coffee, bite to eat or simple jaw dropping experience
(the interior is astonishing) head over the road to the Caru
cu Bere, a beer hall and restaurant dating from 1875. It is
on the other side of the road to the church a little further
up. Church fans might also want to venture out on to Calea
Victoriei. A few steps to the right is the Zlatari Church (Biserica Zlatari; see p56). The ornate building on the other
side of the road is the headquarters of CEC, the national
savings bank, while the Neo-Classical giant facing it is the
National History Museum.
On the far side of the museum is Str. Franceza, another

Old Town on which upmarket restaurants, cafes, bars and
such like share their surroundings with derelict buildings.
About half way along look out for the Sf. Dumitru Church:
Sf. Dumitru is the patron saint of Bucharest. On the other
side of the church (which is currently being renovated) is
Bucharests comedy theatre.
The busiest street in the Lipscani area is usually Str.
Smardan, home today to any number of bars, pubs, cafes and restaurants, and which when the weather is good
just looks like one huge terrace. History buffs might like to
know that in January 1859 at No. 42 (then the Hotel Concordia), Wallachian deputies elected Alexandru Ioan Cuza
as their Prince. As Moldavian deputies had already done
likewise a week earlier, the election that took place here
created the first unified Romanian state since Mihai Bravus
short-lived reign of 1600. There was a plaque marking the
spot until recently, yet building work has (we hope temporarily) covered it up. At the bottom of Str. Smardan a narrow
walkway allows you to reach the birthplace of Bucharest,
the Old Court Palace and Church (Palatul i Biserica Curtea
Veche; See page 52 for more)
Opposite the church is the Hanul lui Manuc. An inn
built in 1808 it remains operational as a restaurant (there
is even a Starbucks on the ground floor) although the hotel remains closed. The inns courtyard is one of Bucharests
iconic sights, and it is a fitting place for you walk to end.
Elsewhere in Lipscani, it is worth checking out the Glassblowers Courtyard (Curtea Sticlarilor; Str. Selari 9-11) another former inn now put to good use as an artisans workshop and as the home of a couple of decent bars and pubs.
PASAJUL VILACROSSE
Today rather deserted, although it is home to a cafe
ot two, the Pasajul Macca-Vilacrosse was built in
1891 as a conduit between Calea Victoriei - then the
busiest street in the city - and the National Bank. It is
named for a Catalan architect, Xavier Villacrosse, who
from 1840-50 was the chief architect of Bucharest, and
Mihalache Macca, son-in-law of the buildings architect, Felix Xenopol. It is covered with an arcade yellow
glass roof to allow natural light, also intended to encourage commerce at street level. In other words, this
was Bucharests first shopping mall. During the communist period the passage was known by the name
Pasajul Bijuteriei (Jewellery Passage) and hosted the
citys largest jewellers. Its original name was restored
in 1990.
April - May 2016
63
Jewish Bucharest
The Choral Temple

A BRIEF HISTORY OF JEWS IN ROMANIA
The story of the Jews in Romania is not a happy one. Relatively small until the mid-19th century, the size of the Romanian Jewish community - predominantly urban - grew
from the 1840s onwards as large numbers of Jews sought
refuge in Moldavia and Wallachia from persecution in Tsarist Russia, and by the mid-1860s there were more than
150,000 Jews nationwide. Alas the Jews fared little better - initially - in Romanian lands than they had in Russia,
with strict laws enacted preventing them from wearing
traditional dress, sending their children to school and even
becoming Romanian citizens. There were frequent attacks
on Jews and their property (particularly in Iasi) while there
was a major anti-Jewish riot in Bucharest in 1866, when
large numbers of Jews were beaten and the Choral Temple
(rebuilt soon afterwards) desecrated and destroyed.
There was another wave of Jewish immigration in
1903-5 following the Chisinau Pogrom of April 1903 (Chisinau was at the time part of the Russian Empire), and while
the plight of the Jews improved considerably as their numbers and political influence grew, it was only in the aftermath of World War I that Romanian Jews were awarded full
civil rights, later guaranteed in the 1923 Romanian Constitution. It was during the 1920s that the number of Jews
living in Romania reached its peak (at around 730,000),
around a third of whom lived in Bessarabia (today the Republic of Moldova). Bucharests Jewish population peaked
at 70,000 in 1930: as much as ten per cent of the citys
population.
Romania was not, however, immune to the anti-Semitism of 1930s Europe, and the rise in popularity of the fascist
scum Legionnaire Movement and its horrific paramilitary
wing, the Iron Guard, can in part be explained by its violently
anti-Semitic policies. By the time the Iron Guard joined the
government of military leader Ion Antonescu and formed
its Legionary State in September 1940, much anti-Semitic
legislation had already been passed, and the Legionnaires
were allowed to persecute Jews with impunity. This persecution intensified, becoming violent in the almost unimaginably brutal three-day Bucharest Pogrom of January
21-23, during which the Legionnaires killed - in the most
horrific manner possible - 125 Jews; women and children
included. Thousands more were beaten and

tortured, and two synagogues were destroyed.
And worse was to come: in July 1941 as many
as 13,000 Jews were killed in Iasi, in one of the
worst pogroms in Jewish history. Mass killings
and deportations followed, and, according to
the Wiesel Commission report released by the
Romanian government in 2004, Romania in total killed 280,000 to 380,000 Jews during World
War II. At the same time, 120,000 of Transylvanias 150,000 Jews died at the hands of Hungarys fascist government (writer Elie Wiesel - the
Nobel Peace Prize winner who was chairman of
the Wiesel Commission - was deported with his
family from Sighet to Auschwitz by the Hungarian regime). And while as many as 350,000
Romanian Jews survived the war, the Wiesel
Commission states that of all the allies of Nazi Germany, Romania was responsible for the deaths of more Jews than any
country other than Germany itself.
At the wars end, mass emigration to Israel once again
reduced the number of Jews in Romania. Those who remained suffered further persecution at the hands of the
countrys new, communist rulers, most notably in the early
1950s. The failure of the first Danube-Black Sea Canal project in 1952 was blamed on Jewish engineers, who were
accused of Zionism and executed. Throughout the communist period however, Romania allowed large numbers
of Jews to emigrate to Israel, in exchange for much-needed
Israeli economic aid (in the 1980s Nicolae Ceausescu would
pursue a similar policy with West Germany, accepting cash
payment in exchange for allowing the emigration of Transylvanian Saxons). By 1987, there were just 27,000 Jews left
in Romania. Further emigration since the 1989 revolution
has reduced numbers even further, and in the 2011 census
just 3,271 people identified themselves as Jews.
CONTEMPORARY JEWISH BUCHAREST Almost all of
Bucharests Jewish district - which was centred on the Choral Temple and spread from Piata Unirii east towards Dristor
- was destroyed during the demolitions of the 1980s to make
way for Bulevardul Unirii. The enormous Malbim Synagogue
(which stood exactly where the National Library is today) was
just one of hundreds of Jewish properties pulled down. Yet a
handful of buildings in the area survived, and most can be
visited, including the remaining synagogues (one of which
hosts a Holocaust Museum), the Jewish History Museum (located in an old synagogue) and the Jewish Theatre, next to
which is a Jewish school, Lauder-Reut.
CHORAL TEMPLE First built in 1857, then rebuilt in 1866
following its destruction in a pogrom, the red-brick Choral
Temple (pictured, above left) has a memorial in front of
it that commemorates the Romanian Jews sent to their
deaths during the Holocaust. It is a copy of Viennas Leopoldstadt-Tempelgasse Great Synagogue. It was rededicated
in December 2014 following an eight-year renovation of
the fabulous, colourful interior.QL15, Str. Sf. Vineri 9-11,
MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 021 312 21 96.
Jewish Bucharest
the country. The synagogue hosts an excellent exhibition dedicated to Jewish martyrs, and to Moses Rosen,
who served as Romanias Chief Rabbi for 30 years until his
death in 1994. Guided tours are available (phone ahead).
The building also continues to serve as an active place of
worship.QM14, Str. Vasile Adamache 11, MPiata Unirii. Open 08:30 - 15:00, Fri, Sun 08:30 - 13:00. Closed
Sat, Morning Prayer: Sun-Fri 08:00, Sat 09:30, Evening
Prayer: Sun-Fri 19:00.
YESHOAH TOVA SYNAGOGUE (SINAGOGA EUA
TOVA) Located on a busy side street off Bulevardul Magheru, this is in fact Bucharests oldest synagogue, dating
from 1827. It is one of just three synagogues in Bucharest
which still holds religious services.QJ11, Str. Tache Ionescu 9, MPiata Romana. Services take place when
Sabbath commences on Friday evenings, as well as on
Saturdays at 09:00.
HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL Unveiled in October 2009,

Romanias Holocaust Memorial finally recognises the
countrys role in the genocide of Europes Jews. The countrys role in the Holocaust and in the deportation of Jews
was ignored by the Communists, and it was minimized
by subsequent governments after the collapse of Communism beginning in 1989. This monument is full of symbolism hundreds of thousands were killed who would
have contributed to the cultural and economic prosperity
of Romania, said Rabbi Menachem HaCohen, Romanias
chief rabbi, at its opening.QI14, Str. Ion Brezoianu/Str.
Ilfov, MEroilor.
JEWISH HISTORY MUSEUM (HOLY UNION
TEMPLE; MUZEUL DE ISTORIE A EVREILOR DIN
ROMANIA) Housed in the amazing Holy Union Temple
synagogue, constructed in 1836, this building has served
as a museum of Jewish history since 1978. A number of
separate exhibitions display how the once vibrant Jewish
community of Bucharest used to live, while there is also
an impressive Jewish liturgical collection, most of which
was assembled by Moses Rosen, Romanias chief rabbi
from 1964-94 who founded the museum. The considerable Jewish contribution to Romanian culture is also well
covered, although it could be argued that the biggest attraction is the building itself: the interior - split over three
levels with two ornate galleries - is richly decorated from
floor to ceiling.QL15, Str. Mmulari 3, MPiata Unirii, tel.
(+4) 021 311 08 70. Open 09:00 - 14:00, Fri, Sun 09:00 13:00. Closed Sat. Admission free.
THE GREAT POLISH SYNAGOGUE & HOLOCAUST
MUSEUM Bucharests Great Synagogue, often called the
Great Polish Synagogue, was built from 1845 -1846 by the
Ashkenazi Polish-Jewish community. Rather plain on the
outside the interior is an impressive, colourful mixture
of baroque and rococo styles, and the Great Synagogue
is perhaps today the most important Jewish building in
FURTHER READING
For a thorough account of the Holocaust in Romania, we
recommend Radu Ioanids book Holocaust in Romania:
The Destruction of Jews & Gypsies by the Antonescu Regime.
For a slightly different look at life as a Jew in 1930s and 40s
Romania, you can do no better than the brilliant Journal:
The Fascist Years, by Mihai Sebastian. The full Wiesel Commission Report is online at yadvashem.org.
THE LOST SYNAGOGUES

Besides the three Bucharest synagogues which still
hold religious services (the Choral Temple, the Great
Polish Synagogue and the Yeshoah Tova), as well as
the Holy Union Temple which houses the Jewish History Museum, there are two more abandoned synagogues which can still be (just about) seen. The first,
the Beit Hamidrash Synagogue, is in fact the oldest
of all Bucharests Jewish places of worship, originally
dating back to the late 18th century. Found at the intersection of Calea Mosilor and Strada Lipscani (L-14),
the synagogue is hidden behind a crumbling building
and almost impossible to spot unless you know what
you are looking for. The synagogue - which was badly
damaged by the Legionnaires in the 1941 pogrom,
has been abandoned, it would appear, for decades. A
similar - although not quite so sad - fate has befallen
another synagogue, built in the 1920s in the Vitan
area of Bucharest. Known as the Hevrah Amuna or
Temple of Faith, the synagogue is on Strada Vasile
Toneanu, directly behind the Bucuresti Mall. From
Calea Vitan take the first left after the Mall (Strada
Vlad Judetul) and then the first left again. The Hevrah
Amuna synagogue - in reasonable shape although no
longer used - is on the left hand side. The synagogues
courtyard is usually closed, although when we visited
it looked as though there were people living in one of
the small buildings at the rear.
April - May 2016
65
Shopping
Bucharests main shopping areas are the shopping centres
and malls listed in the relevant sections below, as well as
B-dul Magheru and - increasingly - Calea Victoriei.
BOOKSHOPS
ANTHONY FROST ENGLISH BOOKSHOP
Stocks a good range of fiction, an exceptional range of
non-fiction, plenty of childrens books, and a decent selection of books about Romania and Bucharest.QJ13,
Calea Victoriei 45, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 311 51
38, www.anthonyfrost.ro. Open 10:00 - 20:00, Sat 10:00
- 19:00, Sun 10:00 - 14:00.
CRTURESTI Marvellous bookshop, gallery and small
cafe, all inside a gorgeous old Bucharest house in the very
centre of the city. Has a great cafe.QJ11, Str. Pictor Arthur Verona 13-15, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4) 021 317 34
59, www.carturesti.ro. Open 10:00 - 22:00, Also at (C-5)
Str. Edgar Quinet 9, tel. (+4) 021 311 06 46, Open 10:00 20:00, Sat 11:00 - 18:00, Closed Sun.
SHOPPING CENTRES
AFI PALACE COTROCENI One of Bucharests biggest
and malls, and definitely its best, with loads of top brand
names and the added attraction of an IMAX cinema, a
large ice skating rink (open year round) and even an indoor
roller coaster and huge childrens playground.QA15, Bdul Vasile Milea/B-dul Timisoara, MPolitehnica, www.
aficotroceni.ro. Open 10:00 - 22:00, Fri, Sat, Sun 10:00
- 23:30.
BANEASA SHOPPING CITY Big mall in the far north of
the city, just past the old Baneasa airport. You can get here
on buses 131 or 301 from Piata Romana.Qos. BucuretiPloieti 42D, www.baneasashoppingcity.ro. Open
10:00 - 22:00.
BUCURESTI MALL
Recently extended in a major redevelopment, this place
- when opened in 1999 - was the first mall in the city.
Hundreds of shops, including Marks & Spencer and H&M.
QCalea Vitan 55-59, www.bucurestimall.com.ro. Open
10:00 - 22:00.
PROMENADA MALL Featuring the usual mix of top
stores and restaurants, there is also a unique rooftop recreation area here. No cinema, however.QK2, Calea Floreasca 246B, MAurel Vlaicu, www.promenada.ro. Open
10:00 - 22:00.
UNIREA SHOPPING CENTRE A helf-decent shopping
centre in the heart of the city. A Mega Image supermarket
can be found in the basement, and there's a large number of eateries - and a kids playground - on the fifth floor.
QK15, Piata Unirii 1, MPiata Unirii, www.unireashop.
ro. Open 10:00 - 22:00.
MARKETS
Bucharest is home to a number of good markets. In season
fruit and vegetables tend to be local, although it depends
on the market: check what you are buying if you really want
to make sure you are getting local produce. In winter, expect
almost everything to be imported and priced accordingly.
The biggest of Bucharests market is Obor (O-10; take the
metro to Obor) an amazing place which is essential for a full
Romanian experience. Bucharest In Your Pocket - for what its
worth - tends to do its shopping at either Piata Ramnicu
Sarat or the Peasants Market on B-dul Unirii.
Beyond the produce markets there are a couple of bazaar-type places worth visiting, not least Complex Comercial Rahova (H-18), a place that stocks cheap everything.
Take tram No. 32 from Piata Unirii to (almost) the end of the
line to find it. A similar den of chaos is the Sunday morning
flea market at Vitan-Barzesti. Also look out for arts, crafts,
peasant and antiques markets too: these are quite common at the weekend. The Peasant Museum (p. 49) holds
one just about every week, while there is a small antique
market every Sunday at Parcul Carol.
ANTIQUE/FLEA MARKET Each Sunday you can find
a variety of antiques dealers of varying quality (there is
plenty of good stuff on sale, but equally as much rubbish)
at the main entrance to Parcul Carol. Look out for old Romanian banknotes, stamps, medals and badges.QJ18,
Parcul Carol/Piata Libertatii. Open Sun 10:00 - 16:00.
Closed Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat.
PIATA TARANULUI (PEASANTS MARKET)
Every Friday, Saturday and Sunday (in good weather) peasants come from all over Romania to sell their wares at this
small yet excellent farmers market. Find great fruit and
vegetables (in season), smoked sausages, bacon, slana,
trout, goats cheese, wine, tuica, honey and bors for making ciorba and honey.QN16, B-dul Unirii/Str. Nerva
Traian. Open 07:00 - 17:00. Closed Mon - Thu.
TARGUL VITAN-BARZESTI Astonishing. Every Sunday morning this place becomes Bucharests biggest and
busiest flea market. Its mayhem. More or less everything
you can imagine can be found here, all prices negotiable.
Next door is an enormous second-hand car market. Bus
123 from Piata Unirii will get you here. Be brave.QSos.
Vitan-Barzesti/Splaiul Unirii. Open 08:00-16:00. Closed
Mon-Sat.
LOCAL DESIGNERS
For clothes by local designers, check out the huge Romanian Designers Gallery on the second floor of the
Cocor Department Store, at (K-15) B-dul Ion Bratianu
29-33. You will find a wide range of designs by many
of Romanias best designers. Another option is Band
of Creators at (J-12) Str. Benjamin Franklin 14 (www.
bandofcreators.com).
Shopping
SOUVENIRS & WINE
Beware: Almost all of the many souvenir shops that have
opened of late in Bucharest (especially those in and around
the Old Town) sell little more than Chinese crap with Romania plastered on it.
ETHIC WINE
Wonderful wine shop, run by a friendly Englishman and
his lovely wife, both of whom really know their stuff. There
is a wide range of local grape, as well as a good selection
of wines from Cricova in the Republic of Moldova.QK6,
Str. Banu Antonache 55, tel. (+4) 0722 63 37 89, www.
ethicwine.ro. Open 10:00 - 21:00, Sun 10:00 - 14:00.
VILLAGE MUSEUM (MUZEUL NAIONAL AL

SATULUI DIMITRIE GUSTI) Good souvenir shop where
you can be certain of finding the real deal: everything is
Made in Romania and items such as clothing will even come
with certificates of proof of origin.QF-4, Sos. Kiseleff 2830, MAviatorilor, tel. (+4) 021 317 91 10, www.muzeulsatului.ro. Open 09:00 - 17:00.
MAX MARA
BURBERRY
Bucharest - 83-85 Calea Victorei (Franchisee Max Mara)
MAXMARA.COM
Beautifully-made clothes. Find them next to the

Radisson Blu Hotel.QI12, Calea Victoriei 83-85, tel.
(+4) 021 316 89 77, www.maxmara.com. Open
10:00 - 20:00, Sat 10:00 - 17:00, Closed Sun.
The legendary British label Burberry has landed in Bucharest, with a flagship store at the Radisson Blu.QI-12,
Str. Luterana 4, tel. (+4) 021 314 14 14, ro.burberry.com.
Open 10:00 - 21:00, Sat 10:00 - 20:00, Sun 12:00 - 19:00.
SPORT COUTURE
Bucharest 83-85 Calea Victoriei (Franchise Max Mara) Maxmara.com
MUZEUL TARANULUI ROMAN (PEASANT MUSEUM) (PEASANT MUSEUM) The shop at the Peasant
Museum has an outstanding selection of souvenirs and
gifts. Of particular note are the traditional peasant clothes,
as well as the painted glass icons and naive art. Not cheap,
but its all high quality stuff. The museums courtyard hosts
a craft, antique and gift market most weekends.QG8,
os. Kiseleff 3, MPiata Victoriei, tel. (+4) 021 317 96 61.
Open 10:00 - 18:00. Closed Mon.
Sport Couture stocks a wide range of leading brands

(DKNY, Fred Perry, Diesel etc.) alongside Burberry and Burberry Kids. QBaneasa Shopping City, 1st Floor, www.
sportcouture.ro. Open 10:00-22:00.
April - May 2016
67
Hotels
CREAM OF THE CROP
ATHENEE PALACE HILTON BUCHAREST HOTEL
The Athenee Palace has been one of Bucharests finest
hotels for 100 years. It is a living piece of the citys history - it dates from 1914 and celebrated its centenary last
autumn with one of the best parties Bucharest has ever
seen. Books have been written about the goings on at
this place (Rosie Waldecks Athene Palace, to be precise).
Yet behind its historic facade you will find a most modern
place to stay. There is a wide range of rooms to choose
from: the best are those with views over Piata Revolutiei.
Besides the amazing accommodation, the Hilton also offers an indoor pool and health club, terrific onsite dining
and you should not forget that this is also of course the
home of the English Bar: probably Bucharests most famous (or indeed infamous) drinker.QJ12, Str. Episcopiei
1-3, tel. (+4) 021 303 37 77, www.placeshilton.com/
bucharest. 272 rooms.. POTH 6UF L K
DCW
CAROL PARC
Luxurious, certainly, but offering something a bit different to the bigger players, the Carol Park is coquette and
secluded: you have to know about this place, as you do
not find it by chance. A gorgeous place where the finest
things are offered to all who pass through its doors, expect
only fine, classic furnishings and very personal service. International stars who value discretion above all else tend
to stay here when visiting Bucharest.QI18, Aleea Suter
23-25, tel. (+4) 021 336 33 77, www.carolparchotel.ro.
17 rooms. PHLKW
CROWNE PLAZA BUCHAREST
Contemporary yet welcoming, the Crowne Plaza Bucharest
offers all the reassuring global standards you would expect
of the brand, from first class accommodation to world class
facilities. With a renowned reputation for individual and
friendly service, the hotel can also offer the greenest setting in the capital, surrounded as it is by beautifully maintained grounds. Can also boast a large swimming pool, big,
comfortable rooms (and bathrooms to match) and some
outstanding drinking and dining options.QD1, B-dul
Poligrafiei 1, tel. (+4) 021 224 00 34, www.crowneplaza.
com/bucharest. 164 rooms. PTHUFKD
CW
EPOQUE
Now heres a hotel we have no problem in recommending.
The Epoque celebrated its fifth birthday in the Autumn of
last year: five years of style which shows in every detail.
The hotel promises to be a retreat in the heart of the city,
and it is certainly that, located close to Cismigiu Park and
offering 45 suites inside a Neo-Romanian exterior. There is
a great spa centre, complete with pool, and events facilities for business travellers. The onsite restaurant is one of
the best in the city and a must visit.QH13, Str. Intrarea
Aurora 17C, tel. (+4) 021 312 32 32, www.epoque.ro. 45
rooms. PTHUFLKDCW
SYMBOL KEY
P Air conditioning N Credit cards not accepted
F Fitness centre
H Conference facilities
K Restaurant
U Facilities for the disabled
D Sauna
L Guarded parking on site
6 Animal friendly
C Swimming pool
O Casino
W Wifi
GRAND HOTEL CONTINENTAL Making the very best

of a wonderful building (which dates from 1886) on chic
Calea Victoriei, todays Grand Hotel Continental is the result of more than two years of loving renovation and restoration. Theres marble at every turn, though do not think
that modern touches are missing, for they are not. The
audio-visual systems in the rooms for example are state
of the art. For the great location and for a change from the
big chains, its well worth trying out.QJ13, Calea Victoriei 56, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 0372 01 03 00, www.
grandhotelcontinental.ro. 59 rooms. PTH6U
FLKDW
INTERCONTINENTAL
Still the tallest hotel in Bucharest (complete with a swimming pool and - during the summer, sun terrace - on the
top floor) the InterContinental was the first major five-star
hotel to open in Romania, at the beginning of the 1970s.
Fully renovated a number of times since then, today it is
one of the citys most recognisable buildings, and something of an icon. The rooms here all boast big balconies
with great views of the city, there is first class dining in the
building, and the management is commendably handson. The Club Lounge on the 21st floor is probably the best
in the city, offering great views of Bucharest, cocktails,
meeting rooms, internet, a library and an all-round exclusive atmosphere. Non-guests can use the Club Lounge for
35 per day. Its open 06:30-22:30.QK13, B-dul Nicolae
Blcescu 2-4, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 310 20 20,
www.intercontinental.com/Bucharest. 257 rooms.
POTH6FLKDCW
JW MARRIOTT BUCHAREST GRAND HOTEL
To the south of Casa Poporului the JW Marriott occupies
something of a palatial building that at first glance probably makes it the most immediately impressive of Bucharests big five-star hotels. The scale of the place, and its
cavernous interiors, betray the fact that it was built as part
of the same grand plan as the Casa Poporului itself. Yet the
rooms are homely and well-furnished, providing a welcome contrast to the building. Plenty of good dining options, and home to the biggest swimming pool in the city
(we think).QF16, Calea 13 Septembrie 90, tel. (+4) 021
403 00 00, www.jwmarriottbucharest.com. 401 rooms.
POTH6UFLKDCW
Hotels
NOVOTEL BUCHAREST CITY CENTRE

Few locations are better than this, right on fashionable Calea Victoriei. The entrance is impressive: a replica of the old
neoclassical National Theatre which stood on this exact
site until the British bombed it to next week during the
World War II. Shiny and new the main part of the hotel is
wonderful: rooms are big, with bathrooms particularly impressive. Excellent, lively lobby bar and a big indoor swimming pool are other added benefits of staying here.QJ13,
Calea Victoriei 37B, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 308 85
00, www.novotel.com. 258 rooms. POTH6U
FLKDCW
PREMIER PALACE South-west of the city centre in the
suburb of Ghencea (opposite Steaua Bucharests stadium)
is the Premier Palace, a luxurious place which offers what
is without doubt the best spa in the city (and entrance to
which is free for hotel guests). The rest of the hotel is fabulous too, with the big rooms all packed with added extras,
right down to the Salvatore Ferragamo cosmetics in the
bathroom. Staff are superb and happy to arrange taxis to
and from town.QB-dul Ghencea 134, tel. (+4) 031 407
60 00/(+4) 0735 99 11 11, www.premierpalace.ro. 82
rooms. PTHFLKDCwW
PULLMAN BUCHAREST WORLD TRADE CENTER
The spacious, luxurious rooms are the main attraction at this
high rise in the north of the city, where the bathrooms boast
perhaps the deepest bathtubs in the city. There are separate
showers, and all in all we think that the square-meterageper-euro ratio is higher here than anywhere else in Bucharest. A good on-site steak house keeps you well fed, and
though there is no pool there is a good fitness centre with
sauna and massage available.QE3, P-ta Montreal 10, tel.
(+4) 021 318 30 00, www.pullmanhotels.com. 203 rooms.
PTH6UFLKDW
RADISSON BLU A gleaming temple of steel and glass
amongst the more classical buildings of Calea Victoriei, the
Radisson excels in playing the role of futuristic Bucharest
hotel of choice. As you walk in the glass bar strikes you as
daring and modern, and the rooms themselves are equally
avant garde in design. Bathrooms offer both tubs and
showers, and there is both an indoor and outdoor pool, so
you can swim whatever the weather. Excellent restaurants,

especially the sublime Prime Steaks and Seafood.QI12,
Calea Victoriei 63-81, tel. (+4) 021 311 90 00, www.
radissonblu.com/hotel-bucharest. 718 rooms. PH
UFLKDCW
SHERATON This is a high-rise hotel in the busy centre of
Bucharest, originally built in the 1970s as the Hotel Dorobanti, and for much of the past two decades a Howard
Johnson property. This place is now very much a Sheraton, however, and it shows. A multi-million euro refit has
seen this place become a five-star jewel in Bucharests
crown: the sleek, modern exterior is matched by the interiors, all of which carry the signatures of top-name designers. Boasting wonderful large rooms and luxurious common areas, it is also home to a couple of Bucharests finest
restaurants: Benihana and Avalon. If you can, blag a room
on one of he upper floors: the views are fantastic.QJ10,
Calea Dorobantilor 5-7, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4) 021
201 50 00, www.sheratonbucharest.com. 270 Rooms.
POTH6UFLKDW
OVER 150
CISMIGIU One of the most famous hotels in Bucharest
(there is even a song about the place: Hotel Cismigiu, by
Vama Veche) reopens its doors after being closed for almost two decades. In a fantastic location right in the heart
of the city, millions have been spent making the hotel
look better than at any time in its century-old history. The
contemporary rooms - all of which are in fact suites - are
enormous, many even boasting kitchens. Theres a fitness
centre, wifi throughout, a great breakfast is included and
there is even onsite parking. Worth every penny.QJ14,
B-dul Regina Elisabeta 38, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 031
403 05 00, www.hotelcismigiu.ro. 60 rooms. PTH
UFLKW
K+K ELISABETA We love this place for a number of
reasons, not least the fact that the huge breakfast buffet
stays open until 11:00, meaning late starters can still get
breakfast. The hotel is located in a huge, renovated period
house just behind Piata Universitatii. The discretion of the
location betrays the fact that this is the kind of place you
April - May 2016
69
Hotels
come to if you like old fashioned luxury, good service, and
possess exceptional taste.QK13, Str. Slanic 26, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 302 92 80, www.kkhotels.com.
67 rooms. PTHFKDW
RAMADA BUCHAREST PARC
The Hotel Parc has been around a while, but only came
under the Ramada banner a short while ago. A high-rise
in a leafy suburb (close to Romexpo and Herastrau Park hence the name) it boasts nice rooms which - while not
huge - are comfortable and boast brightly coloured dcor
and gorgeous, soft cotton sheets on the beds. Great buffet
breakfast included in the price.QC1, B-dul Poligrafiei 3-5,
tel. (+4) 021 549 20 00, www.ramadabucharestparc.ro.
267 rooms. PHKW
RAMADA MAJESTIC
Standing (dare we say it) majestically on Calea Victoriei, the Majestic has long been one of Bucharests best
hotels. It offers very big rooms with glorious bathrooms,
a great breakfast and - a real bonus - a swimming pool
(albeit a rather small one). In a city in which even some
of the five-star hotels lack pools, the Majestics makes it
well worth that little bit extra cash.QJ13, Calea Victoriei
38-40, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 310 27 72, www.
ramadamajestic.ro. 111 rooms. PTHUFLK
DCW
RAMADA PLAZA BUCHAREST Slightly more upmarket than its sister establishment across the road, what
you get here is a slightly bigger room than at the Parc,
and much bigger bathrooms. The design of the place is
nicely futuristic, and we loved the beds which we think are
amongst the best in Bucharest. Free Wifi is a bonus, there
is a good lobby bar and a decent on site bistro. Good value
for the money.QC1, B-dul Poligrafiei 3-5, tel. (+4) 021
549 30 00, www.ramadaplazabucharest.ro. 298 rooms.
PHUFKW
100-150
BERTHELOT Smart, modern and dead central. What
more could you want? For your money you are getting
a good deal here: the rooms are big and well furnished
LOCAL ART
Look out for craft fairs being held at the citys better museums in order to find some gorgeous naive art. The Peasant
Museum hosts regular such fairs, usually once a month.
Suvenir de Bucuresti, a small art gallery specialising in
classic scenes of Bucharest always has a great selection of
paintings for sale: find it on (J-12) Strada Academiei. Just
around the corner is Galateca on Strada C. A. Rosetti a gallery of applied art, housed in the rather splendid University Library on Piata Revolutiei. Its shop sells fashion
and accessories from a number of top local designers.
with plenty of mod cons, such as LCD televisions, while
the bathrobes in the sumptuous bathrooms are suitably
fluffy and the cosmetics a cut above the norm.QI12, Str.
General Berthelot 9, tel. (+4) 031 425 58 60/(+4) 0771
65 40 09, www.hotelberthelot.ro. 43 rooms. PTH
LKW
BEST WESTERN PLUS EXPOCENTER
Brand new (late 2015) hotel in the north of the city (close to
the Romexpo exhibition complex, hence the name) offering a wide range of bright, comfortable rooms for a fraction
of the price youll pay elsewhere for a similar standard. Plenty of onsite parking space: not always the case in this city.
QC1, B-dul Poligrafiei 69, tel. (+4) 021 795 70 30, www.
bestwesternexpo.ro. 90 Rooms. PHFLKDW
CAPITAL PLAZA
Looking for the business traveller not wanting to pay five
star prices, one of the best hotels in the city is this smart
place at the northern edge of the city centre, about five
minutes walk from Piata Victoriei. The rooms are big and
furnished in a modern style, with unobtrusive colours and
smart lines. Bathrooms are good, and the range of free
cosmetics is impressive. Top onsite restaurant too, the
1880.QJ9, B-dul Iancu de Hunedoara 54, tel. (+4) 0372
08 00 80, www.capitalplaza.ro. 95 rooms. PTHU
FLKW
Hotels
CENTRAL
Central by name, central by nature. Slap, bang on Bucharests version of Broadway (its all relative), amongst cinemas and theatres, the Central was totally renovated last
year and is now one of the best (and best value) stays in
the city. We like the staff who are always friendly, and who
go out of their way to make sure you do not get ripped
off by dodgy taxi drivers: such attention to detail is to be
applauded.QJ14, Str. Ion Brezoianu 13, MUniversitate,
tel. (+4) 021 315 56 36, www.thhotels.ro. 62 rooms.
PTH6UW
EUROPA ROYALE BUCHAREST
Who said Old Town refits have to be kitsch? This one certainly isnt. The Europa Royale is a gorgeous place that complements instead of overpowering its surroundings. Literally a
stones throw from where Bucharest began, at the Curtea
Veche, facing Piata Unirii, it is as ideally located as you ever
hope for. Inside the rooms are big, classy and we found the
staff exemplary. A genuinely welcome addition to Bucharest and the Old Town, and not as pricey as you might think.
QK15, Str. Franceza 60, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 021 319
17 98, www.europaroyale.com. 92 rooms. PTH6
UKWJ
MERCURE Romanias first Mercure hotel opened in November 2014 in a great location just behind the Atheneum.
The rooms are well-sized, superbly decorated and come
with loads of extras, from espresso machines to fluffy
bathrobes. And all at a very reasonable price. Free Wifi
throughout, and the building itself is an elegant, modern

construction with a striking, sublime mural on one side.
QJ11, Str. George Enescu 17A, tel. (+4) 0758 58 30 00,
www.mercure.com. 114 rooms. PTHFLKW
OPERA You could quite literally throw a stone from the
rooms here into Cismigiu Park (though we do not recommend it), and as such we think this is a great place for
families with children to stay when visiting the capital.
Not cheap, we think that you get value for money, especially given the size of the rooms and the terrific breakfast
spread they lay on every morning for guests. Staff happy
and smiley too.QI13, Str. Ion Brezoianu 37, tel. (+4) 021
312 48 55, www.thhotels.ro. 33 rooms. PTH6U
KW
PARK INN BY RADISSON In an enviable location, more
or less next door to the main Radisson, the new Park Inn
offers many of the features of its sister hotel across the way,
but at a fraction of the cost: guests can use the Radissons
health club and indoor pool free of charge, for example.
The rooms are a good size, colourful and many have decent views. The Wifi is free, and there is even underground
parking (for a small extra charge).QI12, Str. Luterana
2-4, tel. (+4) 021 601 36 00, www.parkinn.com/hotelbucharest. 210 Rooms. PFLKDCW
RESIDENCE ARC DE TRIOMPHE Fantastic hotel in
a good area of the capital, offering large, excellent value
rooms and super services. There are little touches of
April - May 2016
71
Hotels
a lot more than it does: seriously good value for money.
QL12, Str. J. L. Calderon 74, tel. (+4) 021 310 56 68,
www.hotelmonaco.ro. 8 rooms. PTLW
CARO
The Caro is in fact three hotels in one: the Caro Golf, a
four-star establishment offering very swish rooms, the
Caro Parc: one of the best three-stars in the city, and the
outstanding value budget two-star Caro Horoscop. All
three offer bright rooms with excellent bathrooms, and
there is terrific buffet breakfast in the Belvedere restaurant.
The surroundings are leafy and yet the citys business district is just across the street. There is free Wifi at the Caro
Golf.QL3, B-dul Barbu Vcrescu 164A, MAurel Vlaicu,
tel. (+4) 021 208 61 00, www.carohotel.ro. 188 rooms.
PTH6UFLKDCW
CHARTER
For what you pay at this hotel, you get a large amount
of room indeed. Really: these must be the biggest hotel
rooms in Bucharest, and they cost about 1 per square
metre. Close to the airport (on the other side of the road to
McDonalds) this place is perfect if you have an early flight,
though it is only fair to say that it is a good 30 minutes
or so to the city centre. Still, with rooms and services to
match anywhere, and at prices as low as these, we doubt
anyone will be complaining.QDrumul Odaii 1D, Otopeni,
tel. (+4) 021 352 87 19, www.hotelcharter.ro. 21 rooms.
PTLW
class all over the hotel that suggest they really care. The
wrought iron beds, for example, are fabulous, as is the
newly added spa, complete with sauna and jacuzzi. The
restaurant is also worth a visit, serving good international
cuisine.QF6, Str. Clucerului 19, tel. (+4) 021 223 19 78/
(+4) 0372 15 07 00, www.residencehotels.com.ro. 35
rooms. PTHLKDW
Z EXECUTIVE BOUTIQUE HOTEL You want central?
Well this place is central. In a building on a street hidden
a little behind the Sutu Palace this is a great place from
which to enjoy the delights of Old Town and indeed the
whole of central Bucharest. Rooms are big and modern,
tastefully furnished and come with comfortable beds and
good bathrooms. Plenty of little luxuries, not least full, free
Wifi throughout. The breakfast room is great, and theres
an on site bistro with great views of the busy streets outside.QK14, Str. Ion Nistor 4, MUniversitate, tel. (+4)
031 140 02 00, www.zhotels.ro. 21 rooms. PTH
6ULKWJ
CLASS BUCHAREST
What this place lacks in city centre-ness it more than
makes up for with comfort. This is to all intents and purposes a five star hotel, complete with luxurious bathrooms
and perhaps the best indoor swimming pool in the city.
Really. If you are looking for a leafier location than the city
centre can offer, and a little luxury at a decent price, then
its a decent choice.QStr. Garlei 30A, tel. (+4) 037 213
57 00, www.class-hotel.ro. 63 rooms. PHFKD
CW
DAN Serving a terrific buffet breakfast (until 11:00) this
hotel has long been one of our favourites. Its location a
short distance from the city centre is good, and the rooms
UNDER 100
BOUTIQUE HOTEL MONACO A nice place on a
quiet(ish) street yet still close enough to the city centre
to be within walking distance. There is an elegance to the
decoration that suggests theyve taken real time and effort over things, and the beds are large, comfortable and
covered with crisp yet soft sheets. Wifi, flatscreen TVs,
good bathrooms. The kind of place you feel should cost
Hotels
are well sized, as are the bathrooms: all of which have
tubs, not just showers. Good, friendly staff and the kind of
homely atmosphere you would expect of a small well-run
hotel.QM11, B-dul Dacia 125, tel./fax (+4) 021 210 39
58, www.hoteldan.ro. 15 rooms. PHULW
DOUBLETREE BY HILTON Located just off Bulevardul
Unirii, the DoubleTree is something of a beacon of glass
and steel in an area not known for anything except monumental socialist architecture. The hotel is a decent place
offering big-ish rooms, with commendably big bathrooms. Happy, multi-lingual staff are a bonus not always
found in Bucharests hotels. Good cafs (there are two) to
choose from: one has an enclosed terrace.QN17, Str. Nerva Traian 3A, tel. (+4) 021 200 62 70, www.doubletree.
com. 87 rooms. PTHUFLKDW
GOLDEN TULIP TIMES
This, people, is a very good hotel where you get a hell
of a lot of room for a relatively small amount of money.
All come furnished well with terrific beds, big desks and
comfy armchairs. Bathrooms are equally impressive and
modern. There is Wifi throughout and a host of extras: not
least of which is the fantastic breakfast. The on site restaurant is one of the best hotel-based eateries in the city.
QB-dul Decebal 19, MPiata Muncii, tel. (+4) 021 316
65 16, www.goldentuliptimes.com. 70 rooms. PT
HLKW
GOLDEN TULIP VICTORIA BUCHAREST
Half-way along Calea Victoriei, a pleasant walk to both
Piata Victoriei and Piata Universitatii, the Golden Tulip is
a fine hotel that makes great use of the space available.
The bathrooms for example are not huge but feel far bigger than they are, and all have enough room for bathtubs.
Bright and modern in design we think its suited best to
business travellers looking to get great value for their
companys dollar.QI11, Calea Victoriei 166, MPiata
Romana, tel. (+4) 021 212 55 58, fax (+4) 021 212 51
21, reservation@goldentulipbucharest.com, www.
goldentulipbucharest.com. 81 rooms. PTHUF
LKW
HELLO HOTELS Two stars never looked so good. For
your paltry amount of cash you are getting a lot of hotel
room here, complete with flat screen televisions and mattresses thicker than many a five-star. Bathrooms are a bit
pokey but they are more than adequate, and as far as value
for money goes we think this is one of the best deals in the
city. Find the place a short walk from the station.QF11,
Calea Grivitei 143, MGara de Nord, tel. (+4) 0372 12 18
00, www.hellohotels.ro. 150 rooms. P6ULKW
IBIS GARA DE NORD
A hotel for more than 40 years this building (and the whole
area) was given a real lift when it became a good old Ibis
several years ago now. Expect a room a bit bigger than
standard Ibis size, the usual services, few frills (breakfast
costs extra) and all in all a good value stay. The name is not
misleading: it is dead opposite the station.QF11, Calea

Grivitei 143, MGara de Nord, tel. (+4) 021 300 91 00,
www.ibishotels.ro. 250 rooms. PH6ULKW
IBIS PALATUL PARLAMENTULUI If you want a view
of Casa Poporului then this is perhaps the best place in
Bucharest to come. Other than that it is a fairly standard
Ibis hotel, just as you love them from anywhere else on
the planet. Not entirely ideally located if you are not driving, it does boast very good staff.QG15, Str. Izvor 82-84,
tel. (+4) 021 401 10 00, www.ibishotels.ro. 161 rooms.
PTH6ULKW
RAMADA HOTEL & SUITES BUCHAREST NORTH
Well located in a quiet residential area near Herastrau
park. It has great rooms - amongst the biggest, on average, in Bucharest - and the bathrooms are tremendous:
all have bathtubs. There are also studios with kitchenettes
for longer stays. The hotel boasts a good spa centre (with
excellent Turkish bath), a big fitness room with loads of
equipment and an outdoor terrace and swimming pool.
Good lobby bar and fine-dining in the restaurant too.
QStr. Daniel Danielopolu 44A, tel. (+4) 021 233 50 00,
www.ramadanorth.ro. 232 rooms. PTH6UF
LKDCW
April - May 2016
73
Hotels
REMBRANDT
Always full (reserve well in advance) you will see why when
you arrive. The Rembrandt is what happens when people
with taste renovate buildings in Old Town Bucharest (the
gorgeous cafe next door belongs - unsurprisingly - to the
same people). Luxurious without overdoing it, expect to
find original 1920s wooden floors and period furnishings
complimented by up-to-the-minute technology.QK14,
Str. Smardan 11, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 313 93 15,
www.rembrandt.ro. 16 rooms. PTUKWJ
TANIA-FRANKFURT This is a cracking little place in the
very heart of Old Town, just a shake or two away from the
citys best nightlife. Rooms are good value, bright and airy,
and are furnished in a modern, bright and airy style. The
best is the split level sky room, with its sky light and raised
sleeping area. Theres free internet for guests.QK15, Str.
Selari 5, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 021 319 27 58/(+4) 031
104 20 83, www.taniahotel.ro. 13 rooms. PKWJ
TRIANON
If location really is everything then you cant do much
better than this cracking place on Str. Cobalcescu, next to
the Ministry of Defence and opposite Cismigiu Park. The
building is a superb Secession renovation on a street that
boasts some extraordinary buildings: it is a shame not all
are up to this standard. Inside the rooms are simple, tastefully decorated and offer excellent value for money. Bathrooms have either a bath or a shower.QH13, Str. Grigore
Cobalcescu 9, tel. (+4) 021 311 49 27/(+4) 021 311 49 28,
www.hoteltrianon.ro. 26 rooms. PTH6UKW
HOSTELS
DOORS HOSTEL
Clean, colourful and rather spacious hostel a short walk
south from Piata Unirii. Located in a classic Bucharest
house it benefits from a gorgeous garden/courtyard, an
all you can eat breakfast and free Wifi, amongst much else.
Note that they have only shared, mixed dorms: there are
no private rooms.QJ17, Str. Olimpului 13, MPiata Unirii, tel. (+4) 021 336 21 27/(+4) 0726 45 42 03, office@
doorshostel.com, www.doorshostel.com. 5 rooms.
PTLKW
MIDLAND Good hostel run by two young locals, with a

very central locations in wonderful old apartment buildings. Handy for transport the place has immaculately clean
dorms and a single for a little extra privacy. Breakfast included, as is Wifi and bedding.QI11, Str. Biserica Amzei
22, ap. 3, MPiata Romana, tel. (+4) 021 314 53 23, www.
themidlandhostel.com. 3 rooms. PTHW
PURA VIDA SKY BAR & HOSTEL One of the best hostels to open in Bucharest for quite some time. Complete
with a bar on the roof offering views of the Old Town this
well-located place offers bright, colourful and immaculately clean accommodation for those on a budget. Some
of the rooms are a little cramped and the showers are
perfunctory but given the location the place offers terrific
value for money.QK14, Str. Smardan 7, MPiata Unirii,
tel. (+4) 0786 329 134/(+4) 0769 088 596, www.sky.
puravidahostels.ro/hostel-bucharest/. WJ
VILLAS & B&B

BUCHAREST BOUTIQUE ACCOMMODATION
An elegant, stylish villa a short walk from Piata Unirii. There
are two rooms, and one enormous apartment. All of the
accommodation is immaculately furnished to the highest
standards of good taste. It is a real find this place, and one
we cant recommend enough. Impressively all children are
free if they share their parents room: we wish all Bucharest
hotels had this policy. Pets are welcome too, and breakfast
is included in the price.QL19, Str. Vitejescu 37, MTineretului, tel. (+4) 0760 29 66 30, www.bucharest-boutiqueaccommodation.ro. 3 rooms. PT6LW
VILA 11
Located in a lovely 1920s house close to Gara de Nord (one
block east of Strada Vespatian and Dinicu Golescu) Vila 11
has a variety of private rooms, dorm facilities and family
suites available for backpackers and families of all ages.
Friendly and welcoming the owners do a great breakfast
(included in the price) and are a wealth of inside info when
it comes to getting the best out of Bucharest. Prices from
20-54.QE11, Str. Institutul Medico Militar 11, MGara
de Nord, tel. (+4) 0722 49 59 00/(+4) 0722 49 59 01,
www.vila11.hostel.com. 6 rooms. T6W
Directory
DENTISTS
FOREIGN REPRESENTATIONS
GERMAN DENTIST The best dentist in the city. Whats

more, you can bring the kids too, as they have a room
equipped especially for children, and a patient young dentist
who is amazing with kids.QI-6, Calea Dorobantilor 208, tel.
(+4) 021 231 88 56, www.germandentist.ro. Open 10:00
- 19:00. Closed Sat, Sun. Open 10:00 - 19:00. Closed Sat,
Sun. For emergencies tel. (+4) 0726 66 69 99 (24hrs). Also
at M-14, Str. Ionescu Gion 4, tel. (+4) 021 320 01 51.
AUSTRIA QL-11 Str. Dumbrava Rosie 7, tel. (+4) 021

201 56 124.
BELGIUM QJ-10, B-dul Dacia 58, tel. (+4) 021 210 29 69.
BULGARIA QI-7, Str. Rabat 5, tel. (+4) 021 230 21 50.
CANADA QG-7, Str. Tuberozelor 1-3, tel. (+4) 021 307 50 00.
CZECH REPUBLIC QK-14, Str. Ion Ghica 11, tel. (+4)
021 303 92 30.
DENMARK QN-13, Str. Dr. Burghelea 3, tel. (+4) 021
300 08 00.
FINLAND QI-7, Str. Atena 2bis, tel. (+4) 021 230 75 45.
DRY CLEANERS
5ASECQJ-8, Calea Dorobantilor 111, tel. (+4) 021 236 00
98, www.5asec.ro. Open 08:00 - 20:00, Sat 09:00 - 19:00.
Closed Sun. Also at O-17, Calea Vitan 13, tel. (+4) 021 320
99 95; Str. Erou Iancu Nicolae 103 (Jolie Ville), tel. (+4)
021 206 80 80; B-dul Alex. Serbanescu 60-64, tel. (+4) 021
891 98 44.
SHORT-TERM RENTAL
GRAND ACCOMMODATION Grand Accommodation has a variety of well furnished apartments and
villas to suit all pockets in good locations available for
both short and long term rentals. Prices from 30-80/
night.QJ-13, Str. Ion Campineanu 29, tel. (+4) 0722
36 75 68/(+4) 021 314 49 50, www.for-rent.ro.
COUNTRY CLUB
STEJARII COUNTRY CLUB What is unquestionably Romanias leading country club is just slightly
north of Bucharest, in a quiet location just past Ikea
and the Baneasa mall. Boasting a superb spa and offering an amazing range of sports (including squash,
tennis, a climbing wall, a huge indoor swimming pool
and a range of aerobic and martial arts options) it also
even has a golf driving range. There are various membership options, from a year to simple weekly or day
tickets.QStr. Jandarmeriei 14, tel. (+4) 0744 33 21
55/(+4) 031 424 70 51, www.stejariicountryclub.ro.
Open 06:00 - 23:00, Sat, Sun 08:00 - 21:00.
April - May 2016
75
Directory
FRANCE QI-11, Str. Biserica Amzei 13-15, tel. (+4) 021
303 10 00.
GERMANY QH-7, Cpt. Av. Gh. Demetriade 6-8, tel. (+4)
021 202 98 30.
GREECE QN-13, Str. Pache Protopopescu 1-3, tel. (+4)
021 209 41 70.
HUNGARY QL-12, Str. Jean Louis Calderon 63-65, tel.
(+4) 031 620 43 00.
IRELAND QG-10, Str. Buzesti 50-52, et. 3, tel. (+4) 021
310 21 31.
ITALY QI-10, Str. Henri Coanda 9, tel. (+4) 021 305 21 00.
MOLDOVA QH-8, Aleea Alexandru 40, tel. (+4) 021
230 04 74.
NETHERLANDS QH-7, Str. Aleea Alexandru 20, tel.
(+4) 021 208 60 30.
SWIMMING POOLS & SPAS

HILTON HEALTH CLUB Small indoor pool, sauna,
steam room, massage, weight and fitness room, and a
host of other wellness facilities.QJ-12, Str. Episcopiei
1-3 (Athenee Palace Hilton), tel. (+4) 021 303 37 77.
Open 06:00 - 22:00. Adults 120 lei.
INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL The highest swimming pool in Romania (its on one of the top floors of
the InterContinental hotel). The views are great (especially when swimming at night!), there is a gym and steam
room too. You dont even need to be a guest of the hotel: day tickets are available.QK-13, B-dul Nicolae Balcescu 4, MUniversitate, tel. (+4) 021 310 20 20. Open
06:00 - 22:00. Adults 80 lei 06:00-16:00, 120 lei 06:0022:00; Children 40 lei 06:00-16:00, 80 lei 06:00-22:00.
NEW
THERME BUCURESTI There are three separate
areas here: one a conventional water park with slides
and wave machines; one with large heated pools and
jacuzzis for relaxation; one for saunas and such like. Its
all under cover, meaning that you can swim even when
there is snow outside. Annoyingly however, families are
only allowed in the water park area, making it impossibly crowded, and you should note that it is forbidden
to enter with your own food and drink.QComuna Balotesti, tel. (+40) 21 529 71 97, www.therme.ro. Open
09:30 - 23:30, Fri, Sat, Sun 08:00 - 01:00. For the water park (Galaxy Zone): Adults 54 lei (full day), 39 lei
(three and a half hours). Children (up to age 16) 40
lei (full day), 25 lei (three and a half hours). Entrance
to the other zones (closed to under-16s) cost extra.
NORWAY QI-7, Str. Atena 18, tel. (+4) 021 306 98 00.
POLAND QI-8, Aleea Alexandru 23, tel. (+4) 021 308 22 00.
RUSSIA QG-7, Sos. Pavel Kiseleff 6, tel. (+4) 021 222 31 70.
SERBIA QK-10, Calea Dorobantilor 34, tel. (+4) 021 211 98 71.
SPAIN QH-7, Aleea Alexandru 43, tel. (+4) 021 318 10 80.
SWEDEN QG-7, Sos. Kiseleff 43, tel. (+4) 021 406 71 00.
SWITZERLAND QI-9, Str. Grigore Alexandrescu 16-20,
tel. (+4) 021 206 16 00.
UK QK-11, Str. Jules Michelet 24, tel. (+4) 021 201 72 00.
USA QB-dul Liviu Librescu 4-5, tel. (+4) 021 200 33 00.
PHARMACIES
HELP NET QG-8, B-dul Unirii 27, tel. (+4) 031 405 04
59, www.helpnet.ro. Also at J-6, Str. Av. Radu Beller 8,
tel. (+4) 031 405 04 79 and many other locations.
SENSIBLU QJ-6, Str. Radu Beller 6, tel. (+4) 021 233 89 61,
www.sensiblu.com. Open 24hrs. Also at K-13, B-dul N. Balcescu 7, tel. (+4) 021 305 73 14 and many other locations.
MARKET VALUES
1 is currently worth around 4.46 lei. A pint of local
beer in a central Bucharest bar or pub will cost you
around 8 lei (1.80). A McDonalds Big Mac costs 9.90
lei (2.23). A packet of 20 international brand cigarettes
costs 15 lei (3.38), and one litre of standard petrol 4.68
lei (1.05). A one-trip ticket for public transport ticket
costs 1.30 lei (0.29).
April - May 2016
77
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Piaa Victoriei 1
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Grigore Antipa Museum

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Scale 1:16000
1 cm = 160 m
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OpenStreetMap contributors.
Available under the Open Database License.
5 46
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Strada Argentina
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National
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Stra
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Strada
Gab
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Piaa
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Piaa
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Strada Hale
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Piaa Unirii
Europa Royale Bucharest
Piaa Unirii
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Horoscop
Piaa Bibescu Strada
B
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Patriarchal Palace & Church
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Ma
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2-4
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Strada Sfn
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Justice Palace Domnia Balaa

Strada
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Coltea Hospital
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Strada Radu Vod
Splaiul Un
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Bulevardul Unirii
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Jewish History Museum
14 40 56
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16
The Great Polish Synagogue

& Holocaust Museum 15
Choral Temple
New St. John's Church
Unirea
Shopping
Centre
Cocor
Baratiei Church
Sfntul Gheorghe
New St. George's Church
5 16 21
cau
Dimit
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Gerot
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Strada P
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Strada Bnie
Colea Church
Old Court Palace & Church
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Strada Blnari
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St. Dumitru Church
Comedy
Theatre
Stavropoleos Church
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National
History
Museum
Zlatari Church
Buleva
National Theatre
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K+K Elisabeta
Sutu Palace / Museum of Bucharest
Universitate Universitate
InterContinental
M3
M1/
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Pi a
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Strada Mih
Holocaust Memorial
Strada Lipscani
Odeon Theatre
St. Nicholas
In-One-Day
Church
Cinema Pro
National Bank
St. Nicholas Students' Church
of Romania
S
Pasajul Villacrosse Pura Vida trada Doam nei
Sky Bar &
Strad
St. Nicholas Church
Hostel
a Lip
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Strada Eforiei
Cercul Capitol
Militar
Ramada Majestic
S tr a da
ei Millo
Mat
Grand Hotel
Continental
Pasajul Unirii
Strada Ion Creang
Calea 13 Septembrie
Unite
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Mihai Vod
Monastery
Splaiu
l Inde
pen
den
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Central
Bulevardul Regina Elisabeta Cismigiu
Opera
p i n eanu
Novotel Bucharest City Centre
Creulescu Church
Stra
da
Ion
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National
Operetta
Theatre "Ion
Dacian"
antin Brtianu
Cathedral of the Nation

(Under Construction)
Izvor
nu
Piata Revolutiei
Casa Poporului
National Museum of
Contemporary Art
nei
Bulevardul Naiun
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lev
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Ca
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Venezia
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16
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Strada Sf
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Parliament
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Parlamentului
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Cale
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Trianon
Lacul Cimigiu
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15
14
M1/M3
Splaiul Independ
Bulevardul Mihail Koglniceanu
Calea Plevnei
Siqua
Romanian
National
Opera (ONB)
13
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Str
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Strada Bogdan P
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Strada Ion Brezoia n u
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van
Dm
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Bulevardul Libertii
Berze
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Bulevardul I
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Str
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Strad
Strad
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Pia
M2
ad
da
Stra
Ge
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da R
ti
Strada 11 I unie
Strada Academiei
S tr a
Strada Smrdan
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Strad
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Osta
Mgu
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lari
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Bul
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uC
Strada
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S t r a da
Strad
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Bule
chitu
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Calea V
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Bot
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Hri
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Stra
Str
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1
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Strada
62
da
Stra
Strad
51
Oetari
u Cr
a R ad
Strad
aC
linescu
Justi
iei
Street register
Aleea Alexandru
H-7/8
B-dul AI Cuza
E-9
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E-9
B-dul Carol I
K/N-13
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K/M-15
B-dul Dacia
H-11
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B-dul Eroilor
D-14/15
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B/E-3
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B-14
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B-dul Iancu de Hunedoara
H/J-9
B-dul IC Brtianu K-13/15
B-dul Ion Mihalache A/C-4
B-dul Iuliu Maniu A/C-14
B-dul Lacul Tei
L/N-7
B-dul Lascr Catargiu H-9
B-dul Libertii
I-14/17
B-dul Mreti
J-18
B-dul M. Koglniceanu G-14
B-dul Mircea Eliade
H-4
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B-dul Naiunilor Unite G/J-15
B-dul N. Blcescu K-12/13
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C/E-1
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H-5
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B-dul Regina Maria
I-17
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B-dul Timioara
A/C-15
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I/O-16
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A-8/9
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K-1/9
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H-9/10
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I-11
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L-13
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I-7
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J-18
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E-3
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O-10
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J-10
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K-15/16
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K-13
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G-9
os. Cotroceni
C/E-13
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H-1/2
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J-16/18
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A-8
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J-12/13
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F-7
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C/E-14
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K-1
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L-13
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J-11
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K-13
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I-8
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A-3/4
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K-12
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J-7/9
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J-7/8
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A-3
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L-17
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G-9/11
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J/L-12
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F-9/10
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K-2
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J-14
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F-6
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J-14
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I/L-14
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J-8
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L-15
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J-13
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I-5
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Str. Varovia
I-8
Str. Vasile Adamache L-15
Str. Vasile Alecsandri I-9/10
Str. Vasile Burl
A-10
Str. Vasile Conta
K-12
Str. Vasile Gherghel
C-7
Str. Vasile Lascr L-12/13
Str. Vasile Mironiuc F-7/8
Str. Vasile Prvan G-13/14
Str. Veronica Micle
F-9
Str. Verziori
L-17/19
Str. Vespasian
E-10/11
Str. Victor Hugo
I-5
Str. Viesparilor
M-9/10
Str. Vigilenei
I-15
Str. Viioarei
I-10
Str. Virgiliu
F-12/13
Str. Visarion
J-10
Str. Walter Mrcineanu I-13
Str. Washington
I-8
Str. Witting
E-11/12
Str. W. A. Mozart
L-4/7
Str. Xenofon
I-18
Str. Zalic
A-10

Bucharest Mai 2016

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Bucharest Mai 2016

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Maps Events Restaurants Cafs Bars Pubs Clubs Sightseeing Shopping Hotels

N100 - 15.00 lei

Getting Around & The Basics

The citys best restaurants

Coffee, tea, cakes and cocktails

Souvenirs, local designers and local wine

April - May 2016

ISSN 1454-5276 IYP Romania Srl. Printed at MEGAPress SA,

In no particular order, Bucharest In Your Pocket would like

4 Bucharest In Your Pocket

Bucharest IYP 100: Then & Now

Happy birthday to us.

We also a publishing first in Romania, we believe

Bucharest IYP 100: Then & Now

Founder Matthias Luefkens with a huge batch of Bucharest In Your

was brought by the Marele Zid Chinese restaurant in Brasov,

Our advice on arriving at Otopeni Airport in 1999. The

Our list of scams visitors to Bucharest had to look out for

Arriving & Getting Around

GARA DE NORD (TRAIN STATION)

To get to the city centre, your best bet is to take a taxi.

Arriving & Getting Around

April - May 2016

Arriving & Getting Around

CAR RENTAL IN BUCHAREST

10 Bucharest In Your Pocket

Arriving & Getting Around

INFO TOURIST CENTER

SIXT NEW KOPEL

TRUSTED TAXI COMPANIES: Apolodor (+4) 021

12 Bucharest In Your Pocket

CRIME & SAFETY

April - May 2016

Easter in Romania is a big deal. Seriously big. Make sure you

The first place Romanians new

Control (see p.45). is a place we have

If your idea of Romania is old women

Crama Domneasca (see p.28)

Oktoberfest (p.45) sells possibly

None of Bucharests sights charge

Bucharest has its fair share of lively

The Romanian football league is

Laboratorul de Cocktailuri (p. 36)

Pamper yourselves at the swimming

If youre looking for a nice place

You probably didnt come to

16 Bucharest In Your Pocket

Corks (p.42) is a great place to have

Take a lavish Sunday Brunch at

Spring and summer are the best seasons to visit Bucharest

mid-May onwards) is Divertiland on the western edge of

AMERICAN & BURGERS

HARD ROCK CAFE

N Credit cards not accepted

U Facilities for the disabled

L Guarded parking E Live music

ish dishes - we can recommend both the beef and chicken

April - May 2016

DIE DEUTSCHE KNEIPE

April - May 2016

LUNCH & EARLY EVENING

made ice cream.QI12, Calea Victoriei 63-81 (Radisson

24 Bucharest In Your Pocket

- Under 10 per person