Cozonac is the Romanian sweet braided bread, an enriched yeast dough wound with walnut, cocoa, Turkish delight or poppyseed filling. The Easter and Christmas table centre, sold by bakeries through November and December.
Where to eat it: 5 restaurants across 1 city.
Cozonac descends from the same Mediterranean-Ottoman enriched-bread tradition that produced Greek tsoureki and Bulgarian kozunak; the name shares roots with the Greek koksonaki. The braided format with multiple fillings is Romanian and southern-Slavic, and the Bucharest version centres on walnut and cocoa. Christmas Eve and Easter Sunday households still bake whole cozonac that families gift to one another.
Common allergens: Wheat, Walnut, Egg, Dairy
Tip from the editors. Don't rush the proves: the long second rise gives the layered braid its open crumb. Walnut filling oxidises fast; mix it just before rolling.
Luca Bakery in Floreasca runs as a daily cozonac and pâine de casă counter, with the dense plum and walnut cozonac Bucharest workers buy on the commute.
Tip: Pre-order whole cozonac for Christmas and Easter weeks at the counter; ordinary days walk-in service works.
Worth the queue: Cozonac
Boutique du Pain on Academiei is the long-running French bakery and bistro near Bucharest University, with daily baguettes and viennoiserie.
Tip: Croissants out at 08:00; check the back counter for the day's tartine.
Worth the queue: Croissant aux amandes
French Bakery on Avionului is the Aviatorilor neighborhood bakery doing levain breads and a pain aux raisins regulars rate as one of the best in the city.
Tip: Phone-order whole loaves for collection; the croissant supply runs out by 11:00.
Worth the queue: Pain aux raisins
The 1879 Caru' cu bere on Stavropoleos serves the soul of Bucharest dining, where mici were recorded in a 1920 chef's letter to the Academy.
Signature: Mici, Sarmale, Papanași
Order: Mici with mustard and ciorbă de burtă, then papanași for dessert.
Tip: Walk-up queues from 12:30 onward; the upstairs hall has the live folk band.
Poet Mircea Dinescu's Lacrimi și Sfinți on Șepcari pours wines from his Cetate estate alongside modern Romanian classics in Bucharest Old Town today.
Signature: Sarmale, Mămăligă cu brânză, Slănină plate
Order: The signature sarmale; a glass of Cetate Riesling Italian.
Tip: The wine list is heavy on Dinescu's own bottlings; ask the room for the day's house pour.
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