Salată de vinete is Romanian smoky eggplant salad, charred eggplants peeled and whipped with sunflower oil, white onion, salt and a little mayonnaise, served on bread or as a mezze with feta.
Where to eat it: 5 restaurants across 1 city.
The smoked-eggplant tradition is shared across the Balkans and the Levant (Romanian salată de vinete, Greek melitzanosalata, Turkish patlıcan salatası), all descending from Ottoman-era eggplant cooking. Romanian households fire-roast over coals; restaurants grill or oven-char. The summer-mezze role is canonical: a bowl on every July and August Romanian table.
Common allergens: Egg (in mayonnaise version)
Tip from the editors. Real char is the difference between a smoky salad and a bland one. If you don't have a gas flame or charcoal, oven-grill at maximum heat with the door cracked until the skin blackens.
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.
The 1808 caravanserai-turned-restaurant Hanu' lui Manuc on Franceză serves classic Romanian plates around one of Europe's last remaining inn courtyards.
Signature: Mici, Sarmale, Lamb tochitură
Order: Mici and a lamb tochitură; the cabbage rolls feed two.
Tip: The courtyard fills first; ask for a balcony table inside the U-shaped inn.
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.
Chef Petru Sorin Cucu's Mahala cooks contemporary Romanian inside the Bragadiru Palace, near the House of the People, one of the boldest menus in town.
Signature: Ciorbă de burtă cu trufe, Turbot, Quail dumplings
Order: Ciorbă de burtă with black truffles; the quail-olive dumplings.
Tip: Lunch service is quieter; dinner books out Thursday to Saturday.
Crama Domnească sits in the cellar of the Princely Court on Șelari, the Princely Wine Cellar in Bucharest, with live folk and house wines by carafe.
Signature: Sarmale, Mămăligă, Ciorbă de burtă
Order: Mămăligă with brânză and smântână; a clay-pot tochitură.
Tip: Live taraf music every evening; cash and card both accepted.
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