Mici are Bucharest's skinless grilled minced-meat sausages, a blend of beef, lamb and pork seasoned with garlic, black pepper, baking soda and broth. The plate is served with mustard, bread and a Romanian lager.
The mici (literally 'small ones', also called mititei, 'tiny ones') is a Bucharest invention. A 1920 letter from the chef of Caru' cu bere on Strada Stavropoleos, preserved in the Romanian Academy library, records the recipe. Popular legend ties the dish to Iordache Ionescu's tavern at 3 Covaci Street in the late 1800s, who ran out of intestines for sausages and grilled the spiced minced meat in skinless form. The dish is first mentioned in print by French-Romanian journalist Ulysse de Marsillac in 1870, and named 'mititei' around 1872 by writer N. T. Orășanu. May 1 Labour Day is the citywide mici-eating tradition.
5 editor picks for Mici (Mititei) in Bucharest, ranked by editorial score. All Bucharest signature dishes · Mici (Mititei) across every city.
Caru' cu bere ★ 4.6
lipscani · Strada Stavropoleos 5, 030107 București
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.
Mici la Piața Obor ★ 4.5
obor · Strada Ziduri Moși 4, Sector 2, București
The mici terrace inside Bucharest's Piața Obor on Ziduri Moși is the most-cited mici counter, plates of five with mustard, bread and lager service.
Hanu' lui Manuc ★ 4.4
lipscani · Strada Franceză 62-64, 030106 București
The 1808 caravanserai-turned-restaurant Hanu' lui Manuc on Franceză serves classic Romanian plates around one of Europe's last remaining inn courtyards.
Hanu' Berarilor Casa Oprea Soare ★ 4.2
centru-civic · Strada Poenaru Bordea 2, 050554 București
Hanu' Berarilor Casa Oprea Soare runs a neo-Romanesque manor as a brewery-restaurant near Bucharest's Piața Unirii, giant platters and house beer.
Berăria H ★ 4.0
floreasca · Șoseaua Kiseleff 32, Pavilionul H, Herastrau Park, București
Berăria H opened in 2014 inside the former Heavy Industry Pavilion in Herastrau Park, billed as Southeast Europe's largest beer hall on a 5,000 sqm floor.