Romania-Insider.com reader Peter Fay spent some time at the Caru cu Bere restaurant in the Romanian capital and wrote about it. ( 5 Stavropoleos St., phone: 004021 313.75.60)

I first visited Romania to meet up with a friend I'd made. I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I quickly fell in love with the place and the people. Since then, I have revisited Bucharest and Romania as often as possible.

I have often told my friends in England that if I spent the rest of my life touring Romania every summer, I would probably still miss some of the many beautiful sights.

On my second visit to Bucharest, I stayed at a hotel, which provided bed and breakfast, but no dinner. The excellent receptionist suggested when I asked, that the “Caru cu Bere” was a good restaurant. That was when I first discovered this fantastic restaurant.

Translated into English, “Caru cu Bere” means “Beer Cart”. However, the English phrases “Never judge a book by its cover....” and “A rose by any other name would still smell as sweet...” are most relevant. Yes, we British are quirky.

From my third visit onwards, I have always rented an apartment. It is much cheaper than a hotel and I can cook my own breakfast at whatever time I wish. The cleaners come once a week. I have the use of a washing machine. If I have a problem, the owner is but a phone call away. It is like a home, away from home. The freedom is wonderful.

Since that first visit to “Caru cu Bere”, I have always regarded the restaurant as an experience... rather than just a superb restaurant. The architecture of the building alone is something special.

Take for example, the experience last Saturday night. I arrived there early evening, just before 20:00 and they were busy, busy, busy.

One of the good looking, hard working young waitresses took me to a table. In fact, all the waitresses are young and pretty. Definitely a distinct advantage. I remember the song, “Back in the USSR” by The Beatles, “Ukraine girls really knock me out...” Clearly they never visited Bucharest.

I never book up in advance, I just arrive. Not recommended at busy times for large groups, because you may be unlucky.

Having visited so many times, I am becoming well known. Sometimes I have shared a table with either native Romanians or tourists. Whosoever it is, there is usually some form of communication and conversation. My 'limba Romana' (Romanian) is still a little basic, but fortunately, most Romanians and tourists have some knowledge of English and I have a basic knowledge of many languages. So, on the whole we get by with a “pigeon EU limba mixture” and a few hand signals and smiles. The result is usually a pleasant and friendly agreement.

Fortunately, nearly all of the staff there are fluent in English. The only problem I have is that their name tags are always family name followed by Christian name... the opposite to what I am used to.

As usual on almost any night, my waiter swiftly asks what I would like to drink and eat. Often the food is delivered just as swiftly. It is also extremely inexpensive compared with a restaurant in England.

This evening, I decided to appease my friends back home and try something traditional like, for example, “Sarmale”. Basically, it is minced meat with herbs, onions, garlic and rice, rolled up in cabbage leaves. Added on the plate is sour cream, and some mamaliga / polenta. I have never been a great lover of cabbage. However, the Sarmale was delightful and pleasant. The plate was very large and very full, but I greedily ate the lot! It was very “more-ish”.

As for the beer... I am not usually a lager drinker. The yellow liquid that is served in England and is fraudulently called lager, often gets referred to by us real ale drinkers, as the colloquial description of the liquid bodily waste of a fly. However, the lager that is served at “Caru cu Bere” and many other drinking establishments in Romania, is decent, proper, tasteful lager.

Due to the huge number of customers on Saturday night, I had a small table in the basement. Fortunately, there was a TV showing the Great Britain ladies football team beating the Cameroon ladies 3-0. It was a good match. Yes, it was the Olympics, a subject to avoid with me – us taxpaying Brits are paying for this exorbitantly expensive Olympics.

There was also a small quartet / quintet playing a mixture of styles of music next to the silent TV showing the football. They were very entertaining. Up in the main part of the restaurant, there is usually music and dancing to entertain. The styles of entertainment have varied a lot over the several years I have visited. But they have all tended to be good.

At around nine o'clock, some of the staff join a conga and almost ‘Parade’ around the restaurant applauding to an accompanying piece of familiar music... the name of which escapes me. The customers usually return the applause. It is nice to see that it is not only us Brits who have unusual rituals.

Another interesting thing I noticed was that the large joined tables adjacent to mine had 20 plus people sat at them. They were family and friends celebrating something. All of the group appeared European, however some were of Western European origin, some Eastern European and a few were clearly of Greek or Turkish origin. It is truly enjoyable to see such friendly integration and I know that this is not unusual in Romania.

To sum it all up, the staff work extremely hard at “Caru cu Bere”. I am very impressed by them. The food is excellent, the beer is not bad either; the music, the dancing and the fun had by everyone is excellent.

“Caru cu Bere” in the evening is not really a place for young children, although I have seen many well behaved youngsters there, with both Romanians and tourists. But that is usually earlier during the daytime. The “Caru cu Bere” is also not exactly the place for a quiet intimate meal. It is somewhere to be experienced and enjoyed.

Walking back to my rented apartment after midnight is also a dream. I always feel safe on the streets at night in Bucharest. Plus, what I find delightful about Lipscani is that young adults are having fun and drinking alcohol. However, they remain lucid and able to walk home.

Back at my home in England, young people seem to think the idea of entertainment is to drink alcohol to excess, making themselves ill and totally unable to walk.

I hope you will enjoy the inexpensive delights of the “Caru cu Bere,” I always eat there and I love the friendly staff.

Peter Fay

(photo source: Caru cu Bere)