restaurant

Integra

Despite the fact that our seaside season is over thanks to all of the rearrangements we have to do in our house to make sure it is ready to welcome our little bundle of joy, we haven’t left there without having a great lunch at one of the first places we tried out in Constanta: Integra. This place was recommended to us by one of my best friends and the thing I loved about it even before arriving there is the fact that they have a raw-vegan menu packed full of delicious dishes. Naturally throughout the years I have tried most of the raw menu and I have to say, that thanks to this place my mind was changed when it came to the raw-vegan cuisine.

I do not think we ever went to the seaside once without having a meal at this lovely place. True, it does have the location advantage, meaning that it is at about a 10 minute walk away from our place there. At first glance, the place looks very nice and the interior design is a nice combo of fresh plants and lovely marble which immediately make you want to take a seat. The menu has about everything you could ever crave, somewhat of an international cuisine with a little turkish mix of dishes. And then, of course, there is the raw-vegan menu, where you literally can find everything from appetisers, soups, pasta, pizza, desserts and even a few amazing fresh cocktails.

Back to our last experience there…unfortunately, we couldn’t take as many inside pictures as we would’ve liked as the place was quite full at the time we were there and there’s always that uncomfortable feeling when you take pics of total strangers, but you can find quite a lot of photos on their site. Normally, this is the place we choose for our before the road lunch or brunch, depending on how early we wake up. This time it was definitely lunch time and because we knew we had next to nothing in our fridge at home, we decided on a full lunch: soup, main dish and a shared a raw dessert. As usual when we eat there, we start off with one of their amazing fresh raw juices, this time choosing Green energy and Fountain of Youth. These two cocktails are amazing and very healthy especially after a busy night at the seaside. Like I said, we both ate a soup, I went for my usual tomato soup which is a must-try and D chose the lentil soup which turned out to be better that I expected. As main courses I needed something savoury and light so I went for the oven cooked feta cheese with tomatoes and onion that was absolutely delicious. D chose the beef Iskender that besides looking amazing it tasted like heaven, and that, coming from me during this period where meat is the last thing that I crave, is something! As for dessert we chose to share the Rainbow Tart from the raw-vegan menu. As with all their raw-vegan dishes, this was delicious!

Despite the restaurant being full, the food came decently quick and the staff was very friendly and professional. This place is not among the cheapest nor among the most expensive, our three-course lunch cost us about 40 E tip included which is really good for Constanta, especially since the food is so amazing. We will definitely come back here as often as we will come to Constanta!

August 28, 2016

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LIVADA

As you’ve probably noticed, our life at Untold festival revolved around sleeping, eating and enjoying great music. Even though it seems that our only goal in Cluj was to try as many restaurants as possible, I promise that we did other stuff as well, like going to the actual festival. The bummer about pregnancy, especially in the first four months is that between the eating, dancing and sleeping, I did not have any energy left to actually take some fashion photos. So far, the two fashion posts are the only ones you’ll see of us while in Cluj. But fear not, the Untold posts will soon end and trust me when I say that we have not reviewed one restaurant that is not worth visiting while in Cluj.

The place we are going to talk about today is Livada. This place is just so great no matter if we are referring to the food, the design or the service. Some of the dishes in their new menu are signed by Chef Patrizia Paglieri, you know her from the Romanian Master Chef. That’s not to say that the dishes that are not signed by her are not delicious, on the contrary, actually everything on the menu is amazing and this is one of those places in Cluj where everyone can find something to eat on the menu. No matter if you are a traditional food lover or fan of the more modern cuisine, thanks to this new and exciting collaboration, Livada now has it all for everyone to enjoy.

All of us eating lunch there had a sort of combo of dishes, therefore you get to see quite the diversity. I had the carrot soup with a hint of ginger and the homemade french fries with garlic and pickled cucumbers. Hey, I’m pregnant and like never before I am craving potatoes in any shape and size. And, I am a sucker for homemade french fries as I am always too lazy to actually make them myself and they are a rarity in Bucharest. Moving along from the french fries and let’s talk a bit about the carrot soup. The secret to the carrot soup is to actually feel the carrot taste skilfully combined with another ingredient. This is definitely what’s going on with this one, the ginger perfectly compliments the carrots. I really see no point in talking about the perfection of the fries as the photo says it all. D had the Gulash which is a traditional Hungarian dish that judging by the fact that he ate in exactly 5 minutes, I’d say was very, very good. Our friends that joined us for lunch had the cheeseburger which according to them was very good. Like I said, you can find everything your heart desires at Livada.

For dessert, D and I shared the traditional dumplings, and what I loved about them was the fact that they came in bite sized pieces which made it really easy and enjoyable to eat. Our friends ordered the signature Tiramisu which turned out to be delicious but way too big for only one person. We all had different types of lemonades, and I am mentioning them because they are really worth a try. Not surprisingly, the check for me and D came at about 35 E, so this one is at the normal price range for a great restaurant in Cluj. Service wise, this was good, but not amazing, we were however thankful that we did not have to wait for an hour for our food. This is a place we’ll definitely have to revisit next time when we are in the area!

August 17, 2016

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Zahana 33

Since summer is here and our European getaways have come to an end for now, we decided to run to the seaside for the weekend and try and find more great, safe places to eat there. It’s very important if you decide to come to Romania for a seaside adventure, to be very careful where you eat, as a lot of places tend to be mediocre at best with prices as high as a Michelin star restaurant. It’s also best if you try and steer clear of beach restaurants. There are a few that we’ve tested throughout the years that are both excellent food wise, offer a very nice atmosphere and are conveniently located on the beach so you can grab a quick lunch or dinner.

One of those places is the newly opened Zahana 33. I say newly opened because they just opened one restaurant in Mamaia at Hotel Lido, but they have a few years of experience in Bucharest – where we first fell in love with their food. This is a traditional Romanian restaurant that has its own meat preparing secrets and basically what you get in your plate you won’t be able to find anywhere else as the chef keeps his tricks very well hidden. Since we brought the chef into our discussion, his name is Catalin Jernoiu and everyone that actually knows something about gourmet food will know right then and there that this restaurant is a must try. Usually you can find the chef at the seaside during the weekends and in Bucharest during the week, so my recommendation is to visit the two restaurants accordingly. I will not spend anymore time on the Bucharest restaurant as we want to review that one as well, so from this point on we’ll only going to talk about the one at Hotel Lido in Mamaia.

First and foremost, it’s best if you call ahead and make a reservation, especially during the weekends when it tends to be quite full despite the very big terrace. Even though they do have an indoor restaurant where you can enjoy your dinner, let’s be serious, if you’ve come at the seaside, you probably do not want to spend a minute inside during the day, so it’s best to call ahead. The overall atmosphere is not of a gourmet type restaurant, even though the food is, and everyone should feel quite comfortable there, especially since you don’t feel like you are either overdressed or underdressed. That was achieved thanks to the very casual, very beach appropriate design that combines the feel of the old classic Romanian restaurant – wooden furniture, with the beach feeling you should get while on vacation – various marine elements, including a full burlap rooftop. The staff is very friendly and professional which brings the whole experience to perfection.

Getting to the food part of this review. We went there several times and the one time we did take our camera with us, we were 8 at the table which is why we got to photograph as many dishes as we did. First of all, this being a meat specialised place it’s a pity to not have a meat based dinner, however, they offer quite a wide variety of courses that elegantly avoid meat if you decide that meat is not your thing in the evening. As you know, this is one thing that is a must for me in order to actually put together a restaurant review because, despite the fact that I am not a declared vegetarian, I do enjoy vegetable or cheese based food more that meat based ones. Despite that, knowing how well the meat is prepared here, I ordered something meaty to eat. You should not miss the appetisers as all of them are delicious. As you can see from the photos, you can find a very wide variety of dishes, as well as some of the chef’s specialties, and I have to say that everyone at our table was absolutely ecstatic and full at the end of our dinner. Besides the amazing appetisers, meat and fish dishes – that everyone that ordered fish said it was amazing, but as you know, I didn’t try it – you can’t leave without trying one of their amazing desserts that do not need any description as the pictures speak for themselves.

The wonderful thing about all the food is that, as you can spot from the photos we took, each dish has a certain type of plate which always keeps you guessing an gives the place a very original feel to it. The whole evening, our dinner was accompanied by live music sand by a Greek band which completed the whole experience and made us want to return the next evening. Price wise, I’d say that you pay a lot less than what the food is worth, but on a greater scale, this is a medium priced restaurant, therefore you get the services and food of a very expensive one, but when the check comes you start wondering why you tried other restaurants thus far. This is one of those rare safe places to eat on the beach in Mamaia, so I suggest you give it a try!

July 26, 2016

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Au Chien qui Fume

Au Chien Qui Fume…Here we are again…Me with a glass of something in front of me – the beer is not mine – and D taking pictures of me. The thing with French terraces is that most of the time the tables are so small that you have to order taking that into consideration. Apparently the French do take care of your silhouette. Another low point about French terraces is that usually, you feel like you are sharing your plate with the stranger next to you. All this happened to us the last time we were in Paris and ever since we have promised ourselves to never stop and eat at those types of terraces.

But, what do you know? When hunger strikes, there is no reason behind any choice you make. Luckily for us, hunger struck near this lovely French restaurant that actually had a terrace. It is called Au Chien Qui Fume and it’s the only terrace I’ve seen throughout Paris that actually has space between tables. This immediately made both of us want to give it a nice review so that other tourists visiting Paris will experience amazing French food in a very nice environment. So, moving along to the food. The menu consists mainly of French cuisine, but it doesn’t exclude anyone, so you can find vegetable based dishes, poultry, fish and basically anything your heart desires, all with a French twist, which is exactly what we wanted for our last lunch in Paris.

Obviously, both of us had to order some specifically French dishes, therefore I ended up with my favourite – The Onion Soup, and D chose the chicken casserole. What can I say? My soup was absolutely delicious and I knew at first mouthful that this place deserved a review on the blog. If you ever find yourself in Paris, make sure you give this place a try and especially the Onion Soup that was absolutely amazing. D loved his chicken casserole that not only looked amazing, but you could feel the taste of real free range chicken and fresh potatoes. Really, his dish reminded me of a chicken stew that my grandmother used to make me when I was little. Those were the days where you cooked whatever you grew in your yard, all natural, hormone free food.

For dessert I chose the Creme Brulee because, hey, we are in Paris, right? and D chose Ile Flottante which is a dessert I know from when I was little and again, my grandmother used to make it. It does seem like my grandmother was a specialist in French Cuisine, doesn’t it? Well she used to call this dessert ‘Bird’s Milk’ but it’s basically the same thing. The Creme Brulee was magnificent and I love the fact that great quality vanilla was used as that seems to be a rarity lately. I have to say that we were very satisfied with our lunch and we were actually sorry we only discovered this place on our last day in Paris as we really wanted to give a few other dishes a try.

The cheque came at about 70E which is more than decent considering the area as well as the fact that it’s full tourist season in paris right now. I also loved the decor and the fact that the whole restaurant was open and you couldn’t really feel where the inside area was ending and the terrace begins. It was very nice to feel like we were the only ones at our table especially taking into consideration our other experiences in Paris. This place is defiantly a must-try!

July 22, 2016July 22, 2016

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JOIA

While I was selecting these pics I started being more and more torn about what this post should look like. At first i wasn’t sure if any text was actually needed in order to understand this amazing culinary experience we’ve had in Milan or not. The more I think about it, the more I realise that this was definitely the best gourmet experience we’ve ever had.

After much pondering, I decided to write a bit of text about the place… JOIA… First of all I’d like to mention the fact that neither of us is a vegetarian. I consider myself more of a rebel vegetarian, meaning that in any given situation I prefer veggies and cheese, but from time to time I do enjoy a high quality piece of duck breast or a Black Angus low-fat piece of beef fillet. To be honest, I never really enjoyed meat, but (and this is the point where all the declared vegetarians/vegans will stop reading this blog) I do understand and respect the human body’s need for a varied and balanced diet, be that with animal protein in it. D however is right at the other end of the spectrum and can’t really imagine a good meal without meat in it. I mean he simply can’t understand any type of dish that doesn’t contain meat. Basically, the way he puts it sound a bit like this: if it doesn’t have any meat in it, it’s either a side or a salad, none of which is enough for an actual decent meal.

So, despite the fact that neither of us is a declared vegetarian, we decided to splurge on our first dinner at a Michelin recognised vegetarian restaurant. Obviously, D was convinced going in that he will stop on the way back to the hotel and eat a burger or something. I, on the other hand was very excited and curious to actually see what gourmet (I mean real gourmet) vegetarian cuisine meant and was sure that we both will leave the place with our bellies full. I have to admit though that I was a bit nervous about spending half a pair of Loubs on a dinner that might actually not be as good as expected. Make no mistake, we are by no means experts in gourmet cuisine and I personally have quite a long list of ingredients that I can’t stand. The 15 course tasting menu (Zenith) gives you basically no details about the ingredients and if you actually want to know some details (not all) about each dish, you have to look them up in the menu. Obviously none of us were in the mood to look for 15 partly explained dishes, so we just took the plunge.

The Amouse-Bouche

The Appetisers

From the first step we took inside the restaurant we realised that our first evening in Milan will be one to remember. The decor is not overwhelming nor too elegant and this restaurant actually make you feel very comfortable despite any casual attire you might be wearing. This, to me is very important because I never carry any formalwear while on vacation, mainly out of principle, I mean, I am on vacation! The nice thing that actually surprised us first thing is the fact that the chef actually comes out to take your order and answer any questions you might have about the menu or any allergy concerns. This is very important, as most of the time, chefs do tend to keep their ingredients a secret and the waiters tend to be useless when it comes to this.

The Soup

The two First Courses

As stated, We both chose the Zenith menu, that contains 15 different courses, mainly to make sure that D will leave the place full and satisfied. Aside from those 15 courses, we both receives one amouse-bouche course that we both found amazing, and an extra-dessert, that brought the total meal count to 17. Now I’m not going to start detailing each and every course because, to be honest, I can’t remember the explanation we got to any of them, but I can tell you that as they came, each and every one of them became our new favourite and by the end, we had no idea which one was the best. Obviously, after 17 courses, not even D could complain about being hungry, quite the contrary, we both could barely move because of how full we were. To my surprise, D loved the entire experience and is actually considering trying some other vegetarian restaurants as now he knows that vegetarians can have their bellies full and satisfied. The Zenith menu consists of 4 appetisers, 1 soup, 2 first courses, all the 4 main courses, a dessert that is not on the menu (Italian Summer) and 3 different desserts that you can actually find on the menu.

The four Main Courses

The four Desserts

The extra Dessert

At the end of our dinner, the entire check came at about 250 Euros, which, yes, is very expensive, but you do have to take into consideration that this is a Michelin recognised restaurant that offers amazing quality dishes and one of the best services we’ve ever experienced in a restaurant. All in all, at least once in a lifetime, it really makes sense to spurge on a dinner like this one. And definitely, if you ever find yourself in Milan this is the place to dine, vegetarian or not!

July 2, 2016

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A little bit…CRAZY!!!

As you know by now, we decided to run away from Bucharest for (only) one day to the seaside. There’s no hotel to review as we stayed at our place there, but we do need to talk about some of the great places to eat while you’re there especially since the swimsuit season is about to start.

In order to give you a good and relevant review on a place we need to have eaten there at least twice simply put because one time could be just luck. This time we decided, since we were only staying for one night, to eat at the same place for dinner and lunch the next day. Surely, if we have an unpleasant experience for the first time, we wouldn’t risk going there for the second time. This weekend D chose CRAZY Restaurant (he usually takes care of our food itinerary wherever we go) in Constanta. First of all, if you decide on spending your summer holiday/weekend in Mamaia, you should know that aside from very few places there, you’d be better off eating in Constanta both mentally and physically. Usually restaurants on the beach tend to be mediocre at best and quite overpriced.

Back to our CRAZY experience… Turns out this restaurant was a very good choice, but I would expect nothing less from D when it comes to food as he tends to do his research very thoroughly. First thing we did when we reached our destination was go out for dinner, turns out that wasn’t the best idea as unpacking, even for one day, tends to be very difficult after a bottle of wine. That didn’t ruin our dinner experience though… Because it’s dinner we’re talking about, the light in some of the photos is quite bad, but the atmosphere there was really nice thanks to that bad-for-photos light. As you can see, the pics we took on Saturday at lunch are a lot better.

Ever since I first entered the restaurant, I liked the interior design very much, it’s fresh and eclectic. This place has a few distinct areas for the different activities you want to conduct there: it has a bar-lounge area, a coffee shop area, the said restaurant area and an extremely beautiful terrace. For more photos (professionally taken) you can check their Facebook page.

The good:

As I said, the interior design is a very big plus, the location seems to be a good one for Constanta and the menu is very varied with lots of dishes to choose from. Mainly it’s international cuisine with a few fancy dishes. You can find anything from soups, salads, ribs, poultry (cooked in a thousand ways), all sorts of meat to even raw cakes. The staff was very friendly and well trained and the food came very quick. Basically we ate the whole time we were there. One could argue that the restaurant wasn’t full on that Friday evening, but it’s a good thing then that we came back on a fully booked Saturday afternoon and the food came just as quick, so no shortage of staff there.

Back to the dinner…we started with a plate of home-made nachos as we were very hungry from the road and we thought we’d have to wait a long time for a main course (we were wrong and full by the time we finished our nachos). D then had some ribs and I had the turkey breast and they were both as expected delicious and no, that wasn’t the hunger speaking for us. We decided to skip dessert and have a cheese plate instead for the remaining rose wine from Gramma. Overall, the experience was a very good one, hence we decided to come back for lunch the next day.

On Saturday, because the weather was very nice we had lunch on the terrace. D had the thai soup, which in my opinion looked like an aquarium with murky green water and totally grossed me out, but I can’t stand fish or anything coming from the sea. D said it was amazing so that was that with his soup. I had the ginger-carrot soup which was superbly done as you could clearly feel the rich flavour as opposed to other places where the carrot soup was quite bland. D also had the crispy taco (I was full at that point or rather I was preserving myself for dessert) with one of the best oxtail meat we’ve ever tasted. For desert we both had the raw chocolate cake and the carrot cake after which we were both sold on the place. In my opinion it’s very hard to not screw up raw cakes, but this one was very good.

I really appreciate when you can find raw or vegan dishes in a menu, not because I’m a vegan, but because it shows that they are interested in satisfying as many people as possible.

As a price point, this place is very decent, on the low-medium level as our dinner check came at around 50€ wine included and the lunch check was about 30€.

The bad:

The first bad thing I’d like to mention about this place is that their wine list is very poor, with only three varieties for each type (colour). The other thing that annoyed me was the fact that I really can’t understand how you can serve such good food with frozen potato fries. It really bugs me! It was quite obvious that they use top quality ingredients and all the other sides were made from fresh vegetables so I really have to wonder why one would screw it up that way… Well that didn’t bother us too much as you can always choose a different type of side dish. However this is a place that we’ll definitely come back to whenever we will be in Constanta.

Since we’ll probably go to the seaside quite often, we’ll try and put together a list of go-to places to eat there just to help everyone avoid those nasty places I was talking about at the beginning of the post.

CRAZY is defiantly on our good-food list for the seaside!