Archive for September, 2009

Flower shop

Here are the Top Five shops in Bucharest regarding popularity or rather level of extension (in my opinion – please leave a comment with your own personal Top Five list or continue mine until the Top Ten):

Mini Market

5. Mom-and-Pop grocery stores
4. Pharmacies
3. Flower shops
2. Amanet (pawnshop)

And the winner is:

1. Fornetti
- our all beloved puff pastry producer.

I argue that what is the bocadillo for Spain, the sandwich for GB, the Wurstsemmel for Austria and the onigiri for Japan, that’s puff pastry and strudel for Romania! The little, cheap, very tasty and highly caloric snack for in between the meals.

Big Three: Fornetti, Amanet, Pharmacy

You can find all these different kinds of shops in amazing quantities all over the city.

The last picture is supposed to underline the above said.

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Chinese Grocery Store

Are you looking for a place where to buy Chinese/Japanese foodstuff in Bucharest and have so far only found dried layers of seaweed (nori), Japanese horseradish (wasabi) and soy sauce in the shelves of the big supermarket chains? If the answer is yes, I have good news for you (if the answer is no, please have a look at the last sentence of this post!):

I discovered a decent little Chinese grocery store (no Japanese products though) in Colentina. If you head north-east from Obor on Şoseaua Colentina, it’s after Strada Sportului on the right side, directly on Şoseaua Colentina. If you take tramway nr. 21, get off at “Sportului”. The shop is right in front of the tramway station, you can’t miss it! It’s open from 8:30 to 12:00 and 13:00 to 18:00 from Mondays to Fridays, on Saturdays they close already at 15:00.

I know, it’s quite a ride out there, but maybe you want to combine it with a visit to the famous Chinese market “Dragonul Roşu” (I will write more about it in one of my next posts).

By the way, if you know any shops selling Japanese products or Tofu in Bucharest, I would be grateful for a comment!

Bus sign

If you are taking a bus on Piaţa Dorobanţilor going to the city center, make sure you are waiting at an actual bus stop! The other day I walked by a lady waiting on the sidewalk near the sign “BUS” painted on the street… unfortunately it’s not a bus stop any more.

Abandoned bus stop

After a few seconds of consideration I decided to walk back and inform her about the changed circuit of the public transportation in this area. She was quite grateful for the information I gave her. After giving her directions where the bus is halting now, I decided to take pictures of the scenery. Just a few minutes later others were waiting at the same place in hope for a bus to arrive. I have to admit that I decided not to continue my volunteer job and rather put some info on this site.
Before, the buses made a half circle to the right at Piaţa Dorobanţilor and stopped at the rightmost point of this circuit. Now they just keep going straight on Calea Dorobanţilor and stop right in the middle of the piaţa, in front of the mini-park.

A wonderful recommendation from CityCompass Friend Natalie S.:

If you are looking for a cute, little, friendly place in the centre to stop off for Breakfast or Lunch, I would more than recommend “Violetta’s Vintage Kitchen”.

Located near the Intercontinental Hotel (on the corner of Strada Batiste, the road that runs along the back of Intercontinental, and Strada J L Calderon), it is easy to get to and has such a good Karma that you leave feeling ready to tackle the rest of the day and all the dramas that it may entail!

The dishes are completely authentic, home-cooked food, with a different menu for every day. It reminds me of going to my Grandmother’s and in fact Violetta told me that many of her recipes were passed down to her from several generations back. Wonderful!

With its cozy indoor space, lovely, private outdoor terrace through the back and the speedy service, carried out with a smile, it is sure to become one of my regular places to eat.

http://www.violetas.ro/