Crama Haiducilor – the most popular restaurant specialized in traditional Romanian food

The food in Romania is a big part of the country’s culture. The fresh vegetables grown with hard work, the meat from animals bred only with natural products, all combined in the simplest yet most flavourful recipes make Romanian cuisine truly unique. In the countryside, people work hard to cultivate the land and when they come back home exhausted, they eat rich and hearty meals.

There are specific food-related traditions that have been passed down from mother to daughter all the way to modern times. Like any other nation, Romania has its own culinary rituals for every important religious holiday. Christmas wouldn’t be the same without fresh sausages, pork steak, aspic and stuffed cabbage rolls. While on Easter, most housewives cook lamb.

So, if you are ever in Romania, it would be a shame to miss out on this cuisine. Luckily, there is a restaurant that strives to offer not only traditionally cooked Romanian food, but a complete Romanian experience. It is called Crama Haiducilor, which roughly translates to The Outlaws’ Pub and it is located in 12-14 Cometei Street. It is the first restaurant of this kind to be established in Cluj-Napoca and has been around since 2005. Its decor includes many elements of Romanian folklore and the meals are livened by Romanian folk music.

The name of the restaurant is a reference to the Outlaw, a heroic figure in Romanian folklore, much like Robin Hood. The outlaws would steal from boyars and share their spoils with the peasants. They were often the only solution against the oppressive rule of the foreign invaders and of the unfairness against the simple people.  

The menu is rich in traditional Romanian meals like Cabbage a la Cluj, polenta, groscior – which is a kind of sour cream that forms on the surface of cow’s milk that hasn’t been boiled - , balmoş – sweet sheep’s cheese boiled in milk with hominy.

Most interesting on the menu are the meat platters that are named after famous Romanian outlaws. The Iancu Jianu platter contains pork ribs, pork chop, chicken halves, grilled minced meat rolls, chicken liver, smoked sausages, onions, polenta, pickles and sauces. There are three other platters, named after other outlaws – Andrii Popa, Baba Novac and Pintea Viteazul – which contain other varieties of meat and traditional side dishes.    

Source:

"Feluri de platouri", Restaurant Crama Haiducilor, Available at: http://www.crama-haiducilor.ro/comanda,FELURI-DE-PLATOURI,8,0.html, Accessed: 07.11.2015.

"Gustări calde", Restaurant Crama Haiducilor, Available at: http://www.crama-haiducilor.ro/comanda,GUSTARI-GUSTARI-CALDE,5,0.html, Accessed: 07.11.2015.

"Haiduci și panduri din Oltenia", Wikipedia, Available at: https://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haiduci%C8%99i_panduri_din_Oltenia, Accessed: 07.11.2015.

"Specialităţile bucătarului", Restaurant Crama Haiducilor, Available at: http://www.crama-haiducilor.ro/comanda ,SPECIALITATILE-BUCATARULUI,6,0.html, Accessed: 07.11.2015.

"Trecut | Prezent | Viitor", Restaurant Crama Haiducilor, Available at: http://www.crama-haiducilor.ro/restaurant.html , Accessed: 07.11.2015.