Let’s try a guessing game. Look at the photo above and try to guess where it was taken. You are very likely to have seen something similar, because according to wikipedia there’s 140 similar places around the world. The hints are: cocktails, American food, music and memorabilia. The walls should be a dead giveaway. Best place for nachos in Bucharest

For today, more signs and details from the Caru cu Bere restaurant. Yesterday, after posting the one sign, I decided to show the rest of them as well so I went downtown and took photographs of the other ornaments adorning the entrance to the restaurant. And here they are.

Note the beer mug. This is after all a beer hall.

This is one of the signs of the Caru cu Bere restaurant, probably the most known restaurant in town, shown on this blog in an earlier post.

When asked to recommend a restaurant for someone from out of town most Bucharestians would probably pick this one. “The Beer Cart” (Carul cu bere in Romanian) is the flagship of Romanian restaurants in the old town. If you are a tourist not knowing any local, you are still most likely to end up here because this restaurant is in all the guidebooks. Fashioned to look like a German beerhouse, Caru cu bere has an elegant facade and a beautiful interior rich with frescoes, stained glass, balconies and ornate woodwork. The restaurant has first opened in 1879. It is packed every night, so you definitely need a reservation especially if you want to dine in the nonsmoking section (which shows that there are probably more foreigners dining here than Romanians). In the summer they have a terrace. The food here is standard Romanian fare, not fine dining, but usually you won’t leave disappointed. Big portions so make sure you leave space for desert. Despite looking so fanciful, I don’t believe it’s an expensive restaurant, but that of course depends on what you order. For lunch time they have a student menu (when you show you student card) and a menu for retired people (with pension coupon) for the equivalent of $8 and a daily lunch menu for business people for about $10. In the evenings they have a show with traditional dances.