plate of exceptionally fine ' fruit to show to his
favourite customers. The prices at Capsa’s are the
prices of a good Parisian restaurant. One lunch at
the restaurant, the bill for which was the equivalent
for 17 francs 50 centimes, consisted of hors d' oeuvre,
a grilled sterlet, Sarmale , Cepes Proven^ales , cheese, a
half-bottle of Dragasami (which wine has the flavour
of muscatel grapes), a half-bottle of Mattoni water,
coffee, and a liqueur glass of fine-champagne, which
last, at 3 francs, was the most expensive item in
the bill.
This is a typical dinner which I ate at Capsa’s : —
Caviar.
Ciorba de Poulet.
Turbot a la Grec.
Mousaka aux Courges.
Gateaux.
And this a breakfast : —
Glachi de Carpe (froid).
CEufs Polenta.
Pilau.
Aubergines aux Tomates.
The Roumanian dishes which are specialties at
Capsa’s are these : — Soups — Ciorba de Pui ; Ciorba
de Ga/usti ; Ciorba de Burta. Fish — Sterlet a la
Dobroutscha. Other Dishes — Dovlecei umpluti cu
smantana ; Perisoare cu aurd ; Sarmale de V arza ;
Chiveciu National ; Rata cu castraveti acri ; Curcan
pe V arza ; Tocana de Muschiu cu marrialiguta.
Capsa’s list of the Roumanian wines may safely
be taken as a guide to what is best of the country
vintages. Dragasani, Odobesti, Cotnar, Tamaiosa are
the white wines, some of which are of vintages as
distant in date as 1879 ; and the red wines are
Nicoresti, Odobesti, and Dealu mare. A bottle of
Roumania 349
champagne of G. H. Mumm’s “ Cordon Rouge ” of
no guaranteed year costs 22 francs, and a bottle of
Allsopp’s Pale Ale costs 5 francs 50 centimes. At
Capsa’s all the waiters have a knowledge of French,
and that language is generally talked by the habitues
of the restaurant, for a Roumanian of the upper
classes is always proud of speaking French with
Parisian fluency and accent.
There are many purely Roumanian restaurants in
Bucarest. The only one as to which I have personal
experience is that of Dimitrescu at the Dmritrescu
end of the Strada Acadamiei, opposite strada
the side face of the Hotel Continental. Acadamiei
Some of the waiters at this restaurant have a smat-
tering of German as well as their own language.
The restaurant has green walls, and attached to it is a
garden where, under a large canvas awning, the tables
are set on hot nights. I found the menu a puzzle,
for not only is it written in Roumanian, but hot
entrees, fish, and gros pieces are all in the same column.
I ordered Shinbere , Teya Rise /, and appealed to the
head waiter to order for me, as my third dish, some
typical Roumanian plat. What my dinner proved
to be was a good thick tripe soup, cold fish with a
mayonnaise sauce, and roast chicken cut up and served
on a pile of white pickled cabbage.
Across the little garden behind the Hotel Con-
tinental is the restaurant of the hotel, a rather
solemn but comfortable place wherein Hotel Con-
to dine. A table d'hote dinner is served, tinental,
the dishes all being of the French Tiieatre Square
cuisine, though cold sterlet, little Roumanian sausages,
and other dishes of the country are on the table for
cold meats. The restaurant of the Hotel Boulevard,
the most modern hotel of the town, is also a dining-
place at which a dinner above the average of the Near
East in the matter of cookery is to be obtained-.
350 The Gourmet's Guide to Europe
Of cafes and pastry-cooks and cafe-chantants there
Jonescu, are a great number in the town and
Page 189
Presented as published in 1903. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
plate of exceptionally fine ' fruit to show to his favourite customers. The prices at Capsa’s are the prices of a good Parisian restaurant. One lunch at the restaurant, the bill for which was the equivalent for 17 francs 50 centimes, consisted of hors d' oeuvre, a grilled sterlet, Sarmale, Cepes Provençales , cheese, a half-bottle of Dragasami (which wine has the flavour of muscatel grapes), a half-bottle of Mattoni water, coffee, and a liqueur glass of fine-champagne, which last, at 3 francs, was the most expensive item in the bill.
This is a typical dinner which I ate at Capsa’s : — Caviar.
Ciorba de Poulet.
Turbot a la Grec.
Mousaka aux Courges.
Gateaux.
And this a breakfast : —
Glachi de Carpe (froid).
CEufs Polenta.
Pilau.
Aubergines aux Tomates.
The Roumanian dishes which are specialties at Capsa’s are these : — Soups — Ciorba de Pui ; Ciorba de Galusti ; Ciorba de Burta. Fish — Sterlet a la
Dobroutscha. Other Dishes — Dovlecei umpluti cu smantana; Perisoare cu aurd; Sarmale de Varza; Chiveciu National; Rata cu castraveti acri; Curcan pe Varza ; Tocana de Muschiu cu marrialiguta.
Capsa’s list of the Roumanian wines may safely be taken as a guide to what is best of the country vintages. Dragasani, Odobesti, Cotnar, Tamaiosa are the white wines, some of which are of vintages as distant in date as 1879 ; and the red wines are Nicoresti, Odobesti, and Dealu mare. A bottle of
Roumania 349
champagne of G. H. Mumm’s “ Cordon Rouge ” of no guaranteed year costs 22 francs, and a bottle of Allsopp’s Pale Ale costs 5 francs 50 centimes. At Capsa’s all the waiters have a knowledge of French, and that language is generally talked by the habitues of the restaurant, for a Roumanian of the upper classes is always proud of speaking French with Parisian fluency and accent.
There are many purely Roumanian restaurants in Bucarest. The only one as to which I have personal experience is that of Dimitrescu at the Dmritrescu end of the Strada Acadamiei, opposite the side face of the Hotel Continental on the Strada Acadamiei. Some of the waiters at this restaurant have a smattering of German as well as their own language. The restaurant has green walls, and attached to it is a garden where, under a large canvas awning, the tables are set on hot nights. I found the menu a puzzle, for not only is it written in Roumanian, but hot entrees, fish, and gros pieces are all in the same column. I ordered Shinbere, Teya Riselə, and appealed to the head waiter to order for me, as my third dish, some typical Roumanian plat. What my dinner proved to be was a good thick tripe soup, cold fish with a mayonnaise sauce, and roast chicken cut up and served on a pile of white pickled cabbage.
Across the little garden behind the Hotel Continental is the restaurant of the hotel, a rather solemn but comfortable place wherein Hotel Continental dine. A table d'hote dinner is served, Continental, the dishes all being of the French Tiieatre Square cuisine, though cold sterlet, little Roumanian sausages, and other dishes of the country are on the table for cold meats. The restaurant of the Hotel Boulevard, the most modern hotel of the town, is also a diningplace at which a dinner above the average of the Near East in the matter of cookery is to be obtained.
350 The Gourmet's Guide to Europe
Of cafes and pastry-cooks and cafe-chantants there Jonescu, are a great number in the town and