Break (Sibiu ~ Romania)

October 2019

Only visited Sibiu as it was a logical place to break the journey and to pick up a car for the next two days of travel.

Had a bit of a wander around and found a very pretty town square chock full of restaurants. Right next to the square is a very old steel bridge called the bridge of lies as it is reputed to creak when a lie is told on it. Think this is a reflection of the traders who used to deal in the area.

 And the remains if the old city walls are still present.

But it is a tad disconcerting in places as you get the feeling you are being watched.

Looking for a place for dinner did some research on the places in the main square and found as a rule they were pricey and got mixed reviews.  Decided to take a punt on a place on the outskirts of town and only a 3km walk from our hotel. The walk was interesting as it took us out of the touristy area, through a railway underpass and into suburbia. After walking 45 minutes or do we spotted a lit sign in the distance (the first sign if life for the last 15 mins). It was indeed the restaurant we were after and opening the doors found ourselves in an underground and quite popular little restaurant.  The best way to describe it would be one if those places you go when you've had a tough day at work and can't be bothered cooking.

Had a good solid meal and v interesting to watch the general goings on. Figured out that the dish of choice for a lot of the locals was "Tripe Soup". Definitely a bit of a ceremony as waiter brings out a huge steaming tureen of soup and the customers bowl into which he ladles a generous (half litre) portion. The customer then generally adds sour cream, vinegar and a bit of seasoning. Saw a handful of people, young and old, come in just for a bowl if soup.

My dish was also one of the very popular ones "Mixed Grill" as it comprised, grilled chicken breast,  grilled chicken liver, grilled steak, grilled pork, grilled pork sausage and a deep fried cheese sarnie all served in of a pile of chips.

Desert (shared) was Papanassi - which us essentially a donut (and donut ball) made with a batter containing cottage cheese which us smothered in sour cream and a very runny jam. Seriously filling.