"...it may be interesting for many posters to know that a large percentage of Romania is populated by Hungarians (probably more than half in land area). In many of the most treasured parts of Romania (the szekely region), you will find people who don't even speak Romanian..."

And previous to the 20th century you could have said a large percentage of Transylvania was populated by Romanians, with a population more than half ethnic Romanians.

Actually, in today's Romania aren't those "Hungarians" better described as Romanians of Hungarian background? Conquests were made, land won and lost and treaties signed. Reality is what it is.

And, mind you, at least with many younger and more educated Romanian citzens of Hungarian heritage, you may find that they simply choose to "forget" how to speak Romanian at certain times. LOL

Whatever the case, it's great to chow down on good grub.

If your first point is true, I'm curious as to why Ceausescu had to ship so many Romanians into these regions to force the Romanian culture.

But to bring this back to food...many other countries where two ethnicities come together (Switzerland and Belgium are good examples), they are able to include both cultures as part of their national identity. A large number of Romanian dishes have Serbian or Hungarian influence...and in effect, there is a large amount of blending in all Eastern European cuisines.

By the way, I think I left out a restaurant we never looked into....for my complete listing of all things Romanian as I've found them in Chicago...I'm sure there are other shops...but I believe my list of restaurants is all inclusive...

Restautant Perla
5522 W Belmont Ave
Chicago, IL
(773) 282-5522
http://www.restaurantperla.com/

Nelly's Saloon
3256 N Elston Ave
Chicago, IL
(773) 588-4494

Continental Cafe
3661 N Elston Ave
Chicago, IL
(773) 604-8500
http://www.continental-cafe.net/

Bucovina
6107 W Addison St
Chicago 60634
(773) 685-7323
http://www.restaurantbucovina.com/

For Tuica and Hungarian Cuisine - what I had may have been palinka, but I'm 90% sure he said it was tuica
The Epicurean Hungarian Restaurant
4431 W. Roosevelt Rd.
Hillside Il, 60162
Phone: 708-449-1000 or tollfree: 866-223-4693
http://www.thehungarianrestaurant.com/

For Miititei
Lincoln Quality Meat Market
4661 N Lincoln Ave
Chicago, IL 60625
(773) 561-4570

For Borsec mineral water and Ursus beer...they also have a wide selection of E. European meats and sausages...I believe the store is Croation owned.
Georges Liquors & Delicatessen
1964 W Lawrence Ave
Chicago, IL
(773) 728-6333

For Moldova wines
There is a large non chain ethnic grocery store in this shopping center...can't remember the name nor can I find it online....I had the address wrong before.
127 Skokie Blvd
Northbrook, IL

On the point of history (and actually food, as well) we Americans have this "thing" that we are the melting pot of the world. However, contrary to our view, there is virtually no homogenous population or culture (or cuisine) if you look at any particular general region in the world. Over the centuries, and even eons, marauding hordes, traders and random travellers have mixed blood, traditions and recipes without restraint.

When I am in Chicago I seek out the fundamentally Romanian restaurants, as the cuisine is not commercially available in St. Louis. Nelly's in very nice, but I have a bit more affection for Bucovina.

Unfortunately, your word on Ursus at George's is out-dated, as a phone call I just made got the answer: "we haven't had it for a long time." I think Nelly's is the best bet.

A final point of history... It was the policy of every communist regime to dilute the status and possible strength of local populations by forced displacement and importation of (in the USSR's case) ethnic Russians to all the corners of the USSR and many of its satellite states. Witness the Georgia situation, not to mention Moldova and to a lesser degree Ukraine as the Russian bear seeks to re-expand it's influence through precipitating aggitation for "self-rule" in the corners of the old USSR.

I don't know how much of the displacement in Romania was ethnic or merely the plan to destroy rural life in general and tie populations to industrial jobs and bloc-living in new urban areas.

By the way, people with an interest in Romania may wish to see my site. We send English language books to Peace Corps teachers in all corners of the country. Group 25 has just started arriving at their schools and they will soon be clamoring for books.

http://www.AThousandBooks.us

cpfoutz wrote:Gypsy Boy,
Having a wife who is FOTB from Romania, I'd like to offer a counterpoint to some of your comments. Regarding mamaliga, it is often referred to as polenta on Romanian menus and my wife refers to it as polenta...I don't think it's too out of line for Americans to refer to it as polenta.

Additionally, you seemed very dismissive of Hungarian dishes...

Golly. I just went back and re-read this thread and cannot imagine what I said that made me seem dismissive of Hungarian dishes. I have posted elsewhere about some Hungarian dishes I particularly enjoy, such as Varza a la cluj (or, perhaps more "properly" Kolozsvári rakott káposzta) and Székelygulyás. I have some familiarity with Hungarian food, I love Hungarian food; heck, Hungarians are friends of mine! (Indeed, a good friend from Balassagyarmat and I are, even as I write, trying to settle on a date to visit the Hungarian place in Hillside.)

Without entering very deeply into a non-food tangent, suffice to say, Transylvania was historically Hungarian for a lot longer than it has been Romanian. And as already noted here, there are many places where ethnic Hungarians are the majority in what is today Romania. Worse still, there remains quite a bit of prejudice--witness the long-popular Gheorghe Funar, mayor of Cluj. (We won't even bring up the subject of the Roma.)

As to the use of "polenta" on Romanian menus, I can't vouch for menus from Romania in general or Romania today, only from what I encountered in my visits. I did not see menus in Romania that used the word "polenta." Perhaps they do today. Perhaps they did (or do) in places I have not visited. Perhaps they do everywhere in Romania except where I visited. Romania has changed enormously in the past twenty years, in some ways for the better and in some ways not.

But historical accuracy aside, I have always enjoyed food from that part of the world, whether technically Hungarian or technically Romanian, or even something with substantial Turkish influence (something hard to avoid). I look forward to my next visit there and, in the meantime, continue to look for good Hungarian and Romanian restaurants here.

I can't add to your restaurant list, but I have posted a couple places (such as here)to recommend another meat market owned and run (if memory serves) by Romanians, with a wonderful selection of homemade meats, including mititei.

Saravale Meat Market & European Deli
5254 W Irving Park Rd
(between Laramie Ave & Lockwood Ave)
Chicago, IL 60641
(773) 685-5126

A vostre sanitate (or should I say, noroc!)

I'm thinking the word "polenta" may be entering the descriptive vocabulary as dishes are explained to those not exactly familiar with "mamaglia."

Frankly, I'm not impressed with plain mamaglia, but some dear friends recently made me some with potatoes and sour cream. It was a "life memory" taste!

On a final historical note, it seems there is plenty of blame on both sides in the history of the Romanian/Hungarian question, as the one on top had always put the boot to the one out of power. A sad, but true, fact that is reflected the world over.

Perused this thread this morning, then happened to notice Borsec mineral water for sale at my usual spot for fruits and veggies. 6 large bottles packed together for $7.49. Not sure if that's a good price or not, but this place is usually full of bargains.

Family Fruit Market
4118 N. Cicero
Chicago

john4ro wrote:I'm thinking the word "polenta" may be entering the descriptive vocabulary as dishes are explained to those not exactly familiar with "mamaglia."

I spent most of my time in Romania during the Ceaucescu era. I would be served mamaglia as a representative national dish. I never could recall the name mamaglia, though in an instant I recognized I was being served polenta.

On this side of the pond, Bob's Red Mill labels their mamaglia type product as "Corn grits also known as Polenta."

Regards,

Mamaliga!

cilantro wrote:Mamaliga!

Shucks ... you know what I mean!

A somewhat random set of circumstances brought me to Nelly's Saloon yesterday evening. Talk about a strange place upon first walking in. I've been to many different kinds of eateries in my day, from temples of gastronomy to back alley food stalls, but this restaurant was just bizarre. I guess need to be eating more Eastern European food. The place was near empty when I arrived, and the red lights that glow down on the vinyl seats at the bar straight from the 1980s make for quite the atmosphere.

Service here isn't really a strong point, but when my Romanian friend showed up things started moving more quickly. They don't go out of your way to please here, but I do think they take pride in what they serve. I would call management less gracious than grudgingly willing to make sure their guests are taken care of.

Jidvei

The wine, oh the wine. Sweet, sweet Transilvania Fine Wine Selections. Our Dry Muscat was $18. I drank most of the bottle. I heard 2007 was a good year in Tarnave growing region. That said, I don't think Sancerre has anything to worry about.

The only reason I'm writing this post is because the food here was actually pretty good. I think my expectations were significantly lowered upon seeing the place. I was also with a bunch of Eastern Europeans so that upped the authenticity factor, but I quite enjoyed what was set before me.

The eggplant dip was a bit too mayonnaise-y. I liked the bits of onion, but a good hit of acid would've worked. The bread isn't going to win any awards, but is satisfying in a pillowy way. There's just enough chew to keep it from just disintegrating in the mouth.

Soups

The soups were also quite balanced. Definitely better than what you'd get at your typical diner or pub. Perhaps a bit greasy, but the flavors were on. Surprise hit of the evening was the milky tripe soup. Nicely cooked tripe that was tender yet with just enough bite. A silky soup, with just a touch of offaly funk. As the only true tripe fan at the table, I ate most of this.

Mains

There's been a fair bit of discussion surrounding the brevity of the menu here. We had one girl who didn't eat pork, so that was a bit of a challenge. There was, however, one off-menu dish that my friend specifically asked for in Romanian and received. Said item was a plate of cabbage rolls and was probably the best dish of the bunch. I have a soft spot for cabbage rolls, so perhaps I'm biased, but these were petite and quite good. The massive quantities of mashed potato and cornmeal were a bit much for me, but the star of each plate had something to recommend. I'm not the hugest schnitzel fan--just a bit too boring for me--but the breading and frying here was pretty solid. The mamaliga was also quite the interesting dish, a first for me. I liked it, but as others have said, a couple spoonfuls were enough. The massive bowl we received could've fed eight as a side dish. Of the goulashes, I preferred the pork.

Don't get me wrong, this isn't a particularly high functioning restaurant. Then again, it doesn't have to be. It serves a brief menu to a very local crowd. It's a strange place but pretty solid, and I found the experience to be quite fun and novel. I won't rush back, but I certainly won't avoid it.

Cathy2 wrote:

cilantro wrote:Mamaliga!

Shucks ... you know what I mean!

I was taught to call it mamaliguta and always assumed it was my pronunciation that made the Romanians laugh at me.

for thise who don't hqave access to any Romanian speakers - mamaliguta is the childs pronumciation

For the record we find that the whole foods polenta is a little course to be exactly representative of the product found in Romania but still very similar. Also very close in texture and size are the pre packaged bags of polenta sold at stores like Caputos.

also, while I eat and enjoy mamaliga I have yet to develop an appreciation for the overly salty and briny Romanian feta that is commonly served as an accompaniment in my multiple travels through Transylvania.

Restaurant Perla
5522 W Belmont Ave
Chicago, IL
(773) 282-5522
http://www.restaurantperla.com/

Just went to the website, and it says "The Restaurant is closed now. Thanks to everyone who enjoyed the Romanian food at this place."

Darn.

BryanZ wrote:Surprise hit of the evening was the milky tripe soup. Nicely cooked tripe that was tender yet with just enough bite. A silky soup, with just a touch of offaly funk. As the only true tripe fan at the table, I ate most of this.

I've generally found that the tripe soup is excellent throughout Romania. I'm not a particular fan of tripe, but in Romania or in Romanian restaurants I will almost always order it. For reasons I can't explain, they seem to have a way of making this dish excellent. (For the record, in Romanian it's ciorbă de burţă (CHOR-bah de BOORTZ-ah). Ciorbă, fwiw, is the word usually used in Romania to describe sour soups; supă would encompass other, non-sour, soups--generally broths without meat or veggies.)

BryanZ wrote:There was, however, one off-menu dish that my friend specifically asked for in Romanian and received. Said item was a plate of cabbage rolls and was probably the best dish of the bunch. I have a soft spot for cabbage rolls, so perhaps I'm biased, but these were petite and quite good.

That would probably be sarmale [sar-MAH-lay], a dish found ubiquitous throughout southeastern Europe (especially places under Ottoman control in the nineteenth century).