A local’s guide to Bucharest: a pizza of a city with something to see in every sector

From a warehouse brewery to a giant bookshop and glorious lakeside parks, Cosmin Cîrîc, manager of the city’s thermal spa, guides us around the Romanian capital

Traditional Romanian food is dishes like sarmale (cabbage or vine leaves stuffed with meat, rice and vegetables), polenta, ciorbă (sour soup) and Transylvanian goulash, which simmers for eight hours in a wood-fired oven. Two restaurants in the historic centre are good for these: Lacrimi și Sfinti and Hanu’ lui Manuc. For street food, there’s a lot of saormă (shawarma) thanks to the Turkish population, and for something more contemporary I enjoy the fresh pasta at 18Lounge. They also do papanași, one of the greatest Romanian desserts: a doughnut filled with sweet fresh cheese (similar to ricotta) and topped with sour cream and jam. At the Therme spa, the Mango Tree cafe serves plant-based mains and Thai food, but it’s also known for colourful vegan desserts such as mango mess, made with meringue, mango, kiwi and papaya.