​Anyone who looks at the list of new establishments that have opened in Bucharest alone in the past year can conclude that 2022 was a profitable year for the HORECA industry.

Things are not quite like that, but despite the lack of labor, the tax on tips and other surprises thrown by the government, it seems that there are still many entrepreneurs who have dared to start a business in the hospitality sector.

In 2022, Bucharest has greatly expanded its offer to go out, and those who want to drink a specialty coffee, enjoy a special weekend brunch or dine in the city for a special or casual event, now have a part of many new places to do so it.

Here are just a few new places that have appeared in the last year and deserve all the attention in early 2023.

There is now for a good coffee Erbario (Nicolae Haralambi 30), a signature cafe where you will feel like you are in a small botanical garden. It opened in the spring of 2022, in an old building from the 1930s, tastefully renovated with an emphasis on indoor plants.

In addition to specialty coffee, Erbario also has a brunch menu, which is developed by chef Stefan Burlakou according to the season.

There is another cafe that appeared in 2022, this time in the Kotrochen district at Cotro Specialty Coffee (Ana Davila 2). He buys coffee from MABÓ Coffee Roasters, owned by Romanian Bohdan Georgescu, the world champion coffee roaster.

The small cafe is located on a street full of beautiful houses and less explored by those who like to wander on weekends in “the most beautiful area of ​​Bucharest”. Besides coffee, there’s prosecco and goodies from Bakeria Panduri.

A truly special place that opened in 2022 is Meigu (Amzei 7-9). This is a bistro whose identity and menu have been developed around shrimp. Here you can find burgers, sandwiches, tacos, salads, and all kinds of other shrimp craziness.

There is also specialty coffee. This is definitely a unique place in Bucharest that any seafood lover should try.

Mano + Bocca Panini Bar/ Facebook page

2022 was also the year of many capital entrepreneurs who bet on a sandwich. Mano + Bocca Panini Bar (Banul Antonache 51) it opened about three months ago and healed quickly. It’s true that it also benefited from some good publicity from a few stars, but the pictures also speak for themselves and you want to stop.

It’s called a “panini bar,” but it’s other things, too. For example, it has a good selection of wines on the menu, there are all kinds of plates, specialty coffees, cocktails, etc. In addition, the ceiling, on which several thousand or tens of thousands of spikelets are suspended, has a great effect.

The world of sandwiches (Mendeleev 21-25) another recently opened restaurant dedicated to this dish. This place focuses on “fast food” and aims to include some of the world’s most famous sandwiches on the menu. In case you’re wondering, yes, they also have a parisizer, as well as pulled pork, pastrami, and more.

Frescoloco/ Facebook page

The third establishment, opened in 2022, is dedicated to sandwiches Frescoloco (Lipscani 3). It is located in an area where the magic triangle also works: Bread and Wine, Energy, Origo, all within a two-minute drive.

The focaccia and sciacciata made here come from Casa del Pan and Grano. The sandwich offering is also complemented by a fine collection of wines, prosecco and cocktails.

If we are still talking about street food, because these are sandwiches, then it is worth noting that the year 2022 also meant the opening of the space Craft market (Matei Millo 8).

As the name suggests, it’s a market… but otherwise for the urban crowd. It functions as an open-air concept store and is recommended as a place where the community meets “artisan” entrepreneurs, in other words, a place that has managed to gather in one place some local talent in terms of cooking or artisans of all kinds.

On many weekends, other entrepreneurs are invited here to present their products and meet their target audience directly. Among those responsible for food here are: let’s go and smoking.

Ave Forchetta/ Facebook page

Across the street, in a new office building near the Telephone Palace, it opened Ave Forchetta (Matthew Millo 5), an amazing Italian place, but wrapped in a calm urban design. The food is delicious and they pride themselves on welcoming their customers with a “vero, molto delizioso Italian menu…with a twist!”, as well as dishes made with fresh, organic ingredients following classic recipes.

The first AproBistro RUAL (Mihai Eminescu 114-116) it was praised by those who visited it from the first days of its opening, and it remained so. It also has a unique and interesting feature: “Bucharest’s first bistro located in an aprozar”, which means you can go home with the ingredients from which your meal was prepared.

The place is special because the talented Laurentiu Hairadin cooks here, but the concept is not unique, considering that Bucharest also has La Pescaderia, like a fish and seafood market where you can ask them to be cooked. they “catch” you on the spot.

Animaletto started as a pizzeria and expanded in 2022 Animaletto’s House (Diana 4). For those with a bit of déjà vu when they read the address, it’s because Diane’s Place 4 was there for a while.

Animaletto house has kept much of the atmosphere and identity of the former place, but they have also made improvements and now it is one of the places in the city where you can combine everything properly: a bistro with a great cocktail bar, a generous terrace and a beautiful but also space for events and parties after nightfall.

Urban DADA/ Facebook page

If we are still in the area, we should also mention the exterior Urban DADA (TNB – Tudor Arghezi entrance). Thus, the building of the National Theater now also houses the sister restaurant DADA. This is especially welcome for those who want to dine before or after the show.

Also, one of the fun things that cannot be ignored is that you can always be around the table with the actors from TNB. Pizza lovers now have a new mecca: Centrale Pizza (Calea Victoriei 122).

Appearing in 2022 on Calea Victoriei, one of the liveliest corners of the city, Pizzeria Centrale quickly became a sensation and was rated by those who tried it as one of the best in the city. A must try, especially since you can also order half a pizza – this means you can form your own pizza from two halves of different varieties.

K-Pop fans, as well as those who want to discover South Korean cuisine, now have a new place to enjoy the country’s culture and cuisine.

It is about Gangnam Pocha (Lipscani 56). The prices are quite high, even if it is a restaurant “without plates”. Still, it’s worth it for those who want a different experience and try dishes that are hard to pronounce for the uninitiated, such as: gyeran-jjim, sora muchim, ojingeo bokkeum, dakgalbi, jumulleok, etc.

• Read also: What surprises is the most famous institution of Bucharest preparing for us in 2023. Interview with the co-founder of Casa Mița Biciclista