Trekked over to Taste of Romania yesterday to try to find a better answer to that question. The menu had roast pig, roast lamb, and mititei. When in doubt, I go with the item I can't pronounce. Mititei it was.
Wikipedia tells me mititei are grilled minced-meat rolls. Basically, sausages without the casing. For $11, I got the below feast:
The mititei were VERY salty, but juicy. There was a bit of a peppery taste to them and the inside had some red in it, possibly paprika. Didn't try the green tomatoes, but the fries were mediocre (I wonder if fries are even Romanian, but whatever). After 2 of the mititei, I decided it was just too salty for me. Maybe that is why there just aren't many Romanian restaurants around. Or maybe "it's an acquired taste".After the hearty meal, I needed some dessert. Fortunately, a Romanian bakery had several cakes to sample. I had the amandina (chocolate cake, filled with chocolate and some cream) and savarina (a rum soaked cake with cream and a cherry). The latter is shown below.
Was like a mix of a creampuff and a French or Italian baba rhum. Tasty way to end a meal.
Not sure I'd go back to the festival, with its hefty $10 admission fee and small size. At least now I have something to say if ever asked on the street "What do you think of when you hear 'Romanian food?'" That's got to be worth something, right?
