Cuisine as a Family Passion @ Restaurant Hora, Cluj Napoca, Transylvania, Romania

They knew how to impress us. They knew that we were not just there "to eat" and taste. They offered us something that cannot be improvised, has to be real, as is impossible to see, it can be just felt: the passion.
We were dazzled to discovery, very slowly, during the dinner, course after course, how Restaurant Hora, based in Strada Moise Nicoara nr 1, was made, by a family devoted to the cuisine: Camelia and Gheorghe, and her mother Maria Rusu.
 Maria Rusu, manager and chef, opened this gem eleven years ago. Member of national and international culinary associations, winner of many prices, started this project first as a traditional Romanian restaurant and then following her potentials and skills, developed an international menu, that honors her creativity.
Camelia instead, her daughter, together with her kindness, told us that she worked 10 years in different restaurants in Italy, gaining an experience that combine the Italian and Romanian culture.
His brother Gheorge and all the staff took great care of us, they make us begin with a Smocked Duck Waldorf Salad, an exquisite combination, specially with a southern Romanian Novac Prince Stirbey.The waiter surprised us with a special decanter with a shape of a snake, that use to aerating the wine before serving it.
The Waldorf Salad made with celery and turnip, dressed in mayonnaise and sprinkled with walnuts was the perfect starter for the evening.


 
Then we had time to converse more with Camelia, listen traditional live Transylvanian music (as they do every Thursday) and see that many of the diners are foreigners before the second dish was served: a Coffee Crusted Beef Tenderlion, grilled and aromatic, married with a gentle Porto Wine Sauce with soft fruits and some secret ingredients from the chef, that make it special, accompanied by a Sweet-Potato Puree. This plate was delighting our palate, with the mix of different veins of flavors, recognizing the quality of each ingredient.

 

For the conclusion we were not expecting something so brilliant: a mix of four different desserts, as Pancakes with Apples and Nuts, a Triangle of Chocolate Wousse with a pulsing and exotic Mango's heart, a Parfe with Almonds and a Ricotta Pudding in a small Chocolate boat.All this sweet experience was intensified by a fresh white Tamaioasa Romaneasca, concluding then with a digestive.
The passionate family now is going to open a new restaurant, much more bigger in Comuna Feleacu, to which we wish the best success. www.restaurantulhora.com