Ograda — Restaurant in Zona Metropolitană Brașov

Ograda was recommended by a local friend of ours, so we took her here on the first day of our holiday. The three of us returned a week later for our final Romanian meal too. Disclaimer: I promise that I'm writing this sober, a week after our last visit. Perched on their trendy high chairs, we all had a fantastic experience on both occasions. Here's why:

The food and drink here is absolutely excellent. However, our waiter, Daniel, was the highlight and the reason we returned.

Daniel is without doubt one of the best waiters I've ever had, here or anywhere else. He was a genuinely warm host - funny, entertaining, and a little cheeky in a charming and charismatic way (He asked me how I was lucky enough to be sat with the two most beautiful women in the city that night, and I concur, they are - especially my girlfriend :)! ). During the meal he was attentive with silver spoon timing and efficiency, but he also knew when to exercise appropriate discretion and give us space to chat amongst ourselves and enjoy our meals.

The food, again, was delicious. It's the real deal if you want proper local cuisine done well. I think I spotted the chefs - they're all Romanian mums and nans, so it really is great, hearty Romanian food made by any chef's master chef.

I encourage you to ask Daniel (or your waiter, all of whom were lovely too) to choose your booze and food for you. He (and the other staff) didn't take advantage or plug the most expensive thing on the menu, he (they) just look after you as a guest and make you feel a little special (evidently, given that we're on paragraph 5 or 6 here).

The three of us shared three rounds of some dangerously good local pelinka's, 2 glasses of wine, 4 beers, the best steak I've had in years that he set alight with some brandy at the table, Romanian ribs, and all the local trimmings, veggies, dips and pickles, which all felt perfectly reasonable for £145 (840 RON) + optional tip.

We look forward to...

even if you are Romanian or a tourist, they will scam you. You have to wait 20 minutes for someone to come and take your order. I wanted to leave the restaurant, because it was taking too long, the customers who offer tips get all the attention.. But I resisted until the end to see what it will happened. I wanted to order two soups and a platter of local cheeses and sausages, it was 3:50 p.m. and they said they didn't have any kind of soup left, although there it was written very small, that until 16:00 they will have soups. so, they bring it to me only that platter, which is practically full of vegetables and fruits, instead of being full of cheese and sausages. The price is 15 euros on that platter, it is a high price even for tourists. but especially for Romanians, some of whom work for 15 euros throughout the day. A big disappointment for the fact that I am Romanian and most restaurants increased the price 3 times, because they all aligned themselves with this lie called "economic crisis", where is this crisis since you sell a plate for 15 euros, having 400 of grams, not 700, and the quality of the cheeses has nothing to do with local products. Big disappointed ! I know that the owners of this restaurant will laugh at this review because they are positioned in a very good area and most customers will still stop there... and this restaurant is not unique, it is another company of another famous restaurant that you meet all over the old town of Brașov, it is strategic to take a scam from any...

I've come to Brasov twice following conferences in Bucharest and both times our conference group has stopped in at Ograda for supper. Our group is obviously not from Romania and even after a year of not being here, our waiter, Daniel, recognized us and immediately came to offer his services to our table.

Each time Daniel has been a big part of the restaurant's warm atmosphere and we've appreciated his smile, jokes and dynamic personality. We come in feeling welcomed and leave feeling as friends. If you are in Brasov, stop in at Ograda and ask to be seated in Daniel's section if he's working, you won't be disappointed in the 'Daniel Experience.'

In addition, the food is always tasty and well prepared. I do wish there were some other non-alcoholic, carbonated beverages on the menu as some of the drinks were not quite as palatable as I expected but good nonetheless. The atmosphere of the restaurant it warm and cozy, it can be a little loud depending on the time of day and how busy it it but it is quite literally a little hole in the wall with character.

I will continue to make a stop at Ograda every time I'm in Brasov! I highly recommend you...