Coffee in Cluj-Napoca
The guide I never knew I needed.
I randomly ended up with nearly a week in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Admittedly, I had never heard of it before I saw it on my calendar and instead of having us fly across the world twice in a week work let us post up in Romania for a few days.
I had no idea what to expect for any of it. What’s the food like? What do I do to occupy my time. Will I be able to get good coffee???… With that I give you a run down of a few of the coffee shops I went to.
Narcoffee
This was my first stop on my first day in town. The primary reason was it was one of the few that seemed to be open on a Sunday (+1 point). Also it seemed like a good stop along the way to old town from where we were staying.
Town was very quiet on this Sunday with the exception of the churches. Every church was spilling out the doors with speakers outside for the stragglers. So really I had the whole coffee shop to myself. Being that it was a scorcher of a day the air conditioned inside of the coffee shop was a welcome surprise. It is a darker space with a limited amount of seating, but enough to enjoy your coffee. They had a selection of pastries available. Overall I was very happy with my coffee to fuel me for what ended up being a very long walk around the city.
Coffee - 4/5
Food - looked decent
Staff - 3.75/5
Ambiance - 3.5/5
Overall - 3.75/5
Bulevardul Eroilor 49, Cluj-Napoca 400394, Romania * https://narcoffee.com/ * +40725531349
Camino Cafe
This shop was not on my radar at all. I was headed to a different shop, Ibric coffee shop, around the corner. When I got there I got cold feet and kept looking. Behind a little enchanted gate was Camino Cafe.
This was hands down the most magical space of them all. You enter in through a small courtyard with a bunch of seating removed from the mellow street. Enter into the coffee shop and it feels like you are in someones living room. Rugs and comfy chairs and ambiance galore. What a delight.
The best news is the coffee matched the vibe. Delicious coffee served in unique dishes. It was a magical place to pass an hour. I only wish I had a chance to go back.
Coffee - 4.25/5
Food - available, didn’t try
Staff - 4/5
Vibe - 4.5/5
Overall - 4.5/5
Strada Samuil Micu 6, Cluj-Napoca 400347, Romania * https://caminocluj.ro/ * +40730900868
Barlogul Cafe
During my initial research it seemed if I wanted a nice coffee I would have to make the 30-45 minute hike each way to town. Luckily on one of my walks I passed this spot off the main road, in the residential area, away from EVERYTHING.
Tucked at the base of an apartment building is a small, easily missed, gate that leads to stairs up to a small patio. The giveaway from the street is the handful of umbrellas up there. The patio has a bunch of seating with a decent view down towards the city.
The coffee shop itself is quite small, barely space for one person. The coffee itself was tasty and they had some small treats that I’m told were pretty good.
Coffee - 4/5
Food - Good?
Staff - 3.5/5
Vibe - 3.5/5
Overall - 3.75/5
Strada Augustin Presecan 13, Cluj-Napoca 400505, Romania * https://www.instagram.com/barlogul.de.cafea/ *
Si
On one of my last days, when I didn’t have to go to work until 8pm I was wandering through town headed to the cemetery in need of coffee and hopefully food in no particular order. Walking down the street I walked past Si and had to double back.
It was a narrow, very well put together shop. A mellow atmosphere with very friendly staff. There was a very long bar that I sat at and they came to me to take my order. It ended up being great. Their attention to detail on the coffee was fantastic. Icing on the cake was that the food was not bad either. It might have been better as a breakfast spot, but I didn’t mind making it my lunch.
Coffee - 4.25/5
Food - 3.75/5
Staff - 4.25/5
Vibe - 4/5
Overall - 4/5
Bulevardul Eroilor 4, Cluj-Napoca 400000, Romania * +40726136224