Transilvania, a new CT restaurant themed on Vlad the Impaler, celebrates Romania and the inspiration for Dracula

Alina Ioana Caldarariu and Chris Caldarariu are natives of Transilvania, in central Romania. They opened Transilvania Restaurant & Bar in East Haven on Oct. 15. Since then, it has become a social hub for the state’s Romanian immigrant community, and has attracted many patrons who are not Romanian.

Many of those patrons have had some funny questions for the Caldarirus about their homeland, which they spell in the traditional Romanian way.

Is Transilvania a real place?

Does the sun shine in Transilvania, or is it always night?

Do people in Transilvania drive cars, or does everyone use carriages?

Is there electricity in Transilvania?

Does everyone in Transilvania live in castles?

“If I had a castle, I wouldn’t have left home,” Alina Caldarariu said, laughing.

Transilvania is legendary in vampire myth. Since vampires don’t exist, many people believe Transilvania doesn’t either. The Caldararius want people to introduce the real Transilvania. Their menu has Romanian dishes. The lounge has books about Romania. Romanian linens decorate tables and walls. The sound system plays Romanian folk and pop music. As the owners of the state’s only dedicated Romanian restaurant, the Caldararius feel a responsibility.

Still, there is the elephant — well, the vampire — in the room. So the Caldararius have fun with it. Vampire pictures and dolls are scattered around. Waitstaff wear a vampire’s favorite colors: black and red. The phone number is 203-BITE-YOU. Silly signs say “Welcome, Foolish Mortals,” “No Trespassing: We’re Tired of Hiding the Bodies,” “The Bat Room.”

But to bring the Romanian angle home, wall panels and decor tell the tale of the man who inspired Count Dracula: 15th-century Transilvanian nobleman Vlad Tepes, called “The Impaler” after his favorite form of execution.

In Romania, Vlad the Impaler is revered as a national hero.

“Mostly, Romania exists because of him. If he hadn’t fought the Turks, Romania would be part of Turkey,” Alina Caldarariu said. “He was captured by the Turks when he was very small. All he knew, bad things and good things, he learned from the Turks. Then they killed his father and he swore revenge. When they invaded Romania, he killed every one of them.”

They chose this theme to please both their Romanian and non-Romanian clientele. “I don’t want to open the restaurant just for Romanians. I want everyone to come here,” Alina Caldarariu said.

Transilvania to East Haven

Alina Ioana Caldarariu is from the city of Oradea. Chris Caldarariu is from Brasov, the home of Bran Castle, which foreign tourists visit to get the Count Dracula experience. It’s not Vlad the Impaler’s castle, though.

“People go to Bran Castle because it’s closer to the airport. The real castle where Vlad lived, Poenari, is farther away, and you have to climb [1,480] steps to get into it. That’s why people go to Bran,” she said.

The Caldararius met not in Romania but in Bermuda. Alina moved there after the 2008 economic meltdown, when her wedding-planning business hit hard times. The two married and moved to Connecticut when Alina got work as a nanny. They now have three children and live in Monroe.

In December 2020, the couple — whose mothers both were in the restaurant business — opened Transilvania restaurant in Fairfield. It was a small location, takeout-focused, and not really what they wanted, because they already had found the place in East Haven. They wanted it but the pandemic slowed down their progress getting there.

“My mind and my heart were set on it,” she said. “[The landlord] finally said yes. I was so happy. We want people to drink and to dance. Nobody wants to do takeout anymore.”

The couple moved their business to the larger, more gathering-friendly spot at 23 Main St. The building was built in 1706 as a mill on the Farm River.

“When you come in you feel like you are in Romania, the low ceilings, the color of the wood. It feels like home,” she said. “We had a Romanian party and 140 people came. I had to push them out the door at 1 a.m.”

Dana Bucin, honorary counsel of Romania to Connecticut, said about 7,000 Romanian natives live in the state. Claudia and Adrian Bente of Easton are two of them. They dined at Transilvania recently, on pork steak and pickled salad. “It tastes just like mom cooked at home,” said Claudia Bente.

The menu

Although the menu has many American dishes — sliders, wings, burgers, Reubens —the heart of the offerings are Romanian foods. Starters include Romanian-style meatballs ($10.50), a polenta-cheese-egg combination with traditional Romanian thick bacon ($12.50), baked cascaval cheese ($9.99), Romanian chicharrons with red onions and grilled bread ($10.50), a salad of meat, potatoes, carrots and pickled vegetables ($12.50), tripe soup ($9.50) and a soup of beans and smoked pork ($8).

Romanian entrees include skinless sausages (mici) with pickled salad and Dijon mustard ($21), cabbage rolls stuffed with pork and rice and served on a bed of polenta, with thick-cut bacon and sour cream dipping sauce ($21), wiener schnitzel with potatoes and cucumber mint salad ($28.99), a stew of sausage, pork, chicken, bacon polenta and an egg ($24), cornflower-encrusted trout ($23.50), a pork steak with fries ($24.99) and pan-fried chicken liver with mashed potatoes ($21.99).

Goulash ($25) and paprikash ($23.99) are borrowed from neighboring Hungary. International-style entrees include a New York strip ($29), braised brisket ($30.99) and roasted Cajun salmon or a baked chicken (23.50).

The bar includes a wide variety of beer, wine and spirits including Romanian beer and Romanian-style liqueurs made from sour cherries and prunes.

Community

Transilvania hosts a variety of Romanian cultural events.

Nov. 19 starting at 7 p.m., Romanian entertainers will perform, including Miruna Lazea, Simina Stanciu, Mihaela Stan and Irina and Garofas Milici. Details at romanianculturalheritage.org. Admission is $49.

Dec. 3 will mark National Day of Romania, which annually celebrates the union, in 1918, of Romanian Kingdom, Transilvania, Bessarabia and Bukovina. Cost is $65 and includes food and music. Details at romanulonline.org.

A New Year’s party on Dec. 31 will feature live performances.

At the restaurant’s grand opening, which was on Oct. 22, many Ukrainian refugees attended, who had been helped to come to the United States through the Connecticut For Ukraine Refugee Matching Program. The refugees had been brought here by the program, spearheaded by Bucin, after they fled their home country into neighboring Romania. One Ukrainian refugee was given a job in Transilvania’s kitchen. The others were helped by other families and organizations in the state.

Transilvania Restaurant & Bar, 23 Main St. in East Haven, is open Tuesday and Wednesday 4 to 9 p.m., Thursday to Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Closed Mondays. transilvaniact.com.

Susan Dunne can be reached at sdunne@courant.com.