A pension, a pleasant surprise in Târgu-Mureș

Because it's Saturday, I'm going to tell you a nice story. Although I have just returned from a visit in the country, to people who love wood and what they do, the story is not about them (that will come soon). It's about a hostel and some young people who made an evening's stay a pleasant memory you want to share.

For some time now, when we visit the country, we don't book in advance. The program often changes along the way, there's a lot to see and talk about, and we don't want to be constrained by a set itinerary. We prefer to stay in hostels that we choose when we realize where we will be staying. Plus, when you stay in a hostel, the chances of a good story are much higher.

And so it happened this week. On Tuesday evening we arrived in Târgu Mureș, where we decided to stay as we had a couple of meetings scheduled for the next day. It was almost 7 pm when we started looking for accommodation. We chose Villa Helvetia because we liked the photos and references quickly read on our phone in a parking lot at the entrance to town. The villa was in the city center, which was an advantage and a good price. So we decided quickly and headed there.

Seen from the outside it didn't tell us much. It's an old house, the kind with visible vertical wooden beams, similar to those in Germany or France, but it seemed cramped. Still, we figured the good references were not for nothing. We were greeted by Elly, a very nice young lady, who showed us a room and convinced us.

Inside, you don't feel crowded at all. Everything is thoughtfully done, with attention to detail, it's pleasant and welcoming, and natural plants hang all over the interior staircase leading to the rooms. Elly told us everything we needed to know, gave us her business card with her personal cell phone, saying we could call her anytime a problem arises, including if we are in town and don't know how to get back. I don't think 5 minutes had passed and we already felt like friends.

As it was already late we went downstairs immediately to eat. In the villa there is also a small restaurant, 2 communicating rooms that reminded me of a family restaurant in Italy. Between the rooms there are also two windows that are only framed and look like mirrors in which you can see the reflection of the room you are sitting in. You realize, however, that the ceiling in the room you are sitting in is white and the one you see is rustic walnut and you get it straight 🙂 .

We sat down at the table and immediately the chef appeared. He told us what he had prepared for the evening, but that it wasn't a problem to cook whatever we wanted. It was late and we decided to have one course. He recommended a light appetizer though and told us it would go very well with a certain white wine. From that moment we decided to go with him. I told him and we became friends. He told us that he and Elly were friends. He left the 5-star restaurant where he worked and came to help her. She was taking care of everything by herself, and she had gotten sick. They took care of a lot on their own, including painting the tables and wooden ceilings in the restaurant. She chose the wineries to work with by the quality of the wines, not by reputation or size. And I want to tell you that we tasted 3 wines that evening, on his recommendation, and all were excellent and very well matched with the dish. He told us a lot about the cupaje, about the cellars, about the people who run them.

I want to tell you that everything I ate was very good, with good quality ingredients. Speaking of quality. I originally thought I'd get a cream soup. She apologized that she didn't have any because she wants to make seasonal soup that is pumpkin and hasn't found a quality pumpkin yet. And the way she arranged each dish on the plate was Masterchef worthy.

At the end he gave us a surprise - a dessert on the house accompanied by a glass of sparkling rosé wine also made at a small wine cellar in the countryside. Of course he also told us about the winery, but also about the fact that he knows how to "uncork" champagne by cutting the neck of the bottle with a sword, as officers used to do in the old days.

It was such an enjoyable evening that we couldn't get enough. All the time we felt welcome, well treated, with beautiful people who were passionate about what they do, and the price of the meal was more than decent. Since that evening I told myself I would write about them because such people deserve to be known. I was sorry that the time was short and absorbed in stories, I simply forgot the photos and other details I would have liked to know about them. But we will definitely return to this place again.