To spot Casa Capșa, look to the corner of Calea Victoriei and Edgar Quinet Street, where you'll see an elegant cream-colored building with large windows, ornate trims, and the golden name "Capșa" shining at the top beneath a decorative dome.
Welcome to Casa Capșa, a place so drenched in stories, sugar, and scandal that even the walls might be buzzing from all the intrigue! Imagine yourself standing here in the middle of old Bucharest, right at the intersection of high society and delicious temptation. While today it looks like an elegant Parisian palace dressed in Neoclassical grandeur, back in the late 1600s this corner was home to the houses and gardens of a certain nobleman, Radu Slătineanu. But let’s jump to the fragrant, bustling year of 1830-when Italian chef Eronimo Momolo, fresh out of the kitchen of Prince Grigorie Ghica, decided to buy this very spot. He turned the ground floor into a lively tavern famous for its exotic, Italian-Oriental meals. Upstairs? That was the sparkling ballroom-where laughter and music would fill the air during Bucharest’s most spectacular dances.
Fast forward to 1868, and the plot thickens as two brothers, Constantin and Grigore Capșa, step into the scene. They swept in to establish a confectionery, and soon “La doi frați, Constantin și Grigore Capșa” was the talk of the town. Picture fancy mustaches, sugar-dusted pastries, and debates over politics-but only if you were part of the elite! In those days, artists and dreamers were strictly NOT allowed. Only the last of the old boyars, influential journalists, and powerful politicians could claim a table, plotting campaigns and whispering secrets behind thick velvet curtains.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. In 1886, Grigore Capșa added the hotel next door, and only five years later, Bucharest got its very own Café Capșa-the ultimate meeting spot for those in love with culture, caffeine, and a hint of mischief. The Café became so famous across Europe that it inspired candy factories and chocolate shops far beyond Romania’s borders. By 1869, Casa Capșa was supplying not just the Romanian royal family but the courts of Serbia and Bulgaria too.
It didn’t stop there. The Capșa family was obsessed with perfecting their craft. Each morning, whatever pastries were left from the previous day were sold at cost to the staff, ensuring only the freshest treats greeted the city’s elite. And Grigore’s heirs-ever the perfectionists-would travel regularly to Paris. They’d return with samples of the newest confections, eager to introduce something extraordinary to Bucharest. Some kitchens were full of dazzling French talent, like Chef Manchosse and pastry wizard Georges Leroy, who first introduced the legendary “truffe” bonbons to the city.
Through wars and revolutions, Casa Capșa evolved with the times. During World War I, you might have heard the clinking of officers’ cutlery-only they were Bulgarian, not Romanian, as the military commandeered the venue! By the roaring 1930s, Capșa was back in business, hosting extravagant banquets where, by tradition, every important visitor would be greeted with a brand-new Capșa specialty-perhaps the “joffre” sweets, created in honor of Marshal Joffre’s 1920 visit.
And what about the artists forbidden in its early days? After the Second World War, Café Capșa became THEIR kingdom! Every writer, journalist, painter, and free-thinker in Bucharest could be found here, strategizing over strong coffee and endless cigarettes. The poet Virgil Carianopol said that to become a “real” writer you needed the Café Capșa’s blessing-no publisher required. And Tudor Arghezi simply called it “the only intellectual place on Calea Victoriei.” Not too shabby for a coffeehouse, right?
With nationalization in 1948, Capșa’s golden age seemed at risk, but after the fall of communism, it was restored once again. Today, with its beautiful café, luxurious hotel, and irresistible sweets, Casa Capșa continues to be the place where Bucharest’s history tastes as rich as its chocolate. So, if you’re looking for more than dessert-maybe a side of revolution, legacy, or literary inspiration-Capșa is your address.
