The best pasta in Cluj-Napoca

Pasta is probably the most ordered dish in Cluj, which is exactly why a truly good plate of it is hard to find. You can tell the difference from the first forkful: fresh pasta made the same day from durum wheat flour and egg, a sauce cooked patiently, guanciale instead of bacon and Pecorino instead of cream in the carbonara. The good news is that in recent years the city has gained a handful of places that do exactly that, from a pasta bar with an open kitchen to a pasta factory that opened its own restaurant.

For this guide we read the ratings and reviews on Google Maps (checked on 4 October 2026), TripAdvisor and the local press, and went through the menus, so we can tell you not just where to go but also what to order once you get there. The Google rating is the starting point, not the verdict: a 4.8 from nearly four thousand opinions says more than a 5 from a hundred, and a good Italian restaurant is not necessarily the best place for pasta.

Under each name you will find the rating, address and opening hours from Google Maps. Prices are those on the menus the venues published in 2026 and may change.

1. Tortelli Pasta Bar: our pick

Ask anyone in Cluj where to get the best pasta and the first name you will hear is Tortelli. The pasta bar on Strada Virgil Fulicea, two minutes from Piața Unirii, opened on 2 November 2017. Its founder, Lorand Toth, came to Cluj from Sovata to study and went on to work in restaurants abroad, including Jamie's Italian in London. He brought back the idea of a pasta bar, a concept he felt Cluj was missing.

The house rule has not changed since day one: everything is made by hand, in-house. The flour-and-egg dough is kneaded daily and left to rest, then cut into tagliatelle, tagliolini or gnocchi, while the sauces are cooked in the same open kitchen. Nearly nine years on, Tortelli has more reviews than any other place on this list and ranks third out of more than 450 restaurants in Cluj on TripAdvisor.

What to order

• Spaghetti Classic Carbonara: guanciale, egg yolk, Pecorino Romano and plenty of pepper, the Roman recipe, with no cream (57 lei), the most popular dish on Google
• Tagliatelle Ragù: pork and beef ragù in tomato sauce, the Bologna way (55 lei)
• Paccheri alla Gricia: Pecorino, guanciale and black pepper, the simplest and most Roman plate on the menu (60 lei)
• Mezzelune al Tartufo: half-moons filled with ricotta and truffle cream, in a Grana Padano sauce with guanciale and asparagus (68 lei)
• Paccheri alla vodka con 'nduja, if you want some heat (60 lei), or Spaghetti cacio e pepe al tartufo, the vegetarian option (46 lei)
• Lasagna made with fresh sheets, pulled pork and ragù (73 lei), which one Google review calls the “best lasagna ever”
• for dessert: Tiramisu (34 lei) or pistachio cannoli (30 lei)

The vibe: a small, welcoming room with the kitchen on show, where you can watch the pasta being tossed in the pan. Waiters come to your table and grate fresh parmesan over your plate, as much as you like, as one TripAdvisor reviewer puts it. It is a good spot for dinner for two or a quick lunch between walks around the centre.

What people praise

• the fresh pasta: “one of the best pasta restaurants in Cluj”, as one Google reviewer puts it
• the carbonara: “best carbonara I ever had”, writes a TripAdvisor reviewer
• consistency: some regulars have been coming for five years and say everything is just as good
• the team, warm and attentive, with the parmesan-grating gesture at the table

Good to know

• no reservations: you turn up and wait, usually 10–20 minutes at peak times
• the room is small and almost always full in the evening; at weekday lunchtime it is easier to get a table
• the focaccia is more of a savoury cake than a classic focaccia, one reviewer notes: come for the pasta
• the prices above are from the venue's online ordering menu
• budget: 60–100 lei per person

Why it is number one: it has the most reviews on the list, at a 4.8, and it is the only place devoted entirely to pasta. It brought the pasta bar to Cluj and, nearly nine years on, it still makes everything by hand.

2. Cucina Turea: pasta from its own factory, by Piața Unirii

Cucina Turea is neither just a restaurant nor just a grocery, but both. Behind it is Rareș Turea, who has worked in hospitality since the 1990s. He then went to Italy, where he learned to cook alongside chef Ermanno Bernardi and learned to make pasta dough from the chef's mother. Back home, he opened his own pasta factory in 2006, and since 2018 he has run a grocery with a kitchen on Strada Ioan Rațiu, a few steps from Piața Unirii, where the factory's pasta goes straight onto your plate.

The shelves hold dozens of kinds of fresh, frozen and dried pasta, Italian cheeses and cured meats and more than a hundred Italian wines, and the bistro menu lists more than twenty pasta dishes, all made in Cluj.

What to order

• Seafood linguine, black with cuttlefish ink or yellow with egg, with prawns, mussels, tomato sauce, prosecco and peperoncino (93.99 lei), the most popular dish on Google
• Tagliatelle with beef tenderloin and pesto (99.99 lei), which one reviewer calls simply “insane”
• Linguine carbonara, guanciale e pecorino (65.99 lei)
• Truffle ravioli in butter sauce (59.99 lei) or ricotta and spinach ravioli with butter and sage (59.99 lei)
• Tagliatelle Mare e Monti: Transylvanian porcini, prawns and saffron (84.99 lei)
• on a smaller budget: Fusilli grandi al pomodoro e parmigiano (39.99 lei) or Linguine aglio, olio e peperoncino (31.99 lei)
• if you are not in a pasta mood: beef cheek risotto (129.99 lei), also praised in reviews

The vibe: a proper Italian grocery, with the tables set among shelves full of produce. You eat surrounded by the ingredients your meal was cooked with, and on the way out you can take the same pasta home. Good for an unhurried dinner with a glass of wine picked off the shelf.

What people praise

• the house-made ingredients, from pasta to sauces
• authenticity: a reviewer who lives in Italy on and off says he can vouch for it
• the risotto and the seafood
• the welcoming staff and the wine selection

Good to know

• the grocery opens in the morning, but the bistro cooks from 12:00, with last food orders at 21:00
• it is one of the priciest places on the list: 60–180 lei per person
• the pasta, sauces and wines can all be bought to take home

Why it is number two: nowhere in Cluj are you closer to the source of the pasta. It loses first place only on price and simplicity.

3. Alle Bollicine Vino & Pasta: carbonara and Prosecco on Strada Republicii

A 4.9 from nearly a thousand reviews. Alle Bollicine is a small Italian wine bar on Strada Republicii, a few minutes from the centre towards the Botanical Garden, which describes itself as a tribute to the bubbles in a glass of Prosecco. The house-made pasta, though, is what keeps people coming back, and Giovanni, the Italian who runs the room, gets a mention in many reviews.

What to order

• Carbonara: fresh pasta, guanciale, egg, parmesan and pecorino (44 lei), the house dish, no question
• Mare e Monti: tagliatelle with prawns, porcini and truffle purée (47 lei)
• All'amatriciana: rigatoni with guanciale, red onion, tomato sauce and chilli (45 lei)
• All'arrabbiata with burrata (51 lei), for something spicy and creamy at once
• Tagliatelle alla Bolognese (39 lei) or Aglio, olio e peperoncino with prawns (49 lei)
• to start, arancini with guanciale and pecorino (27 lei); to finish, tiramisu (32 lei), praised almost as much as the pasta
• to drink: a glass of Prosecco, where the whole concept begins

The vibe: an intimate room with Italian music in the background and the feeling of having been invited to someone's home. A reviewer who organised a dinner here for twenty people writes that “for one evening we felt we were in Italy”. Good for dinner for two or a long meal with friends.

What people praise

• the carbonara: carbonara lovers “won't go wrong here”, one reviewer promises
• the house-made pasta, which you can taste “from the first contact with the plate”
• the hospitality of Giovanni and his team
• the tiramisu and the wine selection

Good to know

• it is small: call ahead (0742 015 199), especially on Friday and Saturday evenings
• the kitchen closes at 22:00 (22:15 on Fridays and Saturdays), even though the bar stays open until midnight
• the prices above are from the menu on the website; Google reviewers put it at 80–180 lei per person, with wine

4. Pasta Nostra: homemade pasta and workshops, since 2016

“Our story begins with a plate of pasta in Naples,” reads the Pasta Nostra website. Opened in 2016, just over a kilometre from Piața Unirii, it is a family business modelled on Italy's small trattorias: all the pasta is made in-house, every day, from durum wheat flour and egg, from spaghetti and tagliatelle to tortellini and ravioli, and the sauces are slow-cooked every morning in an open kitchen.

What to order

• Carbonara Amalfitana, which they themselves call “our most wanted”: homemade pasta with smoked pancetta, cream, egg and parmesan, with a hint of lemon
• Ravioli Ravello: homemade ravioli with cheese and spinach, lime, butter and parmesan
• Tortellini Castelfranco: tortellini filled with beef and pork, with mushrooms, cream and parmesan
• Amatriciana Siciliana, with smoked pancetta, tomato sauce, onion and chilli
• Marinara Pescara: anchovies, capers, green olives, tomato sauce and chilli, “the taste of that seaside holiday”
• Tartufo Termoli: truffle cream, parmesan and butter, simple and deeply aromatic

The vibe: a quiet neighbourhood restaurant, away from the bustle of the centre, with an open kitchen. Besides regular dinners, it runs pasta-making workshops and ticketed themed evenings, and those who have taken part describe them as a wonderful experience.

What people praise

• the pasta workshop: “a corner of Italy and warm-hearted people in Cluj”
• well-judged portions and the taste of the fresh pasta
• the people behind the restaurant, mentioned warmly in reviews
• visitors from out of town who say they never miss it when they pass through Cluj

Good to know

• closed on Sundays, and it closes early in the evening, at 21:00
• you can book a table on the website; the pasta can also be ordered for delivery
• budget: 40–100 lei per person

The best choice on the list if you want to learn to make pasta, not just eat it.

5. Perfetto Cucina Italiana: Capri on Piața Unirii

Perfetto sits right on Piața Unirii and has more than 1,600 reviews on Google. It takes its inspiration from the island of Capri: Mediterranean decor, ingredients brought over from Italy and a menu of house-made pasta, pinsa romana and seafood.

What to order

• Spaghetti alla Nerano: butter and Parmigiano Reggiano sauce with crispy courgette and garlic, the classic from the Sorrento peninsula (66 lei)
• Linguine alle vongole: clams cooked in olive oil, garlic, wine and peperoncino (92 lei)
• Tagliolini cacio e pepe, with Pecorino Romano foam, sage and five kinds of pepper (66 lei)
• Spaghetti carbonara with guanciale, Parmigiano Reggiano and Pecorino Romano (72 lei)
• Tagliolini allo scoglio, with mussels, squid, clams and Black Tiger prawns (109 lei)
• for an occasion: Tagliolini porcini e tartufo con foie gras, with black truffle and foie gras flambéed in cognac (129 lei)
• on a smaller budget: Fusilli grandi al pomodoro (52 lei)

The vibe: elegant and Mediterranean, with a terrace on the square and staff who are good at wine recommendations. One reviewer describes the decor as straight out of Capri, the Amalfi Coast or Sorrento. The long hours, until one in the morning at weekends, make it an easy choice for a late dinner.

What people praise

• the staff, very friendly and ready with recommendations
• the seafood pasta and the beautifully presented plates
• the location, on the city's most beautiful square
• the prices, “no more expensive than other restaurants” in the centre

Good to know

• the pasta is the strong point; opinions on the pinsa are more divided
• the terrace on the square fills up in the evening: book on the website or on 0738 085 586
• pasta dishes cost between 52 and 129 lei

6. Pasquale: spaghetti alla chitarra by the old city wall

Many people know it for brunch, but in the evening Pasquale becomes a small Italian restaurant with a short list of pasta dishes. On the corner of Strada Napoca and Strada Potaissa, a few steps from the old citadel wall, it has one of the highest ratings in town, from nearly two and a half thousand reviews. Every pasta dish uses spaghetti alla chitarra, square-cut strands that hold the sauce well.

What to order

• Spaghetti alla carbonara: pancetta, egg yolk, Pecorino Romano DOP and pepper (47 lei)
• Spaghetti with pancetta and burrata, with roasted pepper sauce, vegetable ragù, garlic and basil (55 lei)
• Spaghetti with prawns and courgette, with wild prawns, tomato, butter and garlic (57 lei)
• Spaghetti Calabrese, vegetarian, with tomato sauce, peperoncino and Grana Padano (44 lei)
• to start: vitello tonnato (52 lei) or the burrata salad with San Daniele prosciutto (45 lei), both served with house-made focaccia

The vibe: a small, warm room with an Italian feel and a terrace on the cobbled pedestrian street, in one of the prettiest parts of the centre. Filtered water, still or sparkling, is on the house. Good for dinner for two or a family meal.

What people praise

• the service, attentive and warm, mentioned in almost every review
• value for money, rare for a terrace in the centre
• the vegetarian options
• the terrace and the street

Good to know

• the pasta list is short, four dishes, so it is not the place if you want to choose from dozens
• the room is small: book online, especially at weekends
• budget: 40–80 lei per person

7. Ragù: a place just for lasagna

The most specialised place on the list: Ragù does one thing, artisan lasagna, in four versions. The sheets are fresh, made from organic eggs, flour and water, the Black Angus beef ragù simmers for hours with red wine, and the béchamel is enriched with aged parmesan. It is in the centre, a few steps from Tortelli, and for now has a perfect score on Google, from just over a hundred reviews.

What to order

• Lasagna Classica: Angus beef ragù, béchamel and Grana Padano DOP, the house signature (400 g)
• Lasagna Marina: prawn ragù, béchamel and Grana Padano, which one reviewer calls a “brilliant”, well-balanced combination
• Lasagna Piccante, with spicy Angus beef ragù
• Lasagna Verdissima, vegetarian, with mushroom ragù

The vibe: an unpretentious spot with fast service, where you come for a portion of lasagna rather than a long evening. It works just as well as a takeaway.

What people praise

• the lasagna: “the best lasagna I ever had”
• generous portions, served at just the right temperature
• the kind, friendly owner and the quick service

Good to know

• the menu is lasagna only, so it is not for anyone who wants tagliatelle or carbonara
• the rating still comes from a small number of reviews
• budget: 40–60 lei per person, the lowest on the list

8. Da Pino: from Italian grocery to restaurant on Strada Universității

Da Pino started out as a small grocery with Italian delicacies and a few tables on Strada Universității, in the historic centre. Within a few years it became one of the best-known Italian restaurants in Cluj, a family business that sources from small producers in Italy and makes fresh pasta. Today it has a restaurant, a trattoria, an upstairs room for events and a terrace on the street.

What to order

• Tagliatelle Ragù: slow-cooked beef and pork ragù with fresh pasta and parmesan (78 lei)
• Ravioli abruzzesi: half-moon ravioli filled with ricotta and pecorino, with confit cherry tomatoes, tomato sauce and basil (62 lei)
• Sea Chitarra: square spaghettoni with garlic, confit cherry tomatoes and seafood (118 lei)
• Tagliatelle da Pino, the house dish: strips of picanha, porcini cream and white truffle, saffron, asparagus and pine nuts (138 lei)

The vibe: a classic city-centre restaurant with a terrace on Strada Universității, a few minutes from Piața Unirii. Many diners praise the waiters' recommendations and mention them by name. Good for visitors and for a business dinner.

What people praise

• the waiters and their recommendations: many reviews mention them by name
• the calm atmosphere and the terrace
• the Italian produce from small producers

Good to know

• it is the most uneven place on the list: alongside glowing reviews you will find complaints about the service, hence the lower rating
• prices are among the highest on the list: 62–138 lei for a plate of pasta
• it is open until 1:00 from Thursday to Saturday

In short: where to go, depending on what you want

• the best pasta in Cluj: Tortelli Pasta Bar
• fresh pasta to take home too: Cucina Turea
• a carbonara like in Rome: Alle Bollicine or Tortelli
• dinner for two, with a glass of wine: Alle Bollicine or Perfetto
• learning to make pasta: the workshops at Pasta Nostra
• a terrace in the centre: Perfetto, on Piața Unirii, or Pasquale, on Strada Napoca
• the smallest budget: Ragù or Pasquale
• a late dinner: Perfetto, open until 1:00 on Fridays and Saturdays

A few tips

• ask for carbonara without cream: the Roman recipe has only guanciale, egg, Pecorino and pepper, and that is how Tortelli, Alle Bollicine and Perfetto make it
• Tortelli does not take reservations; at Alle Bollicine, Perfetto, Pasquale and Pasta Nostra it is wise to book for the evening
• most kitchens close at 21:00–22:00, even if the bar stays open later; for dinner after 22:00, Perfetto is the safest bet
• fresh pasta cooks in a few minutes, so a plate that arrives very quickly is not a bad sign

Opening hours, menus and prices change, and Google ratings shift as new reviews come in. Check each venue's page before you set off.