Austin’s best Romanian restaurant as, alas, its only. With a name like Drakula, one secretly hopes to find giggle-inducing kitsch within (red-velvet curtains? Pikes with bloodied fake heads skewered on top?); instead, it’s a pretty unremarkable strip-mall suite with too-bright lighting and sparse, folksy decorations. The lacy tablecloths and curtains are a homey touch, but the chipper folk music gets grating after a while (not, however, the eager and friendly service).

Traditional Romanian fare’s like a fusion of Northern Italian and Russian food, and this menu’s mostly faithful, with few unorthodox touches. Start with the appetizer assortment (the serving for one is enough for two to three) with veggies, feta, mildly peppery salami, creamy caviar spread, olives, and intensely seasoned meatballs. Stuffed cabbage, filled with ground pork and rice and seasoned with dill, is a little salty and tangy, delicious with sour cream. Romanians traditionally eat a salad with dinner, so try the typical white cabbage salad, finely shredded and in a light vinaigrette.

Hot peppers are common in this cuisine, too, and a heavy dose of chopped jalapeños makes a fiery peste saramura (grilled fish in spicy broth). Finish with a cheese pie, a pastry filled with layers of lightly sweetened ricotta, cottage, and cream cheese with raisins. Do bring your own wine; many Austrian and German bottles would be a lovely match. Or a good Romanian, if you’ve got it.