This surge positions Romania with the third-fastest growth globally in expenditures on eating out, trailing only Turkmenistan and China among nearly 80 countries analyzed by Oxford Economics.

Romania still lags behind some regional counterparts. For instance, the average household in Hungary spends around €2,000 annually on dining out, while in the Czech Republic, the figure is close to €1,700. 

"Although this marks a significant increase since 2010, Romania is still behind other countries in the region, as the net amount spent, and especially behind those in Western Europe," explains Liana Dumitru, Director Retail Agency at Colliers. "One possible explanation is that Romania still has one of the largest rural populations in Europe, which weighs on the national average. In other words, the real difference in living costs and expenditures between someone from Bucharest, Cluj or Timisoara and someone from Budapest, Brno or Prague is smaller than these figures might suggest".

The near fivefold increase in dining out spending far outpaces inflation, signaling a notable shift in Romanian consumption patterns. This trend is further fueled by rising incomes, with real salaries more than doubling over the past decade, and a generational shift where younger individuals increasingly view dining out as a form of socializing and discovery.