World Travel Guide

Home -  City Guide  - Budapest  - Food and Drink
Food and Drink

Views on Hungarian gastronomy are usually misguided. Error no 1: goulash (gulyás) is a stew. It is actually a soup served with beef, finely sliced vegetables and plenty of paprika. Traditionally a peasant dish, it was also favoured by royalty and greatly relished by Emperor Franz Joseph. It is at the heart of any decent restaurant's menu and, indeed, an invaluable part of life. As the Hungarian saying goes 'One may replace one's wife, but one cherishes goulash for ever.' Error no 2: Hungarian food is all meat and stodge. Not at all. Chef Károly Gundel was influential in adding a revivifying French touch to traditional Hungarian cuisine in the early twentieth century. In addition, warming winter dishes are lightened in the summer with the addition of seasonal vegetables and alternatives to beef, such as veal. Other delights include cold soups, such as wild cherry or fresh tomato with vodka, game dishes, stuffed cabbage, and goose-liver pâtÉs. Among the desserts are a variety of strudels filled with sour cherry, cottage cheese or poppy seed. Each region has its own speciality and Budapest is known for fish soup (made with carp, sour cream and paprika), stuffed turkey served with marinated peppers, sweet cottage cheese flavoured with lemon, sugar and walnut, and Pancakes Margaret Island Style, filled with apples and cinnamon.

Hungarian spirits are good value, the best-known is barackpálinka (apricot brandy). Wines are cheap and good, and originate from 22 regions. The famed BikavÉr (Bull's Blood) is a rough strong red as its name would imply, while Tokaj is a gentler sweet dessert wine. Other wines to look out for are the reds from the Villányi region and the whites from Badacsony. Among the local beers Dreher and K´´obányai are particularly good.

Restaurants are called Étterem, while more casual bistros are known as vendÉgl´´o and cheap lunch-time diners as ÉtkezdÉk. Prices range from the inexpensive (about Ft1000) to the moderate (Ft1200-Ft2500) and expensive (in excess of Ft2500). To cut costs, it is best to look out for the set menu (napi menü) and always check the bill and change.

Restaurants
: Gundel has been called 'the best traditional restaurant between Paris and San Francisco'. It is certainly the most famed restaurant in town. Situated in a corner of the city park by the zoo (XIV. Állatkerti út 2; tel: (1) 321 3550; fax: (1) 342 2917; e-mail: gundel@mail.datanet; web site: www.gundel.hu), this Art Nouveau eating-house epitomises the elegant Budapest of the inter-war years. Meals are served formally in a room decorated with paintings by nineteenth-century Hungarian masters and tables are laid with the best Zsolnay porcelain and sterling silver. An unforgettable experience, worth the investment of about Ft10,000. Service is equally courteous in the traditional Gambrinus, (tel: (1) 485 3100; fax: (1) 485 3185) in the Hotel Taverna, Váci utca 20. This central spot overlooking the Gerbeaud cafÉ is favoured for business lunches and is the official supplier to the Hungarian parliament. If you want to splash out, opt for one of the five 'royal menus' priced at Ft6600. On the standard menu, dishes include cold fresh tomato soup with vodka, and fillet of veal with steamed pears in Roquefort sauce. Discreet violinists play Hungarian folk tunes and the restaurant maintains a festive atmosphere.

The elegant Robinson, at Városligeti tó (tel: (1) 343 0955), with romantic lake view has satisfied the appetites of David Bowie and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The pricey menu mixes traditional with some lighter alternatives and one should expect to pay Ft1600 and above for a business lunch. Dishes include a spicy Gulyás, grilled goose liver slices interlaced with sweet apple and plum strudel. Ask to see the signatures of VIPs who have eaten here.

Bright young things drink, dine and dance at the Portside, Dohány utca 7 (tel: (1) 351 8406). The menu includes some traditional liver dishes but also Mexican-style T-bone steak and Indian-style turkey on a skewer. Ex-pats flock to Deák tÉr, packed with international franchises, but a popular haunt of the moment is Iguana, V. Zoltán utca 16 (tel: (1) 331 4352), which is open very late, unlike most restaurants which close about midnight. The menu includes Mexican food and margaritas, salsa, excellent burritos and salads and a wide choice of cocktails. An interesting budget choice is Marxim Pub-Pizzeria, II. Kisrókus utca 23 (tel: (1) 316 0231), where a pizza can be bought for Ft400. Situated behind the old Ganz tram factory, the decor is a medley of Communist memorabilia with red flags, trade union banners and pizzas named Anarchismo and Gulag. Vegetarians can seek solace at Gandhi (tel: (1) 269 1625), a vegetarian restaurant located at Vigyázó Ferenc út 4.

CafÉs
: The Turks brought coffee to Budapest. The city's coffee houses (kávÉház) thrived in the final years of the Hapsburg Empire. In the nineteenth century, writers flocked to literary hotspots such as the New York KávÉház where writers were assured of free pens and paper. Communism dampened these hubs of intellectual ferment yet some of the oldest kávÉház have survived and many new cafÉs have sprung up.

The Gerbeaud on the smart Vörösmarty tÉr first opened in 1870. While its gleaming chandeliers and large airy rooms are magnificent, most Hungarians cannot afford to indulge here. The M´´uvÉsz, VI. Andrássy út 29, also one of the golden oldies, serves fine coffee and good cakes. If cakes are your main priority, try those at BÉcsi KávÉház in the Inter-Continental Hotel or some of Budapest's many pastry shops (cukrászda). For the modern set, Miró Cocktail cafÉ is situated in the beautiful Castle District, at I. Úri utca 30. Cool and hip without being loud and brash, this modern cafÉ also serves cocktails.



Copyright © 2001 Columbus Publishing
    
GENERAL
City Overview
City Statistics
Cost of Living
History
Language
Accommodation
 
GETTING THERE
Air
Water
Road
Rail
 
GETTING AROUND
Getting Around
 
BUSINESS
Business
 
SIGHTSEEING
Sightseeing
Key Attractions
Further Distractions
Tours of the City
Excursions
 
ENTERTAINMENT
Nightlife
Sport
Shopping
Culture
Special Events
Food and Drink