The best restaurants Budapest

Timetable

Most restaurants serve non-stop from 12pm to 10-11pm on weekends (the kitchen often closes an hour earlier), and some are closed on Sundays. Gastronomic establishments close between noon and two. Small canteens are generally closed from 3pm and at weekends; it's best to refer to your French-Hungarian lexicon, as English is rarely spoken.

Budget & Tips

Doggy bags are available in some establishments, and since the Covid-19 pandemic, all establishments have started offering takeaway food. Traditional canteens serve lunches at ridiculously low prices. Many establishments, including gourmet restaurants, offer lunch menus (starter-main course-dessert) for around €12-18. Take advantage of this, as the bill goes up in the evening! When it comes to eating on the go, establishments have sprung up in all the world's cuisines. For a taste of Hungarian charcuterie, why not try lunch at a butcher's? That's right, these butchers grill beautiful sausages that you eat with a slice of white bread and tarragon mustard. Sandwich culture as we know it in France doesn't really have an equivalent in Hungary, and bakeries are often devoid of them (except for artisanal bakeries and baristas' cafés), but you'll find plenty of rather good kebabs, often run by Turks. Two Hungarian specialties to try out on the street: lángos, fried doughnuts topped with garlicky crème fraîche and grated cheese, and kürtőskalács, those "waffle" pasta cones that are caramelized over the embers.

What costs extra

VAT and taxes are included in the bill. On the other hand, service (10-15%) is rarely included, and it's customary to leave a tip. Sparkling and still water can be served, so be sure to specify your preferences when ordering. Likewise, bread is rarely served; you have to ask for it(kenyér) and it's almost always charged extra.

Tap water is perfectly drinkable, so please insist in Hungarian(csap vízet kérek) if the waiters are reluctant to serve you free of charge.

The local way

Eat in small Magyar canteens and self-service restaurants at lunchtime(étkezde), rarely open in the evening. Hungarians often feast on breaded meats and vegetables(rántott): camembert, cauliflower(karfiol), eggplant... you name it! As a starter or main course, try a hortobágy pancake (filled with meat stew spiced with paprika). Soup is an essential part of Hungarian life, so try the hearty vegetable-based főzelék (squash, potatoes, etc., thickened with roux). In summer, we eat cold fruit soups with fresh cream, like meggyleves with Morello cherries. Succulent! A small side salad(saláták) often accompanies the dishes. It's rarely green salad, however, but rather cucumber and other sweet-and-sour vegetables (like gherkins, but milder). Finally, to soak up the alcohol, popular bars serve zsíros kenyér, a slice of white bread covered with a layer of lard, onion and paprika powder.

To be avoided

Váci is not a street where Hungarians go to eat; it's full of touristy restaurants where you pay three times more for goulash than elsewhere. The same applies, to a lesser extent, to Buda Castle, where it's hard to find authentic establishments at honest prices: it's better to have lunch at the bottom of the hill or in the vicinity of the Hotel Gellért.

Kids

Restaurants rarely offer children's menus, but sometimes offer reduced portions at 70% of the price. Some, on the other hand, like Nanci Néni, have everything planned for your little ones, including games.

Smokers

As in bars and other places open to the public, it is no longer possible to smoke indoors in restaurants, at most on the terrace outside.

Tourist traps

They are rare in the restaurant business, but never sit down in an establishment where the prices are not written down in black and white. Avoid paying in euros if you're given the chance - you can be sure that the exchange rate will be to your disadvantage.