"Budapest Restaurants" Budapest Things to Do Tip by Heniko

It used to be the case that to eat really well in Budapest, you either had to do some homework in advance, pay top whack at a fancy restaurant, or stay with a local family to enjoy the authentic taste of a Hungarian kitchen. However, our ongoing reviews tell a different story.

Contrary to widespread belief, Hungarian cooking isn't all gulyas (goulash) and heavily spiced paprika dishes, just in the same way as Italian isn't all pasta and Indian hot spices. Hungarian dishes have a distinctive, unmistakable character of their own, often rich with sour cream, onions, eggs, butter and wine. An abundance of good local produce, meat and fish make for dishes such as Halaszle (Fish soup), Sult libamajszelet (pan-fried goose liver), Almaval toltott facan (pheasant stuffed with apples), Szarvastokany erdei gombaval (venison stew with wild mushrooms) and Fogasszelet bakonyi modra (fillet of pike-perch Bakony style). Vegetarians fair less well though with a Hungarian diet that's traditionally meat heavy. Although vegetarian restaurants do exist here, they're largely sombre affairs which compare unfavourably to those in London or Paris.
Most traditional restaurants will offer fried mushrooms (rantott gomba), Trappista sajt (Trappist cheese in breadcrumbs) or egg dishes, but that's about all. Surprisingly, you'll stand a better chance of success with hotel food, albeit at extra cost.
For some recommendations of mine, check out my list.