The foodie in you will want to explore every restaurant, cafe, street vendor and ruin bar in Budapest. Without the guidance of online reviews, we took to the streets of Budapest to find the best spots for traditional cuisine, markets, dessert, and drinks. Enjoy our comprehensive foodie’s guide to eating in Budapest:
5 Must Try Traditional Hungarian Dishes
- Lecsó – Hungarian version of vegetable stew comes with green and red peppers, tomatoes, onions, salt, sugar and paprika. The Lescó dish I had was served with Kolbász. Kolbász is Hungarian sausage which can be boiled, dried or smoked, eaten as cold cuts or as part of a main dish like stews and salads.
- Nokedli –Hungarian nokedli dumplings and can be served with Chicken Paprikash or Goulash.
We were able to find both of these traditional meals at Kazimír Bisztró in District VII (the old Jewish Quarter) for our first meals in Budapest. We sat in an adorable courtyard and enjoyed our first glasses of Hungarian wine. Everything was delicious at Kazimír Bisztró with reasonable prices and massive portions, it is certain to not disappoint.
- Lángos – A popular street food in Hungary. A deep fried flatbread topped with sour cream, grated cheese, and garlic. A.k.a – deliciousness! We tried langos at a festival that we found in the city park.
- Halászlé – Fisherman’s soup that is based with hot and spicy paprika.
On our second day, we went to lunch at Paprika which had delicious traditional Hungarian food and beer. The restaurant has a log cabin vibe and we have to admit the service was slow, even though we visited during an off-peak time. This restaurant had excellent Halászlé and I still regret that we didn’t try this dish here! There weren’t many restaurants in the City Park area, so we would recommend stopping here if you are exploring this part of Budapest for the day.
- Gulyás – or Goulash is the national dish of Hungary. It is a meat stew with noodles and vegetables seasoned with paprika. We couldn’t leave Budapest without enjoying a delicious Goulash!
Our final meal was at M Restaurant and it had excellent Goulash. This is a quaint restaurant with a laid back atmosphere, excellent wine, and traditional Hungarian dishes. Put simply, it has high quality food at great prices. If you visit M Restaurant, be sure to remember that it is cash only.
Lecsó & Nokedli Lángos Gulyás
Markets
Central Market Hall – The largest indoor market in Budapest. There are many stalls selling fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, paprika, and souvenirs. This is a great place to try Langos and various confectioneries. We planned to pick up supplies for a Sunday picnic here, but we quickly learned that the Central Market Hall is not open on Sundays!
Szimpla Kert, one of Budapest’s famous ruin bars that transforms into a phenomenal Sunday Market. We picked up all of our supplies for Sunday picnic here. We purchased grapes, various meats, a piece of fried pumpkin, smoked garlic cheese, goat cheese rolled in peppers, a baguette, Kifli (a Hungarian croissant), peanut butter chocolate spread, and a bottle of wine. A perfect picnic spread!
Dessert, Please!
Confectioneries! Budapest is known for its delicious sweets such as chimney cakes. We visited the famous confectionary Ruszwurm. Chris and I shared the Ruszwurm Crème Cake. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the cake, as I am not a huge fan of sweet cakes. This is a popular stop, but you need to find a great confectionery to enjoy while in Budapest.
Túró Rudi is a classic treat loved by all Hungarians. It has a soft inner filling of cold curd cheese and a thin outer coating of dark chocolate. The combination can’t be beat and you need to try at least one when in Hungary. Our AirBnB host was kind enough to leave us two to try. I will warn you though, once you have one you will want more! We had to stop to buy several more, but you can easily find them in the dairy section near yogurt in any market.
Best Bars and Drinks
Budapest has amazing wine! If you love wine and classy wine bars then stop by Doblo Wine Bar for an exceptional experience. The servers are great at finding you a glass of wine that you will love. Chris opted to try Palinka (Hungarian whiskey) instead of wine. Doblo has a great atmosphere and live music on Saturday nights. They offer amazing cheese and meat tasting dishes to go with the exceptional wine. If you are looking for a fun classy night out, then you need to stop by Doblo!
Budapest’s Ruin Bars – The opposite of a classy experience, but a must do experience in Budapest. We visited Szimpla Kert, the most famous of Budapest’s ruin bars. Ruin bars are rundown abandoned buildings, that instead of being renovated or torn down are turned into a bar. Szmipla Kert is packed with unique eclectic furniture. The bar had everything from old bus seats and diner furniture to bath tubs that were converted into functional pieces of furniture. Everywhere you look there is something to see in this bar. Picture umbrellas hanging from the ceiling to an old projector playing black and white films. It has a fun vibe and the indoor/outdoor bar is the perfect place to dance the night away!
I hope this guide helps fulfill your foodie desires in Budapest! Continue planning for your trip by reading our Three Days in Budapest blog post. Happy travels!
