Eat in Budapest

I’d been complaining a lot about Budapest restaurants not having been keen to offer customers decent meals at affordable prices in these turbulent economic environment. I finally found a couple of good choices in different parts of the town which I now would like to share with you.

Csalogány 26 has probably been offering their daily lunch menu for some time but I never noticed (I paid full price in the evening). I recently tasted their pork medalion which was simply fantastic plus they have a house’s wine which was quite good as well (a  simple but acceptable cuvée  from Malatinszky’s of Villány) for only HUF 200/100 cl. Check out their weekly lunch menu here but note that it’s quite unreliable since items tend to change by when you get there.

In the east bank of river Danube, Borbíróság decided to give a 50% discount for those who download their voucher from their website. Borbíróság may not be the best restaurant in town but it has a cosy atmosphere and a decent wine cellar. It’s also ideally located for those visiting the Vásárcsarnok or work in the neighborhood but they’re tired of the usual suspects of Ráday utca.

Noir et L’Or has a business lunch menu for HUF 990 for 2 courses and that’s quite fair: food is simplistic but well made and fresh and the service is polite. The interior is a bit cheaper answer to Donatella’s Kitchen the opposite side of the road, but the golden putto heads are a little bit over the edge to my taste. But it’s not only the interior design: as Donatella’s getting more and more expensive, Noir et L’Or’s getting to be a more and more viable option to many. They also have some good, rare wines such as Ráspi Irsai Olivér and Máté cuvée for instance.

Their Sunday Gluttonous day with its 50% off offer is a good alternative to Sunday Brunches.

Being a highly ranked restaurant and located in the very center of the city, Onyx restaurant represents a more luxurious option. With their lunch menu however, Onyx targets those who would like to break their daily monotony by a 45 minutes lunch. If 2 courses+coffee wouldn’t be served within that time period, the lunch’s on the house!

Let’s start with the facts: Csalogány 26 restaurant is ugly. Now, keep reading.

Ideally hidden from the tourist trails and businesses in one of the ugliest areas of the 1st district, Csalogány 26 mostly attracts people who would like to eat well. The slightly pretentious service is in contrast with the honestly ugly, although new interior. You wouldn’t guess from that that Csalogány 26 was recently chosen one of Hungary’s top 10 restaurants.

Their wine list suggests good taste and I’d say that you can pair relatively well with most items on the short and frequently changing menu. I scored at first: Ráspi’s Sauvignon Blanc from 2007 is truly amazing. About the wine, please see the full review and other here.

The shrimp carpaccio with wasabi and mango sauce was fresh and tiny. The service guys new exactly when was appropriate to offer more wine (we only ordered one glass each of us (2) but ended finishing off a whole bottle).

It was sort if interesting to see on a plasma screen how the chef was preparing my fish, which was btw wonderfully cooked, spiced and served.

The goat cheese cream was very tasty and lightweight but the plum ice cream didn’t taste plum at all.

The bread which is served abundantly during and in between courses was fresh and excellent.

I paid HUF 5 500 for the 3 courses and it was well worth it.

Advance booking is recommended.

It’s a top pick for everyone, but only because of the food. Location is poor, interior is ugly and service staff is mixed.