20 Best Restaurants you have to try in Budapest

 

20 Best Restaurants you have to try in Budapest

At a first glance, Budapest looks like a classical city with its overwhelming gothic and neoclassical architecture.

Moreover, the Budapest dining scene includes traditional Hungarian Jewish food and the number of restaurants in Budapest is astounding to the point that it can be difficult to turn a corner in the city without bumping into one or more.

The best restaurants in Budapest run the gamut from casual eateries to Michelin-starred restaurants. Here are the 20 best restaurants you have to try in Budapest.

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1. Onyx

Onyx sits at the top of Budapest’s fine dining scene and it’s also the city’s only restaurant with two Michelin stars.

The production of food in the restaurant is by Chef Adam Meszaros where he marries local ingredients with French technique and the results are unfailingly delicious.

However, while you are in the restaurant expect fine dining experiences complete with glass chandeliers, white linen tablecloths, and tableside service.

In addition, there is a six-course tasting menu with wine pairing runs at 175 euros per person which certainly isn’t cheap but the food is worth it.

Practical Information:

Address: Budapest, Vorosmarty ter 7, 1051 Hungary

Contact: [30] 508 0622

Website:  Onyx

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2. Borkonyha Winekitchen Restaurant

Executive chef Sarkozi and a talented team of young chefs serve up inventive dishes in this downtown Michelin-starred restaurant.

However, expect dishes such as lamb saddle and pork tenderloin made from the famed Hungarian Mangalica pig.

The signature starter here is the duck liver which has been a mainstay on the menu since its opening in 2010.

Practical Information

 Address: Budapest, 1051, Sas u. 3, 1051 Hungary

Contact: [1] 266 0835

website :Borkonyha Winekitchen

3. Stand25 Bistro

Chefs and partners Szullo and Tamas Szell left their Michelin-starred tasting menu to endeavor in 2016 to launch a casual restaurant specializing in unadulterated traditional Hungarian food inside a market hall turned food court. Within a year of opening the unlikely Stand25 received a Bib Gourmand and today the space is almost always filled to capacity. The recommended must-try dishes include the goulash soup and the somloi Galuska which is a rum-soaked local dessert.

Practical information:

Address: Budapest, Hold u. 13 Hungary

Contact: [30] 961 3262

website: Stand25 Bistro (Stand25 Bisztró)

4. Costes Restaurant

Budapest’s first Michelin-starred restaurant is also the only one helmed by a female chef Eszter Palagyi. Her elaborate dishes feature flavor wild game, intensive dessert variations and playful amuse bouches inspired by Hungarian Peasant Fare. Moreover, for the full experience pair the seven-course tasting menu with a taste of a slate of premium local wines.

Practical Information:

Address: Budapest, Raday u. 4, 1092 Hungary

Contact: [1] 219 0696

website: Costes Restaurant

5. Mazel Tov

Mazel Tov’s moniker is a hat tip to the neighborhood which was once the city’s Jewish Quarter and if there were a title for the hippest place in town this would be a serious contender.

The restaurant is located in the courtyard of a crumbling building built in the late 19^th century.

However, despite its rough exterior, the inside has been updated with a very 2018 design scheme of lush greenery and exposed bricks.

Practical Information:

Address: Budapest, Akacfa u. 47, 1072 Hungary

Contact: [70] 626 4280

website: Mazel Tov

6. Rosenstein Vendeglo

There are plenty of places in Budapest to find a decent goulash or chicken paprikash but the city’s undisputed king of traditional Hungarian food is Rosenstein a family-run restaurant that opened in 1996.

Other favorite dishes offered by the restaurant include the stuffed pepper and the pan-seared Foie grass with potato croquettes in a Tokaji wine sauce.

Furthermore, in a nod to the owner’s Jewish ancestry on Fridays and Saturdays the restaurant also serves cholent the slow-cooked Sabbath dish of baked beans topped with beef.

Address: Budapest, Mosonyi u. 3, 1087 Hungary

Contact: [1] 333 3492

website :Restaurant Rosenstein (Rosenstein Vendéglő)

7. Olimpia Etterem

The restaurant is tucked away in a Spartan subterranean space on the outskirts of Budapest.

Interestingly the restaurant instead of having a printed menu the Chef simply lists the daily changing ingredients on a blackboard and then transforms them into elaborate, deeply flavorful dishes.

The crowd here is almost all local in part due to shockingly low prices compared to downtown, whereby the seven-course tasting menu runs at the equivalent of 30 euros and 20 euros for wine pairing.

Practical Information:

Address: Budapest, Alpar u. 1076 Hungary

Contact: [1] 321 0680

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8. He He Kinai Etterem

Budapest has the largest Chinese community in Central Europe which means that excellent Chinese restaurants abound in the city’s Chinatown which is the Monori Center.

He He Restaurant May look like your typical takeout spot but it serves up seriously stellar Sichuan food in addition to its famed hand-pulled noodles prepared by a dedicated noodle Chef from Lanzhou.

When you are in doubt about what to order it is recommended that you should try boiled fish in chile oil and Sichuan peppercorns or the sizzling beef.

Practical Information

Address: Budapest, 1101 Budapest, Monori u. 2-4, E7, 1107 Hungary

Contact: [30] 616 6638

website :He He Kínai Étterem / Chinese Restaurant / 和和美食

9. Mazel Tov

This Middle Eastern restaurant inside Budapest’s buzzing Jewish Quarter does have a disintegrating façade like other ruin bars but the inside is a different story for instance cheap drinks have been upgraded to cocktails, ham and cheese sandwiches to mezze plates, self-service to hostesses, and weathered furnishings to modern fittings with lush greenery.

Mazel Tov’s Israeli and other Mediterranean dishes are reliable and arrive without delay to ensure that tables turn over quickly in this wildly popular restaurant.

In addition, reservations are an absolute must as the place gets mobbed by people every day of the week.

Opening hours: Monday to Tuesday: 12:00 pm – 1:00 am, Wednesday to Friday: 12:00 pm – 2:00 am, and Saturday to Sunday: 10:00 am – 2:00 am

Contact: +36 70 626 4280

Address: Budapest, Akacfa u. 47, 1072

website: Mazel Tov

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10. Getto Gulyas

Getto Gulyas is a cozy Hungarian restaurant inside Budapest’s party district also known as the old Jewish Quarter.

The restaurant’s name makes its culinary priorities clear however the short menu features the heart of Magyar cuisine with staples like goulash and various seasonal vegetable stews called fozelek. “Getto” refers to the Jewish ghetto that this neighborhood became during the winter of 1944 the darkest time of WWII in Budapest.

In addition, advance reservation is an absolute must and the restaurant is best known for goulash soup, stew dishes, Gundel palacsinta, and turogomboc.

Opening hours: Monday to Thursday: 12:00 pm – 11:30 pm, Friday to Saturday: 12:00 pm – 12:00 am, and Sunday 12:00 pm – 11:00 pm

Address: Budapest, Wesselenyi u. 18, 1077

website : Getto Gulyas

11. Kiosk

The kiosk is a hip restaurant in the heart of Budapest that trendy locals and tourists favor in the know.

The restaurant has at least two things going for it that are a stunning view of the Danube and the Elisabeth Bridge from its outdoor patio and a dramatic high ceilinged, industrial chic interior.

The kiosk aims to please all tastes with a diverse menu that includes everything from salads to burgers to pasta to steaks to Hungarian classics.

Opening hours: Monday to Wednesday: 12:00 pm 12:00 am, Thursday to Saturday: 12:00 pm – 1:00 am, and Sunday 12:00 pm – 12:00 am

Contact: +36 70 311 1969

Address: Budapest, Marquis 15. ter 4, 1056

website: KIOSK Budapest

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12. HILDA

HILDA is a chic downtown restaurant with eye-catching inside features like an oversized stained glass mosaic that covers one of the walls in its entirety and glazed Zsolnay ceramic tiles, the same brand that decorates the lobby of the Four Seasons.

However, the menu consists of flavorful and beautiful plated Hungarian classics such as goulash soup and chicken paprikash.

Interestingly the chef puts small sins on these classics of which the highlight is the mangalitsa pork chop that is made from the heritage Hungarian pig known for its marbled meat.

Opening hours: Monday: closed, Tuesday to Friday: 6:00 pm – 11:00 pm, and Saturday to Sunday: 11:00 am – 11:00 pm

Contact: +36 30 430 9810

Address: Budapest, Nador u. 5, 1051

website : HILDA Budapest

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13. Konyvbar and Restaurant

Konyvbar is an upscale-ish restaurant within Budapest Jewish Quarter and the head chef brings a Michelin experience to this snug, book-lined space which has become a tourist favorite following praise from the New York Times.

The restaurant offers both Hungarian classics and international options on the slim menu which changes seasonally.

It is recommended one of the favorite dishes is fogas the once Hungary’s prized fish that arrives on a bed of creamy cauliflower and is ringed by crunchy and colorful slices of the vegetable.

Opening hours: Monday, Tuesday, and Sunday: closed and Wednesday to Saturday: 12:00 pm – 11:00 pm

Contact: +36 20 922 7027

Address: Budapest, Dob u. 45, 1074 Hungary

website : KÖNYVBÁR & RESTAURANT

14. Bobo Restaurant

Bobo restaurant is located in Rozsadomb an exclusive residential area but reachable within ten minutes from Pest.

However, the restaurant stated mission is to draw Budapest’s Bobos a term made popular in David Brook’s book “Bobos in Paradise”.

The restaurant is inside a beautiful refurbished 1885 estate once the playground of the Hungarian aristocracy.

The short menu draws inspiration from dishes that were once popular in Budapest and Vienna during the Austro-Hungarian Empire featuring things like goulash soup, schnitzel, and freshwater pike perch, all plated delicately and served on white linen.

Opening hours: Monday to Saturday: 12:00 pm – 11:00 pm and Sunday: 12:00 pm – 11:00 pm

Contact: +36 70 772 2665

Address: 1022, Marczibanyi ter 7, 1022 Hungary

website: BOBO RESTAURANT

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15. Enso

Enso is a trendy Asian-inflicted fusion restaurant located outside of downtown in the working-class part of Budapest’s district 8.

The food is a mishmash of global dishes like duck ramen, chicken taco, oysters, marinated trout, Brazilian cheese bread, and Wagyu beef.

Most plates are meant for sharing but on the small side, they are very tasty especially treated on a charcoal fire such as the grilled broccoli coated in pungent white sauce.

In addition, Vietnamese coffee, cocktails, Japanese beers, sakes, whiskeys, and Hungarian wines are all available.

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Opening hours: Monday, Saturday, and Sunday: closed and Tuesday to Friday: 4:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Contact: +36 70 608 4090

Address: Budapest, Baross u 85, 1082

website : ENSŌ BUDAPEST

16. N28 Wine And Kitchen

N28 is a casually elegant restaurant just off Andrassy Avenue and it is a project of Mark Molnar the son of Tamas B. Molnar who is a revered gastro journalist in Budapest.

Moreover, Mark spent the better part of the past two decades as a chef working abroad mostly in Spain and the menu is a collection of Spanish and Hungarian dishes.

The restaurant doubles as a boutique wine store meaning that you can pair your food with an enviable selection of Hungarian wines.

Of the tapas and aged meats, the star of the show is the Mangalica ham sitting on toasted bread and layered with foie gras and pieces of tender shrimp.

Open hours: Monday to Sunday: 11:00 am – 11:00 pm

Contact: +36 70 659 4312

Address: Budapest, Nagymezo u. 28, 1065

website: N28 Wine and Kitchen

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17. Sao Budapest

Depending on your taste you might describe Sao as the hottest restaurant in town or alternatively as an overpriced pan-Asian eatery serving takeout food with little to show for the hype.

Sao operates at capacity every night of the week and since one of Sao’s owners is a fashion designer local celebrities from the creative industries often show up here in turn drawing scene chasers eager to rub shoulders with the hic crowd.

In addition, the menu is a collection of uncomplicated but reliably prepared Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai, and Japanese classics.

Open hours: Monday to Saturday: 11:30 am – 11:00 pm and Sunday: closed

Contact: +36 20 319 4099

Address: Budapest, Hollo utca 10., F003,1075

website: SÁO FOOD&BAR

18. Koleves Restaurant

Koleves is a highly popular restaurant in the heart of Budapest’s old Jewish Quarter inside an 1851 building that used to be home to a Kosher meat processing facility and butcher shop.

Interestingly the leftover objects from the meat plant are used as design pieces including a well-worn leather-bound ledger book and a weathered Talmud.

However, the restaurant pays homage to the building’s past by serving a couple of Jewish-Hungarian dishes such as matzo ball soup and cholent the classic Sabbath bean stew.

Opening hours: Monday to Saturday: 8:00 am – 12:00 am and Sunday: 9:00 am – 11:00 pm

Contact: +36 1 322 1011

Address: Budapest, Kazinczy u. 41, 1075

website: KŐLEVES KERt

19. Gerloczy Café

Gerloczy is a snug café and restaurant tucked away in an unusually quiet pocket of Budapest downtown.

Moreover, the charming plaza outside the restaurant is surrounded by elegant prewar buildings. The restaurant’s interior evokes French bistro vibes featuring small round tables, leather banquettes, and a high ceiling.

The breakfast menu includes reliable pan European staples like a pair of frankfurters with a side of mustard, omelets, and quiche.

The dinner menu is a hodgepodge of dishes spanning from goulash soup to seafood pasta and steaks. In addition, note that Gerloczy operates a boutique hotel on the upstairs floors.

Opening hours: Monday to Sunday: 8:00 am – 11:00 pm

Contact: +36 1 501 4000

Address: Budapest, Gerloczy u. 1, 1052

website: GERLÓCZY KÁVÉHÁZ ÉS RESTAURANT

20. Bestia

Bestia is a buzzing restaurant in the heart of Budapest specializing in pricey grilled meats.

With a picture postcard view of the St. Stephen’s Basilica an edgy industrial chic décor and loud music blasting through the speakers, the restaurant has quickly become a favorite among trendy tourists and locals alike.

However, if you are feeling adventurous it’s recommended you start your meal with roasted bone marrow and toast.

Not only that also the pork ribs are good and are prepared in a Josper charcoal burning oven and if your premium cuts of steaks are your speed you can have it all here.

In addition, the restaurant’s full-service bar serves both customized cocktails of local craft beers on draft.

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Opening hours: Monday to Sunday: 11:30 am – 12:00 am

Contact: +36 1 300 7575

Address: Budapest, Szent Istvan ter 9, 1051

website: BESTIA

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