These Are Some of the Top Restaurants in Budapest – As Told By Our Guest Foodie, Jess!
Life is too short to eat mediocre food, especially when on holiday! As a food blogger, I’m a firm believer in eating well and supporting local businesses when on the road.
For this reason, I spend an obscene amount of time researching the best places to eat before going on a trip. The same goes for Budapest.
Thanks to my extensive food research, I didn’t have a single disappointing meal. The city has a great variety: there are lots of Michelin star restaurants in Budapest and but also many cheap restaurants in Budapest.
Some of the best Hungarian restaurants in Budapest are often the tiny ones you’d maybe never find! Point is, if you know where to go, you can eat wonderfully and often at places you wouldn’t have found otherwise.
I recently spent 5 days in Budapest and had a brilliant time exploring its food scene. It was a great experience to mix up cheap eats with fine dining in Budapest. Luckily for you, you’ll get all my highlights here.
Table of Contents
Breakfast in Budapest
Before a day of exploring Budapest, you’ll, of course, want to fuel yourself with a delicious breakfast. There are a few places that I’d recommend to get you off and running for the day.
Cirkusz
You can trust Cirkusz for a reliable and incredibly delicious morning meal. I liked Cirkusz so much that I had breakfast there twice in five days!
The coffee is flavourful, the menu is varied, and the dishes are delicious. I can recommend the eggs Benedict, the French toast, and most of all, the pulled pork Benedict. It’s unreal!
Address: Dob u. 23, Budapest
À la Maison Grand
My next breakfast pick is À la Maison Grand for a beautifully presented yet affordable breakfast. I also visited this eatery twice because the menu begged to be explored!
The menu ranges from French toast to pancakes to savoury waffles. I tried the avocado and bacon savoury waffles as well as the strawberry French toast.
While both were lovely dishes, I have to say that the French toast won the battle and I would highly recommend it!
Address: Nádor u. 5, Budapest
Lunch in Budapest
On to lunch! I fell in love with a few eateries in Budapest and I so desperately wished I had time to visit them more than once! But I can’t complain, visiting them once is a stroke of good fortune in itself!
Butter Brothers
Butter Brothers is a small café/bakery that I can promise you wouldn’t find if you weren’t explicitly looking for it.
It’s located a few streets behind the Great Market Hall and serves up amazing homemade soup, fresh loaves of bread, savoury pastries, sweet pastries, and coffee. The soup is served with generous chunks of fresh bread and these guys really know coffee.
In the realm of pastries, I tried a chocolate orange pain au chocolate and the bakery’s specialty, a chocolate roll.
Butter Brothers is known for having an excellent chocolate roll and after having one, I can assure you that it’s expertly made. You should definitely get one of these fresh-baked flakey chocolaty pastries!
Address: Lónyay u. 22, Budapest
Artizan
Artizan is another cozy bakery/café worth visiting in Budapest. With French- and Scandinavian-inspired goods, you can snuggle in for a lunch that won’t spoil your appetite for dinner.
Think soups, sandwiches, savoury filled fougasse, cakes, scones, and tarts.
But if there’s one thing you must get at Artizan, it’s the fruit cardamom custard bun. It’s seriously one of the best sweet buns I’ve ever eaten.
The dough is a perfect balance of soft and chewy, the custard is smooth and sweet, and the berry topping is refreshingly uplifting. This is an absolute must-have from Budapest!
Address: Hold u. 3, Budapest
Bors GasztroBár
Bors GasztroBár is a small gem with a hardcore following in Budapest. At lunchtime, this place is packed to the brim with people eager to get their hands on the goods: soup and gourmet grilled paninis.
Bors GasztroBár is the brainchild of two professionally trained chefs who wanted to reinvent the street food game in Budapest.
The sandwich combinations are creative and you’ll undoubtedly want to try more than one. For instance, the French Lady is made with raspberry onion jam, chicken, and edam cheese.
The Thai Massage consists of green curry, spicy chicken, zucchini, and fresh coriander. Or perhaps you’ll be intrigued by the USA BBQ sandwich made with BBQ sauce, beef ragu, tomato onion jam, pickles, and white cheddar. Make time for this place – it lives up to the hype!
Address: Kazinczy u. 10, Budapest
Dessert in Budapest
For those with a total sweet tooth (or anyone just craving something sugary), you’ll want to make sure there’s plenty of room in your belly for dessert.
Budapest is loaded with places that just cater to fulfilling your daily sugar intake!
Kürtőskalács
There are quite a few dessert places worth visiting in Budapest. Of course, you have to get a chimney cake: those cylindrical pastries that fill the air with a sweet smell!
There are several chimney cake stalls spotted around the city, but if you want a place to sit in, visit Molnár’s Kürtőskalács.
Here you can choose from a variety of toppings for your chimney cake, including cinnamon sugar, coconut, walnut, poppyseed, and chocolate.
They are made fresh on the spot and are perfect for enjoying with a coffee or taking away to snack on while you wander the streets of Budapest.
Address: Váci u. 31, Budapest
Gelarto Rosa
For a more refreshing dessert, visit Gelarto Rosa which is located just outside St. Stephen’s Basilica.
At Gelarto Rosa you’ll find the most photogenic gelato cone you’ve ever seen because it’s fashioned into the shape of a fully bloomed rose
You can choose between one and four flavours for your gelato rose and the flavour selection is sure to tickle your taste buds.
The flavours change regularly, with flavours like strawberry elderflower, basil lemon (loved this one), candied chestnut, chilli chocolate, coconut, and white chocolate lavender.
Get your cameras ready, because you’ll want to Instagram this sweet treat!
Address: Szent István tér 3, Budapest
Dinner in Budapest
When it’s dinner time in Budapest it can be difficult to choose where to go. With so many options scattered around the city, you might be left scratching your head on where to go!
You’ve been on your feet wandering Budapest all day and the thing you want most is a deliciously hearty meal. Don’t worry, I have this covered too. Here’s a rundown of a few of my top favourite dinner places in Budapest.
Meatology
Meatology should be on your radar. The reviews online are consistently good and this place is said to have the best burger in Budapest.
Of course, I had to investigate this for myself and I can confirm that the bacon cheeseburger is spectacular!
The soft brioche bun, the juicy beef patty, the melted cheese, the pickles, and the rich burger sauce… The whole combo is absolutely amazing. Not only was this burger memorable, but it was also filling and great value!
The burger menu at Meatology includes sticky pork belly, pork steak, classic beef, and even a goat cheese burger. This place is small so make a reservation or visit at non-peak times to secure a table.
Address: Bajcsy-Zsilinszky út 15c, Budapest
Dobrumba
A surprise food find for me in Budapest was Dobrumba. I didn’t know about this place ahead of time but instead learned about it through the staff at the hostel where I stayed.
After some quick follow-up research, it seemed that Dobrumba was worth a visit. I popped in for an early dinner and this place blew me away.
Dobrumba specializes in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean dishes, with a menu that boasts a variety of mezze including homemade hummus, fried sweet potatoes, pan seared chili prawns, and za’atar fries.
The rich flavours and the high quality of the ingredients are sure to tantalize your taste buds. Go to Dobrumba on an empty stomach, you’ll want to try everything!
Address: Dob u. 5, Budapest
While I realize that this isn’t a food list based strictly on Hungarian food, I can assure you that all of these places are worth a visit!
I’m confident that Budapest will surprise you not only with its sights but also with its flavours! Happy eating!
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Jess is one half of the food-loving team over at Pinchables. Along with her foodie soul mate Lili, Jess travels to new destinations and blogs about her food finds with an emphasis on uncovering the best local and off-the-beaten-path gems.
For more food suggestions, check out the Pinchables blog and Instagram feed. A huge thank you to Jess for sharing her knowledge and amazing food photos!
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