Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Like a Local
It's not difficult to live like a local in Budapest. The natives are friendly, the
food is excellent and the wine's even better. And there are lots of things here
that everyone everywhere likes: hot mineral baths, sweet cakes and
diamonds-and-rust flea markets.
Eating Like a Local
Learn to like meat. Hungarians are big carnivores, and 'meat-stuffed meat' is actually a dish
here. For stick-to-the-ribs fare on the hoof try
Belvárosi Disznótoros
, a butcher-caterer who
satisfies the ravenous daily. Still all the rage are retro-style
étkezdék,
diner-like eateries that
serve traditional Hungarian favourites and comfort food like
főzelék
(vegetables fried or
boiled and then mixed into a roux with sour cream). The most local of these are
Kádár
in Erz-
sébetváros in Pest and
Toldi Konyhája
in Buda's Víziváros. The best place for traditional fish
soup is
Horgásztanya Vendéglő
.
Drinking Like a Local
Budapesters love their wine and take it seriously, but in summer spritzers of red or white
wine and mineral water are consumed in large quantities. Knowing the hierarchy and the art
of mixing a spritzer to taste is important and will definitely win you the distinction of 'honor-
ary local'. A
kisfröccs
(small spritzer) is 10cL wine and the same amount of soda water;
a
nagyfröccs
(big spritzer) doubles the quantity of wine. A
hosszúlépés
(long step) is 10cL of
wine and 20cL of water, while a
házmester
(janitor) trebles the amount of wine. Any bar in
town will serve you these, but don't expect one at a
borozó,
a traditional 'wine bar' (usually a
dive) where liquid plonk (rotgut) is doled out by metal ladle.
Entertaining Like a Local
No self-respecting Budapester ever clubs indoors in the warm summer months; that's what
kertek
(outdoor garden clubs) and rough-and-ready
romkocsmák
(ruin pubs) are for.
As for more high-brow entertainment, while the
Ferenc Liszt Music Academy
and
Palace
of Arts
are incomparable for their acoustics and talent, many Budapesters prefer to hear mu-
