Budapest blog

Report from Budapesti Palinkafesztival 2013

A modified traditional Hungarian breakfast

Allee shopping center

Busulo Juhasz review

Asparagus cream soup recipe for dummies

Report from Budapesti Palinkafesztival 2013

Published on May 17, 2013 by Budablogger in Concerts and events

The Palinkafesztival (Palinka Festival) in Budapest opened yesterday (May 16th) and it will be open until Sunday evening (May 19th). The weather forecasts do not promise beautiful weather, but if you are in town, make sure to check out what’s going on. I was there yesterday at the Erzsebet square and I liked what I saw!

Often the biggest and most popular festivals in Budapest are arranged in the Castle area. However this time the Palinka festival is arranged in the middle of Budapest, at the Erzsebet square, in front of the five star hotels Le Meridien and Kempinski, and next to the popular club Akvarium. My first comment is that I really liked the venue and the fact that it is in central Budapest. At such a location it is hard to miss out on the festival, and it is really easy to get to and from the festival at any time. Much easier than when it is located in the Castle area.

Another bonus with the location is that the festival feels much more intimate and the visitors are gathered at the same place, without giving you the feeling that it is overcrowded. Of course the wine festival could never be arranged here, because the area is to small, but for a Palinka festival this square is ideal.

Pictures from the Palinka festival 2013

These pictures where made on the opening day of the festival in 2013, quite early, meaning that the festival area was quite empty without to many people, but the pictures will still give you a feeling what the festival area looks like.

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Some more thoughts on the Palinka festival 2013

Inside the area there are lots of stands where you can buy all sorts of Palinka, the Hungarian fruit spirit. If you are a big fan this is an ideal place to taste new brands and get new favorites, and if you have not clue what Palinka is about, then this is a great place to get some basic knowledge.

As you buy your entrance ticket you will get the chance to enter into the festival area. Inside the festival area all payments are made with this electronic card you buy. The price is 500 HUF for the card and then you need to fill this with money. Money is withdrawn from the card whenever you make a purchase, and whatever is left on the card will be returned to you as you give back your card and leave the festival area (you will also get the 500 HUF that you paid for the card itself back). This system is quite easy to use (they used it at the Beer festival in 2012 as well), it only gets complicated if it is crowded and hundreds of people want to fill up or return their cards at the same time. However there are 4 such stands in the area, so it shouldn’t really cause any problems, I think!

The price for the different Palinkas on the inside starts from about 300 HUF, but you will of course find much more expensive Palinkas as well. If you are not a big fan of Palinka you find a DiVino bar on the inside where you can taste and drink wine, you can buy soft drinks in the Moszkva ter stands and hot and cold food at other stands.

Every evening there will be concerts, and some of the artists performing are really great, so worth to take a look and listen when in the concert area. A great plus in the festival area is that they have lots of benches and chairs, making it very easy to sit down and enjoy good company, some food and of course, something to drink.

Conclusion: If you have the chance, visit the Erzsebet square in Budapest before Sunday evening and check out the Palinka festival… even if you don’t like Palinka!

Tags: Budapest Palinka Festival, Palinka

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A modified traditional Hungarian breakfast

Published on May 16, 2013 by Budablogger in Blog news

Hungary has lots of surprises waiting for you. Some of them you will discover within a few days, while others will take more time for you to discover. I remember one of those surprises some years back when I was served a traditional Hungarian breakfast.

Where I come from sausage/hot dog is something you eat for lunch, for dinner or between lunch and dinner. In Hungary the traditional hot dog tradition is very week, but they still eat a lot of virsli, form of sausage, and guess when they do so… for breakfast. This will normally look something like this:

A very traditional Hungarian breakfast – image from est.hu

The first time I was served sausage for breakfast I was in shock. How was it possible to start a day with that? After some years I have gotten used to the though, and I do enjoy it. However, from time to time I make some changes to the Hungarian breakfast, and then it looks like this… A good way to start the day, huh?

Not a traditional Hungarian breakfast, but I like it!

You will probably not my version of the Hungarian breakfast served in restaurants in Budapest serving breakfast, but if you want to try the Hungarian version with bread and mustard, read our article about breakfast in Budapest.

Tags: Breakfast, Hot Dog, Virsli

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Allee shopping center

Published on May 15, 2013 by Budablogger in Best shopping

There are few shopping centers in Budapest that has something special to offer making them stand in the crowd. Allee is not different, so you should probably not travel across the entire city to get to this one, because it is not worth it. But, if you combine it with a visit to the neighbor building, it could suddenly be worth the ride!

Allee shopping center has become a very popular mall since its opening in Budapest a few years ago. It is located by the last stop of tram number 4 and it has filled a shopping center void among citizens in this area on the Buda side. On busy days it can be hard to find free parking lots inside the mall, also influenced by the positive fact that the mall offer two hours of free parking to all their guest on weekdays and free parking during weekends.

What can be found inside Allee?

Allee is a quite large shopping center so to write down the names of all stores inside the center would take to much time. However you might be pleased to know that quite a lot of famous fashion brands can be found here, for example H&M, C&A, Zara, New Yorker, Stradivarius, Bershka, Marks&Spencer, Mayo Chix, Orsay and Van Graaf If you are of those who believe that you can never buy to many pair of shoes, you might want to visit Ecco, Humanic, Players Room, Salamander, Tamaris and/or Office Shoes. In Allee you can find quite a wide specter of fast food chains and restaurants, a pharmacy, a large grocery store (InterSpar) and a cinema (Cinema City) where you can watch the newest Hollywood films.

What I like about Allee!

I like Allee, but that probably has to deal with the fact that it is the easiest mall for me to reach from where I live. However, one thing that I do enjoy and like with Allee is the fact that they are good at arranging special events next to the mall. There is a very nice walking area next to the mall and several times a year they arrange all sorts of markets and festivals here, be it Christmas and Easter markets, wine and palinka festival and so on. During larger sports events they always create an outdoor area next to the mall where you can watch soccer matches and sports events live while enjoying the fellowship of others fans and some places where you can buy refreshments while watching!

I mentioned in the introduction that the center has a very interesting neighbor, a traditional Hungarian market hall (Fehervari market) where you can buy fresh vegetables, fruits, cheese, milk, meat and similar products directly from the producers. Especially on Saturdays (open from 6.30-14.00) you can buy sausage, salamis directly from the one producing them on the 2nd floor, so make sure to check it out if you are in the area. On the other days of the week the market is open from 6.30-18.00.

How to get to Allee shopping center?

The easiest way to get here is to jump on tram 4 and travel with it to the end station (name of the station is Ujbuda center).

This is what Allee may look like before Christmas on the inside

Allee shopping center information

Address: Oktober huszonharmadika utca 8-10, 1117 Budapest
Tlf: 0036 1 372 7208

Allee opening times:
10.00-21.00 (Monday – Saturday)
10.00-19.00 (Sunday)

Tags: Allee Shopping

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Busulo Juhasz review

Published on May 13, 2013 by Budablogger in Eating out reports

Busulo Juhasz claims to have one of the best views in Budapest and indeed it has. The problem is only that the view shows you buildings and areas with no beautiful buildings and not listed on the list of top attractions in Budapest. However, the most important when visiting a restaurant is the food, so keep on reading our Busulo Juhasz review and find out how Budablogger and his family liked it!

We visited the restaurant on a Friday evening and decided to sit inside, while most other guests sat outside. We were quite alone for a while, but after an hour some groups of German tourists started to drop by making some noise in the restaurant. We sat down, ordered some drinks and selected what to order from the menu.

We visited the restaurant with our boy who is two years old. Normally we always ask for normal tap water for him, because that is what he likes the most. In Busulo Juhasz the waiter said he was not allowed to serve tap water to anyone, so we had to order water to him.

The food in Busulo Juhasz

For starters we ordered traditional Hungarian goulash soup, a fish soup and asparagus cream soup. The soups were served quickly and we were completely satisfied with all three of them. The fresh bread served beside the soup was brilliant.

We ordered the following main courses:
- Gnocchi with Cheddar, chicken breast and tempura spring onion
- Crispy duck leg with oriental spice braised cabbage and crackling potato
- Deep fried pork shoulder with parsley spring potato and celery tomato salad

Busulo Goulash soup

My personal favorite after eating all three of them was the first, but it can be said that all three main courses had a good taste. Somehow none of them has burned its way into my memory, meaning that I will not remember any of them for a long time, nor long back to the restaurant to eat them again, but for a fine dining experience all three main courses were quite nice.

I did not really find any dessert on the menu that sounded tempting to me, but since I knew that I was going to write a Busulo Juhasz review sometime I decided to order a dessert anyway, just to taste one and to give it a chance. I ordered the „Chocolate cake with avocado and mashed mango.” You can see a picture of the cake if you take a look at the pictures beneath this review. The chocolate cake in itself was extremely chocolate, almost too much, and the bottom of the cake, made up of avocado and mashed mango, turned out to be to much. So I did not really enjoy neither the top nor the bottom of the cake, much less the combination of the two of them. However, I guess the problem is with my tongue and not with the cake…

Busulo Juhasz review wrap-up

We ordered a total of 4 soups, 4 main courses and one dessert. In addition we had some bottles of water and Coke. The final price of this dinner was around 21,000 Hungarian Forint. The price in itself is not terrifying, considering the fact that most main courses cost between 2700 and 5000 Forint, which is quite normal in Budapest in nicer restaurants.

As we left the restaurant we were all full and we had enjoyed our meal, but none of us left with the feeling that we long back to this place. I am not sure why, but I would much rather discover a new place than to return back to Busulo Juhasz.

If you are a tourist in town looking for a nice place to eat, then you should consider Busulo Juhasz. They have interesting meals on the menu, all with a little spice added to them, making this restaurant different from the very traditional Hungarian restaurants with the traditional courses you can find in all other places.

Busulo Juhasz pictures

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Busulo Juhasz information

Address: 1118 Budapest, Kelenhegyi ut 58
Tlf: +36 1 209 1649

Tags: Busulo Juhasz, Gellért Hill

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Asparagus cream soup recipe for dummies

Published on May 10, 2013 by Budablogger in Recipes

Aspargues cream soup recipe Some days ago I wrote that it is asparagus season in Budapest at the moment. It truly is, and probably the most popular asparagus meal in Budapest during such seasons is the Asparagus cream soup.

Celebrating the asparagus season I have recently made the cream soup of asparagus several times and here you can find the recipe. It is worth knowing that when I work in the kitchen and whatever I cook is cooked in a „for dummies” way. That means I do everything as easy possible, without loosing to much of quality and taste hopefully. That is why I dare to say that this recipe is so easy that anyone can make an asparagus cream soup following this recipe. If you like the end result or not, that is up to you.

Asparagus cream soup for dummies

Ingredients:

½ kg asparagus (green or white)
1 onion
oil/butter
salt
pepper
1 dl cooking cream (főzőtejszinhab)
1 spoon flour

Making the asparagus cream soup

Asparagus soup recipe Start with placing some oil and butter in the pot. Add the onion which should be cut to small pieces. Keep stirring to make sure that the onion does not get burned. After a while add the asparagus which has been cut into small pieces and let them stir together for 1-2 minutes. If there are parts of the asparagus that are very hard, almost like cutting tree, leave them and throw them in the garbage instead.

After this add enough water so that all the ingredients are covered and let them boil for 20 minutes until they are really soft. When you have reached this point you need to find your blender (turmixgep) and pour everything into it. Let the blender work everything for a minute and afterwards it actually starts looking like a soup!

At this point there is something very important that needs to be done. Find a sifter (szürő) and before pouring the soup from the blender back into the clean pot pour it into the sifter. Use a wooden spoon to push the soup through the sifter. In the end you will have a small portion left in the sifter which you can throw away and not use. It feels tragic to throw it, but the reason why you need to do this is the fact that it contain parts almost like fish-bones which can be really annoying if they end up in your soup, and they are capable of destroying the joy of soup eating (been there, done that).

Once the soup is back in the pot you can add the remaining water (if there is anything left). Take the cream and pour it into an empty bowl. Add 1 spoon of flour and mix them together and then pour it slowly into the soup. The cream gives the cream soup a much more creamy feeling, but if you are on a diet and want to skip extra calories, you can skip the cream.

If you have white pepper use that, but if not black pepper can also be used. I would add ½ teaspoon of pepper and probably around 3 teaspoons of salt, but since this is very different from person to person and amount of salt also depends on the quality of salt, you should taste yourself to give the soup a taste the way you like it!

In the end let the soup boil for 3-4 minutes and your asparagus cream soup masterpiece has now been finished.

Enjoy your meal and please write a comment and write whether you liked the end result or not. If you have further advices or any modifications you would like to add to the recipe, write a comment as well!

Tags: Asparagus, Asparagus Cream Soup

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Asparagus season in Hungary

Published on May 8, 2013 by Budablogger in News

Spring is definitely here, and one of the signs that spring has arrived is an invasion of asparagus in markets and on the daily menus in different restaurants.

You can find both green and white asparagus in Budapest

Not long ago I received a newsletter from Trofea Grill telling me that they have aspargus days in their restaurant(s). This means that they have 3-4-5 extra courses available where visitors can eat and digest this spring vegetable rich in Vitamin B6, calcium, magnesium, zinc and lots of other stuff (vitamin A, C, E, K, thiamin, riboflavin, rutin, niacin, iron, phosphorus, potassium, copper, manganese and selenium.)

On Twitter I noticed a restaurant having a main course on their daily menu named: “Grilled smoked cheese with asparagus and salad.” The most traditional asparagus meal in Budapest restaurants is probably the asparagus cream soup, which several restaurants serve throughout the entire year, but now is the high season for this, so make sure to taste it while in town.

Buying asparagus in Budapest

If you want to cook for yourself, all you need to do is to visit one of many markets in Budapest and buy some asparagus. One kilo of Hungarian asparagus normally cost between 1000-2000 HUF (depending on quality – osztaly 1/class 1 is the best). Many places sell asparagus throughout the entire year, but if you want to eat Hungarian aspargus, this is the time of the year to buy eat.

Head out and buy some asparagus, and why not prepare an asparagus cream soup yourself? I recently did, and if you want the recipe I used, you can find it here.

Asparagus Hungary

Tags: Asparagus

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Corvin Shopping Center

Published on May 7, 2013 by Budablogger in Best shopping

If you are among those who get tired thinking of enormous shopping malls such as Westend Citycenter and Arena Plaza, you could consider visiting Corvin shopping center instead. This quite new center has an enjoyable size and nice location by the Corvin negyed (name of metro stop/tram stop).

The Corvin center opened a few years ago and was a part of the Corvin project, renewing large parts of a certain area in the eight district of Budapest. The project has been a success, and today this is a very nice area of the city with lots of new flats, some restaurants and of course, the shopping center.

Shops in Corvin Shopping center

What shops do you find in Corvin?

In Corvin shopping center you can find quite a lot of fashion stores such as New Yorker, H&M, C&A, Mango and lots of others. You can also buy coffee and cakes as you visit Costa Coffee, buy groceries in the very nice CBA Prime, get new training equipment in Hervis, buy books and wine in Alexandra, find second hand clothes in Hada, buy perfume and sweets in Muller and electronic stuff in Euronics. If you did not find enough sweets in Muller you could visit the so-called chocolate museum on the ground floor. On the top floor you can find a restaurant corner where you can eat chicken by KFC, eat traditional Hungarian cuisine in other restaurants, visit an Italian restaurant and eat sandwiches in Subway.

Corvin – very children friendly

If someone would ask me which shopping center in Budapest is the most children friendly I would say Corvin shopping center. On the frist floor they have a little area with toys were children can play together. On the top floor by the restaurants they have a nice outdoor playground where children can play. By the information in the basement you can borrow cool children cars which gives children the chance to enjoy shopping a bit more than they would without such an option. I have met fathers in Corvin who bring their children here on rainy days, because they say it is the best free place to bring children (1-3 years) who need to move their body a bit.

How to get to Corvin shopping center?

If you want to get to Corvin the easiest way is to take the blue metro to the Corvin negyed stop or to take tram 4 or 6 to the stop with the same name. The shopping center is hidden behind the Corvin cinema, so just walk next to the cinema and you will arrive by the main entrance of the center.

Corvin shopping center information

Opening times: 10.00-21.00 (10.00-19.00 on Sundays)
Address: 1083 Budapest, Futó utca 37-45

Tags: Corvin Cinema, Corvin Shopping

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Jerney Bistro

Published on May 6, 2013 by Budablogger in Eating out reports

A restaurant located alon the Danube on the Pest side with view towards the Castle and the Chain Bridge for sure enjoys a great view. But, a restaurant shouldn’t be known for its beautiful view alone, but also for its food. So, what’s up in Jerney Bistro?

Many people fear that restaurants at great locations means a tourist trap. Budapest is an example that this is not at all true, and that a great location often means splendid quality. One such example is Onyx which is located at the most touristic square in Budapest, the Vorosmarty square. Recently I visited Jerney Bistro together with family, and before arriving I did not have high expectations, because I expected this to be an average Italian restaurant with an excellent location in Budapest.

Jerney Bistro picture

Jerney Bistro review

Restaurants located at touristic spots are often known for bad service, and unfortunately restaurants in general in Eastern Europe are often known to provide bad service. There are of course lots of exceptions to this rule, and in fact I believe Budapest is often known to have restaurants with great service and helpful waiters, but still there are quite some places providing poor service with grumpy waiters. Luckily the waiters at Jerney Bistro served us with a smile and throughout our entire meal they were helpful, asking politely if we enjoyed our meal and so on.

We ordered a peasant plate, a goulash soup and a tuna fish bruschetta for starters, a pizza and a spaghetti carbonana as main courses and a snickers cake as a dessert. To drink we had a big bottle of mineral water and two bottles of coke. All in all the price was around 15,500 HUF (including the 12% service fee).

The starters were all okay, but nothing more. The peasant plate was expensive, at least compared to value on the plate. The goulash soup was okay (nothing more) and the tuna fish bruschetta okay (though my wife would rather eat those baguettes in super market with tuna fish on them as they taste better.) It is hard to make a pizza taste bad, but to make great pizza is hard as well. In Jerney Bistro was average, which is the way I would describe the Carbonara as well. The highlight of the meal for me was the Snickers cake which I truly enjoyed.

Jerney Bistro conclusion

If you want to eat Italian food and enjoy the beautiful Budapest panorama while eating, then Jerney Bistro might be an option. Service is good, but unfortunately the food is not at all as good as the service. If you just want a pizza and something to drink, feel free to take a seat, but if you want to eat in a restaurant that might give you a gastronomic memory to hold on to for a while, then keep on walking, and do not stop in Jerney Bistro.

Jerney Bistro information

Address: 1051 Budapest, Vigadó tér 3
Tlf: +36 1 266 2262
Opening times: 11:00 – 23:00

Jerney Bistro pictures

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If you have been to Jerney Bistro yourself, please share your thoughts and experience to let our visitors know how you liked the place. Maybe you share Budabloggers opinion, or maybe you feel completely different. Write a comment and share your thoughts today!

Tags: Italian restaurant, Jerney Bistro, Pizza

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Spinoza Café and Restaurant Budapest

Published on May 5, 2013 by Amanda Laat in News

I visited Spinoza Café and Restaurant 5 times and I am really positive about this restaurant, a Dutch touch in the heart of Budapest. The owner of the restaurant lived in the Netherlands for 20 years and that’s the reason why he has given the restaurant a Dutch name (Spinoza was an important Dutch philosopher) and has decorated the wall with classic Dutch paintings.

Spinoza location
You can find restaurant Spinoza in Dob Utca, close to Déak Ferenc Tér and the Synagogue. In this street are many other cafés and restaurants. But why should you definitely visit Spinoza? For the following reasons:

Menu
Low price menu and the food and wine are delicious. They have many Hungarian dishes on the menu, some Jewish dishes, chicken schnitzel, chicken breast, Norwegian salmon and goose and lamb dishes. I recommend the Hungarian styled beef medallions. You can have a special Hungarian 3-course menu for 15 euro.

Breakfast from 8.am. They have croissants, pancakes, baguettes, bagels, eggs, muesli, yoghurt, fresh fruits, fresh juice and the best cappuccino in town. Their special breakfast menu is 5 euros.

Klezmer Concert
Every Friday between 7-8 p.m. there is an East-European Ashkenazic traditional musical folklore show performed in the intimate, cozy theatre of Spinoza. The show lasts 1 hour and after that you will get a 3-course meal with champagne while listening to live piano music. The price is 20 Euros. You have to make a reservation by phone or email.

Piano music
Every day from 7 p.m. till 10 p.m. you can enjoy your dinner with Hungarian wines and listen to live piano music from Batos Gyula or Soós Tibor. Both are really good and the live piano music provides a cozy, friendly atmosphere.

Personnel
The personnel is very friendly and they do their uttermost to make all guests feel at home entering the restaurant.

I also recommended this restaurant to friends that came to Budapest and to friends of a friend of mine. They all liked it very much. Therefore, I also wanted to share it with you. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do and as much as my friends and the friends of mine friend did.

Spinoza Budapest Information

Address: Bp., VII. Dob utca 15.
Opening times: every day 8 a.m. – 12.00 p.m.
Tel: + 36/1 413-7488
spionzacafe@spinozacafe.hu

Spinoza Budapest Pictures

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Hard Rock Cafe

Published on May 3, 2013 by Budablogger in International restaurants

I just visited Hard Rock Cafe in Budapest. It wasn’t the first time I visited the place, but since I hadn’t been there in more than a year I thought it was about time to return to heaven for people who like to listen to loud music while eating.

Hard Rock Cafe arrived in Budapest just before Christmas in 2011 and my impression is that it has turned into a big success. It seems to be large crowds of people there throughout the entire day and lots of tourists I speak to visit the place, not only because it is cool, but because they love the food.

Hard Rock Cafe location

It must be said that Hard Rock Cafe in Budapest has the most brilliant location of all restaurants in the Hungarian capital. At the location with most tourists in all of Budapest it is located just at the corner where the shopping street Vaci Utca meets Vorosmarty square, so couldn’t be better. As the sun starts shining and the thermometer shows more than 10-15 Celsius they add an outer terrace making it possible to eat in open air.

Hard Rock Cafe with great location in Budapest

In the very center of Budapest at the Vorosmarty square

Hard Rock Cafe review

From the first second you enter Hard Rock Cafe you get a feeling that this is American. The service and the way they treat their guests is somehow not typical for Eastern Europe. The waiters are really polite and “cool” at the same time and they do their uttermost to make all guests feel at home entering the restaurant.

If you have a favorite course in Hard Rock cafe you will probably find it in BUdapest as well, because the menu is a traditional Hard Rock Cafe menu with the legendary burgers, sandwiches and other courses waiting for you. After visiting the Hard Rock Cafe in Budapest 4 times I have still yet to become disappointed with the quality, but the only “problem” is that it feels a little pricy. It isn’t expensive compared to other Hard Rock Cafe restaurants around the world, but compared with other restaurants with similar profile in the capital.

This means that if I want to eat an excellent steak I’d rather eat a bigger and better one in Pampas Steakhouse or Prime Steakhouse, than in Hard Rock Cafe. The hamburgers aren’t that expensive, so if you want a great, big and juicy burger, the Hard Rock burgers should be considered. The most expensive burger costs around 4000 HUF which is quite similar to the hamburger prices in for example TGI Fridays.

Hamburger in Hard Rock

Hard Rock Cafe is family friendly

A very positive thing about Hard Rock Cafe in Budapest is that it is family friendly. They have high quality chairs waiting for families coming with small children, they have facilities where mothers can change diapers on the smallest ones and they have big children menus where you find special offers for children, in addition to the fact that it is possible inside the menu to color guitars and draw other pieces of art.

The ketchup problem

This isn’t really a problem, but still it gave us a good laugh during our last visit. Most ketchup lovers agree on the fact that Heinz ketchup is among the best available in the world. So, next to my fries which was served together with the hamburger I thought I wanted to use some ketchup. The problem was just that it was impossible to get the ketchup out of the bottle it was in. We got a few drops on our plate, but after fighting the bottle for a minute we gave up, only to see that the people on our neighbor table fought exactly the same fight. The father wanted to give some ketchup to his son, but it simply did not leave the bottle… huhu! Guess we were all to lazy to ask the waiter for help.

Hard Rock Budapest wrap-up

If you want a Hard Rock experience while in Budapest, do not miss out on this one. They give you an authentic Hard Rock meals with guitars on the walls, music videos on big screens and quite loud music on the loudspeakers. I guess I am conservative, so I would enjoy my meal even more if the volume was turned down a bit, but I guess that is just me. The price level is higher than in most other Budapest restaurants, but it seems as if people and tourists in general gladly pay what Hard Rock Cafe asks for, so why lower the prices then?