First Class Fish Soup

Bajai Halászcsárda
XII Budapest
Hollós u. 2
Tel: 275 5245

www.bajaihalaszcsarda.com

For those who don't know, the "halászcsárda" is a traditional type of Hungarian inn which specializes in "halászlé" - Magyarorszag's acclaimed fish soup.

The Bajai Halászcsárda was a restaurant I'd been thinking about going to for the last 16 years. I'd gazed fondly at it from Budapest's #21 bus on my way to the Normafa nature preserve. "Some day," I'd thought repeatedly.

It was time.

The Bajai Halászcsárda looks great from the outside, with its lovely garden terrace in front of a rustic, old school Buda-style villa. And it's also welcoming inside: red checkered tableclothes, antique hanging lamps and fishing tackle hanging from the ceiling (tastefully). A keyboardist and violinist provide the soundtrack, playing mainly Hungarian standards but also digging into some naff pop music; fortunately the volume level is unobtrusive.

Don't fool yourself by thinking about ordering anything other than the halászlé - it's what this pleasant-if-pricey (3,100 HUF/portion) restaurant does best. We foolishly ordered it as a starter, but it's a full-blown meal. Not only is the rich and flavorful paprika-laden broth delicious and filled with homemade noodles, but the waiter brought us a huge plate filled with tender pieces of 2 different kinds of freshwater fish, which was outstanding compared to the "bottom feeder" types of fish you see in a lot of halászlé.

All in all, the Bajai Halászcsárda is a great place that you might think of taking visitors to Hungary to give them a true taste of Hungary in a pleasant atmosphere.

Our bill for 4 totalled 16,240 HUF.