Like a Virgin

Csarnok
Hold utca 11 at the corner of Nagysándor József utca

Whether you've just arrived as a tourist or are living here in Budapest as a newcomer like myself, you may be wondering where to find some traditional, heavy Hungarian style food for your taste buds.

If you're sticking to the usual tourist traps on the main roads like Andrássy út., I would think you might miss some of the best, hole in the wall, out of the way eateries this city has to offer. Like Csarnok Étterem behind the U.S Embassy on Hold utca in the 5th District. This has become one of my favorite places, as well as for my Hungarian girlfriend, Kristina, who has rediscovered it since she was here last as a little girl.

Since then it has since become our favorite traditional place to eat together. The feel of the restaurant is warm and gives you that home feeling.

As a newcomer to this new city, one of the things I love about living in Budapest is, of course, the culture and the traditional food all around me. I immediately took comfort in the heavy but beautiful filling foods at this restaurant almost twice or even three times a week.

Owned and operated since 1981-82 by Szűcs Barnabás offering the same menu year after year with some slight changes, the actual restaurant was established approximately 60 years ago. It came to my attention while one night dining there that some of the servers have even worked there for 15 years or so. This was when Kristina asked about the pancake dessert that she remembered having when she was a little girl, as she says just like the way her grandmother made it, and which the kind server replied in Hungarian, "We stopped serving that 10 years ago since the pancake machine broke down. But I do remember that..."

Puzzled to say the least, but I suppose life goes on the same way when you can offer some of the best heavy traditional Hungarian dishes around. The starter menu offers a ravioli style pancake filled with meat and topped with paprika sauce and sour cream known as Hortobágyi palacsinta, which is my favorite. The fried pork dishes with rice or potatoes are fantastic as well as one of my favorites, beef steak with Roquefort. But like any foreigner who knows babgulyás, the meaty bean leves for around 650 ft is my all time favorite with bread and topped with sour cream. Add some of the hot pepper and forget about it. The best I ever had (other than Kristina's home made version).

Csarnok Étterem means "Market Restaurant", because it is next an old food market. The service is exceptional, fast, the place is cheap and they even offer an English menu. Best of all, for those like myself and Kristina, there's still a smoking section to go with that cheap, huge pint of Lowenbrau.

The average cost for two is between 4000 to 5000 Ft, including a starter, drinks, and dessert. In this range you can have two starters like the babgulyás or the hortobágyi palacsinta, or fried camembert with cranberry sauce. Have any of their fried pork with rice or beef dishes for under 1500 Ft , and end it with dessert like their pancake stuffed with cottage cheese and topped with sour cream and sugar.

If you can stomach the radio station playing some "best of the 80's pop rock" almost all the time, the food will satisfy you enough to make you enjoy it for a good laugh.

Review by Eric de Bosque