Where to Eat, Drink, and Party in Budapest - By A Local
Budapest is justifiably famous as a party destination, and we have an amazing array of quirky, eclectic bars and pubs, along with some of the most exciting clubs you'll find anywhere in Europe. There is also no shortage of refined cocktail bars and other upscale spots to grab a quieter, more dignified drink, so it's really just a question of what you're after.
But if you're planning a visit here you likely already know about the ruin pubs and clubs, so I'm not going to dwell on that (you'll see my recommended bars and clubs at the bottom of this article).
More surprising to most visitors is that Budapest also has an excellent dining scene with a broad array of options, both in terms of prices and cuisines. Here, you'll find a mix of high-class restaurants offering a gourmet, immersive experience, as well as many inexpensive and unpretentious establishments where regular locals are more likely to go.
And while you'd think that Hungarian food would be everywhere in Budapest, that’s not really the case. There are of course plenty of restaurants that specialize in traditional Hungarian fare, but there is a definite favoritism throughout the city for international cuisines.
The city center especially has restaurants of all kinds cooking up dishes from around the world, and there are dozens of Italian restaurants, hipster burger joints, Mexican spots, sushi places, and more Chinese restaurants than you could possibly count. Budapest also has its fair share of Georgian, Lebanese, and Greek restaurants, as well as a smattering of other cuisines hailing from across the globe.
Prices tend to be spread across the board, but are generally quite inexpensive by Western standards, even for high-end restaurants. Keep in mind though that prices have definitely gone up in recent years, especially due to inflation and skyrocketing energy prices, so locals are eating out less and less.
Below are some of my favorite restaurants, cafes, bars, and clubs throughout the city. And while this list barely even begins to scratch the surface of what Budapest offers, I think it offers up a pretty good selection, especially considering you're probably only going to be here for a couple of days.
My favorite restaurants in Budapest
As I mentioned above, we tend to sort of look down on our own cuisine, meaning that for anyone who wants to eat Hungarian food, you’ll either have to go somewhere that caters primarily to tourists, or head outside of the city center to truly local spots. The authentic local establishments serving traditional food will not cater to tourists and they will certainly not be favorites of the Instagram crowd, but they will be cheap, heart, and serve good honest Hungarian food.
An interesting development in recent years is the fusion of Hungarian food with another cuisine, like French or Austrian. In higher-end fine dining restaurants, you'll now often find Hungarian classics with a modern and international twist. For the most part though, high-end restaurants in Budapest traditionally serve French cuisine.
Budapest also has a sizable Jewish community, so Hungarian-Jewish food is another mainstay. There are many Kosher restaurants as well as others that are not strictly Kosher but still offer Eastern European Jewish food.
In general, Hungarian food tends to be meat-heavy, so it’s not ideal if you are a vegetarian or a vegan. Many dishes that have no meat listed in the description will still be cooked in lard, so be prepared for that.
Like I said at the start of this article, Budapest has a huge selection of restaurants and you can find basically any cuisine from all over the world here, so you’ll never be short on options. But since you’re visiting Hungary, and I assume are interested in trying the local cuisine, I’ve mostly restricted the options on this list to places that serve traditional Hungarian food. If you find yourself hankering for Chinese, Italian, Indian, or something else, just pull out Google Maps and take a look.
Here are my recommended restaurants:
Fine dining
Most of the city's fine dining establishments are clustered around the I and V Districts, or just outside these areas. Some will serve excellent traditional Hungarian cuisine, but most will focus on French cooking or international fusion with hints of Hungarian.
21-Magyar Vendéglő on Castle Hill is one of our favorite places for a luxurious meal out.
Könyvbar & Restaurant: somewhat between mid-range and upscale, Könyvbar & Restaurant serves up traditional Hungarian fare as well as international dishes. They have a very small menu which is updated regularly and seasonally.
St. Andrea: very centrally located, just a few blocks behind the Parliament building, St. Andrea has a great selection of excellent Hungarian specialties. They offer an evening tasting menu as well as 3-course set menu during lunch.
Laurel: definitely more expensive than the other options on this list, Laurel is worth the splurge if you have the budget for it. The menu is a fusion of Japanese and Hungarian cuisine, and the food is excellent.
Mid-range establishments
Ghetto Gulyás is an excellent mid-range option for authentic Hungarian food.
Béla on Bartók Béla Boulevard is a hip bar/restaurant that has a great atmosphere and very cool interior. The food is nothing special, but it’s a very fun place to eat or have a drink.
Rosenstein Restaurant: this is really somewhere between mid-range and fine dining, but doesn’t fit neatly into either category. Regardless, the restaurant serves excellent Hungarian and Hungarian-Jewish food and is definitely worth visiting. It’s popular with both locals and tourists, so you’ll find a mixed clientele.
Kispiac Bisztro: located in a commercial area, Kispiac is an intimate little restaurant with only a few tables and a heavily meat-focused menu. The quality is excellent and they have a wide variety of dips, sauces, and pickled vegetables to accompany your main dishes.
Café Kör: a bit more upscale than some of the other mid-range options on this list, Café Kör is a cosy restaurant where you can eat classic Hungarian dishes cooked in the original style. They always have a wide selection of daily specials and their desserts are particularly good.
Budget-friendly restaurants
For quick and budget-friendly options, there are lots of street food vendors. Many serve gyros, kebabs, and the other typical global dishes that you’ve doubtless seen countless times in cities around the world, but some also have Hungarian food and other interesting options.
Karavan is a great food court with lots of vendors and it’s just down the road from the famous ruin bar Szimpla Kert.
Bors Bisztró and GasztroBár are two other excellent options.
Frici Papa on Király utca is another great choice for inexpensive Hungarian food.
The food courts at any of the city’s large market halls are filled with vendors serving up cheap eats. The Central Market Hall is the most famous of these, but prices here will be higher than in more residential markets. It will still be reasonably inexpensive though.
Hús-hentesáru is a great long-standing butcher shop that also serves lunch. You order at the counter, grab your food, and eat at the stand-up counters and tables. The food is reliably good and eating here is a fun experience. Very meat-heavy.
Coffee houses
Of course, Budapest is also famous for its historic coffee houses and decadent confectioneries.
Gerbeaud Coffee House on Vörösmarty tér is the most famous cafe in the city.
Auguszt, Central, and Művész are three other famous (and good) confectionaries.
The New York Cafe is said to be the world's most beautiful cafe, but it's quite pricey and the quality here is not particularly extraordinary. At the end of the day, you come here for the ambience, not the food, so as long as you have the right expectations, a visit here is genuinely lovely.
My Little Melbourne and Espresso Embassy are two of the city’s most famous “third-wave” coffee shops.
Get away from the crowds and spend a morning or afternoon exploring some of Budapest's alternative neighborhoods with our favorite local guide, Attila!
Bars and clubs
A classic Budapest-style ruin bar
Budapest is famous for its nightlife, much of which is clustered around the VII District. In the early 2000’s this district transformed into a party area when "ruin bars"– informal bars set up in ruined buildings or empty lots left behind by torn-down structures – began popping up all over the neighborhood.
These bars became wildly popular almost overnight, and many of them have since been demolished, changed beyond recognition, or become absolute tourist traps. The only one that seems to carry the original spirit is Budapest's first ruin bar, Szimpla Kert. The others are, in our opinion, not worth visiting.
However, there are also exciting places to party if you move beyond the city center. In the VIII District there are alternative cultural spaces that double up as bars and clubs in the evenings. Far out in the city’s suburbs, there are also excellent techno parties that take place in once-abandoned factories.
For an easy starting point, you can still have a very nice time bar hopping in the VII District, but we just recommend choosing your establishments carefully to make sure you don’t end up at a tourist trap.
Here are some of our favorite bars and clubs to add to your Budapest itinerary:
Szimpla Kert: This is the original ruin bar and it occupies a vast and surreal complex in a former factory in the heart of the Jewish Quarter. Come here for the eclectic décor, which blends graffiti with quirky, upcycled furniture and art, but stay for the great vibes.
Fogas Ház & Instant: These were Budapest's two largest ruin bars, but they’ve now joined forces to become a super-club. Come here for wild parties on multiple floors and see why their host district (VII) gets the "Party District" name.
Doboz: This bar has a similar setup to the ruin bars, and resides in an old downtown apartment complex, centered around a courtyard. The bar is filled with quirky art and several drinking and dancing areas which cater to different tastes in music.
Ötkert: If you're looking for a more polished, central clubbing experience, head over to Ötkert, which occupies a restored 19th-century building. They play a range of music, from pop to R&B and hip hop across the two main rooms and large terrace.
Élesztő: Craft beer lovers should head out to this bar complex which is housed in a former glass-making factory. They serve a wide selection of Hungarian craft beers from local breweries and microbreweries. The crowd is a pleasant mix of locals and tourists.
A38: This is the most unusual concert venue in the city, as it is a former stone-carrying ship from Soviet-era Ukraine. There is a terrace and bar on the main part of the ship, while the concert hall is in the hull.
Dürer Kert: Once an iconic ruin bar next to City Park, thanks to gentrification, Dürer Kert has been moved over to Buda. They brough their great roster of music events to their new venue though, so the location is the only thing that’s changed. You'll find a concert hall here that hosts shows from local and international acts, and a lovely sprawling beer garden that stretches down to the Danube River in the summer.
Alterego: This is Budapest's largest gay club, with four bars, two dance floors, and a drag show that kicks off the night if you arrive before midnight. They are usually only open Friday and Saturday nights.
Learn about some of the city's best street art as you walk between some of Budapest's best ruin pubs on this hybrid pub/art crawl, led by lifelong Budapest resident and local guide - Attila!
Plan with Local Expert Attila!