All stories about "Budapest"

Having survived the twin terrors of twentieth-century Budapest, the Nazi occupation and then forty years of communism, the antique buildings and narrow streets of District VII's historic Jewish Quarter are now facing a more modern, but no less destructive, force -- real estate development. Built up in the 19th and 20th centuries as Budapest's Jewish community shared in the economic expansion of the Austro-Hungarian empire, the area contains dozens of beautiful art nouveau structures, many still impressive despite often crumbling facades.

Over at the New York Post blog, old travel hand Alexander Basek asks "Why can't Budapest cook?" Sure, Café Kör is "decent, but it's long in the tooth," and many of the fusiony places in town are just bad. There is one standout, though: "Klassz, hidden in plain sight on Andrássy út near the Oktagon." Its "reconstructed Mitteleuropa-style grub" (liver dumpling soup and duck confit, for instance) is hearty and good, and at around $25 a head including wine, not super-expensive.

Glittering jewel of the Danube! Gateway to the East! Great place to get plastered! Founded by the Romans almost 2000 years ago, Budapest's location at the edge of Central Europe has made the capital of Hungary a favored destination for travelers looking to experience traces of the Orient while enjoying Old World comforts as well as all the excitements of a modern urban lifestyle (i.e. shopping, eating, and drinking to excess). Once trapped in the gelatinous gray gloom of Soviet domination, the past two decades have seen Budapest transformed into a paprika-flavored playground for artists, musicians and media types of all stripes, with students and expats flooding into the city after the 1989 revolution.

Yesterday, the Budapest Zoo allowed the public its first live glimpse of the Persian leopard triplets born there in June. They do look super-cute in this photo, but bear in mind this was the only pic I could find where they didn't look extremely pissed off. (For instance.) Even with Berlin's polar bear Knut aging out of cubhood into a remorseless eating machine, it seems Bella, Bara, and Behar will need to sweeten up a bit to capture the international baby animal crown of preciousness.

Zoo shows Rare Persian leopard triplets [AP]

[Photo: Getty]

Our pals at Pestiside have a characteristically excellent and comprehensive guide to avoiding the agents of kontroll -- the scruffy undercover fare enforcers of Budapest's subway system. Therein you'll discover everything you ever needed to know about riding the 'Pest subway for free, albeit quite illegally, plus tips on what to do if caught (including the popular bribery option). As a special and completely unrelated bonus, enjoy Pestiside overseer (and old-school Gridskipper contributor) Erik D'Amato's tale of eating his way through the Italian countryside.

The Pestiside Guide to Staying Out of Kontroll [Pestiside]

The Pestiside empire should always be your go-to resource for Budapestian shenanigans. And yet, locked in the otherwise welcome throes of expansion -- Caboodle, Chew, and soon, Sexiside -- there doesn't seem to be a traditional summertime update to their coverage of Budapest's semi-legit outdoor bars. In the meantime, the Los Angeles Times steps into the breach, giving us considerable verbiage about the city's kerts (courtyards). They do mention Szimpla Kert, which is pretty much a given for such a roundup. They also mention a kert called West-Balkan (presumably "big" West-Balkan, which outlasted "small" West-Balkan). Barring a correction from the better-informed Pestisiders, it sounds like the cooler kerts have either dried up or gone underground. Or just escaped the perceivable reach of the LAT.

Budapest's cool kerts [LAT]

-- Chris Mohney

Good God, but that's a huge weinerschnitzel. Technically it's a bécsiszelet, as this is Budapest's Café Kör, legendary as a local institution of Hungarian cuisine. The place doesn't go for culinary fireworks, but they're known for simple, direct, and very very large meals of good local favorites (such as goose liver for all and sundry). Check out the alluring photos on Chew.hu, the new Budapest foodsite from the kids at Pestiside.

Café Kör [via Chew.hu]

-- Chris Mohney

Today, Budapest got its very own Escada store at Dorottya ul. 3. According to Eurocheapo, tonight's opening ceremonies include cocktails and a fashion show, plus gift bags. But let's be honest, you're not about to take a break from the newly opened Allstar Club, praised in Pestiside for the venue's attempt to re-create an "American-style" strip club. You supposedly can't just waltz into the Allstar with a few bills and low self-esteem; you need to either be "invited" or sign up through some kind of Hungarian social networking site. Something tells me those "invitations" are going to turn up in the hands of a lot of friendly cab drivers.

Budapest: Two Routes to Free Booze [Eurocheapo]
American Strip Club Opens in Budapest, Minus the Americans [Pestiside]
Allstar Club [Official site]

-- Chris Mohney

With their love of movie theaters, bowling alleys, and heavy fried food, the people of Budapest seem an awfully lot like Americans. However, they think, act, and smell very differently. Budapest is one of the great Eastern European capitals full of impressive architecture, giant statues, and political bitterness. The city is divided into Buda on one side of the Danube and Pest on the other.

Rudas Health Spa: Budapest is known for its abundance of thermal baths. The drawback of the baths is they are mainly frequented by the elderly. Instead of enjoying a hot soak, you feel like you are in a pot in wrinkled soup with grandpas who are just waiting to die. That said, the baths are still therapeutic and a bit of a must see in Budapest. Our pick is Rudas Health Spa, the recently renovated facility with a gorgeous stained glass dome over the inside pools.

Statue Park: Statue Park is the resting place for the statues of fallen Communist leaders. It's a pretty eerie sight to see statues of Lenin, Stalin, and Soviet generals all lined up in a spacious outdoor park, but it's also pretty damn cool. You need to take a short bus ride to get here, but they leave from the city all day long.

Not that Budapest isn't rife with English-speakers but we thought we might direct your attention to the Bard Room, an English-language reading, singing, poetry night. Right, we know things that combine poetry and singing are generally Dionysian shit shows but this one looks pretty good. In fact, before he died (obvi) they hosted a reading by in-house favorite Reobert Creeley. The latest iteration finds ex-pat authors like Bob Dent and Paul Olchváry reading at the Nyitott Muhely. Check their website for the always stellar Anglophone...shudder...happenings...shudder.

Budapest Bardroom

[Photo: Bardroom]

Previously: Budapest's Labyrinth of Love, Miss Afro-Hungry: There's More Than One?, New York's Palace Budapest, Chew on This: Budapest's Gastroporn

Underneath the Buda castle 1,200 meters of interconnected tunnels wind their way through Budapest's subterra. Though dating from prehistory--the caveman of Buda used to roam this here tunnels--the complex was shored up and served as a secret military installation during the Cold War. Currently, the sprawling tunnels can be toured through a variety of hilariously overly hyperbolic programs. Try the Labyrinth of Love in which, " was originally developed for engaged couples...The Labyrinth of Love is not allowed to visit in the daytime.," the Labyrinth of Courage, the Labyrinth of the Magic Deer and the Labyrinth of Another World. Many of the rooms have "historical" exhibits like the "Axis of the World" and the "Crowned Head," a large fragment of king's head meant to symbolize Hungary's freedom. All we're waiting for now is the Labyrinth of David Bowie complete with a pubescent Jennifer Connelly. Entrance is around US$7.40.

Buda Castle Labyrinth

Previously: Miss Afro-Hungary. There's More Than One?, New York Palace in Budapest, Pic of the Day: Budapest, Chew on This: Budapest's Gastroporn

Budapest is largely a sea of white faces. The fourteen contestants in Budapest's Miss Afro Hungary contest might be the fourteen Afro Hungarian misses in Budapest. Small pool of hopefuls though there may be, Hungary is hosting its 3rd annual Miss Afro Hungary contest this weekend, reports Pestiside. The event will feature a Nigerian band and a judgment "not only the beauty of the physique, but of the mind as well." The 14 ladies will be judged by a panel of 13 judges and we'd be betting for Zsófia Elsheikh if we weren't so adamantly opposed to treating women like chattel.

Miss Afro Hungary [via Pestiside]

Previously: New York Palace Budapest, Pic of the Day: Bridge, Chew on This: Budapest's Gastroporn, Stayin' Coup in Budapest, Chuck Norris: Bridge Between Cultures, Budapest's Szimpla Kert

Budapest's brand new New York Palace is, thankfully, no homage to Gotham city. The name, however, derived from the New York Insurance Company who commissioned the building in 1894, is correctly descriptive in its latter half. The 108 room hotel looks like a palace. Marble, gilt and velvet used with abandon. The restored interior and the rooms themselves are the work of Italian architect and designer Maurizio Papiri, the man responsible for Boscolo's other 5-star hotels. The rooms are classically eclectic with big bright chandeliers but the main draw, at least for those who perhaps don't have the budget nor the desire to treat themselves as royalty, is the cafe. With a frescoed ceiling and plenty of ornate alabaster arabesques, the room reminds one of early 20th century Budapest, a vibrant artistically vital city. Which is as it should be since the New York Cafe was the center of it. Before WWI, this is where Budapest's literati would dine, where Michael Curtiz, director of Casablanca and born Manó Kertész Kaminer, would dine with Sir Alexander Korda, director of the Thief of Baghdad and born Sándor László Kellner. Now you too can enjoy the splendor, if not the intellectual milieu, of the restaurant and even experience "the sensuality of Bohemian flavors and unexpected juxtapositions" which we hope translates into good food. Rooms from US$250.

New York Palace [Official site] [via Tablet Hotels]

Previously: Pic of the Day: Bridge, Chew on This: Budapest's Gastroporn, Stayin' Coup in Budapest, Chuck Norris: Bridge Between Cultures, Budapest's Szimpla Kert

From Hungarian photoblog Edina Lorincz.

Do you want to be a photographer of the day? Email us your best shot at tips@gridskipper.com.

Previous Pics of the Day: Midtown Has Never Looked So Good, Special Video Edition: Rap Cat, Saddest Amusement Park Ever, Sexy New Yorker, Chalk Hero

Many a Budapestian hotel room has served as the set for some low budget skin flick. But, Budapest also has a lively gastroporn scene. Glistening shots of lobster bisque, simmering pics of young korean cuisine, the newly launched (as in today) website Chew serves not only as a salacious guide to eats in Hungary but a clearinghouse for foodie news. The man behind this venture? None other than occassional Gridskipper contrib Pestiside.hu, another Gridskipper favorite. So while I"m not going to make the "if your hungry in Hungary" joke, I will say, if you are in Budapest and feeling famished, make sure to consult Chew.

Chew

Previously: Staing Cool in Budapest, Chuck Norris: Bridge Between Cultures, Budapest's Szimpla Kert, Best Feet in Budapest, Budapest Summer Bar Guide, Casinos of Budapest, Budapest Bath Parties, Pestiside and Half-Naked Girls

If you read the New York Times or any of the other tool of mass communication, you might be picturing Budapest in the clutches of violent upheaval. In fact, you couldn't be blamed for, upon closing your eyes and thinking of budapest, pictuing marauding hordes of youth, faces masked by hankerchiefs, eyes burning with patriotism, hands clutching molotov cocktails, flooding the city streets. But, you'd be wrong. Gridskipper recently chatted with Erik D'Amato of the supreme 'pestian site Pestiside , a man whose pinky contains more truthiness in it than the whole front section of the Times.
joshua stein: i'd be interested if the uber dramatic pics being beamed around the world reflect the facts on the ground.
erikdamato: No. It's no big deal. 5 cars burned compared to like 1,700 in one night in Paris. Even if you adjust for population, it's like 50 to 1. The headlines should read: COME SEE A REVOLUTION WITHOUT THE UNPLEASANT DEADLY SIDE-EFFECTS
joshua stein: unless your an unlucky automobile
erikdamato: well, again, the odds are worse for your car on the BQE. Basically, the disheartening truth is that nothing ever happens here that is truly dramatic. The one constant in Hungarian life is that, well, it's pretty constant. Mid-range scenario is our lodestar. And we hold to it with gusto
joshua stein: recipe for calm mediocrity
erikdamato: you didn't hear it here

Each week, we sieve the sands of the media for nuggets of urban gold in a feature we like to call "Roundup Roundup."

Berlin
The Best of Fall Art [Denver Post]

Boston
24 Hours in... [MSNBC]

Budapest
24 Hours in... [Independent]

Grand Rapids, Mich
36 Hours in... [NYT]

London
Best Luxe Cinemas [Times]

Milwaukee
48 Hours in... [NatGeo Traveler]

Panama City
Best Nightlife [Chicago Tribune]

Pancakes
Best Pancakes in the USA [Flyertalk]

Portland, ME
Best Restaurants [WaPo]

Prague
Best Restaurants [BTO via CNN]

Races
Bizarre Races of the World (As in derbies, not pygmies) [Guardian]

Toronto
"Favourite" Restaurants [Economist]

Previous Roundup Roundups: #35, #34, #33, #32, #31, #30,#29, #28

Chuck Norris hovers between estimation and scorn. Who can deny that the man can't act or that the Christian area of his website is creepy? But who can deny that he isn't a bad ass? Sidekicks inspired me to take up martial arts and start hanging out with bearded older men, just like a young Jonathan Brandis did. It seems that we aren't the only ones Chuck obsessed. Glomming onto the DIY name game, Budapest opened up the voting process to choose the name for a soon-to-be completed bridge over the Danube River. As of posting, Chuckie is in 4th place with 94,571 votes while noted Hungarian bad ass and former head of the Department of Road Engineering, Dr. Vasarhelyi Boldizsár is in first place with 148,308. You can cast your vote at the Ministry of Economy. Don't let a native Hungarian civil engineer beat an American hero, dammit. Cast your vote now!

Ministry of Economy [in Hungarian]
Chuck Norris [Official site]

Previously: Budapest's Szimpla Kert, Best Feet in Budapest, Budapest Summer Bar Guide, Budapest Bath Parties,

It's a bird. It's a plane. No, it's a fleeting deal. Fleeting or not, Gridskipper brings you these super deals culled from the cheapo-deal muck.

$499 - 4 Nights in Budapest (R/T Air included): This baby comes flying our way courtesy Gate 1 Travel. Fly on Tuesday and Fridays from November to March.

$737 - Australia from California (R/T) Good News: $737 to Sydney from LAX or SFO. Bad News: Sale Ends Tomorrow (Aug. 4th) Depart through September 15th.

$407 - JFK to Glasgow (R/T)-Iceland Air is running a sweet sale for Shoulder season. Fly from many United States metropoli to European ones for between $407 to $819 (San Fran to Amsterdam). Book by August 6th for travel between Sept 2 and October 31st.

$115 - Ft. Lauderdale from Baltimore (R/T): Go from John Waters to Tropical Waters thanks to the benevolence of Expedia. Travel in October.

$199 - New York Millenium Hilton 1/2 Off: Oh Travelzoo shmucks. In the course of introducing this sweet deal, Travelzoo wrote of the 4-Star Hilton: It's not in Midtown, but that's not a bad thing. Of course, it's not a bad thing, ass. Rooms at the tricked-out Financial district hotel are half-off during August 4-6, 11-13, and September 1-4

$499 - 4 Nights in Budapest (R/T Air included) [Travelzoo]
$737 - LAX/SFO to Sydney (R/T) [Travelzoo]
$407 - JFK to Glasgow (R/T) [Travelzoo]
$115 - Ft. Lauderdale from Baltimore (R/T) [Travelzoo]
$199 - New York Millenium Hilton 1/2 Off [Travelzoo]
Top 20 [Travelzoo]

Located in District VII, the Orwellian-sounding yet freewheeling quarter of Budapest, the Szimpla Kert is a bar/beer garden/screening house/alternative culture mecca/this is what Seattle must have been like in the 90s hangout where beer runs freely and a cloud of smoke hangs above the boho crowd. Located in a not-yet-rehabilitated apartment courtyard, Szimpla Kert mixes a junkyard aesthetic with such modcoms as Wifi, a nice cafe during the day, live music and regular indie film screenings. Of all the bars in Budapest, this is the one you should walk into. Beers are US$1.50. Cigarettes are 2.75. Kicking it like it's the Prague Spring? Priceless.

Szimpla [Official site]
Szimpla [Caboodle.hu]

Previously: Best Feet in Budapest, Budapest Summer Bar Guide, Casinos of Budapest, Budapest Bath Parties, Pestiside and Half-Naked Girls

People's fascination with cemeteries beguiles me. What is it that is so compelling about kneeling down at a tombstone that one travels millions of miles to do it? Ain't nothing but marble and dirt baby. Exceptions can be made of course. One destination grave worth the trip is the Schmidl Family Mausoleum in Budapest's Jewish Cemetery. The structure, a trippy indigo building with a beautiful gold tile interior and nary a right angle in sight, marks the final resting place of the Schmidl family. It has recently been restored by a group of architects and artists which is fitting since the mausoleum is as much a piece of art as it is a building. Three of Hungary's most prominent architects worked on the tomb. It is a perfect example, and ironically one of the last survivors, of the building in the Hungary Seccessionist style (similar to Art Nouveau). Sadly, like the fictitious grave of the Finzi-Contini, this one was never occupied by its intended body as most of the family perished at the hands of the Nazis. Make sure to get the key from the caretaker and watch out for ticks and nettles on the way to the grave.

Jewish Budapest [Budapest Info]

[photo: Andreas Pauly]

Previously: Things To Do In Budapest When You're Broke, Kis Gerbeaud, Worst of Budapest, Public Transit in Hungary Orgasmic, Welcome to Gluttonous Thursday

I always thought Budapest was cheap but apparently, when you're broke nothing's cheap enough. Pestiside, a Hungarian website, recently featured activities for those light in the wallet. Suggestions run from the tame (going to the ornate Szabo state library to read Harper's) to the less than legal (dining and dashing from Champs Sport bar) to the religiously ambiguous (eating with the Krishnas). But beggars can't be choosers, even where the GDP per capita is US$16,300.

The Cheapskates Guide To Living Large In Budapest [via Pestiside]

Previously: Kis Gerbeaud, Worst of Budapest, Cafe Gusto, Public Transit In Hundary...Orgasmic

$198 Houston to NYC: To hype their new Houston-JFK route, JetBlue is offering flights thereon at $99 each way to start. If you're feeling masochistic enough to endure a JFK transfer, you can go from there to various other northeastern cities at no extra charge (Boston, Pittsburgh, Washington DC, etc.). Book by July 18 for travel September 7 to October 31.

$300 Canada from East Coast: Air Canada has a very short-term sale flogging all routes from East Coast cities to four cities in Canada (Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Halifax), charging $150 each way. Departures include New York, Baltimore, Boston, Miami, and others. You must book by June 29 for travel through September 10.

By accident or design, most visitors to Budapest will find themselves wandering past the above Gerbeaud cukrászda (coffeehouse) on Vörösmarty Square. Justly famous for chocolate and pastries as well as coffee, Gerbeaud is nevertheless outrageously overpriced and given to mobs at peak times. It's much easier -- and cheaper -- to sample virtually the same menu at the Kis Gerbeaud around the side. This "little sister" shop allows only for standing or to-go orders, but you can get almost everything as in the main coffeehouse. Like the coffeehouse, Gerbeaud's main restaurant is a quality establishment made largely untenable by its tourist trapness, though the downstairs brewpub is often overlooked by the crowds.

Must-see/do in Budapest for a week??? [Lonely Planet]
Gerbeaud Cukrászda [Caboodle]
Kis Gerbeaud [Official site]

[Photo: jenkinra]

Previously: Dining Advice for Middling Restaurants, Welcome to Gluttonous Thursday, Starbucks Clone Wars, Worst of Budapest, Cafe Gusto

$123+ Delta Sale: Delta's running a pretty comprehensive sale via Travelocity on domestic and international routes, knocking down most fares to a notch above their lowest ebb, but still not bad. The trick is that you have to book by today -- June 7 -- but given widespread availability, I have my doubts that deadline will be enforced. Sample roundtrip fares include $123 Washington DC to New York, $343 Los Angeles to Honolulu, and $575 Boston to Sao Paulo.

$769 6-Night Budapest & Prague Air+Hotel: This seemingly natural combo doesn't come up that often. The package includes round-trip air from New York, three nights in each city at typically crap hotels, plus rail travel connection. The $769 price is for departure dates in January 2007; other dates, departure cities, and better hotels are available for price bumps.

$915+ 5-Night Buenos Aires Air+Hotel: This isn't a bad BA package, though it throws in some largely pointless french-fry items to fill out the price tag (gauchos, tango). The meat of it is round-trip airfare from Miami and five nights' hotel in Buenos Aires, plus an eminently skippable half-day tour. Departure's less than $50 more to leave from new York, and about another $100 to leave from Los Angeles. Beyond that, you can upgrade your hotel, but there's only three hotel choices total. Book by June 30.

Fly Round-Trip From $123+ [Travelocity]
8 Day Budapest & Prague by Rail [Gate1]
Buenos Aires Deluxe [LatinAmerica4Less]
Top 25 [Shermans Travel]

A few weeks ago, we reported on Budapest's brand new trams that are replacing their old, Communist-era public transit. Being of some Hungarian ancestry, we figured it was the least we could do. But we were remiss in mentioning one crucial thing: The "good vibrations" of the trams. Y'see, many women who rode on the old 4-6 tram felt a... little something... and were able to get themselves off courtesy of public transit. A reader to all-things-B'pest blog Pestiside offered the following memory:

"If I was sitting in exactly the right seat between Margit híd and Oktogon, the grinding of metal on metal sometimes created just the kind of vibration that brings a smile to my lips."

Lady Love Tram Riders To Miss Out On 'Good Vibrations' [Pestiside]

[Neal Ungerleider]

[Photo: Pestiside]

Previously: Budapest's Shiny New Public Transit, Welcome to Gluttonous Thursday, Starbucks Clone Wars, Worst of Budapest, Cafe Gusto

This two-city package is only moderately crazy. You get round-trip airfare, two nights in Vienna, rail transfer, and two nights in Budapest. Default hotels are, of course, crap. The $767 price is based on Boston departure, and it's valid through May 24; other cities and dates available for price bumps. Hard to say what exact travel dates the price is good for, so you may have to hunt around. Expect about $220 in additional taxes and fees.

Vienna and Budapest with the ICE Train [European Destinations]
Top 25 [Shermans Travel]

So it looks like Budapest is finally junking their lovably decrepit Communist-era trams in favor of new Siemens Combino models. A good thing—brand new public transit for a city undergoing a massive growth spurt, no? Not necessarily. Like New Yorkers and the old "red bird" subway cars or Londoners and their double decker buses, the residents of Budapest kind of liked the older trams:

But there was no competition, and no game of dodge the conductor. It was just an exercise to help Budapest burghers get used to the fact that their rattling behemoths' last stop, the great kocsiszín in the sky, is fast approaching. So what do they think? Well, where else should we begin but with the nénis, Hungary's most opinionated social group? Words like "szörnyű" were popular, but the more articulated complained about the height of the seats, which are mounted on the wheel arches and are quite a climb. Others argued that there is less space, which is probably just an optical illusion, the new tram is considerably wider than its predecessor.

Generations Split over State-of-the-art Tram [Pestiside]
BKV (Budapest Transit) [Official Site]

[Neal Ungerleider]

[Photo: Pestiside]

Previously: Dining Advice for Middling Restaurants, Welcome to Gluttonous Thursday, Starbucks Clone Wars, Worst of Budapest, Cafe Gusto, Hungarian Village Pigkiller Action

Pestiside has a great idea: Rather than dwelling on the greatest or worst places to eat in Budapest, they've compiled a list of those restaurants that have potential, or one good thing, or one major flaw. It's a considerable list of also-rans, with color commentary:

Pampas Argentine Steakhouse: Don't tempt patrons with "New York Cheesecake" if it's just normal Budapest cheesecake made from túró and whatever else you make New York Cheesecake from if you don't use proper, er, Philadelphia cream cheese. Worse than being disappointing, it leads transplanted New Yorkers to tell the waiters things like Figyelj - én egy igazi New York-i haver, én tudok ami igazi New York-i sajttorta, és az isn't it, dude like I did last time, almost causing my wife to commit suicide out of humiliation. But love the steaks!

Paulaner Brauhaus: Tie a yellow ribbon 'round the neck of that guy with the Casio keyboard in the cheezy band, and buy some polka CDs instead.

Szlovák Söröző: Hire some Slovaks.

Szerb Vendéglő: Hire some Serbs.

Shoot the Piano Player, and Other Constructive Dining Tips [Pestiside]

[Photo: Getty Images]

Previously: Welcome to Gluttonous Thursday, Starbucks Clone Wars, Worst of Budapest, Cafe Gusto, Hungarian Village Pigkiller Action