In The Loop Travel
  • Home
  • Destinations
    • The Americas
    • Caribbean
    • Mexico
    • Europe
    • Asia/Pacific
    • Africa
  • Fitness
  • Cruising
  • Travel Tips
  • Videos
  • Work With Us
  • My Work
  • About
  • Colorado Craft Brewery Guide
  • Media Kit
  • TBIN Influencer Network

We Get Our Fill During the Best Food Tour in Budapest

1/1/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Our guide Gergo has a passion for food. He met the group outside the Central Market Hall in Budapest.
By John Roberts
It's a blazing hot day in the middle of summer in Budapest, and a group of 11 travelers from various parts of the world gather outside the city's iconic Central Market Hall. We come from New Jersey and Kentucky in the United States. And there is a family of four from Australia.
We're hungry to explore one of Europe's great destinations, and Gergo Csada, our guide, has just the plan to weave together the varied flavors of Hungary's cuisine and stories about the fascinating and sometimes troubled history of his hometown and country.
Gergo begins the tour exactly where you would expect. Leading us into Central Market Hall, which sits at the edge of the Danube River on the Pest side of the city just off the Liberty Bridge, he explains that the massive facility is the oldest and largest indoor market in Budapest.
The place is filled with vendors selling foods and goods brought to the market daily, and Central Market Hall is an important part of life for residents as well as a must-see destination for tourists who are interested in sampling the tastes of Hungary.
Picture
The tour began with a look around the bustling market and several tastings of traditional Hungarian foods, such as sausages.
The first stop in the colorful and bustling market is a butcher's stand, where slabs of meats fill the glass cases and sausages hang from ropes from beams at the perimeter of the stall. We are here to sample a variety of spiced sausages. The butcher hands over a plank filled with seven types of sausages and salamis. There is pork and beef, and one row that features a distinctly darker meat. It's horse. Some in our group stifle gasps.
Picture
Gergo says that while many tourists are not used to seeing horse on the menu back home, the meat is a traditional item used in sausages and stews in Hungary.
No one appears too shocked, and many in our group give it a try. I sample one slice of all seven varieties and note that they are all very fatty but fairly delicious, each with a different level of spice or heat.
We move on to other areas of the market hall, and we watch locals chatting with vendors, ordering fruits, veggies, meats and cheeses that will be taken home and used for the family meals.
Picture
Paprika is the spice of Hungary.
Our next stop, we sample fried pork rinds and fried potato cheese bread, or pogacha. Gergo tells us about possibly the two most popular ingredients that are featured in most Hungarian dishes: sour cream and paprika.
Paprika was brought to the region by the conquering Ottoman Empire and has stuck around for centuries since. It's used to add flavor to soups, stews, breads and is universally recognized as a true Hungarian flavor.
Sour cream? Well, sour cream makes everything taste better, any Hungarian will tell you. 
"I'm not going to lie and tell you this is the healthiest food in the world," Gergo says. "It's a Hungarian food tour."
He says this as he hands out a favorite treat of Hungarian youngsters. The Turo Rudi is a "healthy" snack bar. Cottage cheese coated with chocolate. We gobble these up as we leave Central Market Hall and head out for more exploration around Budapest.
Picture
An ice cream break was an ideal way to cool off on the hot day in Budapest.
Gergo suggests an ice cream stop to get a little relief from the heat. He takes us to his favorite, Levendula. Locals know this as the best ice cream in Budapest. The shop boasts dozens of unique flavors, such as Wheatbeer, Mint Raspberry, Watermelon Mojito, Sicilian pistachios and the namesake Levendula (lavender). It takes a while to order because we are dazzled by all the choices.
It's hard to believe we are just getting started because we've tried so much already.
Picture
The immersive tour included neighborhoods around the city, such as the Jewish Quarter,
The Bites and Sights Food Tour takes about four hours to unfold, and we visit the Jewish Quarter to see the Dohany Street Great Synagogue, the second-largest in the world.
It starts to rain in mid-afternoon, and Gergo has us duck quickly into a quirky bar complex just off the street.
"It's good," he says. "I wanted to show you this place, anyway."
We are standing in a courtyard within the walls of a building filled with eclectic art, murals, posters, drawings, and other bizarre decor. It resembles a flea market more than anything else.
This is one of the city's Ruin Bars. In fact, we're in Szimpla Kert, the most famous of these bars, which are housed in old buildings that are uninhabitable but well suited these days as hip urban hangouts for eating, drinking, dancing and live music.
Picture
I was pleased that we got to stop into a couple of the city's famed "ruin bars."
The rain lets up and we head out. Gergo promises that we will have a drink at a different Ruin Bar.
Indeed, Csendes is quaint and filled with only locals except for our group. Our drink order includes spritzers. White wine and rose. These are like sports drinks, Gergo says, good for cooling off in summer time. I order a Soproni IPA.
This is just the kind of place you would want to spend a few hours at when out on your own in Budapest.
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
The food kept coming during the four-hour tour.
We're close to the home stretch. It's Halkakas Fish Bistro for more food. Fried carp, silver carp and olive pate and fried catfish are placed in front of us. We devour it.
Then, Koleves, a quaint eatery with a pretty garden in the Jewish Quarter, for a traditional matzo ball soup and an apricot and mint soup. Finally, we cap our food fest with what every good culinary tour in Hungary must feature: goulash.
Gergo takes us to Ferenc Jozef Sorozo, a restaurant that serves traditional fare, and we plunge our spoons into bowls of hearty goulash, topping them with paprika, of course. We get a sweet finish to our tour.
The final calorie bomb is Hungarian trifle, a layered pastry with sponge cakes, syrup, walnuts, vanilla cream and chocolate sauce.
Somehow, we find room in our stomachs to finish every bite.

Thanks for reading,
JR

We have more Budapest stories:

The World's Top Rated Hotel is in Budapest


The Best Things to Do on Your Visit to Budapest

Subscribe today to get the latest reviews, tips and tricks to help you have your best adventure ever.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Categories

    All
    Africa
    AIDA Cruises
    Alaska
    Albatros Expeditions
    Alicante
    AmaWaterways
    Amber Cove
    American Queen Steamboat Company
    American Queen Voyages
    Amsterdam
    Antarctica
    Antigua
    Arctic
    Arizona
    Aruba
    Asia
    Atlas Ocean Voyages
    Australia
    Austria
    Avalon Waterways
    Backroads
    Bahamas
    Barbados
    Barcelona
    Belize
    Blue World Voyages
    Bonaire
    Bora Bora
    Brooklyn
    Budapest
    Burma
    Cabo San Lucas
    Cadiz
    California
    Cambodia
    Cancun
    Caribbean
    Carnival Cruise
    Celebrity Cruises
    Celestyal Cruises
    Christmas Markets
    Cologne
    Colombia
    Colorado
    Corfu
    Costa Rica
    Cozumel
    Craft Beer
    Croatia
    Crystal Cruises
    Cuba
    Curacao
    Dominican Republic
    Dubrovnik
    Egypt
    Emerald Cruises
    Emerald Waterways
    Europe
    Expat Life
    Explora Journeys
    Fathom Travel
    Fitness
    Florida
    Fort Lauderdale
    France
    French Polynesia
    Galapagos
    Galveston
    Germany
    Grand Cayman
    Greece
    Grenada
    Guatemala
    Halifax
    Harmony Of The Seas
    Hawaii
    High Line Park
    Hiking
    Holland America
    Hong Kong
    Houston
    Hungary
    Ibiza
    Iceland
    Isla Mujeres
    Italy
    Jim Thorpe
    Key West
    Kotor
    Labadee
    Lake Minnewaska
    Las Vegas
    Lisbon
    Lithuania
    London
    London Eye
    Maine
    Malaga
    Mexico
    Miami
    Minnesota
    Mississippi River
    Monte Carlo
    Montenegro
    Monterey
    Montreal
    Moorea
    MSC Cruises
    MSC Divina
    Netherlands
    Newfoundland
    New Jersey
    New Orleans
    New York
    New York City
    New Zealand
    North Carolina
    Norway
    Norwegian Cruise Line
    Nuremberg
    Oceania Cruises
    Oregon
    Orlando
    Panama
    Panama Canal
    Passau
    Paul Gauguin
    Paul Gauguin Cruises
    Pennsylvania
    Philadelphia
    Pickleball
    Ponant
    Portugal
    Prague
    Princess Cruises
    Puerto-rico
    Queens
    Regensburg
    Regent Seven Seas
    Rome
    Royal Caribbean
    Saint-Tropez
    San Francisco
    Santorini
    Scenic Cruises
    Scottsdale
    Seabourn
    SeaDream Yacht Club
    Sicily
    Silversea
    Sintra
    Sorrento
    Spain
    Star Clippers
    St. Maarten
    St. Thomas
    Symphony Of The Seas
    Tahiti
    Travel Gear
    Travel Tips
    Tunisia
    Turkey
    Turks And Caicos
    UnCruise
    Un-Cruise Adventures
    UnCruise Adventures
    Universal's Islands Of Adventure
    Uniworld
    Utah
    Utica
    Utica Boilermaker 15K
    Vienna
    Vietnam
    Viking Cruises
    Washington
    Windstar Cruises
    Wisconsin

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014

    RSS Feed

Copyright © 2013 | All rights reserved | Ewing, New Jersey.
Contact | About | Media Kit