The most famous names in the history of Hungarian hospitality are coming together for a weekend to showcase Károly Gundel’s gastronomic legacy at the Gellért Hotel, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. The „Gundel at the Gellért” gastronomic weekend welcomes guests to one of Budapest’s most beautiful hotel buildings with a Suite Restaurant on 23 June and a Sunday brunch on 24 June.

Perhaps many people are unaware that the Danubius Hotel Gellért, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, and the Gundel Restaurant – which is almost the same age – were linked by a significant connection in the first half of the 19th century. And that connection was none other than Károly Gundel himself.

From the very beginning, the hotel’s restaurants had been leased to the capital’s leading culinary experts. From 1927 onwards, the leasehold rights were granted to Károly Gundel. A large part of their work, which they carried out over a period of twenty years, was instrumental in raising the Gellért Hotel to the ranks of the world’s grand hotels, and its prestigious events became the subject of newspaper articles across Europe. And as the hotel’s history recounts, it was at the Gellért that Károly Gundel’s three famous dishes were created: the Rothermere pike-perch, the Bakony mushrooms and the Pittsburgh veal chop.

In the year of the hotel’s centenary, this legendary collaboration is being revived with the help of the two executive chefs, Zsolt Litauszki and Gábor Müncz.

The Gundel–Gellért merger It begins on 23 June with the Suite Restaurant, which is the hotel’s signature feature.

The concept of the ‘Suite Restaurant’ was brought to life by the Gellért Hotel, with Suite 422 – which has hosted the hotel’s most famous guests – and a magnificent panoramic view of the Danube providing the backdrop. It is in this setting that an exclusive five-course menu, accompanied by a selection of champagnes, created by Zsolt Litauszki, executive chef at Gundel Restaurant, will be served.

The young chef, who has already made a name for himself in the industry, joined Gundel this spring. A member of the Hungarian Bocuse d’Or Academy, he spent nearly 10 years in Austria at the start of his career, where he gained experience in several restaurants, including two Michelin-starred establishments.

The current set menu – priced at 40,000 forints – features a savoury lamb tartare with matured sheep’s cheese, a chilled yoghurt and butter squash soup with duck tongue, grilled mackerel with watermelon, and veal liver with wild mushrooms. All this is accompanied by premium sparkling wines. For dessert, there is fried apricot with vanilla ice cream. What makes this special is that guests at the Lakosztályétterem will pick the apricots themselves on the afternoon of the dinner.

This interactive „pick-your-own” programme, enjoyed alongside the chef and accompanied by champagne and savoury snacks, promises a unique and unforgettable experience for food lovers.

The following day, the now-traditional Sunday brunch, featuring all-you-can-eat and all-you-can-drink (for around 11,000 forints), will entice guests, this time with dishes created by Gábor Müncz, a multiple champion master chef. What makes the Sunday brunch particularly interesting is that, whilst the Gellért’s head chef’s buffet menu will feature dishes from old Gundel menus, the dishes on the à la carte menu are a foretaste of the renewal of the Gundel Restaurant.