Our national pride, which has been eroding for decades, may be revived today. Gundel Restaurant itself, and the range of Hungarian dishes created within its walls \u2013 which we can now enjoy in an increasing number of places without disappointment \u2013 yet for generations the restaurant-style preparation of these favourites has only deteriorated. It would be of symbolic significance for Hungarian gastronomy as a whole if dishes such as goulash, chicken paprikash, R\u00e1k\u00f3czi cottage cheese cake or Soml\u00f3i galuska were to regain their rightful place at the very venue where they were first created.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After many years of searching for its direction, it is returning with renewed vigour, an (old-)new concept, a reimagined interior and a new team: the\u00a0Gundel<\/strong>. Before the opening, we were granted access to the\u00a0City Park\u00a0<\/strong>to the restaurant at its entrance, where we were welcomed by the music of an all-female Roma band, and for a few hours we were swept away by the magic of the Gundel House. If there is one thing we could wish for this reborn restaurant, it is that every dish served \u2013 even during the busiest periods \u2013 should embody the same standard and attention to detail that we experienced as invited guests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gundel is a legend. We must appreciate that we do not encounter it in the pages of old books, but that it is here with us, seeking the place it deserves in 21st-century hospitality. It has been public knowledge since the start of the year that the management of the restaurant, owned by Danubius Hotels, has been taken over by the\u00a0Eventrend Group<\/strong>\u00a0is taking over, and this move gives cause for optimism after a decade of searching for the right path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The company\u2019s portfolio is extremely diverse. They are major players in the domestic catering industry; they have also breathed new life into a beer garden and a sports bistro on the banks of the Danube, and they run a cocktail bar in Pest, a mountain hut at the highest point of the Sudeten Mountains in the Czech Republic, and have raised the status of schnitzel and noodles with jam to at least the same heights in the At the Chef\u2019s Table<\/strong>, but they also have a stake in Samantha, the cult venue in Buda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, one of their references that really stands out is the New York Caf\u00e9<\/strong>, which, as it happens, opened its doors in 1894, just like the Gundel Restaurant (at that time still known as the Wampetics Restaurant). Eventrend\u2019s real success story has been bringing the New York Caf\u00e9 into the international spotlight. They have skilfully harnessed everything the building has to offer, and today its history, stretching back more than 120 years, has been brought back to life. The fact that it is by no means a stuffy, museum-like space is clearly demonstrated by the fact that it is one of the top hashtags on Instagram amongst Hungary\u2019s attractions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If they can apply their formula at the iconic restaurant in the City Park, a new era of reform may finally dawn for Gundel, following the eras of Gy\u00f6rgy L\u00e1ng and K\u00e1lm\u00e1n Kalla.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Seen through today\u2019s eyes, Gundel is simply over the top. It is a riot of colours and materials \u2013 from velvet to porcelain, crystal and miniature mosaics, right through to the murals. The restaurant\u2019s walls almost seem to crave the hustle and bustle, the music and the clinking of cutlery. Following the era of experimental fine dining, the new management has set itself the goal of restoring Gundel to the Hungarian public in the form originally envisaged by its founders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The founder, K\u00e1roly Gundel, refined Hungarian cuisine and blended it with influences from the wider world. Through his pioneering work, he put Hungary on the world\u2019s gastronomic map.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The company\u00a0corporate chef<\/strong>, the nationally renowned\u00a0Andr\u00e1s Wolf<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Viktor Moldov\u00e1n, Executive Chef<\/strong>\u00a0They were tasked with reviving the traditions of Gundel whilst fulfilling the restaurant\u2019s original mission. Viktor Moldov\u00e1n, a little-known figure here at home, lived and worked in Japan for around 14 years, where he, rather unusually, promoted Hungarian cuisine. First at the Tokachi Hills restaurant in Hokkaido \u2013 which is also recommended by the Michelin Guide \u2013 and then as a chef in Tokyo for two years. (We also worked with him nearly ten years ago\u00a0interview<\/a>\u00a0(here, on the Dining Guide.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n They will be offering separate menus for the caf\u00e9 and restaurant, with breakfast available from 9 am; the caf\u00e9 menu, however, features not only light bites but also the great Hungarian classics, a staggering number of which were created within the walls of Gundel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\u00a0Tokaji Asz\u00fa goose liver<\/strong>\u00a0and the\u00a0Gundel pancakes<\/strong>\u00a0It\u2019s obvious, and those with a bit more knowledge may well recall that the dish made with green peas and mushrooms\u00a0Homemade chicken soup<\/strong>\u00a0is also associated with Gundel, as well as the dense\u00a0\"Pal\u00f3c\" soup\u00a0<\/strong>It does not originate from the Pal\u00f3c region; rather, J\u00e1nos Gundel himself devised this hearty soup in honour of the great writer K\u00e1lm\u00e1n Miksz\u00e1th (although the dish made its debut at the Istv\u00e1n F\u0151herczeg Hotel in Budapest).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Renewable Gundel National 11<\/strong> This selection pays tribute to these dishes, including such traditional Hungarian specialities as \u201eA\u201d goulash<\/strong>, chicken paprikash<\/strong>, Bakony cutlet, Feszty steak<\/strong>, the Carpathian-style fish soup<\/strong>, Soml\u00f3 dumplings<\/strong> and the R\u00e1k\u00f3czi cottage cheese<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It can only be a good sign when the \u201esimple\u201d plum sauce served with the foie gras, the paprika chicken sauce (the spoon almost stood upright in it), the flavour of the rye sourdough bread, and the walnut filling and thick chocolate sauce of the Gundel pancakes (not too sweet, not watery, not powdery) still leave a vivid impression even a week later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201eWe\u2019re not a cheap restaurant, but that said, everyone will find something to suit them at Gundel,\u201d as K\u00e1roly Gundel himself put it. They are also reviving the old approach to pricing; at the turn of the century, Gundel was slightly more expensive than an ordinary restaurant, but dining there was by no means a luxury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As a point of reference, here are the prices of a few dishes: the \u201c\u00dajh\u00e1zi\u201d chicken soup with homemade noodles <\/strong>2,100 forints, the Veal Viennese-style with pan-fried parsley potatoes and homemade pickled vegetables<\/strong> 5400, the \u201eOriginal Gundel pancakes\u201d<\/strong> (which isn\u2019t on fire!) will cost 2,400 forints. On the dinner menu, the three-course menu will be priced at 12,300 forints and the four-course menu at 14,400 forints.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Our national pride, which has been eroding for decades, may be revived today. <\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":13514,"template":"","publikacio":[137],"class_list":["post-13370","sajto","type-sajto","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","publikacio-dining-guide"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gundel.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sajto\/13370","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gundel.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sajto"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gundel.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/sajto"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gundel.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sajto\/13370\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gundel.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13514"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gundel.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13370"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"publikacio","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gundel.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publikacio?post=13370"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Finding one\u2019s way home<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Have a go at guessing how many legendary dishes were created at Gundel?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Not a luxury restaurant<\/h3>\n\n\n\n