Gundel Restaurant is celebrating its 130th anniversary with a new attraction: the \u2018Celebrities\u2019 menus\u2019, which not only showcases the list of distinguished guests it has hosted over the years, but also allows anyone to sample the menu from the gala lunches or dinners held in their honour. First up is , commemorating her 1993 visit to Budapest. In early July, this must-visit Hungarian restaurant will feature on its menu, for just ten days, the four-course menu originally created for the royal guest\u2019s visit. This new gastronomic attraction was announced at a press conference held on Wednesday, attended by K\u00e1roly Gundel, the restaurant owner\u2019s great-grandson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To mark the 130th anniversary of the restaurant this year, Gundel is commemorating the 32-person lunch held there during Queen Elizabeth II\u2019s 1993 visit to Budapest with a creative selection of dishes \u2013 which, as part of its \u2018Celebrities\u2019 Menus\u2019 series launched to mark the anniversary, is making the royal guest\u2019s menu available to everyone \u2013 as announced at Wednesday\u2019s press conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Eventrend Group took over the running of Gundel and its associated Bagolyv\u00e1r restaurant in 2021; the Group\u2019s management K\u00e1roly Gundel, founder of the V\u00e1rosliget restaurant <\/a>Returning to their business philosophy, they strive to ensure that the Gundel experience is not only accessible to a privileged few, but so that anyone can experience it.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Now they are going even further: from 8 July, for ten days, anyone can order and enjoy the menu originally created by chef K\u00e1lm\u00e1n Kalla in honour of Queen Elizabeth II.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the Queen, choosing Gundel and having lunch there was a particularly big deal, because it is said that <\/p>\n\n\n\n This was the only formal occasion during the four days they spent here when the royal couple did not eat a meal prepared by the court chef they had brought with them from home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The behind-the-scenes secrets are now public knowledge: before the gala lunch, the kitchen prepared ten trial menus to ensure they could definitely fit everything into the exactly 1 hour 40 minutes available. The menu was handwritten, and the waiters were taught a special choreography. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201eTwelve impeccable English waiters \u2013 eight food servers in black tuxedos and white gloves, and four barmen in waistcoats, also wearing white gloves \u2013 will be on hand to attend to the guests\u201d every wish and need,\u201d \u2013 reported the Kur\u00edr on the preparations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who inspired this selection, arrived in Hungary on 4 May 1993 at the invitation of \u00c1rp\u00e1d G\u00f6ncz, President of the Republic. Prime Minister J\u00f3zsef Antall and his wife hosted a luncheon the following day, 5 May, in honour of Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The venue for the lunch was the Queen Elizabeth Ballroom, situated on the upper floor of the Gundel Palace; however, upon arrival, the guests enjoyed their welcome drinks on the upstairs terrace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gy\u00f6rgy L\u00e1ng, the restaurant\u2019s co-owner, once told *Magyar Nemzet* that the four crowns were \u201enot just a play on words, but that every single dish was served in the shape of a crown or decorated as such\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On top of this, alongside the Gundel wines from their own cellar in M\u00e1d, \u201ea 1952 Tokaji Asz\u00fa was also served, the grapes for which were harvested in the year the Queen ascended the throne \u2013 Gundel summarised the details of the historic lunch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Viktor Moldov\u00e1n, executive chef at Gundel, revealed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n He reconstructed the dishes served at the royal banquet based on contemporary television news reports and photographs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGundel is a matter of national pride, a world-famous family brand,\u201d emphasised the managers of the Eventrend Group, under whose leadership a new era has begun in the history of this iconic restaurant. The team, which has over 30 years\u2019 experience in hospitality and event organisation, is committed to preserving and nurturing the restaurant\u2019s heritage and aims to involve guests even more closely in the history of this iconic restaurant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gundel is ours; it embodies our history, our traditions and our passion for fine flavours,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a0\u201cGundel\u2019s success story is our shared national treasure and a shining testament to our talent, our openness and our warm hospitality,\u201d say the founders of Eventrend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u2018Celebrities\u2019 menu series, which made its debut with the \u2018Four Crowns\u2019 menu, may appear on the menu once more at most after the ten-day summer period \u2013 perhaps in the autumn \u2013 after which the series will continue with menus created for other special guests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The menu will be available in two-, three- and four-course options, priced at around 20,000 forints.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe \u2018Celebrities\u2019 Menus\u2019 series kicks off with royal dishes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Four-Crown Festive Lunch<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
Gundel is a matter of national importance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n