"So, is there a good Szechuan restaurant in Budapest?" a friend recently asked me. I didn’t even have to think about it. "Try Nefrit," I told him. "Even though it’s over in Buda, it’s still the best all-around Szechuan-style Chinese restaurant I’ve found in town."Although Momotaru runs a close second, I’ll still take Nefrit over it and any and all other Chinese food places in Budapest. Located on Apor Vilmos Tér, easily accessible by the 112 bus and the 59 tram, Nefrit offers the discerning Asian food palate a wide range of tastebud-tingling dishes.
Remodeled a few years ago, I decided to try it when I was changing buses one afternoon. I was pleasantly surprised to find the waiters all speak English and the restaurant had a luncheon special which turned out to be one of the best deals in town.
At that time, a large bowl of soup (wonton or sweet-and-sour) and a main course with rice was only 950 forints. There were eight or nine main courses, including sweet-and-sour chicken, Szechuan beef, a very nice duck plate and Kung Pao chicken. The portions were enough to satisfy most lunchtime diners and, with some jasmine tea, made for a good break from the traditional Hungarian meals.
As of late, the lunchtime special soup bowls seem to have shrunk in size, and the main courses appear marginally smaller, but the quality has remained the same – even though the special lunch price is now 1150 forints. Inflation rears its ugly head everywhere, and even Momotaru’s dishes have succumbed to its fatal lure, almost doubling in price from a few years back.
Nefrit’s ambience is also more upscale, with real tablecloths and silverware and chopstick holders and glassware. Downstairs it’s all roomy booths and upstairs can easily accommodate larger parties. The service is still exemplary and the food continues to be what I consider the best Szechuan fare in Budapest. Nefrit will, one hopes, retain its allure for many years. I still go there at least monthly for their good values and wonderful food.
By Gary Lukatch for XpatLoop.com
Nefrit Restaurant
Address: 1126 Budapest, Apor Vilmos tér 4.
Reservations: +36-1 213-9039
22.04.2009