Unexpected Garden Of Delight - By Andreea Anca

Intrigued by the fact that French sophistication had reached even beyond the point where Hűvősvölgyi turns into Hidegkúti út, and past the last stop of the trams and buses that come from Moszkva tér, we kept on going, motivated mainly by curiosity, and the thought that our effort would, eventually, be rewarded with an authentic croissant and café at the other end. Soon enough we learnt that the opening of Provence was actually delayed. 

Sooner than we thought, however, we were consoling ourselves right next door with a nice dinner in the atmospheric garden of the Széphalom Vendéglő (which translates as “Nice Pile Guesthouse”), a traditional Magyar place we had not previously known about. We were seated at one of the tables by what looked and proved to be an efficient waiter, who served us our soups in the blink of an eye. 

My clear soup had an egg yolk dropped into it (Ft440), and, just like the mushroom soup (Ft550) of my companion, with cream and red paprika, was not heated through properly, but was very tasty. 

We studied the lengthy menu for a second course. I settled for what I often do in a place like this: the goose leg, which at Ft1,590 was considerably cheaper than at other Hungarian restaurants. 

But it came at a price: deprived of my favorite mashed potato with onions, the goose leg was accompanied only by slices of baked apple. The whole thing was quite tasty, but the meat was on the dry side, which does not help a dish that reaches its full potential when tender and succulent in the inside and crispy on the outside. 

My better half felt more adventurous, and chose something from the one page on the menu that contrasted with the rest of the offers in a way that seemed to reveal there was a quite imaginative chef in the kitchen.

Ambitious

The chicken filé, covered in rough-ground cashew nuts (Ft2,390) and cooked in hot oil, was nice and crispy. The garnish was an interesting mixture of mashed potatoes with chestnut and grilled apricots with a lemony apple mash. The whole thing felt a little ambitious, but it was all fresh and it showed that the chef really cared about his work. 

We ended with deserts, funnily enough. Both the somlói cake (Ft690) and the mash chestnut (Ft690) with whipped cream were delicious and came in generous sizes, to the point that we had to take one home. 

For a little more than Ft7,000 that included the drinks and coffees at the end, we felt totally satisfied. 

Moreover, the cozy little garden by the side of the road, hidden away from the outside world by tall bushes all around, rewards its clientele with a decór and a service that has changed little since the 1980s."

Széphalom Vendéglő
Hidegkúti út 79, Buda, District II
Open: 10am-10pm
Tel: 376-8871, 397-4738

Atmosphere: ****
Quality of food: ***
Service: ****
Value for money: ****

Source: Budapest Sun