According to TripAdvisor, there are more than 2500 restaurants in Budapest. Ranked as the eight best of them all at the moment is Lucky 7 Burgers in Budapest, so we decided to pay the place a visit.
When you come to a city like Budapest, many people want to eat “serious” food and visit traditional restaurants. Such people would never ever visit a hamburger restaurant like Lucky 7 Burgers. But, then there are all the rest of us who love a tasty hamburger, and who would skip all the “serious” restaurants in the world to taste a nice hamburger.
Lucky 7 Burgers in Budapest from the outside
Sometimes hamburgers have been thrown into the “fast-food” category, and thus hamburger is per definition low-quality food. But, it doesn’t have to be, and since Lucky 7 Burgers is ranked eight among all the restaurants in Budapest based on more than 3000 votes, there has got to be some sort of quality behind it.
Visiting Lucky 7 Burgers in Budapest
The restaurant has a fantastic location, only 100 meters from the Vaci utca, the main shopping street of Budapest. It is easy to find, and we were warmly welcomed as we entered the restaurant. It was a Friday evening and we arrived around 18.45. We were lucky to get a free table because 15 minutes later a sign was placed out in front of the restaurant telling it was full and that they could receive no more guests.
There are not many tables on the inside, so our estimate is that they can receive somewhere between 20-25 guests indoor at the same time. Luckily for them, they are really quick at preparing and serving the food, meaning the fluctuation of guests is high, and they can still serve lots of guests throughout the day.
We visited two different hamburgers with onion rings and with fries. Since we visited Lucky 7 Burgers, we had to order the burger carrying the name of the restaurant. This is what the hamburger looked like.
Doesn’t this look tasty, or what?
We have been to quite a lot of hamburger restaurants in Budapest, and we have to say that the price level of Lucky 7 Burgers is higher than most other hamburger restaurants. But, there are no other restaurants with such a good location as this one. And, the service was fantastic. We got our food in less than 10 minutes (it felt more like 5 minutes), and not only did it look fantastic, it tasted fantastic. The onion rings were made of real onion (that isn’t always obvious), the fries were nice, and the burgers were really tasty. I am not a big fan of mustard in my burger, but even the mustard couldn’t destroy the taste of my Lucky 7 Burger.
The interior of Lucky 7 Burgers in Budapest
The interior of the restaurant is kind of sports-style. This isn’t the place for fine dining (try our new wine dinner if you want that), but it is a perfect place for a really fine hamburger! I believe families with kids will enjoy this restaurant a lot (and they also have special effects and gifts making the experience nice for children), men in love with meat, and everyone else who enjoys a good hamburger.
Will we return to Lucky 7 Burgers?
Of course, we will! When you find something you like as much as this, you return. And during our stay, we overheard a waiter welcoming a returning customer to the restaurant by saying: “Welcome back. I guess that means we have to do something right.” That is true. A returning customer is the proof of a nice experience, and I believe Lucky 7 Burgers will have lots of returning customers, something that can be seen by the fantastic reviews of the place on TripAdvisor as well.
Have you been to Lucky 7 Burgers? How did you enjoy the experience?
We have just extended our list of wine tasting opportunities in Budapest with a magnificent wine dinner. It is a three-course dinner that is served together with three fantastic wines in the Károlyi restaurant, in the heart of Budapest.
The first thing that comes to your mind as you enjoy this wine dinner, is the incredible location of the restaurant. It is in the heart of Budapest, but it is still very quiet and in a very peaceful environment. From early spring till late autumn it is a perfect place to enjoy an outdoor wine dinner, as you sit in a quiet garden, next to a green park.
While enjoying the wine dinner outdoors, we could still hear the pianist playing the piano nicely on the inside. But, what did we actually eat at this wine dinner?
On a nice evening it is delightful to enjoy the wine dinner outdoors.
The first course – Goose liver brulée
The first course gave the entire experience a flying start. This was goose liver like never before. It was served on a tasty sweet bread, with caramelized brown sugar on the top. All of us enjoying the meat would gladly have stopped the experience right here, just to eat this alone over and over again. It was served together with a very nice dry white wine from the vulcanic Badacsony region.
What a start with this goose liver brulée – You just have to try it!
The second course – Veal goulash in a potato pancake
After the fantastic starter, we were ready for some heavier food. We were served a traditional Hungarian course, the Veal goulash, but with an uncommon side dish, a potato pancake. It was a tasty experience and served together with a red wine from the Szekszárd region, made by Vida Péter (the most famous winemaker in the region), this was a perfect main course for our wine dinner.
Veal goulash inside a potato pancake – eat it all, and you will for sure not leave the restaurant hungry!
The third course – Lime cake with fruits
The final of the wine dinner was a lime cake with fruits. It was an absolutely worthy finish of the meal, especially as it was accompanied by one of the most traditional sweet white wines from Tokaj, a Tokaji Szamorodni. The cake itself wasn’t very sweet (it didn’t contain any sugar, not gluten), but it was a perfect combination together with the sweet Tokaj wine.
The lime cake was a perfect dessert combination together with the sweet Tokaj wine.
As we finished up our meal, we so much enjoyed our evening, that we sat outside in the fresh air for some more hours just chatting and enjoying the atmosphere. We had enjoyed all three courses, but we all agreed, that the starter was the most surprising (very positively speaking) course to all of us.
The wines accompanying the courses just made the experience even better.
If you like wine and good food, this wine dinner is for you!
Doesn’t this sound like a great way to spend an evening in Budapest? Would you like to try the wine dinner yourself? Read more about our wine tasting experiences in Budapest and send a reservation request at our wine tasting page.
If you have got a question, or want to share your thoughts, please use the comment field beneath.
Are you a fan of sweet pastry? Have you ever tasted a cinnamon roll and loved it? Still haven’t tasted the fantastic Chimney Cake (Kürtöskalacs?) Check out this festival in Budapest!
The Kürtőskalács Fesztivál (Chimney Cake Festival) has turned into an annual tradition in Budapest. In 2018, it will be arranged for the sixth time. It has been held at several locations, but it will be arranged at the same spot in 2018 as in 2017, that is, the Gesztenyes Kert (Chestnut Garden). This is located a bit outside the heart of Budapest, but that is only to its advantage. This is a peaceful area, but it will be full of life during the time of the festival.
Sekler Cake Festival dates 2018 (Chimney Cake festival)
They have started calling the Kürtőskalács Sekler Cake instead of Chimney Cake, but it isn’t the title, but the taste that matters. In 2018, the festival will be arranged from October 12th till October 14th.
How to get to the Gesztenyes garden?
Tram number 61 to Csörsz street.
Tram number 59 or bus number 105 to Apor Vilmos square.
Bus 110 or 112 to Sirály street.
Bus 212 from Alkotás street.
Bus 139 from the South Railway Station (Metro 2).
These are some of the options. You might have to walk a couple of hundred meters from the stops to the actual festival area, but that shouldn’t cause much trouble. The area is very close to the shopping mall Mom Park.
There is no entrance fee, meaning that everyone can come and go in the festival area whenever they want.
What’s going on in the festival area?
There will be daily competitions taking place, there will be interactive stories told to the children, and there will be quite a lot of concerts. On the Saturday evening at 20:00 Kati Wolf will sing. She is most famous for representing Hungary in the Eurovision Song Contest with this song back in 2011 with this song.
Kati Wolf will sing at the Chimney Cake festival in 2018
Does this sound like a cool program to visit? Mark the dates, October 12th, October 13th and October 14th in 2018.
We hope you will have a fantastic stay in Budapest. If you have any comments or questions related to this event or something else, please write it beneath this text. We would love to hear from you.
You can buy tickets to hop-on-hop-off buses in Budapest. You can pay a private guide to show you around. Or, you can buy a single ticket for the public transportation and enjoy a ride with tram 2 in Budapest.
The route of tram 2 in Budapest
Let us get started right away. The best way to start the tour is by heading for the Margaret Bridge. The bridge is located a bit north of the Hungarian Parliament. You can, of course, start by jumping on the tram from the Rakoczi Bridge (or the Petöfi Bridge, or the Liberty bridge instead), but as you join us on this trip, we will start from the Margaret Bridge (name of the stop is Jaszai Mari tér).
Let’s get started with the panoramic tram ride in Budapest
As you board tram line 2 in Budapest, do not forget to validate your ticket first. The people inspecting tickets are not known to be tourist-friendly. As a consequence, lots of people have ended up paying unnecessary fines, even if they didn’t intend to do anything wrong at all. Again, validate your ticket. You can not buy a ticket on the tram, so you need to bring a ticket with you (you can buy from vending machines, from small kiosks, and in all metro stations).
You do not need to travel for a long time with tram 2 before you see this magnificent building ahead of you! The Hungarian Parliament is the building, and it is one of the most beautiful of them all in Budapest.
The Hungarian Parliament
Depending on who tells you about the building, you will hear that it was constructed sometime between 1884 and 1903, and it was designed by Imre Steindl. It is very inspired by the British Parliament building, but it ended up even nicer than its source of inspiration!
There has been a lot of construction work on the Hungarian Parliament building, but it is now mostly finished. As a result, it is shining on all sides (earlier it has been almost black due to dirt). The building is fantastic all times of the day, but it is at its most amazing after sunset with the big lights turned on!
As the tram drives next to the Parliament you will see two other beautiful buildings. These were all part of a design competition at the end of the 19th century, but they both lost the competition to the present Parliament building. Instead of throwing away the drawings, they decided to build both the buildings as well. The first building you see is the home of the Ethnographic museum while the second building belongs to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Museum of Ethnography and Ministry of Agriculture in Budapest – Source: Pixabay
Once you leave the Parliament and the other buildings behind you, the tram will take you along the River Danube again. You will be met by a stunning view in all directions as the tram moves on towards the Chain Bridge, the most famous of all bridges in Budapest. But, before we pass by the Chain Bridge, let us take a look across the Danube to enjoy the view of several beauties.
A nice Danube Panorama to the right
As we look to the right we will see four different structures that should be highlighted. Take a look at the picture beneath to see which those buildings are.
Panorama towards the Buda side from tram line 2 – Source: Pixabay
Down by the Danube on the Buda side you can see the Szilágyi Dezső Square Reformed Church. It was built between 1893 and 1895, and it is well known for its special shape, and the beautiful Zsolnay tiles on the roof.
As you look further up you can see three interesting structures next to one another. The one marked as number two on the picture is the Fishermen’s Bastion. This was built at the start of the 20th century, designed by the Miklos Ybl. While working on the Fishermen’s Bastion, he was also leading the work of renovating the Matthias Church (number 3), a church that was originally built in the 13th century. This church is the favorite church of many who visit Budapest, not only because of its interior, but because of the fantastic Zsolnay tiles on the roof, and that you can visit the tower and enjoy one of the best views in Budapest from the top.
The Matthias Church from up-front. The Hilton Hotel is to the left of the church.
Number four on the picture is the Hilton Hotel. This is a debated building, as many feel as if it shouldn’t be there. It is, however, a very special building due to the fact that it was constructed onto the remains of a Dominican monastery from the 15th century. As you enter the hotel, you can still see the ruins of the original building, making this one of the most special Hilton hotels in the world.
The beautiful Chain Bridge and the Castle
The tram ride from the Parliament to the Chain Bridge doesn’t take more than 1-2 minutes, so you will not have a long time to study the buildings we have just described. Soon you will get into a little tunnel taking you to the other side of the Chain Bridge. But, do not forget to take a closer look at the bridge before you drive beneath it. This was the first permanent bridge constructed between Buda and Pest. It was finished in 1849, and it has been one of the most famous landmarks in Budapest ever since. It was destroyed in 1945 (Second World War), but was quickly fixed and was ready for use again in 1949.
Now it is time to look to the Buda side again. On the top of the hill on the other side, you can see the Buda Castle. It was originally constructed in the 13th century. It has served several kings and flourished especially during the reign of King Matthias in the 15th century. During the Second World War, it was heavily damaged, but most of the damages were fixed during the Communist reign. Today the Castle is the home of the National Gallery, Budapest Historical Museum, and the National Library. In addition, it is a very popular venue for festivals and other popular events.
The Elisabeth Bridge and the Gellert Hill
In front of us, we can now see a white bridge, better known as the Elisabeth bridge. It was originally constructed in 1903, and it was the largest suspension bridge in the world as it was finished. Just like the Chain Bridge, it was destroyed during the Second World War. The citizens of Budapest had to wait for more than 20 years for this bridge to be reconstructed.
On the Buda side of the bridge, we can see a statue portraying Bishop Gellert. He was on his way to Jerusalem as a pilgrim in the 11th century, when Hungary’s first king (Stephan), convinced him to stay. Gellert stayed in Hungary, but after the death of King Stephen, he was taken captive by rebellions trying to get rid of Christianity, and he was thrown down the hill in a barrel (and died).
On the top of the hill, you can see the Citadel and the liberty statue. This hill has been used for thousands of years, but the citadel (fortress) was built between 1850-1854. The statue portraying a lady with a palm branch in her hands was built after the Second World War in honor of the Communist soldiers who liberated Budapest (the construction was ordered by the Soviets, so the Hungarian didn’t have the chance of saying no to the job). The Gellert Hill is maybe the nicest place in Budapest if you want to take stunning panorama shots of the city, both during daytime and by night.
The Liberty Statue at the Gellért hill
You will now quickly reach the green bridge, the Liberty Bridge. This was the third bridge built between Buda and Pest and it was finished by the end of the 19th century. Since the tram will drive into a tunnel to get beneath the bridge you cannot actually see the building, but on the Pest side next to the tram line, you can now find the famous Market Hall, a must-see place while in Budapest.
You cannot see it from the tram, but it is there – The Great Market Hall.
As the tram moves on, you can see the Gellert hotel on the Buda side, and almost next to it, the Technical University. But, just as interesting is the building on the Pest side built in the shape of a whale. This is often referred to by locals as the whale (Bálna), and it is a cultural center with some nice shops, and several restaurants and bars. It is a nice place to sit down and have something to eat and drink while enjoying the view of the Danube and the city.
Here you can see the whale-shaped building, the Bálna – Source: Pixabay
The end of the tram ride is approaching, but there are still a few more things worth noticing. First, we will pass beneath the Petőfi bridge (named after a famous Hungarian poet who lived in the 19th century). On the Pest side, you can now see a whole lot of newly built buildings. It is a modern area with new flats and quite a lot of offices. But, do not be fooled, and do not leave the tram yet. You will soon reach the final stop, and Budapest has some goodies left for you, just take a look at the picture.
The National Theater and the Palace of Arts – Source: Pixabay
As the tram ride ends, you will end up next to the Palace of Arts (to the right) and the National Theater (to the left). These are some magnificent buildings that were built quite recently (between 2000 and 2005). They are extraordinary buildings, but most people would say that they are most impressive by night, just look at the picture above again.
Now that the tram ride has ended
The tram ride has now ended, and you have just enjoyed a very cheap panoramic tour of Budapest. But, you are far away from the city center by now, so you should probably just remain on the tram and enjoy the ride back to the city center. You will then have one more chance to pick up on those attractions you didn’t really have the time to see during the first ride.
Do not forget that this is a ride you should do both during daytime and nighttime. As you can see, lots of the pictures are portraying Budapest by night, and the city is even more beautiful then. If you want to save even more money, you could do this tram ride instead of a River Cruise on the Danube. Most cruises travel between the Margaret Bridge (where the tram ride started) and the Rakoczi Bridge (where the tram trip ended), so you will see exactly the same. It might be better and easier to spot everything from the Danube, but if you are on a budget, this is a fantastic tram ride that will let you discover Budapest on your own without spending more than 1 Euro.
Doesn’t this sound like a treat when you come to Budapest? Have you tried it? Have you got any questions? We would love to hear your comments, thoughts, and questions.
It is summer, and in the summer Hungarians escape Budapest and visit Lake Balaton instead. And what do they eat there? The most popular “Hungarian” fish!
You should be warned, some people will not agree on calling this the most popular “Hungarian” fish. There are some other popular fish types in Hungary, for example, carp, catfish, perch, and pike. But, when the Hungarians travel to Lake Balaton, they eat something completely different, namely the “Merluccius Merluccius“, better known as the European hake (in Hungarian “Hekk“). The funny thing is that this fish doesn’t origin from Hungary, and not even from Europe, but from the coasts of Argentina.
A picture of the popular “Hungarian” fish – Source
According to this article, the fish is captured in Argentina and transported to Hungary, where it is almost served as a “national” fish. According to Wikipedia, it is a popular fish to catch also in Europe, but the one we are eating in Hungary is supposed to origin from Argentina. It is, however, due to the popularity of the fish in Hungary that it is often considered a fish of the Hungarians, and thus it should origin from Hungary, at least in the minds of the people.
How do Hungarians eat the fish?
If you buy this fish by Lake Balaton, or somewhere else, it will most likely look something like this.
It is normally fried in oil and server together with white bread. It is very easy to eat as the meat can easily be removed from the fish-bones (which are so big that it is no trouble at all getting rid of them).
So, the next time you want to eat a fish course in Hungary, consider the European Hake, better known as “hekk” in Hungary. But, be warned – you will not find it in normal restaurants, only by Lake Balaton, along with the “Romai part” (in Budapest), and other places with beach-like circumstances.
One of the most popular events in Budapest every year is the Christmas markets. They attract tens of thousands of visitors every single day, and they are getting more and more popular for every year.
Every year, already in January, we get the question: “When will the Christmas markets be arranged in Budapest this year?” The same question has been asked in 2018, and finally, we are able to give an answer to the question.
The Christmas market at Vörösmarty square – Source
It should be noted that Budapest is making the Christmas season a very long season, and the Christmas market at Vörösmarty square in the center of Budapest is set to open already on November 9th (if everything happens according to plan). That is one week earlier than the opening of the Christmas markets in Vienna, and three weeks earlier than the opening of the Christmas markets in Prague.
Tourists will for sure consider it a great thing that the Christmas market at Vörösmarty square will open this early, as they can enjoy the Christmas atmosphere, the delicious food and the beautiful lights already in the middle of November.
There will also be a big Christmas market in front of the St. Stephen’s Basilica, but we do not have the dates for that market yet. We will update our main article about the Christmas markets in Budapest as soon as we get the dates for that market.
Budapest Christmas market dates in 2018
Opening: November 9th, 2018
Last day: January 1st, 2019
The source of this information and the picture earlier in the article is the official Tourist office of Budapest.
There are lots of festivals in Budapest, but the biggest and most famous every year is the wine festival in the castle area. In 2018, Budapest Wine Festival will be arranged between September 6th and September 9th.
At the Budapest Wine Festival, you can taste thousands of different wine sorts. Most of them are local wines from different parts of Hungary, but there are normally one or a few international winemakers present to present wines from their own country to the Hungarians. But, this is first of all about Hungarian wines.
If you want to visit the festival area you will need to buy a ticket. The price of a daily ticket is 2500 HUF. If you want the specially designed wine glass, the price is 3000 HUF. Are you planning to taste a lot of wines? Maybe you should buy the four-day ticket instead. This will cost you either 4500 HUF or 5000 HUF (depending on whether you want the limited wine-glass or not).
In the festival area, there will be programs for children, meaning that you can come with your kids as well. It probably isn’t the best activity for kids for lots of hours, but if you just want to drop by and walk around for some hours, it can work. Children under 14 years can enter the festival area for free.
Would you rather join us at a private wine tasting program or maybe a wine dinner in the center of Budapest? Check our listing of wine tasting programs right here.
Hungary and Sweden are doing quite good in the qualification for the European Championship in 2012. Therefore the match at Puskás Ferenc Stadium in Budapest will be extremely important, leaving the team loosing this match little, or no chance at all, for qualifying to the Euro 2012. So, if you would like to see this very interesting and exciting match, tickets can be bought using the link further down on this page.
Hungary – Sweden
Euro 2012 qualification
September 2nd, 19.45
Puskás Ferenc Stadium
I just read that the Amazon Kindle will be available in Hungary within a few weeks. Great news, at least I think so. It will not really be available in Hungary, as you will have to order it from Amazon.com, but if you order it from there, you will be able to order books, read books and use it in Hungary. It will be released October 19.
Books will in the start only be available in English, but for the happy people reading this article that shouldnt cause any problems. The price for the Amazon Kindle is 279 Amazon Kindle, and if you add the tax etc. to that you will end up around 60,000 Forints. If you first have the Amazon Kindle, the books will cost around 1000 Forints to download.
You want to check it out? Go to Amazon.com and order it today! (they will only ship it as it is released October 19, though).
But here is my question… Can it be nice to read a book from a screen? I would really like to try, because I am curious. But, holding a monitor as I read… it sounds so uncomfortable to me. Reading on the metro? Reading on the beach? I am not sure. Anyone tried such a thing before? I would love to hear some comments concerning this from people with experience.
