We take an appetite-inducing look back at this past weekend’s gathering of Hungary’s top gastro pros, where varied epicurean eateries presented savory samples. The Gourmet Festival was a perfect place to present the most important participants of the Hungarian gastro-scene at a national level – chefs, flavors, and regions – so that visitors could try bites of assorted dining destinations all in the same open-air atmosphere. While the weather could have been better this past weekend, Millenáris Park was still a crowded fairground of fine dining – we take a look back with top-quality photos.
First of all, we have to draw a parallel between summer music festivals and
Gourmet: just like how it’s impossible to attend every concert we’d like to, it was also difficult to visit all locations and taste everything during this weekend. However, we could still taste the special dishes of top restaurants, created specifically for the event, for much cheaper than if we’d try a degustation menu in any of these eateries.
The festival’s greatness lies in the extensive lineup of exhibitors: the restaurants, caterers move on a wide spectrum from the simplest street food of Budapest to rural flavors. Therefore, we decided to give preference to countryside restaurants. We won’t pass judgment and categorize any restaurant to be the “best”, “most beautiful” or “most promising”, just describe where we were and what we tasted.
Bori Mami
We’ve heard of the Gyöngyös-based restaurant before, and not by just chance: Bori Mami (in Hungarian) brought a wonderful menu to the festival, as well. The appetizer of gooseberry, trout and ricotta recalls flavors of the Bükk Mountains, while the Mátra inspired the deer with pine sprout pesto, gnocchi and elderflower. Their idea was to serve game alongside what the animal eats, which resulted in one of the most delicious dishes of the festival. The dessert is fruity and “ratatouille-like”, an also smart, light and pleasant surprise.
Jankovich Kúria
Jankovich Kúria in Rácalmás can be reached in an hour from Budapest, and has one of the most authentic Korean kitchens of the country. The sushi-like kimbap of deer and duck foie gras with wasabi and prawn mousse was refreshingly light yet tasty, and the paprika catfish with shiitake, kimchi, and algae dumplings was also rather popular among the tasters. This was first-rate Korean-Hungarian fusion.
Natura Hill
During our trip to Zebegény, we could already see that Natura Hill is not only exemplary in terms of its sustainable catering and eco-friendly approach, but also in terms of its kitchen. Endre Ruga served up venison-Mangalica “lollipops” with vegetable dip and chips, as well as paprika catfish with dill espuma.
Gusteau Culinary Experience Workshop
The Gusteau Culinary Experience Workshop’s trout seared on the skin, served with pasty-wrapped carp milt, asparagus gazpacho, buckwheat, nettle and smoked sour cream sauce, is a very fresh dish with spring flavors, while their goat vindaloo represented a heavier line. Both are a good choice with a bottle of Szent Tamás wine.
Kreinbacher
In addition to their excellent champagnes, Kreinbacher introduces two other champagne houses: Piper-Heidsieck is a well-known, big brand, while Charles Heidsieck goes on a separate ways as a pioneer house. They collaborated with Arany Kaviár this year, as well, whose caviar tasting with tapioca chips and mango is best accompanied by a limited edition champagne of Kreinbacher, Prestige Brut Magnum 2011.
Rosenstein Restaurant
In the middle of the vocational day, we attended the now 20-year-old Rosenstein Restaurant’s reception, where instead of the foods made specifically for the festival, we could choose from the restaurant’s iconic dishes. All we’d like to say is that the cholent with catfish tripe was an overwhelmingly good pair. Their pavilion follows major trends: after last year’s burger, this festival’s stars are the RosenBAO and the cigar of flódni.
Pierrot, 21, Baltazár, Jamie’s Italian Budapest
The Zsidai Group restaurants were lined up next to each other like a small colony. Our favorite was Pierrot’s surprisingly served dish, cauliflower with miso and crispy fish fins. 21 Hungarian Restaurant came to the Gourmet Festival with wild boar paprika stew, rich with offal. Baltazár’s fried milt is served with spring onion aioli, and even though the dish might sound extreme, it actually has only a very mild fish flavor, and is therefore the perfect choice for beginners. The soon-to-open Jamie’s Italian Budapest prepared with crab arancini.
Blue Fox
In addition to wines, champagne and spirits, we could also taste unusual cocktails at the festival. We always knew that the mixers of Blue Fox Bar are not wary of extreme flavors and pairings, but their latest mixture is definitely the best gig of the festival, with electricity and the scent of pine forests.
Larus
The lineup of Larus wasn’t very surprising – after all, they’re always brilliant. Their shrimp-stuffed salmon with carrot miso sauce was wonderful, and the soft confit wild boar cheeks went well with the goulash sauce, fried buttered noodles and beetroot salad. In terms of dessert, they created something amazing yet again; we could eat a strawberry-rhubarb compote or lemon mousse any time.
