Our everyday lives revolve around stuff: we collect things, take them from one apartment to the next, hoard them to no end, or chuck out half our belongings during an intense cleaning session. However, some knickknacks deserve a second chance at life, and can feel new in the hands of a fresh owner. CỮCC, the petite new shop behind Budapest’s Rákóczi Square Market Hall in District VIII, sells “common everyday items and uncommon useless bits”. However, in addition to the charming and sometimes useful stuff, they serve delicious light-roasted coffee.
The fruity smell of MTRM Roast’s Colombian coffee beans saturates the teeny shop, and thus we would categorize the place as a new-wave café, but the owner of CỮCC, Robi Lénárt, rejects this label out of principle. According to him, the kind of high-quality, freshly roasted coffee they serve with careful attention should be fundamental at any café. In addition to espresso, we can also sip on some flat white, V60, hot chocolate, or tea, as well, while surrounded by old and not-so-old stuff. What kind of stuff? Interior-decor pieces, ornate tea sets, mugs, glass bowls, stylish gift boxes, books, and posters – but we also spotted a Star Wars-themed thermos, an elegant wood-and-leather pencil case, and a flat wicker basket (which we promptly snatched for 350 forints).
Robi has worked in may fields, from the hospitality industry to some time in the music scene as a DJ, but he was inspired to open a café intertwined with a flea market during a long stay in Berlin. He’s an amateur barista, but he’s working hard to improve his coffee-concocting skills as soon as possible. We could hardly believe that in the past, an old lady named Aunt Magdi used to live in this ten-square-meter locale; after that, the store was used as a photo lab, and then since October, it provides a home to CỮCC.
Although he has many more trinkets in storage, Robi didn’t want to overcrowd the small café, so we can sit, look around, and recharge our caffeine levels comfortably. The flea-market assortment is changing constantly: you never know when CỮCC will have your next favorite mug, perfectly colored planter, or vintage metal trinket box in store. If you have a few knickknacks of your own that you’re not too attached to anymore, you can also give them a chance for a second life here. CỮCC
Address:
Budapest 1084, Víg Street 22
Opening hours:
Monday-Friday, 9am-6pm; Saturday, 10am-6pm; Sunday: closed
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