We stumbled upon a sweet surprise along Budapest’s beloved Váci Street, where the price-value ratio of restaurants is usually questionable at best. This prominent shopping street is not known for being lined with high-quality eateries and bistros, however, somebody fortunately recognized the need for a truly tempting dining destination here, and filled this niche with Vednetta, a laid-back and excellent Italian eatery. Its executive chef is Kriszitán Hadzsala, so we were really excited to pop in for a meal, and we left pleasantly satisfied.
There are not too many people who don’t like Italian cuisine; after all, we are talking about the best-known and most popular nation for gastronomy. It does not exactly fit into the sophisticated trend that is nowadays set by French, Asian, Basque, and Scandinavian cuisine, but this is just another reason why so many people love it. A palatable pizza or a nice pasta is always a delight. We often think that as long as the ingredients are high-quality, nothing can go wrong; however, we tried mediocre-or-worse meals made of excellent ingredients both in Italy and in Hungary before. And even though there are a handful of trustworthy Italian eateries around Budapest, there is always room for a new one.
When we found out that some of the owners of Vendetta are the same people behind Robinson Restaurant – which has been a top Budapest eatery since 1989 – we suspected that what we would find here would be high-quality ingredients and huge expertise. Eating at the lakeside eatery in City Park is always a pleasant experience, especially because it has recently been thoroughly renovated; they now lay more emphasis on steaks and Mediterranean tastes, and they are in a really strong position with chef Krisztián Hadzsala. Hence, it was an obvious choice to use Krisztián’s expertise, ideas, and creativity for an Italian little brother, Vendetta, and that is how he became the executive chef here.
The interior is young, enhanced with Edison light bulbs and trendy decorative design elements. There is no trattoria-feel here, which we don’t really mind, if we get original and authentic flavors. The ambience is truly atmospheric, and is also enhanced with a “winter garden” that is, a heatable terrace that also has a removable roof that merges with the tables on the street front when the weather is nice. They also do not annoy passersby with hostesses who push a sticky laminated menu in our hands when walking down the street, unlike many of Vendetta’s neighbors. Instead, the kitchen aromas entice everyone inside; there are always quite a few people eating here, and feedback about Vendetta is always positive. There are a few chefs depicted on the walls, which might seem slightly strange at a glance, but they could also easily be on the covers of GQ or Esquire.
We visited Vendetta just before they changed to the summer menu, so we tried to focus on permanent offers such as bruschetta, which is served more like sandwiches than toast here. These are truly filling starters, and we even fell into our own trap devouring the bruschettas filled with mascarpone, marinated shrimp, lemon, sweet cumin, apple, and coriander, or stuffed with San Daniele ham cream, date, and tomato ragout like there was no tomorrow. These are truly fantastic bites for a starter.
We didn’t try any soups, salads, or meat-based dishes, because when it comes to an Italian place, we prefer focusing on their pizzas, pastas, and risottos. They have a classic version of all meals; we can always order an arrabbiata, as well as a carbonara. We are often critical about risotto, but fortunately they aced it here, as the saffron rice served with garlic-flavored prawn was delicious. We also tried a nice homemade strozzapreti with salmon and peas – it is beautifully colored, comes in a huge portion, and is way better than most pastas. Their pizzas quickly made it on our top-ten list that includes restaurants as well as street-food spots. The dough is paper-thin with a crispy edge, and packed with just enough fresh toppings. The tomato sauce is not slightly sweet, and our spinach-ricotta pizza had creamy ricotta and baby spinach on it. Our favorite dessert was the tiramisu, which is truly creamy. The price of pizzas and pastas start at 2,500 forints – a quite reasonable price for Váci Street, considering how many rip-off joints are found nearby.
All in all, if you take a stroll down Váci Street, we highly recommend stopping into Vendetta. The service is friendly, the tastes are flavorful, and the portions are large – bravo!
