1/7
I3I
The newest member of the Anker-Anker’t family, I3I on Kazinczy Street is known less for its wild parties and more for being a perfect place to grab lunch or a glass of wine with friends (though it’s worth mentioning that they recently also started hosting lively open-mic nights on Tuesdays). Offering an excellent lunch menu with exceptionally versatile dishes, this bar has one of the best dip selections in town: served in a woven basket, the “platter” includes tortilla wedges, fries, and chopped vegetables (celery, cucumber, and carrot), as well as three dips (salsa, cheddar cream, and eggplant cream). The sizeable portion is big enough for two, or maybe even three if you and your buddies aren’t particularly ravenous.
Sauces: cheese cream, eggplant cream, salsa
Finger food: tortilla, fries, vegetables
Price: 1,210 HUF
I3I - Három (Three) (closed)
Address: 1075 Budapest, 3 Kazinczy Street
2/7
Mazel Tov
Sited on bustling Akácfa Street, the stylish indoor courtyard of Mazel Tov exudes perpetual summer vibes. If this wonderful realm of Israeli cuisine is your first stop for a night on the town, you’ll probably want something to eat right away, and the assortment of dips served here is a good place to start. The first item on the menu is the “tahini dip”, which comes with pita bread and three kinds of tahini (white, pink, and green), colored with vibrant beetroot and various herbs. You can also order a bunch of za’atar sticks: somewhat firmer than regular pita bread and seasoned with Middle Eastern za’atar spice, these savory bites are best enjoyed with hummus, salsa, or tahini. If you feel like noshing on something less exotic, go for the tomato dip with homemade chips instead.
Sauces: hummus, tahini, salsa
Finger food: pita bread
Price: tahini dip – 1,290 HUF, chips – 990 HUF + 300 HUF per sauce
3/7
Apropó
While Apropó in downtown Budapest is perhaps best known as a first-rate wine bar, we think it should also be famous for its top-notch dips. Right from the get-go, this bar was going to take gastronomy much more seriously than other representatives of the genre by serving carefully prepared seasonal tapas and creamy spreads, to name but a few of their culinary creations. We sampled four different snacks: the eggplant cream, the duck rillettes, the pumpkin cream, and the salmon tartare, all of which come with fresh homemade bread. With spring just around the corner, the menu is expected to go through a slight revamp soon: the details are unclear as of yet, but egg cream, beetroot, and a combination of olives and goat cheese are all likely additions. Making use of our hosts’ expertise, we also found out which wines go best with the dips: the eggplant cream is ideally paired with a spicy white or a light Kadarka, the salmon tartare with a full rosé, the duck rillettes with a strong Pinot, and the pumpkin cream with a full-bodied Chardonnay.
Sauces: eggplant cream, pumpkin cream, salmon tartare, duck rillettes
Finger food: fresh homemade bread
Price: 1,090-1,490 HUF
4/7
Baalbek Lebanese Restaurant (Closed)
Serving authentic Arabic gastronomy, the Baalbek Lebanese restaurant is found in Budapest’s majestic Klotild Palace, which is also home to the five-star Buddha-Bar Hotel. The selection of characteristically Middle Eastern dishes prepared in line with the halal method is dominated by fresh, crisp vegetables, dips, and the flavor combination of sweet and savory. There are plenty of excellent starters on the menu, including classic hummus that (fortunately) hasn’t been altered to suit European tastebuds, moutabel, a kind of eggplant cream with tahini, and garlic mayonnaise – all of them offered with flavorful Lebanese pita bread. Hookahs are also provided to make the Middle Eastern atmosphere complete.
Sauces: hummus, eggplant cream, tahini, garlic mayonnaise
Finger food: Lebanese pita
Price: 1,200 forints
5/7
Café Ponyvaregény
Tucked away on a side street near Buda’s central Móricz Zsigmond Square, Ponyvaregény is a cozy downtown den that’s all about bringing people together with coffee and awesome board games. Situated on Bercsényi Street, the café has a so-called “gossip platter” to offer as a lovely accompaniment to friendly chat sessions. The primary selection features three kinds of sauce (spicy Balkan ajvar, cheddar cream, and eggplant cream) with three different finger foods to dip with (toast, nachos, and fresh vegetables).
Sauces: ajvar, cheddar cream, eggplant cream
Finger food: toast, vegetables
Price: 1,890 HUF
Address: Budapest 1111, Bercsényi Street 5
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6/7
Fresco
Liszt Ferenc Square’s Fresco café is perhaps slightly more popular among tourists than local residents, but this doesn’t change the fact that it’s a must for dip lovers. The two options found on the menu only differ in terms of the “side dish”: one comes with pita bread, the other with vegetables, and both of them include three sauces, namely eggplant cream, cheddar cheese, and sweet-pea cream. To our surprise, our order had a cheese sauce with green herbs instead of the promised pea cream, but once we sank our teeth into the fresh pita and the huge portion of healthy vegetables, we didn’t feel like there was anything missing at all.
Sauces: eggplant cream, cheddar-cheese cream, sweet-pea cream, cheese cream with green herbs
Finger food: pita, vegetables
Price: 2,250 HUF + service charge
Address: 1061 Budapest, Liszt Ferenc Square 10
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Mártogatós Szósz Bistro
As a catering business popping up at various locations around Budapest from time to time, Mártogatós Szósz Bistro (Hungarian for “dipping sauce”) is determined to convince its guests that dip-style dishes do not necessarily have to belong to the starter category. The menus they put together for a wide variety of events are designed to stand on their own, without any sort of “main dish”. Their sauces and dips are gluten- and sugar-free, and some of them are sweet, which is pretty much impossible to find anywhere else in Budapest. They say they’ll open a permanent eatery as soon as they have the necessary experience.
Sauces: personalized
Finger food: personalized
Price: varies
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