Since 1952, the old-fashioned Jégbüfé confectionery stood at downtown Pest’s Ferenciek Square, serving scrumptious sweets throughout most of Hungary’s communist era and beyond... but this Saturday is the last time when we can stop in to order a coffee and slice of cake, and enjoy it in a window-side seat while watching passing people board the bus, or stare back through the glass at our treat. According to Hungarian news portal Origo.hu, Jégbüfé is closing after August 29th to make way for extensive renovations to Párisi Udvar, the historic shopping arcade that houses this retro patisserie.
Because of the major refurbishments that will simultaneously transform and preserve the entire building, August 29th is the final day for not only Jégbüfé, but all of the other stores that currently occupy the Párisi Udvar. However, before they close, Jégbüfé is thanking its longtime regulars with reduced prices and special treats – and fortunately, a second location of Jégbüfé recently opened in Buda on Fény Street, where all of the products that could be found at the original site will be available. Still, we will miss this first Jégbüfé patisserie– generations of Budapest residents met here or in front of the shop, and went on to create innumerable memories that shaped countless lives and families.
Párisi Udvar is being renovated by the Mellow Mood Group, a Budapest-based company with an impressive track record of reviving several of the city’s historic buildings to create modern hospitality facilities, such as the five-star Buddha-Bar Hotel in the Klotild Palace (also located at Ferenciek Square); Mellow Mood plans to spend almost 12 billion forints on this refurbishment. Párisi Udvar is a long-neglected architectural treasure of downtown Pest, and we are glad to see that it will be restored to its original glory to house deluxe apartments, event venues, and new restaurants... but the loss of Jégbüfé certainly makes this a bittersweet development for fans of this classic Budapest confectionery.
