This small shop is located at the Váci Road side of Katona József Street – it’s far from being extravagant, and is actually very modest. When the weather is nice, people can sit in front of it, and while there are some tables inside, it’s really not overcomplicated, and doesn’t feel crowded. There are some pastries behind the counter – no Basilico location is complete without some emblematic delicacies, and that’s quite all right.
Why organic and bio? Everything is certified, they produce everything. Well, of course, the meat is an exception – until owner Szabolcs Szabadfi decides to invest in some livestock – but it does come from certified producers, and they make everything else themselves, from jam to ketchup. This shows in the flavors, because the freshness and lightness gives a base for it all, which, when it comes to a burger, is an interesting fusion, as normally it would be a heavy food. But this isn’t true at Holy Cow, where the sandwiches are defined by freshness.
And what kind of burgers are we talking about? Not a single one of them is made in the traditional way. The boss dismissed the idea of a simple burger place at the very beginning, and decided that the pastries will define the dishes here.
This means that instead of the classic bun – used by half of Budapest’s restaurants for burgers – the meat, vegetables, and sauces find their home in seedy pretzels, cocoa rolls, piglet-shaped buns, or doughnuts. And it works so well.
The one named Oktoberfest is strong even by its look; it arrives in a pretzel, and the sandwich is stuffed with two Bavarian sausages, sheep-milk cottage cheese, pickled cabbage, corn salad, cheddar sauce, and pomegranate. A pint of beer is the best side for it, and soon they will have some pretty good craft suds on tap and in bottles. Meanwhile, the Piszok disznó (meaning “dirty pig”) arrives with a pork patty filled with Vászolyi cream cheese (1,580 HUF).
Keresztpapi (meaning “godfather”) is a new-wave hot dog spiced up with meatballs, Provolone cheese, basil, and mild tomato sauce (1,480 HUF). The eponymous burger (1,880 HUF) is also not one to dismiss, as it arrives in a cocoa roll filled with eggs, bacon, a juicy beef patty, and Tikkadt Szöcske sauce, which is made from kola nuts.
Dessert also has Holy Cow’s mark on it, at least in its design: in a donut they pile up fior di latte ice cream and fresh figs (980 HUF). It works very well, just like all the unconventional burgers.
Újlipótváros really needed a decent burger place, so this rebellious solution is even better, and we are happy to see that there are people who can still add a twist to this very popular genre.
UPDATE:Holy Cow moved to Szentendre (outskirt of Budapest) in the winter of 2018.
