Madách Square became one of Budapest’s strategically significant nightlife spots lately, lining up popular hipster hangouts like Beszálló, Központ, My Little Melbourne, PIÑA, and IGEN. The latter is widely praised for its authentic Neapolitan pizza slices, topped with potato and rosemary instead of corn or pineapple chunks. Riding high on this success, IGEN’s owners decided to mess around with French cuisine as well, and opened a crêperie just a few doors down the sidewalk with sweet and savory French pancakes, and interior design by architect Vidó Nóri, who is also responsible for IGEN’s stylish interior.
Krampuz has its kitchen on the ground floor, with seats on a gallery that we can reach by climbing a sleek spiral staircase. A tiny sink is placed “halfway” up to the dining area, offering guests an opportunity to wash their hands on their way out – a nice gesture that most street-food spots tend to forget.
In addition to wooden surfaces, gray and yellow dominate the interior space, as well as numerous live plants, creating a minimalistic but welcoming atmosphere. The service is fast and flexible: we could cut into the sweet and savory pancakes of the crêperie with a golden fork and knife within ten minutes of ordering. You read that right – at Krampuz, the cutlery is golden and the plates resemble thin, peculiar slabs of concrete, embracing modern design. The salty galette bretonne and the sweetcrêpe are served with different plates that conform to the pancakes’ unique shapes.
We contemplated tasting the galette compléte (1,800 HUF), filled with cheese, ham, and a fried egg, but instead decided to try the galette “pomme de terre” in the end, which is filled with French Comté cheese, Emmental cheese, diced potato, caramelized onion, bacon, and dijon cream sauce, and served with a tiny bowl of salad. The sweet-and-savory pancake, made from (gluten-free) buckwheat flour, is thin and subtle in flavor, securely embracing its fillings. The initial menu lists galette bretonne filled with green asparagus and goat cheese, mushroom cream, Roquefort, and pear and salmon, as well.
The crêpe, or sweet French pancake, is similarly excellent at
Krampuz: thin and silky, with slightly crisp edges and served with toppings instead of fillings, folded elegantly onto the eccentric plate. We tasted one with salted caramel (650 HUF) and banana (+150 HUF). Fortunately, the crêpe doesn’t just look and taste good, but due to the large portion, it’s also rather filling.
As for drinks, we can choose from craft beer by Hedon and a great selection of wines, as well as ciders and some French spirits. While we still have to warm up to the galette bretonne, we recommend having a silky-smooth crêpe for breakfast – or for a late-night snack, as from Tuesday to Saturday, Krampuz is open until midnight.
Krampuz
Address: Budapest 1075, Madách Imre Street 5
Opening hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 9am - midnight; Sunday, 9am - 10pm
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