How does a cosy downtown Budapest bistro offer traditional Jewish barches cake alongside burgers, beef stew and chicken wings? Because Ákos, creator of the Falk 5 Bistro, loves them all. We visit the venue where traditional Jewish sólet stew is based on an old family recipe from 1932, paired with kosher red wine. We also enjoyed the juicy beef ribs and delicious flódni cake at this classy, American-Jewish-Hungarian bistro offering kosher-based delights within easy reach of Parliament.
During his travels around New York and Israel, Ákos worked extensively in American and Middle-Eastern Jewish cuisine, before gained further experience. The story goes that he acted as emergency chef alongside his great-grandmother in the kitchen. Although Ákos has since graduated from other universities, he has been cooking ever since, and as a gourmet tourist he has doing culinary research in many countries. This is how his clear ideas about good gastronomy have evolved, something that visitors can measure from his own kitchen.
He does not wish to make too many dishes, just those that he himself would love to eat. This love is embodied in Falk 5 Bistro. Or rather passion, as Ákos puts it. Joining him on the project is Balázs Mike, who came home from England to become a chef in Budapest. Together, they created the menu, combining three types of cuisine, with items that are not otherwise or scarcely found elsewhere in this form, and at surprisingly fair prices.
You can come for breakfast, lunch or dinner, and enjoy Jewish-American-Hungarian ingredients thrown together in a thrilling mix such as for the Reuben sandwich (990 HUF), chicken soup with matzah balls (990 HUF), sólet stew with pearl barley and smoked duck breast (1,990 HUF) or steamed side of beef (2,290 HUF). Having sampled them, we can testify that you won’t find much better in the whole city. The sólet recipe is from 1932 and, like many other dishes here, requires long hours of preparation in the oven. Vegetarians may also request for it to be made with eggs, a similarly creamy, smoky repast, alongside salty barches cake on a pretty plate.
The side of beef melts in the mouth, tasty and substantial, winningly paired with onion sauce. The burger is a pleasant surprise, its bun a sweetish and kosher brioche, milk-free so the dough feels much lighter. Meats are given a kick with Jamaica jerk spices. The vegetarian version comes with a scone of beans and mushrooms, with avocado thrown in.
Don’t miss out on dessert, a choice of cheesecake, brownie, flódni or dumplings, the brownie arriving warm and soft inside, with ice cream, the flódni (590 Ft) so filling it could even serve as a main course.
Although the place itself is not out and out kosher, bread, pastries and drinks (including pomegranate juice, forest fruit lemonade and wine) follow most mainly kosher principles. The ingredients are carefully selected, separate types of dairy products and meats are used, so even if the guest is not of any particular religion, at least they can rely on eating healthily.
You’ll find the place near Parliament at the beginning of Falk Miksa utca, a large falcon indicating the entrance.
Falk 5 Bistro District V, Falk Miksa utca 5
Open: Mon-Fri 8am-6pm
