As the gastronomic map of Budapest expands, ever more Italian restaurants have been setting up around the city. Now an old favourite has just reopened. Previously occupying a small outlet on central Madách tér, the popular IGEN pizzeria has moved to a bigger eatery in Buda, where a wider range of southern Italian delights can be served to your table.
“We have been looking for this kind of venue for two years or more,” said IGEN founder Nóri Vidó. “We knew that we had outgrown Madách. We had planned for a certain amount of custom, of course, but in the end we were dealing with ten times more than we bargained for.” IGEN became everyone’s favourite pizza maker, partly because of its speed of delivery, partly because of its quality ingredients – and partly because of its late opening times.
Here on Margit körút, IGEN will be pulling down the shutters around 10pm-11pm – but that’s pretty much the only downside. The new establishment seats more than 50 diners, there’s enough space for a coffee machine, a bigger choice of alcohol than just beer and, most importantly, they can cook six pizzas at a time in larger ovens, with 18 varieties available overall.
Fortunately, you can find some of your favourites such as potato (2,280 HUF) or truffle pizza (2,980 HUF), but now you can sample new varieties such as smoked cheese and tellicherry pepper (2,280 HUF), pizza with soft stuffed burrata cheese (2,980 HUF) or with mortadella, ricotta and pistachio (2,980 HUF). For an extra 300 HUF, these can all be requested with wholegrain or gluten-free dough, and vegans can ask for dairy-free mozzarella.
In addition to the menu, the recipe for the dough has changed. It’s now kept for at least 24 hours at room temperature, making it lighter and more flavoursome, and perfectly matched with a glass of Aperol or Limoncello Spritz, or a Campari and soda. It’s family-friendly too, with a play corner for kids where they can pretend to make and enjoy their own plastic pizza slices.
Desserts (790 HUF) will soon be added to the menu, such as strawberry-Limoncello tiramisu, caprese cake with almond and chocolate, and angioletti, pizza fingers with Nutella fried in plenty of oil.
Adherence to the strict rules on raw materials and production technology means that IGEN is aiming to be the first of its kind in Hungary to receive a certificate of authenticity from the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, the Real Neapolitan Pizza Association.
IGEN fills pretty quickly so it’s worth booking a table to avoid disappointment.
District II. Margit körút 60
Tel: +36 70 355 3054
Open: Mon-Thur, Sun noon-10pm, Fri-Sat noon-11pm
