As we reported in the recent past, the reconfigured Párisi Udvar is an architectural wonder and certainly worth a visit even if you’re not a paying guest. Even the illustrious US design magazine Architectural Digest was fulsome in its praise.
We have already patronised the café and tried out its coffee and cakes – now, amid the beautiful stained glass created by the famed workshop of Miksa Róth, we sampled the more substantial gastronomic offerings at the Párisi Passage Café & Brasserie.
The culinary concept has been devised by Örs Csizmadia, whose CV includes illustrious names such as Nobu, the Buddha-Bar and La Fabbrica. The kitchen is headed by executive chef László Papdi, who worked in Switzerland for many years but is better known to local audiences thanks to the TV show Chef of Chefs.
Since the restaurant is located in a showcase hotel and is a major tourist attraction in its own right, the team feels itself duty-bound to highlight the flavours of the Hungarian countryside. And even though goulash is on the menu, this is more about creating modern dishes from top-quality domestic ingredients.
They is no easy matter since the location calls for something light and French – the building was modelled on the Paris design of the early 1900s. And yet… it’s eminently Habsburg. Although the menu has largely met these manifold demands, a champagne bar is also planned, where drinks and a high-quality deli selection will be available for those looking for something other than à la carte or cakes.
The menu is eclectic – you can sense the chef trying to serve different needs. The first appetiser, trout à la parisienne (4,290 HUF) is a seasonal classic offering exciting solutions such as seasonal beetroot with horseradish cream and yuzu granita – although the overall effect could have been a little stronger.
The second appetiser, a house favourite, autumn porcini mushrooms (4,290 HUF), is a more exciting dish: beef Wellington with a layer of forest, porcini and pickled chanterelle mushrooms, with a foam-light savoury sponge devised by a special technique. Brown butter is good for this dish: because of the French approach, this element is used elsewhere, and created with chocolate and blueberry.
Another hit was the Jerusalem artichoke soup (2,990 HUF), autumn the most prominent of its many flavours, a pronounced, dense, creamy soup with rosemary-walnut granola and wasabi, black sesame seeds and pistachio-coated grapes.
Although the champagne bar is yet not ready, you can already sample a few deli treats: serious research preceded the choice of ingredients for the Hungarian cheese and cold cuts platter (3,990 HUF). The four types of cheese – including the stand-out pecorino-like Swabian hard cheese – and four types of meats are all sourced from small domestic producers who take great care over the best quality.
And for an extra 1,000 forints, you can add Tokaj truffle honey to the selection. Speaking of honey, as the building used to be the headquarters of the Downtown Savings Bank, bees featured in its design, and are now displayed on the menu here. Among the many outstanding Hungarian raw ingredients we could name, honey is provided by Dr Honey of Tokaj and Aba Honey, suppliers to Buckingham Palace – look out for the little icon on the list of dishes.
Truffle agnolotti (4,590 HUF) is another real speciality on the menu. Agnolotti dates back to Renaissance-era Tuscany, filled pasta that resembles ravioli, but its technique is much more complicated. Star TV chef Gordon Ramsay even showed it directly to László Papdi. Served with warm celery cheese cream and truffle butter sauce, the pasta is accompanied by sour pumpkin and scalded tomatoes. In short, really filling, winter comfort food.
A to-the-point mangalica steak (5,590 HUF) owes its success, apart from the superb ingredients, to its simplicity. The succulent mangalica chops are complemented by perfectly sweet potato chips, fennel marinated in apple juice and truffle cream cheese.
With the Australian Angus duo (10,990 Ft), elements of the autumn porcini mushrooms make a welcome return: parsley crumbs and pickled chanterelles are served alongside the roast beef and grilled beef cheek.
Desserts (1,990 HUF) centre around honey. Sat on a light poppy-seed sponge, honey mousse and ginger jam is held together with maracuja honey, a great idea but the acidity of the maracuja is not quite strong enough to balance out this otherwise very sweet treat.
The Párisi Passage Café & Brasserie is a restaurant full of possibility, not just for tourists, overseen by an extremely professional team, fusing Paris chic with turn-of-the-century Budapest and contemporary gastronomy.
Párisi Passage Café & Brasserie District V. Ferenciek tere 10
Open: Daily noon-11.30pm (kitchen until 10.30pm)
