Built 236 years ago, a former silk-winding factory in Óbuda seems an unlikely destination for two of Budapest’s most contemporary venues, craft-beer experts Neked Csak Dezső and street-food specialists TöLTő, to open a new venture. Yet it provides the perfect setting for this summer’s Selyemgombolyító Gourmet Garden, where you can sip Hara'Punk Happy Sour and devour a paprika-infused hot dog a short walk from the Danube in tranquil Óbuda.
A former silk-winding factory on Miklós tér in Óbuda has a very colourful history in more ways than one. The building once functioned as a tavern, serving the sailors stationed at the former Óbuda Marine Barracks directly opposite.
No wonder, then, that legendary Hungarian director Károly Makk used the old factory as the film set for his 1977 comedy A Very Moral Night, involving women working at a bordello, Hungary's entry at Cannes the following year.
Hidden behind the long row of residential blocks lining Szentendrei út, this green mini-oasis has its own atmosphere, a place where you can find shade, screens, small-scale concerts, small-batch beer, an ever-expanding range of street food and a wine bar called Kabar Kert. This is the showcase for the Tokaj Holdvölgy winery and its own branded labels, along with those of other sought-after producers.
Pride of place goes to the brews of Neked Csak Dezső and superior snacks by TöLTő.
Of the tap beers,
alongside the basic Neked Csak lager (HUF 490/HUF 890),
you can also select Hara'Punk Happy Sour fermented with brettanomyces yeast, refreshing Berliner
Weiße (HUF 750/HUF 1,390), Mad Scientist’s grapefruity Frooth Hoperator (HUF 790/HUF 1,490)
and elegant Jam 72 standard IPA (HUF 690/HUF 1,290), and Brew Your Mind’s MindHack,
kicking at 7.5%. More will follow soon.
Neked Csak even have their own burger (beef, cheddar, bacon jam, BBQ sauce, pickled red onion, cucumber and lettuce, HUF 2,590) in a top-quality bun. TöLTő’s renowned hot dogs also feature, of course, most notably the paprika-spiced sausage in a homemade bun, with smoked paprika cabbage, Dijon mustard sauce, pearl onions, pickled cucumber, lettuce and fried onion.
As a destination, it cannot be gainsaid, with a children’s playground to one side as you enter, and other features planned.
Selyemgombolyító
Gourmet Garden
District III. Miklós tér 1
Current opening hours: Mon-Thur 4pm-11pm, Fri 4pm-1am, Sat noon-1am, Sun noon-11pm
Bus 9/34 to Raktár utca
