get a nightlife
Kert Watch: Dürer Kert May Be The Next Great Thing
It's been some time since I have been impressed with a new kert or really liked one, such as Szimpla Kert before the tourists mobbed it or the old old (but not that old) West Balkán that was located just behind the Corvin Theater, or the sorely missed Rácz Kert. I may have found my deliverance.
Going on a tip, I went to check out the recently opened, (as in less than a month ago), Dürer Kert located where else, but on Ajtósi Dürer sor across from the Városliget (City Park). The partial bicycle with neon green lights above the door is the easy to find marker, and it's just next to the 74 trolly stop.
With a white pebbled beer garden surrounded by buildings from Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) and with trees among the tables, the place was immediately inviting, if a little empty. In all fairness, it was a weeknight, and word hasn't had much time to spread yet about this place, although the friendly bartender invited us to come back on a weekend when he says things get packed and they have concerts.
Perhaps one of the advantages that the Dürer Kert will have is that it's not affiliated with any other drinking establishment, meaning there won't be a franchise "been there done that" feel to it. The music was varied but of a chilled-out variety, and amazingly at the right volume where it's easily audible but you don't need to scream to your friends. There was also a hot dog stand at one end of the garden, as well as table tennis and pétanque, with a foosball table located inside.
When we asked the bartender about how long they plan on remaining open, he stated that the garden area will remain open as long as weather permits, but that the inside part will remain open year round. And speaking of the inside area, which at first looks deceptively small: if you turn left, you'll find yourself in a large lounge area with a somewhat quirky but not trying too hard decorative theme. Also, this place had the cleanest toilets of any Budapest drinking establishment I've come across.
The beer, which came in glasses instead of those flimsy cups, is as follows: Ft 370 (€1.55) for Soproni, Ft 410 (€1.70) for Arany Fácán, Ft 540 (€2.30) for Heineken, and Ft 570 (€2.40) for Edelweiss. The only negative was that public transport links aren't the best after 11pm, but I'll gladly walk a bit further to go here.
As an addendum, the friend I visited with went back on a weekend and said the place was packed with mostly 1st and 2nd year university students with really loud music, and it wasn't enjoyable like the first time she'd gone. Perhaps the place has yet to find its audience, or it has a split personality between weeknights and weekends. If it sticks to more of the laid back atmosphere of the weeknights, Dürer Kert definitely has the potential to be the next great drinking establishment we've been waiting for.
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COMMENT!Speking of clean toilets, try Fecske above Császár-Komjádi uszoda. The place is great, the lemonade is superb and the toilets are the best in the city. They do hamburgers too, although I wouldn't say they would win the Budapest Burgerwar.
I have an idea to keep this place from being ruined, keep your colleagues from mentioning them in articles found in in-flight magazines!
I was absolutely shocked to see Budapest institution Kadar etterem in the Wizz Air flight magazine. The place has like 3 tables and you're broadcasting to every tourist that its a great place to eat. What were you thinking!
@Wilbur - you are so right! the should keep all the good stuff secret and just publish stories of places nobody wants to go! Oh - sorry - funzine already does that.
Funzine is still a local mag and doesn't wind up in the hand of every lad over for a piss-up weekend. There is a pretty big gap between keeping thing quiet and broadcasting them with a megaphone don't you think?
I don't know the readership numbers and demographic of Pestiside, but what's more likely, that a lad over for a piss-up weekend carries a laptop or picks up a free mag lying around at every hotel, shop and restaurant?
oh yes- I am going to keep this great new place a secret and not tell anybody. I will be the only one who knows - because there might be less for me if the word gets out. But wait - it closed! Though they weren't making make money, I was sure my personal love and enthusiasm was enough to sustain them. Cruel world.
Hey Soy, that's pretty much the attitude of the whole country. People are rude? The streets are paved with dog shit? Bars rip you off? Ticket controllers are intellectually challenged orks targeting tourists? Well, if tourists don't like it, they can go somewhere else, we're better then anyone else and happy in our own little club. Foreigners are loud and annoying anyway. Sorry if that's slightly off, carrying a peeve from another blog.
I have seen the error of my way. You are absolutely correct, not only should we publicise tiny local restaurants and pubs, we should actively search out new ways to entice the locust swarms of Brits help us enhance our city they way they have been across Spain, France, Greece, Turkey, etc. Television spots on channel 4, during Coronation Street, or in the Sun. Welcome to Prague II
No - it is Soy himself who is mistaken. I was just at Kadar - and the place was a battle zone. Russian tourists invading the table a nearby Georgian one; a deathly chill between some North and South Koreans at an adjoining table; Americans putting there fingers in everybody's pite. Don't people know there are quiet, polite, knowing locals who are waiting to get in? Can we not get Open Society to fund these poor (but in the know) people?
Because being a Prague II would be truly catastrophic (not that Budapest wasn't meant to be a Vienna II in the first place). Clean streets, a historic city centre fully an faithfully restored, some modern architectural landmarks, wide boulevards lined by luxury shops and a variety of tasty local beers...how could we ever live with that?! And I'm sure Mr Kadar is crying all the way to the bank because of his new found popularity. Maybe he'll invest in some fabric tablecloths and stay open for more than an hour a day. Ruined, absolutely ruined.
I'm sorry - I just find it preposterous that you people propose punishing a good place to eat by withholding publicity. It is that kind of backward attitude that makes me think some of us should take a vacation (oh - but not on Whiz Air, mind you - though if we do, and happen to read about a good spot to eat in their magazine, we won't go there out of respect to the expat community there). And believe me - Prague didn't get to be "Prague" because of their secret hidden culinary scene.
Yes: let's sanction food writers for writing about food.
It's great to see people are reading Wizzit, or at least thinking about travel magazines. This also means some are flying the airline, which has gotten a lot of flack. Two things to keep in mind, then: one, the in flight magazine is published by Ink Publications, so the customer service departments are unrelated. Second, unlike some publications, writers for this mag do not recommend places as a form of paid advertising. Many of us fly on the cheap while others read travel magazines for entertainment or planning: who doesn't want an upbeat article that includes honest, value-added advice from a local?
Wow Monika, this doesn't sound like an upbeat, honest, value-added advice to read Ink publications at all. Just yesterday I heard on the radio that one airline is gonna discontinue inflight magazines to reduce weight and cut down on fuel costs. I suppose it's the sick bags that will go next. The bottom line is, no one reads these mags for any other reason than utter boredom. Maybe on Wizzair they really do, as you're likely to be parked on the tarmac for 5 hours.
Monika, I get that they are not paid advertising pieces and you were giving honest opinions of our city, I just challenge the wisdom of pointing out to the thousands of people who may actually read the magazine a city gem like Kadar, send them to Liszt Ferenc ter or whatever...places that actually might be able to handle the influx of business. Don't you have a local pub that you like going to, a place that has a nice atmosphere and good clientele; would you put that in a Wizzair magazine?
Soy Bomb---Get some reading comprehension skills, the voices in your head much be getting too noisy. Do you even know the restaurant even being discussed? My guess is that you have never been there or else you would know there is always a wait. Stick to your Burger King.
I am sorry - the internet is intended for close reading? Now Wilbur, I will bow out - never let it be said that I got personal. Enjoy your meal!
the funny thing is that Dürer Kert is massive and the owners are desperate to get lots of people in (esp as they were forced to open late because of red tape) so this idea of keeping it a secret would destroy them. Also, as Funzine already wrote a whole page about them about a month ago (I think) an article on this site wouldn't make much difference...
guys...you should check out Mumusz ( not sure about the correct spelling) in dob utca...a new great mini kert in Budapest...it's a secret Szimpla...open since 2 weeks...btw...Durer Kert is a great location!
I think people read those articles to get a handle on the place they are - or might be - visiting, rather than follow it to the letter. Most visitors will find a restaurant or bar to eat or drink at random (probably on Liszt Ferenc tér), through paid advertising in their hotels, etc., but only the truly dedicated will track down somewhere like Kádár. Perhaps the idea of recommending a place like it is to encourage tourists to be a little more adventurous and look for genuine Hungarian experiences - which are paradoxically few and far between in Bp. It might also encourage Budapesters to overcome their snobbery and open more places like it if they see lines around the block at Kádár. Of course, I take your various points, but believe in the importance of promoting the "Budapest experience" over protecting "expat exclusivity". Adrian - co writer of Buda vs. Pest WizzIt piece (Buda side).
