"Cuisine: The more upmarket sister of Remiz serves high-end Hungarian with continental touches and vice-versa, with plenty of culinary surprises along the way.Atmosphere:
Tucked away in the depths of Óbuda, it is quite a shock to walk into such an elegant bastion of early-20th century charm with its antique furniture and lace tablecloths. Special touches include a suggestive ceiling fresco and panels of old furniture lining the walls. A piano player tinkling the ivories in the appropriately named Pianino room features in the evening, enhancing the pre-war ambience, although the feel is also spot-on for an extended lunch. The hand-wound decanting device used to enable our 1999 Malatinszky Cabernet Sauvignon to get some air added to the charm.
Whom to take:
The “Pearl of Little Buda” is good for basically anybody you’re looking to impress from business guests to friends, family, would-be girlfriends and mistresses.
But how would it fare for one of our guests who’s a pescatarian, i.e. a fish-eating vegetarian, given that Hungary is not especially known for the quality of its fish? Or is it?
What we ate:
The house specialty starter of Mini doughnuts with red caviar and truffle cream came rustic and hearty Hungarian-style until spruced up by a cosmopolitan flavour burst via the salmon caviar making for very tasty twist. The subtly textured and flavorsome cream of forest mushroom soup was finished off by a sizzling rasher of bacon, while the Italian garlic soup was delicate and not at all overpowering.
Our carnivore guest was impressed by the rich Hungo Italian crossover of Goose liver Risotto and described the Magyar goose liver as having more bite than foie grois. Our pescatarian friend really enjoyed the Crispy catfish and spicy pasta with truffles.
The tagliatelli was freshly made and the spiciness from the sauce built nicely rather than dumbing the senses, and ironically the catfish, in light batter, tasted just a bit like meat but nevertheless made for an enjoyable meal.
The lean and tender Venison steak was Hungarian game at its best and it went well with the sweet combo of cranberry and fruits as well as wafer-coated mushrooms. Presentation was a feature throughout; not over the top intricate with more care put into how it looks than how it tastes, but colourful and enticing.
The service was old-style charming throughout and the sommelier certainly knew his stuff.
For desserts, the light and refreshing Lemon Sorbet cleared the palate nicely while the Créme Brulée also hit the spot. The somewhat savoury and herby house specialty of Crispy fried pasta with curd cheese, cinnamon and a touch of rosemary is good for someone looking for something completely different when it comes to dessert.
This all came to a bit over Ft 50,000, which given the high quality of food and wine, including a bottle of dry white, a big red and Tokaji Aszú, had our British guests remarking that this is very good value when compared to a similar level establishment in the UK.
This was a memorable lunch."
Kisbuda Gyöngye
Kenyeres utca 34, District 3
Phone: 368 6402
Open: Mon to Sat noon - midnight
Source: Budapest Bussiness Journal
14.05.2008