More Musts
New York Café – a luxury rendezvous
Originally opened in 1894 and soon the epitome of a literary café, it thrived under a series of owners. After a no-compromise renovation it reopened in 2006 as a part of a luxury Italian hotel. In these glitzy surroundings it is a unique experience to hold your partner’s hand, gaze at the erotic ceiling frescos and muse on ‘the Good Old Days’.
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Address: VII. Erzsébet körút 9-11.
Web: Vll. Erzsébet tér 9-11.
Manna EUthentic Lounge
A unique and romantic conception: a swish glass pavilion, built on the way to the Buda Castle. It is called ‘EUthentic’ as a reference to its mix of three cuisines: French, Italian and Hungarian. Here you can also enjoy music and films from these countries. There is a very wide selection of wines. An ideal, romantic, adventurous venue for dinners.
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Address: I. Palota út 17.
Web: http://www.mannalounge.com
WestEnd City Center, roof garden
A huge shopping centre, completed in 2000 on formerly disused railway land, behind Nyugati (‘Western’) Station. The roof garden is a green spot with benches and some public art. Through some windows you can peep inside at the hundreds of shoppers looking for something – for example an engagement ring – in the more than four hundred shops. Take a walk on the roof garden after a late-night movie.
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Address: VI. Váci út 1-3.
Web: http://www.westend.hu
Első Pesti Rétesház – sweets for your sweet
This place in the city centre is a blend of trendy and traditional Hungary which is never boring. Everything here is related to the strudel: a confection rolled from ultra-thin pastry. You see it being made, and can even try your hand at making it yourself. There is an elegant area, a café area and a homely, provincial peasant-style area. Apart from soups, all menu items include strudel – in sweet, sour or bitter versions. Ideal for dates and quiet meetings, or reunions with long lost aunts and uncles.
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Address: V. Október 6. utca 22.
Web: http://www.reteshaz.com
A view of Buda and Pest from the same place
Many visitors only see the Pest panorama when visiting Buda Castle. The obvious viewpoint is The Fisherman’s Bastion, a late 19th century array of towers and battlements overlooking Pest. Late in the evening this is a traditional venue for first kisses. Real travellers, though, take heed of their guidebooks and walk along a back lane, named after the early 20th-century poet Árpád Tóth. From this quiet part of the city you can see the Buda Hills: ‘Where the spirit of the city withdrew to’, as an architect-writer said in the 1960s.
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Address: I. Budai Vár
Danube cruise, from Vigadó tér
There is a wide choice of cruises, most of which leave from Vigadó tér in Pest, between the Elisabeth and Chain bridges. The best ones leave early in the evening, when you can see the lights of Budapest switched on to rival the stars.
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Address: V. Vigadó tér
Web: http://www.legenda.hu
The Panorama Deck of Budapest Cathedral (St Stephen’s Basilica)
Three hundred and two steps lead up to the panorama deck of the Basilica, as this church is known by Budapesters – but if you want to be sure of making it to the top, choose the lift. The city panorama covers 360 degrees. This is a place to share some private moments with your love.
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Address: V. Szent István tér
Web: http://www.basilica.hu
Belcanto – something special for opera fans
A well known theme restaurant, fifty metres from the world’s most beautiful opera house. The waiters, augmented by opera singers, stop and sing an occasional quartet or quintet: the closest thing to going to the opera, if you can’t get a ticket. There is also a menu designed for those in a hurry on their way to a performance.
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Address: VI. Dalszínház utca 8.
Web: http://www.belcanto.hu
Café Callas – to celebrate an anniversary
The café next door to the Opera House has been restored with great care, with no expense spared. Very elegant, very romantic – right in the heart of the city, surrounded by luxury shops and theatres, this is the kind of place where you should pamper your partner, however much it costs.
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Address: VI. Andrássy út 20.
Web: http://www.callascafe.hu
Bagolyvár (‘Owl Castle’) Restaurant
Part of the Gundel complex in the City Park. This rustic building with timber framework reminds the visitor of the zoo buildings next door. A restaurant staffed by women, with traditional cuisine and the ever-present roar of lions.
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Address: XIV. Állatkerti körút 2.
Web: http://www.bagolyvar.com
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