The Budapest Burgerwar™ has recently seen both a disqualification and a non-starter, so it’s nice to report back to HQ with a satisfied grin and a pair of hands still covered in the red stuff. Ketchup that is. The Cha-Cha Bodega is the above-ground, fast-dining arm of the successful Cha-Cha-Cha Terasz, and is ideally located at the exit to Margitsziget to attract drunk locals and naive tourists with substandard, overpriced fare. Except that, refreshingly, it doesn’t – going instead for tasty burgers and gyros.
Like the clubs that spawned it, the Bodega makes the very best out of what it has, and for that, it commands my respect. And after enduring some of the other budget (and non-budget) offerings around Budapest, its easy to see why the Cha-Cha-Cha burger dances away with the third-best combined rating so far. Not only did it cost just Ft 600 (€2.30), but the meat was browned, juicy and with a touch of pink (they didn’t ask how I wanted it), as well as being prepared right there in front of you.
The other ingredients didn’t spoil the party either; they were fresh and got on well, despite the presence of not one but two rival types of cabbage. (There could certainly be worse things lurking inside.) As usual, the bun falls short, but only because it is very slightly sweet in the kalács kind of way lamented in previous posts. Still, this is a minor gripe, because the 3xCha team have even added a pleasant wooded terrace to keep burger-munchers out of the way of the cyclists, joggers and rollerbladers that swarm around the sziget. Unfortunately, even given all this, the CCCBB may also be disqualified, as it is only available during the summer.
How They Stack Up:
Meat: (8/10)
Bun: (6/10)
Trimmings: (8/10)
Service/Setting: (10/10)
Affordability: (9/10)
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Total Score: 8.2/10
