Budapest Burgerwar: The Hungry Samurai

Having bowed down to the superior burger knowledge of Wilbur Mercer in the forum, I followed his recommendation and trooped off to Buda’s Éhes Samurai to find out if it really is the best burger in town. The Hungry Samurai definitely falls into the budget/fast food category (rather than the “I’m-an-American-and-I-want-to-go-home” niche), and based on what we already know about the competition on the budget front of the Budapest Burgerwar™, we are inclined to believe him even before we have taken our first bite. Even so, we were pleasantly surprised by the Samurai’s excellent understanding of the concept of value for money, especially as the restaurant had inherited cleanliness and polite service from its previous incarnations as a Chinese and, before that, Japanese restaurant.

A menu of a “Samurai Burger”, a half-liter bottle from the Coca-Cola range and healthy portion of fries or wedges (highly recommended) was brought to our table for just over Ft 1,000 (€4), which makes Wikinger look positively pricey.

The “Samurai Burger” is a fairly standard burger, but with glazed onions and chicken liver for added flavor – and, crucially, without unnecessary extras like eggs and mushrooms that might overpower the main ingredients. (Admittedly, the rest of the menu is littered with extravagant burgers filled with un-American burger components like salmon and shrimp). For one thing, the lack of excessive stuffing allows the flavor of the meat to come through, and results in an altogether less messy dining experience. The sturdy, glazed “puffancs” (yet another Hungarian word for “bun”) helps keep things together – although burger traditionalists will no doubt be unimpressed with its tougher, bread-like consistency – while the fresh salad and giant lettuce leaf prevents excessive seepage and slippage. Ease-of-use is a quality often overlooked when it comes to burgers.

All these practical touches allow us to focus on the action. The meat. The patty was large, of pretty good quality, and showed healthy traces of pink. This is exactly what we would have asked for, had we been asked, which, of course, we weren’t. The onions and liver were also worthy additions.

In its class, the Samurai serves a pretty good burger, especially if you are on a budget and in a rush – and it definitely carves up its rather lackluster competition. The ingredients achieve harmony, but burger gourmets (perhaps the ultimate oxymoron) should beware: For the Samurai follows the Hungarian code of burger-making, and therefore lacks a fluffy, American-style bun, deliciously gelatinous sauces and an unquantifiable “secret blend of spices.” But when a Hungarian restaurant named after the Japanese warrior class serves up American fast food in a Chinese restaurant, that shouldn’t come as a surprise.

How They Stack Up:

Meat: (8/10)
Bun: (7/10)
Trimmings: (10/10)
Service/Setting: (7/10
Affordability: (10/10)
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Total Score: 8.4/10