Reading the Entrails of Some Freshly Dead (and Undead) Budapest Restaurants

Once again it’s looking like time for a quick tour of some of the carnage that seems to be building up in Budapest’s local dining scene. As with our last visit to the land of the restaurant dead, the recent closures we’ve clocked are in most cases neither particularly surprising, nor regrettable. Meanwhile, since proprietors of most restaurants that are being closed try to make it seem like their eateries are being renovated rather than shuttered, it’s hard to be sure when something is dead, or just temporarily out of commission. Either way, here are some of the dark spots we’ve noticed around town, and the reasons we think the only critters now eating in them are rats.

Articsóka: When this longtime District VI eatery/nightclub (top photo) emerged from its previous closure back in 2006, we found it so good we plopped it straight on our “Top 33″ list. Alas, it was one of those good things that didn’t last; subsequent visits and reports were not as good, and it started to look as empty as a hollowed out artichoke within a year. Rumor now is that the very lovely garage-like building it sat in will be demolished and turned into a hotel.

Café Miro Grande: The Liszt tér outpost of the veteran Café Miró Vár (bottom pic) never struck us as particularly welcoming, being a warren of little spaces with uncomfortable, modern furniture. It may just be under renovation, but doing this right when the city’s most popular outdoor café row is coming alive seems like pretty bad timing.

Éhes Samurai: We’ve taken so long to re-ignite the Budapest Burgerwar™ that the place in line to win the silver apparently went under. Sucks.

Felszálló Sárkány Vietnámi Étterem: The “Rising Dragon Vietnamese Restaurant” in District IX maybe wasn’t the best place in the world to get Pho Bo (beef noodle soup) or nem (spring rolls), but it’s not like we had many options. Our advice to any local Vietnámi folks who want to try again is to do so somewhere closer to the center, where there are more people likely to say igen to a big plate of crispy nem.

Mirázs Grúz Étterem: We liked this Georgian restaurant when we went, also in late 2006, though we were the only ones in the joint. If done for good, Mirázs will be the second Grúz eatery to open and close in Budapest in recent years. A damn shame.

Tuk-Tuk: We loved the idea of this deliver-only pan-Asian restaurant, but unfortunately for some who ordered the reality was often more like a car-crash. Still, there are far worse things than un-perfect Asian delivered to your doorstep, and we hope that either the owners – who also run the very popular I Love Sushi – fire up the Tuk-Tuck again, or turn the keys over to someone who wants to give it a try.

Meanwhile, over in the Caboodle.hu forums someone recently started a thread devoted to good restaurants that bit the dust, with this post:

Two restaurants I really enjoyed have both bit the dust. One was CREAM Restaurant and Music Pub. The food and service were excellent each time I went with friends. It was a bit pricey, but the quality of the food and decor substantiated the cost. They are gone. Alternatively, on the budget side, I loved Mama Zsofia’s. The food was excellent, the quantity more than satisfying, and the service was top notch. The decor left much to be desired, but the friendliness made up for it. Both were on Dohany in the 7th District and are now just fond memories.

Happily, we can report that Cream Music Café Club (second pic from bottom) actually looks like it will indeed just under renovation – as opposed to “under renovation” – while a sign outside the former Zsóka Mama Vendéglője Etterem (last pic) says that a new Indian restaurant will open there next month.

Know of any other local eateries that seem to have put out the “ZÁRVA” sign for the last time? We’d be happy to hear about it – assuming, of course, they deserved to go bust.