Desperate Readers in Hunt for Local Lebanese, All-American Fluff

Compared to the dark days of a decade or more ago, Budapest today is an international culinary Disneyland, with restaurants and shops offering cuisines and specialties from every corner of the globe. But not everything! In recent days the following two emails landed in our in-box from local readers trying to find a particular type of food. We’re going to do our best, but if you can think of something more, leave it in a comment, while giving thanks for all the progress that’s been made since the days of “anything you want, as long as it’s got peas, carrots and corn.”

Hello Chew,

I wonder if you can help me to find a Lebanese restaurant in Budapest. I’m a huge fan of sfihas and kibbi dishes and I just can’t find a single Lebanese restaurant in Budapest

Do you know any that you can recommend?

Thanks in advance for any kind of help.

My best regards,

Alexandre

Hello Alexandre:

First of all, we know how you feel, as we love Lebanese, too. But unfortunately, we just don’t think there’s any genuine líbiai libanoni on offer in Budapest, or even much in the way of Arab food. You might try the Al Amir Étterem, a bare-bones but cheerful place near Ferenciek tere that used to have a more famous (and upscale) sister restaurant on Király utca. We actually just went there for lunch today, and confirmed that its owner is Syrian. (Though the guy behind the counter probably wasn’t, as he told us that the okra in our veal stew were green beans.) You also might head over to the Sahara Étterem, which (judging by what’s always on the television when we go) seems to be Egyptian, as well as Nílus Restaurant, which is either Egyptian, or should really change its name. Aside from that, you probably have to head to Vienna, or just hop on a plane to Beirut. Either way, make sure to bring us some back.

Hello Chew,

This might be an odd question, but I just got a sudden craving and I don’t know who else to turn to in this time of crisis. Do you know if it’s possible to get cupcakes in Budapest??

yours,

Anna

Hello Anna:

Well, this one is a little harder. The thing is, Hungarians don’t really eat cupcakes, and if they did, well, they’d probably have goose cracklings in them or something. Our only suggestion is that you pop over to the Coffeeshop Company on Múzeum körút, which seems to have the biggest selection of freshly turned-out pop-over type baked goods, and thus is your best bet for getting a big mouthful of cheap cake batter, chocolate sprinkles and frosting-slathered colored paper. Or you could just do like most Americans and cook up a batch, so we can have something to eat after all that flown-in Lebanese food. Happy hunting!