Now that the grueling Budapest Burgerwar™ is slowly grinding to a conclusion, we will soon have to find another category of edible suitable for a competition. It looks, however, like we’ll have to find something other than the lángos, the wonderfully simple, delicious and waist-expanding fried dough snack that can be found retailing for less than even the worst burger at all of Hungary’s larger beaches and most of its public markets. Because the folks at all-round non-news portal Velvet.hu recently beat us to the punch, saving our guts and rumps from havoc wreaked from a week of eating these magnificent sour cream and cheese-slathered grease bombs.
The Velvet lángos-test confirmed what we had suspected all along, namely that it is actually pretty difficult to find a bad lángos in Budapest. In contrast to the inconsistent burger offerings in town, several Budapest markets boast more than one lángos stand, with the competition between them improving quality and driving down prices. A plain lángos costs an average of Ft 140 to Ft 160 (€0.55 to €0.63) with added extras as much as doubling the price to a not unreasonable Ft 300.
Velvet’s testers sampled eight Budapest lángos stands, buying a premium sajtos-tejfölös (cheese and sour cream) version in most cases. There were two winners with identical scores, the Fény utca market, on both counts, and the 58-as Lángoskert, both in Buda.
Fény utca market
According to testers, Budapest’s best lángosok are sold here. There are two lángos stands at the market, one on the first floor and one up top in the far corner (pictured). The former sells fried fish, as well as 15 varieties of lángos charging Ft 180 – a little above the average – for the plain pie, with a sajtos-tejfölös priced at Ft 320. This proved too much for the tester, who could only chomp through two-thirds of it before gingerly tossing it aside. She was informed by other diners doing the same that this would not result in a reduction of the mammoth portion sizes, as they have remained consistently too big for decades. The lángos on the top floor is slightly more manageable and comes in ten varieties, with the sajtos-tejfölös-sonkás (cheese-sour cream-ham) weighing in at Ft 360. Our own testing confirms the excellence of this lángos, high potato content gives it more flavor than many of its rivals, while the option of a cabbage lángos offers an attractive alternative for jaded fast-food fiends. The büfé offers excellent people-watching opportunities, too.
58-as Lángoskert
This “luxury” lángos stand scored as highly as the Fény utca market, but for different reasons. It is located in a converted tram next to the popular Libegő (Chairlift) in Buda, open from spring to fall and until midnight in summer. Service is friendly and customers can wash their hands after eating – a key advantage, especially given the difficulty of removing fat stains from kids’ clothing and the scarcity of napkins at rival joints. Prices are average for Budapest, but what sets the “Lángos Garden” apart from its rivals is its unparalleled spaciousness and comfort. While in the markets, diners are required to jostle for position with drunks and shopping bags, Lángoskert can seat up to 40 patrons.
Garay market
Locals say the tzatziki lángos, not a tradition Hungarian “flavor” is the one to go for at Garay market, which is temporarily located at Rottenbiller utca 56-58-60. Other, more dubious specialities offered include sonkás-ketchupos (ham and ketchup).
Nagycsarnok
Despite offering the widest selection, a gut-busting 30 varieties, Budapest’s most famous and touristy market hall scored worst in the test. Not only are these the most uninspiring lángos, they are also almost certainly the country’s most expensive – a sajtos-tejfölös costs Ft 400 and a “magyaros” – topped with “Hungarian” sauce and slices of wiener (virsli) and tomato – costs a whopping Ft 500. The portions are small, half the size of a downstairs Fény utca lángos, and service is unfriendly.
