There are few Hungarian restaurants outside of Hungary and the Hungarian-speaking parts of nearby countries, and when you do hear anything about these restaurants, it’s hardly ever good. Instead, they almost always seem to give Hungarian cuisine a bad name. (After one terribly bland meal several years ago at a now-closed Hungarian restaurant in New York, I never wanted to eat another plate of paprikás csirke outside of Hungary.) But I think I may have found a restaurant that could change all this, although until I make it to Barberton, Ohio, I won’t be sure.
While catching up on my favorite food podcasts, I recently enjoyed an episode of the (American) National Public Radio show “Splendid Table” which included a review of Al’s Corner Restaurant, pictured above. The reviewers, Jane and Michael Stern, spend their lives crisscrossing America in search of good “road food” and write books and magazine columns, among other things. They raved about Al’s, which apparently grinds its own paprika and operates a butcher shop down the street. Here’s what they say on their “Road Food” web site:
The immaculate storefront luncheonette, open only for weekday lunch, is a treasure-trove of blue-plate Hungarian meals at blue-collar prices. Service is cafeteria style. Step to the right when you enter and there Beth Gray will show you what’s to eat, put it on a plate and then a tray. Dine either at a table or the long U-shaped counter in the center of the room.
It sounds like what you’d call an önkiszolgáló étterem in Hungary, and at least from what I’ve seen in Budapest, the highlight at these types of places is usually mushy főzelék with a wrinkly virsli floating on top. But Al’s seems to offer much more. (One menu item that the Stern’s mention – pierogies sautéed in butter and onions – is not at all Hungarian, though I’ve wondered why it’s so hard to come by these easy-to-make Polish delights here). If I do happen to be passing through Barberton, I’ll be stopping in at Al’s for lunch to see how it measures up to Budapest’s lunchrooms. And if Al’s ever wants to open a second location, his $6 (Ft 1,000) lunch specials might go down well in Budapest, even without those yummy pierogies.
