We've always adored M., the rough-and-ready bistro on District VII's Kertész utca that has been a member of our elite "Top 33" club for the past year or so. The food is generally very good, the décor is charming - brown paper-covered walls covered with drawn-on architectural elements - and the service as friendly as it gets. (And attractive: there always seems to be one New York-style model/waitress on duty.) While there are a few other restaurants in Budapest that can offer all three, we can't think of one that offers the fourth element that makes M. so special: the big carafes of tap water that they bring you, at no charge, even before you ask.

Seriously, in a town where restaurants not only refuse to stock domestic bottled water but refuse to bring you tap water if you ask, this is a big deal. And even if you are not a cheapskate, or a water nationalist, having something nice and cold put down in front of you immediately after you sit down really helps to start the meal off. In fact, this one went so well that we forgot to take pictures, so you can't see for yourself how our ginger-marinated poulet (baby chicken) breast with buttered Brussels sprouts (Ft 1,850), roast Serbian lamb with ajvar and creamy potatoes (Ft 1,650) and the other dishes we tried looked like. But take our word for it, they were mighty good - especially when washed down with some of that delicious free water.