It’s lunchtime. It’s raining. Here’s what we decide to do; boldly defy the dreadful weather, and take lunch in an outdoor terrace restaurant. And very pleasant it was too!
Not that we’re big on gender stereotypes, but you might fondly refer to these two little cafés on Fashion Street as brother and sister, and the children of no less than Kempinski Hotel itself.
If five star hotels aren’t really your scene (or price range), don’t be put off – these two ‘kids’ are designed to offer similar good quality, but more everyday menus and prices. Little brother’s name is bq terrace. He’s a sports bar designed for boys. He offers menus with manly things like spare ribs, buffalo chicken wings and many types of beer that you can pour yourself from a tap on a man-sized ‘giraffe’ – that’s a 2,50 liter glass. While you’re enjoying your masculine lunch you can watch sports on one of the three large screens at either end of the venue – that’ll be the FIFA World Cup this summer.
Little sister on the other hand, is called Fashion Lounge, and she’s much more about taking a break from walks on Fashion Street (we all know how tiring shopping hunts can be), and sitting down on cozy couches to daintily sip cocktails and nibble salads, hummus wraps or, indeed, Ostrich Pate Fashion Burgers. Like I said though, we’re not big on stereotypes, and in fact, each of the restaurants caters, in food as well as ambience, for any gender or type – it just depends on your mood.
Our outdoor lunch in the rain might have turned out a little damp and chilly in the Fashion Lounge, which is designed for a more summery climate. The bq terrace on the other hand has a steady roof and is partly enclosed by steady see-through walls which cleverly keep the rain out, while allowing air to flow through keeping it breezy and fresh. With blankets to keep warm, we sat down amidst an international (including Magyars) crowd of football cheerers and general lunch-timers.
We decided to brave a three-course meal, kicking off with a garlic crème soup for me, and a Panzanella salad for my dining companion. The salad with red wine vinegar looked wonderfully healthy, but I left my fellow luncher to battle her little cube Ciabattas, and enjoyed my soup which was just the thing for a rainy day.
I was assured that, being a vegetarian, I could easily be catered for with grilled vegetables, soups and (for the less strict veggie) fish. Though it did sadly mean that veggies often have to miss out on the fun the chefs were having designing dishes that suited with week’s matches (T-bone steaks for Argentina, Langoustine for South Africa etc.). In the end I opted for a baked vega ciabatta, while my friend chose a more manly plate of buffalo chicken wings with BBQ sauce, both of which more than satisfied our lunchtime needs in quantity as well as quality.
I took first picks on dessert and opted for plum cake with vanilla ice cream. Not wanting to be a copy-cat, my companion chose the ‘Wachauer’ apricot dumpling, and was not disappointed. Having tasted a small piece of hers, I might have regretted my choice, but fortunately both the plum cake and the ice cream were so exceptionally good, it wasn’t necessary.
In conclusion, we didn’t feel the need to act particularly butch to enjoy and relax in this place, and though we have yet to try the Fashion Lounge, I imagine it’s similarly delightful even if you’re not wearing a pair of heels and carrying a few kilos of new clothes.
From the Menu
Starters
bq terrace: Fresh garden vegetable salad with bacon and grilled chicken liver: 1,600 HUF
Fashion Lounge: Spicy Lentil Soup with sautéed shrimps and mango: 990 HUF
Mains
bq terrace: Alt beer marinated pork neck with roasted onion potatoes: 2,350 HUF
Fashion Lounge: Thai coconut chicken curry with eggplant and steamed Jasmin rice: 1,750 HUF
Desserts
bq terrace: Bavarian cream with red berry ragout: 1,250 HUF
Fashion Lounge: Tiramisu: 1,300 HUF
Weekly menus and make-your-own business lunches available
Fashion Lounge and bq terrace
1051 Budapest, Deák Ferenc utca
Tel.: +36.1.429.3990
www.kempinski.com/budapest