If there’s one thing that American expats love that’s in short supply in Budapest, it’s bagels. Happily, there’s a new source, right downtown on a tiny street near Váci utca, simply called Bagel Bar.
Krisztina Kangyal and Zoltán Markóczy started dreaming about a coffee and cake shop with sandwiches, but quickly recognized they could fill a gap in the market by offering bagels. Bagel Bar opened in May, with simple black-and-orange decor the pair of entrepreneurs designed themselves.
You may not be quite back in New York, but you can choose from a variety of bagels as wide as Fifth Avenue, from poppy seed to cinnamon raisin, cheese to onion. Here, you can get your cream-cheese-on-sesame fix, or go local with a Hungaricum, your choice of bagel topped with paprika salami, cheese and hot green paprika pepper. Try a Fisherman’s Friend, with salmon and onion, or a Viva Italia, with cream cheese, tomato, mozzarella and basil.
“We’ve learned a lot from our customers who are from the States or have spent time there,” says Kriszta. “We didn’t know that salmon and cream cheese go together, but now we do!”
Bagel Bar isn’t just about bagels, either. Gourmet coffee concoctions abound, developed by Kriszta, a coffee connoisseur. Have a simple steaming espresso, or go nuts with a nocciola, which is ristretto with molten Nutella hazelnut cream, crushed peanuts and cantuccini biscuits, with honey and whipped cream on top.
If that doesn’t float your boat, try a hot white chocolate, perhaps flavored with amaretto, coconut or banana. Iced coffee can cool you this summer, and everything is available in decaf.
Relax with friends over a bagel and coffee, or bring your laptop and surf with the Bagel Bar’s wifi. In a small oasis in once bagel-less Budapest.
Bagel Bar
1052 Budapest, Galamb u. 5.
Tel.: +36.1.950.5616
Open Mon.-Sat. 9 a.m.-9 p.m., Sun. noon-8 p.m.
www.bagelbar.hu