this post is filed under Cuisine - Hungarian, Location - Budapest
I know, I know. I'm slacking. I'm in a deep hole with tons of food pictures, and it's looking like I will never catch up. The good news is I'm graduating on Sunday, then doing a bunch of awesome travelling through the summer (Vancouver, HK, Tokyo, Kyoto, Beijing, Manila). Which means even more food pictures... I'll figure something out though.
So onto the first dinner in Budapest, aka night of foie gras indulgence. We went to the much-loved Cafe Kor, around the corner from the St. Istvan Cathedral. The place has been around for a long time, and has a reputation for delivering solid, realiable versions of classics with first-rate service. I also read it's frequented by a lot of expats and tourists, but is still a great place to eat. The restaurant was quite a bit smaller than I was expecting, and very bustling. I heard maybe 4 or 5 different languages going on at other tables. They had a big board on the wall with what must have been 20 specials, so I'm assuming their menu must change with some frequency. Anyway, I was extremely eager to eat some foie gras, after hearing that it is Hungary's national delicacy.
foie gras pate - Huf 2380
Simply put, this was the largest serving of foie gras I've ever seen. I would have expected about 1 of these slices for an appetizer, and 3 was just monstrous. Mike and I had quite a bit of trouble eating it all. It was very good, with a nice smooth texture and a strong livery flavor. The accompanying bread, not pictured, was delicious - loafy and perfect for picking up the spread.
fresh salmon carpaccio with red caviar - Huf 2190
Mike had this huge plate of salmon carpaccio for an app - again, probably the biggest carpaccio serving of any kind that I've seen in my life. I only had a bite and it was quite good. Red caviar seems to mean ikura, I guess. Mike cleaned the plate off.
roasted foie gras with apples, cranberries and potatoes - Huf 3580
I couldn't resist ordering a foie gras main dish - I wanted to try both cold and hot ones. And after that huge appetizer, I was almost scared of the foie gras overload that was about to confront me. This foie gras main was really frickin' good though - reminiscent of the foie gras dish at Aqua in SF, with a touch more char to it. I was extremely full but I managed to down the foie and most of the potatoes, which had soaked up lots of the foie gras oil and flavor. The apples were good for cutting the heaviness every few bites.
I wish I was in town for a bit longer; there is a ton of stuff on Cafe Kor's menu that I'd like to try. They're supposed to make a mean version of goulash, and they had a bunch of interesting meat/potato stuff that I'd enjoy. Perhaps next time...
eat good. die young.
posted by foiegras on May 13, 2006 09:25 PM
http://www.goveg.com/feat/foie/
more about foiegras. eat more if you feel good after reading this.posted by foiegras on May 13, 2006 09:30 PM
come on Arthur! update pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease
posted by Taz on May 23, 2006 03:24 AM
Beef Jerky - the perfect snack
Available at Jerkyahoo:
http://jerkyahoo.jerkydirect.com
"The best beef jerky on this side of the grass"posted by Jerkyahoo on May 27, 2006 02:23 AM
love the foie gras, regardles of the methods used to obtain it. the egyptians knew the value of a fatty liver, romans and french too. 2500 yers of history can't be wrong.
as a chef has read some of your posts over the last year or so arthur, i must say the presentation here reminds me of 70's cookbook i have for comedys sake. we dropped the orange slices and poor attempts at 'salad' garnishes some time ago, even in cafes. good to see the europeans are still sticklers for tradition
posted by scholar on June 10, 2006 11:57 AM
I love Cafe Kor as well. I went to Budapest in the winter time and had a cream of asparagus soup and a huge rumpsteak with a slice pan fried foie gras... I thought the food was excellent and the prices unbelievable cheap, well, compared to Paris for the same level. I went to bed that night as happy as a king.
posted by LPC on June 18, 2006 01:41 PM
So sorry guys; I know I'm a total slacker.
foiegras - I try to avoid politics as best as I can on this blog. I'll just say that while I firmly believe that everyone is entitled to their opinion, on a pragmatic basis, protesting against foie gras here isn't going to be too useful.
Taz, thank you for the continued support. It's good to know I'm missed... :)
scholar - funny note about the presentation. Indeed, Cafe Kor isn't trying to do anything fancy.
LPC, actually, my friend Keith at our table ordered the cream of asparagus despite his flu, and enjoyed it. Indeed, the place is an awesome deal for the food you get.
posted by Arthur on June 22, 2006 11:48 PM