Fine Wines and Gastronomy

The Hungarians are hospitable people, always ready to offer guests delicious food and excellent wines. In the 1996 Chef's Olympics, Hungary's team won the silver medal overall, as well as numerous other honors. Hungary's chefs are rigorously trained through an apprenticeship process dating back to the medieval guild system. Hungarian wines have earned a reputation for high quality, garnering first prizes in a number of international competitions. 
The country's unique cuisine has influences from the Central Asian Magyar founders of the nation, Turks, Germans, French, Austrians, Czechs, Slovaks, Serbians, and Croatians. The simple agrarian and shepherd lifestyles of the Great Hungarian Plain and mountains have also helped shape the country's unique dishes.  
While many popular restaurants in Budapest have adapted their cooking to today's lighter style of eating, traditional Hungarian cuisine is for those with hearty appetites.  
Sauces rich in sour cream, delicacies such as goose liver and an emphasis on meats, including game such as boar and venison, are often on the menu. Fish - especially Lake Balaton pike, eel stew or a thick and sometimes peppery fish soup - is also quite popular. Other traditional favorites include veal paprika stew and roast chicken with cottage cheese noodles. Fabulous desserts, served with strong espresso, include strudels, tortes and the legendary Gundel pancakes with chocolate rum sauce. 
Wine connoisseurs are familiar with the most famous of Hungary's wines - the sweet white Tokaji Aszú and strong red Bull's Blood (Egri Bikavér). Hungary boasts 20 wine-producing districts which make a wide range of wines,including Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Gris, Merlot, Riesling, Chardonnay, sparkling, rosé and other unique Hungarian varieties. Favorable natural conditions make our country a prime location for the production of smaller quantities of premium wines. 
You can also visit the vineyards and wineries in almost all regions of the country. The most beautiful landscapes are to be found where the best wine is produced. Visit the Somló wine region, guarded by a dead volcano and the ruins of a castle. The vineyards of the Eger and Mátraalja regions stretch along the romantic foothills of the Mátra and Bükk mountains. Tokaj vineyards rise from a landscape where the Bodrog and Tisza rivers meet.

Read our art and wine itinerary featuring Hungary's mediterranean, Southern Transdanubia.