Budapest Xperience

The new Owl’s Castle: The furnishings of the restaurant evoke a middle-class dining room of the early twentieth century. the tables are covered by heavy damask table-clothes; there are old engravings on the walls. “Wreathers” of bread and traditional siphons are on the tables. During summertime it is a delight to spend some time at one of two cool garden-terraces at the perimeter of the Zoo.

To evoke the atmosphere of a good, traditional restaurant of the past, George Lang created a restaurant and a kitchen in which exclusively women are at work, under the expert management of the charming Ms. Zsuzsanna Sándor, Ms Andrea Németh is the excellent chef de cuisine.

The basic idea of the restaurant is that: the good, tasty and delightful dishes, which accompany our lives, are created mostly by women. By our mothers, our grandmothers, our godmothers. It is a logical idea that only women should prepare and serve our food in a good, traditional restaurant as well.
These ladies are the ‘pillars’ of the Owl’ Castle – they are drawing up the Carte de jour, they are buying the foodstuffs; they are preparing and serving the dishes and the beverages… all these with the traditional Hungarian hospitality, which makes the guests, feel at home.
There is room for about 85 guests in the restaurant. Weather permitting; the same number of guests is accommodated in the garden.

Prices: Considering the elegant furnishings and the quality of the food and beverages, the prices may be called “friendly.” To quote one of the regulars: “I am coming here day by day to enjoy the tastes of yesterday at prices of the day before yesterday.”

Restaurant Bagolyvár is probably the most popular business lunch place in the town. It could be also ideal scene for family lunch at the weekend after a walk in City Park.

THE CUISINE OF OWL’S CASTLE

The menu changes daily, like in a “private” home. Each day another fresh specialty of a “home cuisine”, or a specialty of the season is being served. If you visit us on Wednesday, taste our Golden Dessert Dumplings, this walnut-delicacy served with vanilla custard. If you visit us on Thursday, choose our Game Stew with Strapacska Noodles and home-made Strudels stretched by Chef Andi. Fortnightly-varied promotions.

The hot soup is served in a dish; the guest can help himself as many times as he wants to. The cakes are brought in directly from the oven. For an appetizer a specially baked “wreath of bread” is served, with the traditional “Liptauer” sheep cheese and with slices of green pepper.

The assortment of beverages is – like the Carte de jour –down to earth but put together with utmost care. Besides the wines produced by Gundel’s own vinery, other Hungarian red and white wines are also served – by bottles or by the glass.

The Hungarian mothers and grandmothers did not experiment – they allowed the scientists to do this kind of a job…Their main endeavor was to produce every day a homely fare, with a natural, though sophisticated harmony of tastes.

We are collecting old and new recipes, handwritten recipe books and everything else we can make use of. It is our pleasure to show these recipes our guests who wish to take part in a new and exciting cooking experience.

SELECTION FROM THE MENU

Cold Goose Liver, home-style
Traditional Gulyás Soup
Fried Mushrooms with Cold Piquant Dressings
Paprika Chicken filled Pancake Hortobágy Style
Grilled Breast of Chicken with Pancake Julienne, with Creamed Mushrooms
Paprika Chicken with Noodles
Cutlet of Pork filled with Ham and Cheese, served with Pommes Frites
Traditional Paprika Veal-Ragout with Egg Dumplings
Grilled Fogash with Spinach and Potatoes
Salmon Roulade with white wine seasoned Vegetables
Fresh Mixed Salad with Yoghurt Dressing
Pancake filled with Walnut, served with Chocolate Sauce
Pancake with Jam filling
Mixed Cheeses with Apples and Nuts, with Toast

OUR CHARCOAL GRILLED PLATTER

Crisp-”ironed” Double Chicken Breast with Herbs from our garden, and Mixed Salad
Mixed Grill on wooden plate with Château Potatoes and Mixed Salad
“Bagoly Roast on a Skewer”
(Sirloin of Beef, Breast of Turkey,Pork Medallion),
Marrowed Lecsó
Roulade of Salmon with White Wine Sauce and Vegetables
Mititei (little Sausages made of Lamb, Beef and Pork with baked
Green Pepper, served with Garlic, Tomatoes and “Rösti” Potatoes)
Marinated stripes of Chicken Breast with Green Salad in Balsamic Vinegar
Spicy Stripes of Pork with Yoghurt and Dill flavored Cucumber

WEEKS OF REGIONAL COOKING

It became a tradition of Owl’s Castle, to array weeks of regional Hungarian cooking every year. For such events we invite cooks, and housewives to prepare the characteristic dishes of their region – at the same time we learn how to prepare the best dishes of their regions, and we put the best of the best on our menu.

STRUDEL STRETCHING

Learn how to prepare a traditional home-style strudel. Imbibe the finesse of strudel stretching and making of the different fillings. You have the possibility to taste the really domestic flavors beside an interesting and amusing work: After completing the dessert you have made, we invite you and the group for a dinner. Guests receive a diploma, and the recipes of strudels in English.

Address:        H-1146 Budapest, Állatkerti út 2.
Phone:         (+36-1) 468-3110
Fax:            (+36-1) 363-1917
e-mail:        bagolyvar@gundel.hu
web:            www.bagolyvar.com
Director:        Zsuzsanna Sándor
Chef:            Andrea Németh

www.bagolyvar.com