Best of Budapest & Hungary

A two-Michelin-star Viennese chef, the daredevils of the Korean, Russian and Albanian cuisine, and the best Italian sparkling-wine to star at OTP Bank Gourmet Festival, on May 16-19 at Budapest’s Millenáris Park.

Organizers of the annual Gourmet Festival came up with a triple-theme this year to inspire the exhibitors present at the festival. More than 50 restaurants and chefs will offer their favorite dishes, along with specialties that has something to do with paprika, crusty bread heel or beer. “This festival has developed into a mass attraction over the years and the line-up in 2019 is the strongest so far. Very creative and interesting concepts will be presented,” organizer Richárd Nemes promises. “We chose this year’s theme with a mission: to educate the public on waste-free cooking, and the use of leftovers,” Zsófi Mautner gastro-blogger and Gourmet Fest’s host, reveals. “Bread is a sacred and symbolic element of gastronomy, while its heel and crust are often regarded as a portion only the poor eat. Bread heels are generally used in the form of breading, fried foods, bread salads and soups, stuffed bread, bread pudding, etc., in Hungarian, as well as in French and Italian kitchens. I’m sure we will see many interesting transformations of this ingredient at the fest.” “As for the paprika, we are known for it, worldwide,” András Jókuti, the other host of Gourmet Festival continues. “I hope restaurants won’t stick to presenting traditional foods such as beef stew and goulash at the fest, rather come up with renewed concepts and modern formulas.”
The third topic is something chefs can use as an ingredient in marinades and sauces, but of course, many vendors will present beers on tap: alongside classic Belgian and Czech beers, Hungarian craft beers will be available.

An exciting international line-up

The gourmet fest traditionally invites the best Hungarian and international chefs to cook side-by-side, presenting exclusive dinners at Millenáris Park. This year, the two-Michelin-star Viennese chef, Konstantin Filippou will create a fusion of Austrian and Mediterranean flavors, while the one- Michelin-star Lee Jong-kuk from Seoul will concentrate on aged soy sauce and marinades. Twin chefs Ivan and Sergej Berezutszkij of Twins Garden will bring several authentic ingredients from Russia. Stand, one of Hungary’s newest Michelin star restaurants, headed by Tamás Széll and Szabina Szulló, will present a lunch, pairing their creations with a special selection of the Italian sparkling wine Ferrari. The Albanian chef Bledar Kola (who worked at Noma, one of the world’s best restaurants) is also invited to the fest, along with Max Stiegl, who is best known for his modern approach towards Burgenland cuisine, renewing guts and steam dumplings in his restaurant at Fertő Lake. 

Paying comfortably with your phone 

Each year Gourmet Festival strives to make services simpler and more convenient for customers. With the help of OTP Bank, the fest’s main sponsor, “besides paying with a touch of your card, you can also use the Simple app on your smartphone to pay for the tickets and the food and drinks. All you need to do is digitize your bank card in the app and enjoy paying by phone,” Zoltán Péter Nagy, OTP Bank’s Marketing and Communication Director reveals.

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