Image by András Nagy

Stuff, lots of stuff. On the walls, on the lamps, on the doors. This is the first thing you notice and the collection of Babos Zsili Bertalan grabs your attention for at least a half an hour. Funny reinventions of Barbie dolls, toys, signs, a bike or a lifebuoy stare at you all over the place. Even the menu is a bit special, blackboards are used in many bars but this one is simply enormous. Click for photos.

They have a wise choice of location: off Múzeum körút, just 50 meters away from one of the biggest university campuses in Budapest – the place is packed day and night. The chaos on the walls, the eclectic variety of furniture create a mellow atmosphere but Csendes is not really quiet as the name would suggest. Live music and live acts entertain the guests who, according to the owners’ plans can easily get to know each other and spend quality time together in the ‘living space’ as the place defines itself.

The days of the week are scheduled for various programs: Mondays for films and photos, Tuesdays for old Hungarian music, Wednesdays live music, Thursdays dj-s vs. instruments, Fridays Balkan music, Saturdays apéro i.e. warm-up with aperitifs for the night and finally Sundays literature or theatre.

Relax a bit in Károlyi Gardens around the corner before coming inside to join the company.

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Csendes Létterem | Art & culture, Bars, Cinemas, Music, Theaters, Festivals & events | Soproni beer HUF 480
Ferenczy István utca 5 | Central Pest | +36307588935
Mon – Fri 08:00 – 00:00, Sat 10:00 – 00:00, Sun 14:00 – 00:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by Hélène Bienvenu

Nobody really thinks of Budapest when it comes to fashion and design. But if you start looking around with the help of some magazines such as www.budapestnavigator.hu, Time out, surf on the net: www.list-mag.com, www.designdistrict.hu, or if you go to Orange optika, Tisza shoes shop, Rododendron, you’ll realize how creative Hungarians can be. Of course, it’s not obvious neither massive, shops are scattered here and there in the city, nonetheless local designers can make really cool stuff!

So what is WAMP all about? It’s a design market taking place every month on Erzsébet tér (outside Gödör in the summer / spring / and at Milenáris - B csarnok in autumn / winter). It was started a few years ago and got increasingly popular among foreigners and locals alike.

You can spend hours strolling there, shopping what you can afford (the prices are now even tagged in Euros, so if your budget is very limited it might be a good idea to take the designers’ fliers and go directly to their workshop!). You’ll find lots of jewellery, clothes, bags, shops…

If you don’t fancy buying anything, it’s still worth having a look at what Hungarian fashion is up to nowadays!

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WAMP | Art & culture, Shopping, Festivals & events | Free
Fény utca 20 | Central Pest
Once a month on Sun 10:00 – 18:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by Hélène Bienvenu

Ráday utca, where tourists and students meet, offers lots of cafés and bars. But only a few of them are actually to my taste (they all look alike). Jedermann belongs to the happy few.

You might have been familiar with Eckermann, which was standing exactly where Jedermann is now. Eckermann cafe has a long story. It used to be the ‘official’ café of the Goethe institute for many years and it moved along with the institute from Andrássy út to Ráday a few years ago. The place was famous for its coffee, of the best brewed in the city. It also serves food all day (including breakfasts) and offers cheap week-day lunch menu (890 Ft).

Hans van Vliet has taken over the place to make it its own and renamed it Jedermann (meaning ‘everybody’ in German). A few changes have been made inside and now the former Eckermann really looks like a proper cafe – restaurant, cosy and jazzy. It even has a little terrace outside in the inner garden (and another one on the street).

The place is already a hit, actually no wonder as Hans – a Dutch guy who’s been living here for 20 years, is behind the most successful bars in the Hungarian capital. He’s a jazz musician, so naturally the place got a little stage for jazz concerts and all sorts of jazzy gigs!

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Jedermann | Bars, Festivals & events, Restaurants | Espresso HUF 250
Ráday utca 58 | Central Pest | +36304063617
08:00 – 01:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by Hélène Bienvenu

Merlin színház (theatre) embodies Budapest creative spirit at its best. It was initially established in 1991 in a turn-of-the century elegant building right in the centre of the city (by Deak tér).

Merlin theatre is the only permanent English theatre. It regularly hosts plays by foreign theatre companies. Knowing that Hungarian is a very tricky non indo-European language, Merlin is the only theatre foreigners can actually enjoy going to as other national or local theatres don’t usually have foreign-language performances!

But there is another reason to go to Merlin. First, it also has a café – restaurant with wifi on the top floor. Second, as it happens a lot in the city, there is a B side to Merlin! On the weekends and party days (namely Thursday, Friday, Saturday in Budapest), the place is taken over by Djs’, VDJ’s (visual light Djs) and arty followers. It can be pretty crowed after midnight especially when foreign Djs come over to perform.

So if you like electro Djs and VJs in general, Merlin is the place to go!

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Merlin theatre | Art & culture, Bars, Theaters, Festivals & events | Party HUF 1000
Gerlóczy utca 4 | Central Pest | +3613179338
Party Fri – Sat 21:00 – till late (closed in Summer)

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest

Image by Hélène Bienvenu

Budapest cultural heart now beats in Ferencváros, a former industrial district of Budapest. Well at least it is true for the Pest side of the Lágymányosi bridge, where lots of things happen since the opening up of MUPA in 2005, and right in front of it, of the National Theatre (in 2000).

The district is often overlooked by visitors as it is not exactly in the centre but you should really consider going, it’s not far at all (tram 2 goes from Jászai Mari tér up to Millenáris kulturális központ, it’s a 15′ ride). Architecturally wise the two buildings belong to the modern – not to say hypermodern – genre but forget about the aesthetics and have a look at the programs instead!

MUPA means “the palace of arts” in Hungarian and indeed, that’s what it is. This enormous cultural complex is home to two concert-halls and to the Ludwig múzeum – Hungarian contemporary arts museum (highly recommended).

MUPA has a broad, exceptionally good and busy musical offer. Not only does it host operas and classical musical concerts led by world-famous conductors, it also features folk, world and jazz concerts and even dance performances. Big stars such as Cesaria Evora, Bregovic, Adam Fischer, Natacha Atlas… have been seen on stage at MUPA.

Note that with your student card you can get in for 500 Ft an hour before (valid for concerts played in Béla Bartók National concert hall and at the Festival Theatre). A real bargain (but you may not get a proper seat)!

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MUPA – MŰVÉSZETEK PALOTÁJA | Art & culture, Music, Shopping, Theaters, Festivals & events | Performance from HUF 1 500
Komor Marcell utca 1 | Central Pest | +3615553300
10:00 – 22:00 daily (no concerts/performances in summer)

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Budapest