“Corvin roof” is a club and bar with an open-air area inside and atop Corvin Department Store, an ugly, grey, communist-era building at Blaha Lujza metro station.

Finding the place is a bit tricky, which lends it a sort of “hidden treasure” charm: you have to walk into a side street and look for a cargo elevator at the end of a short passageway, inside a fast food buffet with the sign “Corvin Kifozde”. You can’t call the elevator – it keeps going up and down every few minutes (or you can take the stairs to the top floor, but that’s much less fun). As a very friendly touch, really thirsty or impatient partygoers can buy some drinks from the friendly elevator attendant’s icebox.

In the club you can buy drinks, sit down at a table for a chat, or take to the dance floor. However, if you’re there during the summer and want to see what’s really cool about Corvinteto, you should look for stairs leading up to the building’s spacious rooftop with its own bar, plenty of seating, and much easier conversation without the loud music that plays sometimes. On a warm evening you can really chill out and chat away with a cool urban backdrop surrounding you – and if you get restless, the dance floor is right below.

Do note that the rooftop closes for the winter; no exact closing or opening date, it depends on the weather.

Kuplung is an indoors equivalent of the beergardens that became so popular in the last decade, and is an excellent place to go if you want to see the boho grungy side of Pest but it happens to be winter. The street entrance is a bit hard to spot – make sure you know the house number! -, but it’s worth the search.

Like many other venues of this style, Kuplung was once a run-down building – an auto repair shop, hence the name meaning “clutch” – that was fixed up, the walls graffitied in cheerful colours, some durable tables and chairs dropped in, and some clever decor added, this one dominated by a large paper whale skeleton hanging from the ceiling.

The main room, even though some other venues might beat it in total floor area, feels comfortably spacious, so you and your party can have some elbow space even when the place is full. There’s also a smaller room where they sometimes have concerts, and a third, more recently opened bar room with a generous size, but I just haven’t got around to drinking in that one yet, so opinion will be forthcoming later.

This quite new bar received its name from Tivadar Mika who was a successful iron and copper-ware factory owner in the last century. Luckily the factory turned into a trendy pub, one of our 7th district hot spot, where you can’t help catch the Budapest night vibe. Although there are 2 floors, the place is almost always full of an arty crowd, mostly from late 20s and upwards.

At the upstairs bar you can drink, sit and talk. Downstairs is the dance hall and concert hall, where you can enjoy DJs, VJs and concerts. In summer  the doors open to the outside bar in the garden (a former parking lot). You can order food such as lángos or french fries, play at the table soccer or just sit (usually there aren’t any free tables) and enjoy the happy mass.

This spot is not a simple café & bar; it is more a “Culture Office” where various types of programs are held such as art performances, film screenings, mini festivals. The concerts offer suit every musical preference – styles range from jazz to swing and from funky to reggae.

I highly recommend Bridzs Party club on Wednesdays, which is an electro/hiphop/jazz/improvisation/freestyle party with vibrant DJ’s and their guests, but jazz Tuesdays are also awesome.

Mika is a lush nighttime playground with flirty atmosphere and all night party. I always have fun time there. Great place to be on hot summer nights!

GMK is a welcome addition to Budapest’s club scene,  located in the 7th district, very close to other popular bars such as 400 and Mika. The crowd is basically the same, real underground clubbers, who come for the upbeat and tasteful music selection.

GMK is a classy and intimate pub, brick walls, high ceiling and moody lighting. In the middle of the venue there is a long drinking area with bar chairs and sofas as well. It is awesome and perfect for sipping on cocktails with friends.

Downstairs there is a stage and a large dance floor space where you can dance the night way to live DJs and bands. The styles will change depending on what night you’re there. Almost every night something is happening here. The club also features concerts and art shows. When good weather arrives you can sit also outside, there aren’t many tables, but most of the guests like standing and chatting outside.

Open to anyone looking for a good time and ready to get down with some first-class DJ’s.

Stop in and see for yourself how a real party is thrown.

I was a bit shocked to find this cafe/bar/mini-theatre had been redesigned last year. They had got rid of their old cushions and their crappy-but-we-like-it furniture. I was afraid the feeling of enjoying an underground hidden place would be gone forever.

But I was thrilled to see – a few months later – that the new ‘IKEA’ tables had been repainted the Cökxpôn way! And all the rest remained: the colourful Tibetan-style curtains going from one wall to the other, the Indian chai they serve and the two rooms in the cellar which are used for performances.

So I’d say you can safely go back to the place, you won’t sense a tremendous change if you happened to know the latest version.

Indeed, Cökxpôn, whose name is impossible to pronounce even for Hungarians, is actually a DJ and performers’ heaven. This bar is no more than Cökxpôn ambient society’s headquarters – and these guys have their own tent on the big Sziget festival.

There is something happening almost every day here on their Boráros tér hang-out, usually till quite late. And the place now opens during the day and got wifi (I can tell you it didn’t before!), so they are probably going to see me even more often!

For a country which boasts centuries of wine tradition and presently counts no less than 22 wine regions, Hungary doesn’t have so much of a wine-bar culture.

Hungarians take a great pride in their wines (and rightly so) but until recently only a few Magyars came up with the idea of opening up places where you could enjoy Bacchus delights and not just get drunk with cheap wine-based drinks.

David’s bar, Doblo, is a great up-scale alternative to the ‘borozó’ around the corner (referring to very smoky and ordinary pubs).

His bar is located right in the middle of the Jewish district, a couple of blocks away from other very cool nightspots. The interior design and the light inside is appealing and intimate: this small brick cellar on ground level has been kept as it is with some tasteful additions such as new-old style furniture.

In a word it’s a very warm smoke-free hang-out. Expats regularly meets here as David organizes wine-tasting- at least once a week. But Doblo is more than just a wine-bar, it has music too! Bands play here quite often in the evenings. David organizes wine-tours in Budapest (English and Hebrew spoken) and in the countryside. Plus now Doblo serves breakfast, good news for early and late birds!

Last but not least, it’s also a wine-shop. It might be the only place where you’ll be able to buy a good (rather pricey) bottle at the same time you’re having fun on Saturday!

Ráday utca, where tourists and students meet, offers lots of cafés and bars. But only a few of them are actually to my taste (basically, it’s easy, 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 (Ft 890.00).

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!

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 Ft 500.00 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)!

This spot has a unique place in my heart. I used to live in the 8th district where these guys had their first place and at least once a week I visited them. Why? Well, they served up good food (I adored their salmon) and the staff treated me so nice with so much hospitality and honest kindness that every occasion was a pleasure. This kind of treatment has consequences: we became FRIENDS! So, you can imagine how happy I was when their new place was opened in the 6th district. An even better one than the old spot and the menu is new as well (No salmon, but try their lamb goulash)!

There are dissents, but I think it is awesome. The place is huge, designed by artists, divided into 3 floors. Downstairs you can find the dancing floor, upstairs there is a gallery, which is great if you want some privacy and you have a great view on the whole restaurant and Yes, there is the ground floor which is the best. With a huge bar counter, tables, 7.6 meters high ceiling. At this floor there is the Separe room as well, from where you can see the chefs during work, this room is perfect for private parties. Of course a place like this must have a terrace, which is in the inner garden of the house.

Perfect choice for clubbing,having good meal or relaxing. On weekends there are usually some soft concerts during dinner time. I simply love them!

Trafó is the first name that comes to my mind when I think of alternative cultural centres in Budapest. It is located at the heart of the 9th district (Ferencváros).

The place stands in a building which was once a power-station (a ‘Trafó’) left abandoned during Communism, to be squatted by French anarchists at the beginning of the 90′s. The place got funding and official support later on: Trafó officially opened its doors in 1998.

Trafó really deserves its second name ‘the house of contemporary arts’. If you go downstairs, you’ll find an exhibition space, as well as a nightclub – Mappa (ex- bar-tango). Upstairs, that’s where the stage is.

The place has the most interesting and eclectic event-calendar ever. It works as a theatre, a concert-hall, a workshop area, a gallery and a cafe… Contemporary dance companies regularly come to perform here, including Josef Nadj and Pal Franak.

However, there’s been some concerns recently about Trafó’s management to be taken over by an artist who just resigned after the turmoil she triggered. These current Budapest cultural-political scandals make me a bit sick these days…

So let’s just hope Trafó will remain what it’s been for years: an open and innovative place with quite a strong “social consciousness”, offering a bit of everything for everyone. Hopefully too it will continue to feature world and oriental music. Last year I got to see Mohammad Motamedi (Iranian classical music) and the Gundecha brothers as Tilos radio sometimes put together classical Indian music master classes.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Trafó | Art & culture, Bars, Music, Theaters | Ticket from HUF 1000
Liliom utca 41 | Central Pest | +3614562040
Box office Mon – Fri 16:00 – 20:00, Sat – Sun 17:00 – 20:00 (till 22.00 on performances’ days).