Budapest – Christmas Markets, Bock Bistro

This is part seven of my trip to Paris and Budapest. For the remainder of the series, please see below.

Paris – Hotel Esprit Saint Germain
Paris – The Marais, Le Bon Marche, Le Comptoir du Relais
Paris – St. Germain, Hermes, L’Avant Comptoir
Budapest – Four Seasons Gresham Palace
Budapest – Andrassy Avenue, Onyx
Budapest – Taste Hungary
Budapest- Christmas Markets, Bock Bistro

For my last post on Budapest, I wanted to share with you two of my final favorite stops while there  – Bock Bistro, and the Christmas Market.

Bock Bistro is one of the more popular restaurants in Budapest, and I would highly recommend reservations a week or so in advance before arriving.

When we arrived like the early bird Americans we are at 7:30 PM, the restaurant was still fairly empty.

By the way time we left in an hour or so however, it had already filled up!

From my experience, Bock is very successful because of its food (duh) – it was a very classic Hungarian and Eastern European menu, but slightly “elevated”. The ingredients used were top notch and the prices were very reasonable.

My first dish was a matzo ball soup with duck meatballs.

Mr. Feather’s dish – a prime rib stew with root vegetables and a horseradish foam.

Classic chicken paprika with rice on the side.

And of course, dessert! This was a twist of a classic Hungarian dessert that Mr. Feather loved in his childhood – a chocolate and black cherry cake.

As great as Bock Bistro (and the rest of our activities) were, my favorite activity we did in Budapest is the one I saved for last – the Christmas Fair. It was my first time getting to really explore a traditional European Christmas market and I loved the experience! I have Germany’s markets on my list next.

The Budapest markets were a good size – not too large, and you could easily walk through the entire area in a few hours, stopping along the way to do some shopping and eating.

There were all kinds of delicious foods on display. I was a little sad that we had planned so many meals in Budapest – we only had room to select a few items over our days there. Next time I will leave more eating opportunities!

Each time we stopped by the market, I did get a cup of hot cider or mulled wine. So comforting in the cold air although to be honest I always expected a larger cup! I live in the land of Venti sized Starbucks!

There were all sorts of little food items you could shop for and bring home. My favorite stands were those selling jams – there were all kinds of unique flavors, and I brought a few home for me and my mom, along with some paprika!

There were also many merchants selling local handicrafts.

The last time Mr. Feather was in Budapest, he was on a stopover during a work trip a year ago, and he brought me back a traditional dotted mug. I am a super avid tea drinker and am always looking for new cups, and was very happy to see them available at the Christmas market!

I chose a navy one to bring home this time, to keep my red version company. Each time we’re back in Budapest for Christmas, I hope to add one more!

Some final snacks around the market – pretzels…

And kurtoskalacs – something very similar to Jewish challah bread in my opinion, with different toppings, like chocolate, cinnamon, and more.

Our last night in Hungary, we made one more tour of the Christmas markets and then went up to our room and enjoyed the amazing room.

The next morning (super duper early, and the Four Seasons was fantastic with a great breakfast in the wee hours), we left for the airport. Once on the plane, we waved goodbye to Budapest!

We’ll be back soon!

That concludes my Paris/Budapest 2013 trip travel series – thank you very much for reading along! I hope to be back in both countries very soon and encourage you all to visit each!