Effectiveness, identity and being close to nature—these are the three ingredients in which Péter Várvizi sees the future of Hungarian hospitality. Róbert Erdélyi did not compromise either: now they bring their burgers well-established amongst tourists to the home of Hungarian home office workers, offering a restaurant experience to accompany the burger bun. The Pancs brand launched 4 years ago is more than a Sunday market today: you can visit them from Monday to Saturday, too, if you’d like to buy fresh and locally sourced ingredients from Hungarian producers. And although the coronavirus has hit us all hard and put us all in a difficult position, according to Csilla Csatlós, there is only one thing we can do (and not only in situations like these): “to develop, to look for new paths and to move forward.” The joint campaign of Piqniq Budapest and Mastercard.
Péter Várvizi – food engineer, chef
“The only future for fine dining is experience-orientedness.”
Effectiveness, identity and being close to nature—these are the three ingredients in which Péter Várvizi sees the future of Hungarian hospitality. Respecting ingredients is important according to him, too, and this is not only true for restaurants in Budapest that made it to the top 100 list, but for the rural restaurants, too, that represent a similarly high standard—even if the latter are less likely to make it to the mental map of gourmets. As a food engineer and creative chef, Péter participates in developing several gastronomical and food engineering products. As not only did this sector not halt, but dozens of companies are now looking for alternatives for the current changed consumption needs, to which a well worked-out product could be the answer.
Boldizsár Horváth – agricultural engineer, founder, Farm2Fork
Agricultural engineer Boldizsár Horváth is another advocate of top-quality Hungarian fruits and vegetables. Previously he only worked with the Csoroszlya farm in Szár, but today he has partnered with several producers from Ráckeve to Kölcse. The founder of Farm2Fork works on connecting Hungarian producers with top restaurants and the residential clients open to excellent quality and local ingredients every day. Boldizsár’s aim is to minimize the time fruits and vegetables spend on the road from the place of production to the kitchen, following the principles of farm-to-table approach, and also makes sure that in addition to seasonal produce, organic ingredients also be available in the repertoire.
“I try to promote a more conscious communication between producers and chefs.”
László Bőti – product developer, Pancs Bolt
“The reason they like us is that we have been doing Pancs Placc from our hearts for five years now. We organize, we implement, we build a community, and we do all this for producers and conscious consumers.”
The popular Pancs Gasztroplacc started out as a Sunday market in Tűzoltó utca, and from September 2020, the fresh, local and natural ingredients also moved into a store on a permanent basis: this is how Pancs Bolt came to life. The store offering farmer’s products is managed by Balázs Vajas, while László Bőti is primarily responsible for product development. Before opening the plastic-free store, they quickly responded to the coronavirus situation in the spring: they moved the producers’ products to an online surface, and so the audience in Budapest did not have to be without their favorite Sunday market for long. The low waste store has become a popular source of ingredients during the current lockdown: in addition to various specialties, one can also find micro greens, hams, a wide variety of wines and fresh sourdough bread here.
Róbert Erdélyi – owner, Tuning Bar & Burger and Beef Heaven by Tuning
We have all known that the age of retro Hungarian hamburgers is over for a long time now (I’m sure all Hungarians remember the ominous scene from the movie Moszkva tér), and that they were replaced by quality ingredients and the sometimes classic, at other times reimagined artisan burgers. Tuning Bar & Burger has been one of the steadiest hamburger points in the Hungarian capital for a long time: they earned the trust and loyalty of the citizens of Budapest with original flavors, premium ingredients and extremely attentive service.
The burgers of the team led by Róbert Erdélyi even have fans abroad, and the Tuning team has always been known for experimenting with special ingredients and shocking novelties. They didn’t forget about making their burgers wholeheartedly in the midst of the restrictions caused by the epidemic either, but this time they focused solely on the Hungarian audience: when it comes to high quality, they don’t compromise, and seek to provide a restaurant experience to gourmets even if the food is packed into boxes.
“Giving experience—in our case, this is more than just a cliché.”
Csilla Csatlós – executive coach
“Even though there is a crisis, the next step is always to develop and move forward.”
Executive coach Csilla Csatlós has changed the lives of many: she had worked in a senior management position for decades, and so she could see the unmistakable symptoms of professional burnout first-hand and today she helps others identify these symptoms. According to her, it doesn’t matter whether we are talking about a gastronomical or other business, it is important to always be honest and open to change, to examine the pros and cons, to make the conclusions and to go forward. As a coach, she helps those feeling stuck move forward. She has countless clients in Budapest, but she herself would never move to the capital. She lives in Bázakerettye, a small village in Zala county, where she is also the mayor of the village, and the owner of the Bonne Chance Hotel and Restaurant.
Photography | Dávid Horpáczi
Video | Gergő Sepsi
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