Tuesday, December 09, 2008

A Vegan In Budapest


(Me: Looking a little doubtful about my vegan options in Budapest)

Budapest was amazing! Despite dire threats of starvation and my own fears of a lettuce-only weekend (not that I don't love the lettuce), I ate amazingly and fully all weekend long!

We arrived late on Friday, after dining on a super-expensive hummus wrap (WRAP!) from the airport starbucks, I wasn't too interested in munching, but did take advantage of the nuts and fruit that B and A had readily available in their uberhuge apartment (yes, uber huge apartments in Europe DO in fact exist...just not in Brussels).

On Saturday morning, after more fruits and nut breakfast, B and A took us to the most fantastic falafel hut EVER. It is called the Hummus Bar and is tucked behind one of the main streets in Budapest. We chilled upstairs for quite a while and never once felt rushed to leave the hip establishment that offers its customers complimentary mint tea upon entry. I had a packed falafel pita that totally hit the spot and gave me loads of energy for exploring the pretty city.

When K and I found our way back to the apartment, A had been super sweet and ordered me some vegan sushi. Knowing that we were headed for their work Christmas party there was fear that I might find myself with little in my belly, she went ahead and ordered up some avocado maki....YUMMMY! It was pretty good, I would recommend them for sure - I Love Sushi, and they deliver.

On Sunday they took us to a cute little cafe on the hills of Budapest that had: BAGELS and PEANUT BUTTER!!! I enjoyed. Seriously.

For dinner we went to a Thai-Hungarian fusion restaurant (I am not kidding). The staff was great and happily made me a tofu curry that wasn't on the menu. Although there was a chance that had they been much longer we would have missed our flight - the food was amazingly worth it.

Overall it was a fantastic trip. I am so happy we went, despite the late arrival and the lack of sleep on Sunday night. It was so nice to spend time with friends, and find delights in a new city. Yes! to vegan travel!

I made a quick stir fry last night and slammed the veggie/tempeh goodness on top a bed of my new favourite treat - soba noodles! Who doesn't love the soba noodles. I feel a whole noodle renaissance blooming throughout this pregnancy. Don't forget to check out the new vegan momma blog!

Looking forward to the holiday, which is just around the corner.....17th at noon - here I come! We don't travel again until the 22nd, when we are headed to Manchester for a Healey-Family Christmas. It will kill me not to be at home with my family (who I am now missing terribly) I am looking forward to being with Kevin and his family for the holidays.

21 comments:

Lisa (Show Me Vegan) said...

I'm glad the trip went so well and that you found some great food along the way!

Lauren said...

Sounds like you had a nice trip! The food looks yummmmy!

Anonymous said...

What a great trip. Budapest is my all time favourite city. It's just so beautiful there.

Alicia said...

Budapest is super nice, isn't it? We're so lucky that falafel and hummus are so easy to find nowadays...

Bianca said...

I'm glad you (and the mango) were able to find plenty of grub in Budapest. Honestly, you can't go wrong with bagels and peanut butter...

Anonymous said...

Thai-Hungarian fusion food? Holy crap, I have GOT to try that! Sounds like a wonderful trip, and now I am craving falafel like crazy!

Vegan_Noodle said...

Just goes to show that you really can be a vegan anywhere! Budapest is a place I've wanted to visit, and now I have a list of eateries when I go. Thanks for the post.

Hope you enjoy the holidays with Kevin's family!

Anonymous said...

It's good to know you can always depend on the 'classics': falafel, hummus, peanutbutter, sushi, avocado, ...
Lucky you, already having holidays on the 17. Mine only starts 23. That means I have to do all my christmas shopping: food and gifts in those two days. And preparing a christmas eveningmeal.
Have a nice time. It's probably going to be wonderfull with this new coming vegan in your belly.

the little one said...

Wow. You ate well! I love stories of people being able to eat vegan in unexpected places.

Joanna said...

the hummus bar?!?!? that is like the coolest place ever!! i would go there every day if i could. seems like budapest food wasn't too bad.

Jen said...

i'm so happy your trip went well and that you were treated like a vegan princess! sticking to your guns while on the road can be so hard, so props to all those places for providing an option.

Anonymous said...

glad to hear it was an all-around good time for you!

ChocolateCoveredVegan said...

Thank goodness for hummus and peanut butter, right?

Ooh I'm going to check out the new blog! Exciting!

Katie said...

That sounds incredible! I'm glad you had a good trip :)

Tess Kincaid said...

Your blog has made me so hungry! Hope you enjoy the cabbage dish. Thanks for stopping by Willow Manor. :^)

Virginie said...

Good news we can eat in Budapest. I would have hade the same fears as you.

River (Wing-It Vegan) said...

How fun! Your little girl is going to be such a well traveled baby by the time she's born!

Anonymous said...

I have heard some great things about Budapest and have it on my list of places I'd like to travel one day. Looks like I don't have to worry about good eats while I'm there!

Anonymous said...

Wow!! That looks great too. I think I'm actually salivating, lol!

Hmmm...soba noodles...I might have to try that too. Thanks for the picture!

Good luck on your pregnancy.

Beatrice said...

This is interesting. I've always wanted to go to Budapest (I'm 1/2 Hungarian) but was a bit worried about veg options. I'm glad to hear you found a lot!

Anonymous said...

I am not going to be original this time, so all I am going to say that your blog rocks, sad that I don't have suck a writing skills