There’s no English menu at Norbi Étkezde, only a chalkboard with the day’s offerings written in Hungarian (the restaurant is a tiny little place, with no tables and two small counters on either side to sit); it’s not particularly easy to order here.
I walked in with no plan of action — never a great idea — and wound up just staring at the proprietor like a deer in the headlights when he asked me for my order (in Hungarian, of course).
Super obvious travel tip: don’t do that.
Thankfully, he switched over to English and I was able to ask him what he recommended; I wound up with a couple of schnitzel-like pork cutlets (known as bécsi szelet here) mashed potatoes, and bread pudding for dessert.
The schnitzel had obviously been sitting behind the counter for a while, so it wasn’t particularly fresh or crispy, and it was a bit dry.
This was a bit off-putting at first, but I was surprised by how much it grew on me. Whatever it was seasoned with was fantastic, and once I got over the lack of freshness, it was super tasty.
The mashed potatoes were quite good too — creamy, smooth, and rich, with a really nice flavour.
The bread pudding was the highlight of the meal. Hungarian bread pudding is made with poppy seed bread and is called makos guba. It had a perfectly creamy texture and an interesting flavour from the bread. It was topped with a really tasty custard sauce. It was a phenomenal dessert.
Location: Budapest, Tátra u. 5, 1136