Food & Cooking Tours in Budapest

Agnes was great. A wonderful introduction to the foods and customs of Hungary. Well worth the cost.

We had a wonderful time on this tour. Our guide provided a lot of historical context and we visited unique spots around the city that we wouldn’t have come across on our own. We also tasted a variety of items, which was great as I was expecting similar pastries throughout the tour. I would definitely recommend!

Agnes was an exceptional guide. We started the day at the Central Market where we explored local foods and treats and then visited many of the stalls to learn about Hungarian crafts and products. We then returned to the first floor to gather ingredients for our cooking class as well as sampling some additional treats - from cherry bon-bons, to cottage cheese candy bars to savory strudels. Agnes also explained about the mushroom examiner at the market which was truly fascinating. We then returned to the flat where Agnes provided us with a wonderful atmosphere to cook. Agnes adjusted the menu to accommodate my sister's vegetarian requirements and still created a tasty and traditional menu. Throughout the afternoon, Agnes provided us with insights into Hungarian traditions from explaining the local liqueurs to names days. It was a fabulous way to spend a day in Budapest! I would highly recommend this tour and would do it again when I return to Hungary.

Our trip to Budapest was an extended weekend spa hotel visit to the Hotel Gellert, not our first visit to this exciting city and on a previous visit we had seen that there was a Hungarian cookery class course, with a visit to the food market Our spec from from Agnes was that we should meet up at the market at 09:00, where Andrew would meet us and guide us through the market while we bought all the ingredients for our pre-chosen courses, the cookery glass offers a large selection of traditional Hungarian dishes, all which are possible to make on the day course We know the markert well, but shopping together with Andrew was a whole new market experience, learning about the traditional Hungarian ingredients, buying local and not foreign vegtables, what cuts of meat to get for the dishes that we had chosen, tastings with the stall holders, local cheeses and good advice on where to buy Hungarien salami and sausage, which evolved into a salami hunt through the market until we found Andrew’s recommended salami choice After our market breakfast (don’t eat any breakfast before you go, the stallholders are very generous) we headed for the kitchen After a short taxi trip we arrived across town where we would spend the rest of the day preparing our meals, the prepping started with a plum palinka...a good start... We enjoy cooking and it was hands on from the start, with professional guidance from Andrew on how to prep, how much paprika to add to get the correct flavour and loads of good tips passed on from his grandfathers ‘tried and tested’ recipes Our choice was, Goulash, chicken paprika, and cottage cheese pancakes, we prepped all the veg and meat and slowly started to prepare the courses, helped along with a glass or two of wine, lots of interesting chat and insider info on Budapest and Hungary Andrew had check on everything and in no time the first two courses were ready, soft silky Goulash soup, with just the right bite, suculent chicken paprika in a rich sauce, we retired to the table to enjoy the results. For our pancake finish, we cooked crepes, with local cottage cheese, lemon and double cream Old style cooking with old style flavour, which you can only learn from a professional cooking from the heart We had an awesome day and returned to our hotel, together with our present of a Speatzie noodle maker, which we will have great use for after our fantastic day learning how to make the real thing, an absolute must for all foodies

Great way to learn about Hungarian food and taste authentic local specialities. We used the knowledge we gained during the rest of our trip to avoid touristy food elsewhere.

We had a wonderful day with Agnes, our guide and chef. After meeting at the Central Market, she toured us through this huge market, showing us many things in the vendor's stalls that are not typical in the USA where we are from. She also bought us several prepared food items there, so definitely do NOT have breakfast before meeting with her. There was so much good street food there. Afterwards, we took a taxi to her apartment, where we prepared a full course Hungarian menu. She is a very good cook, and we had fantastic goulash soup, chicken paprika and apple cake. We learned also how to make spaetzle. Definitely would recommend this experience.

Money well spent! Andrew was so helpful and knew so much about the market. He literally showed us everything there was and answered all questions we had with great knowledge of the food there. The food was delicious and there were many new surprising experiences that we tried. We thoroughly enjoyed it! Thank you Andrew, Kevin and Siobhan.

Great experience and you won't regret spending a day doing the course. We did the market tour first and I would thoroughly recommend it, we discovered two areas of the market we had never visited before and got lots of tasters. My recommendation is that you plan some time in your day for a nap afterwards as we were shattered and pleasantly tipsy!

This traditional cooking has some interesting advantages, in that the ingredients are widely available and there aren't so many steps that you couldn't make this on a regular basis at home, eating well without taking so much time out of your busy schedule. The class itself was great. Agnes is warm and inviting, and knows her history and culture as well as the actual aspects of cooking. She's as willing to help with the basics such as knife skills, important steps like tempering, as well as l learning the techniques of the dishes themselves. In addition to the actual food we were preparing, we got to sample local produce, and of course palinka. Another nice feature is the location. It's actually not far from where my tourists will be staying and touring, but it's still a short walk away from the river on the Buda side. Most people never venture beyond the castle, so we had a nice, short work into the really beautiful neighborhoods at the start of the hilly area.

To say Ferenc fed us well would be an understatement. From the first tasting, our jaws dropped. Ferenc was beyond generous with not just the food, but his time, stories and humour. Felt that he knew what we enjoyed more, and so spent more time in those places. Ferenc's local knowledge of bars, restaurants, produce and wine seemed endless. He threw in a lot of culture and history as well. He's obviously a guy who loves Budapest and showing it off to its best. At end of tour he happily gave us additional recommendations, as well as his contact details for any questions we had during our stay. He may have regretted that, as we asked questions for days but he was always helpful. Couldn't thank him enough. Was a pleasure to go on tour with Ferenc. I've every intention of going out of my way to return.

This experience was delightful and informative. We enjoyed this opportunity very much.

This experience was the highlight of a wonderful few days in this gorgeous city. From the minute we arrived in Agi's home we felt welcome and knew this was going to be a brilliant experience. We were late (don't ask) but this didn't faze her at all, we were met with a glass of pulinka and canapes and after a short introductory chat we set to work. This was no impersonal industrial cookery school but the warm heart of Agi's home,In the 3 hours we were with her we made goulash soup, paprika chicken and Somloi Gluska for dessert. Everything was explained with lots of handy tips (we're both keen cooks but still picked up tips on when to season, how best to skin a chicken and so on) all accompanied with a very nice red wine. We then sat down to a long leisurely lunch when we chatted about the Hungarian way of life and learned about traditional customs and celebrations - so much more interesting than reading up on the subject! When we left we were surprised with a lovely gift (wont spoil the surprise) and as soon as we got home we had copies of our recipes emailed to us complete with more handy tips. This was a wonderful experience and one which we'd love to repeat both with Agi and in other cities.

Learning how to properly use and cook with paprika was only one if the many highlights of the class. Our walk thru the market was interesting and informative. Agi was wonderful at leading us thru several traditional dishes. It was one if the best cooking classes I've taken on a vacation.

My sister and I took this cooking class together and it was our favorite thing we did the whole trip. Agi was very nice and explained things thoroughly as we went along. She was able to put together a delicious vegetarian menu for us of vegetable ragu, potato paprika and cottage cheese calls for dessert. Everything was so delicious! We even had hungarian wine and some brandy along the way. Highly recommend!

We had a short time in Budapest, but read so many wonderful things about the cooking class wee decided it was a "must do." We were not disappointed. Agi and Andrew took us on a wonderful tour of the market and introduced us to many of the items we would be using in the dishes. We noshed on items from the upstairs food vendors and shopped for groceries to complete our meals. This was wonderful because it gave us an opportunity to discuss items that could be substituted for ingredients not available for us at home. Once back at the apartment the fun began. Agi and Andrew were patient in their teaching allowing us to be fully hands on. We talked, laughed, cooked and then enjoyed a fabulous lunch together. Eat light before you meet at the market. If we have the opportunity to return to Budapest we will definitely take another class.

The welcome from Agi and Andrew was amazing. They opened their home and instructions were superb. I was born in Budapest but never learned the fine art of cooking Hungarian foods. It was the best morning I have spent, I was instructed with clarity and much humour. English was spoken if required. I learned a lot and enjoyed the fruits of my labour. The food was delicious. Agi even sent me off with a bag of homemade paprika which I now use to impress my friends with my culinary skills. I would definitely go back...if you want the real home cooking experience do not miss this. Thank you Agi and Andrew.

I have just returned from an amazing European trip with my hubby and our best friends and during our time in beautiful Budapest we booked a cooking class with Agi, as I have a small home-based food business in Australia (Canefields Kitchen) and wanted to learn how to cook some Hungarian food from the experts. Agi was on holiday so my friend Ros and I enjoyed a fabulous cooking experience with Agi's co-cook Andrew. It was a wonderful morning and we learnt so much about Hungarian food, culture and lifestyle. The class was held at Agi's apartment, that was easy to get to by the Metro, and was homely and comfortable to work in. The food was simple and delicious and we loved the commentary of Andrew who was a delightful young man with lots of interesting facts and information to share. The food was fun to cook and was very tasty. We also experienced the traditional drink Palinka and some very nice Hungarian wine.Thanks Andrew! we loved the whole experience. Deb & Ros

Now we're talking!! Tired of the excessively "touristic" spots? Take the class! I've been travelling around and was a little bit tired of castles, monuments, walls, churches, etc. and decided to take a break from all that and do something really "local". It was quite a surprise to get inside someone else's home, take a chair, chat and cook! It was worthy! They spoke good English (just in case you are like me, speaking one or maybe two words in hungarian). Now I will take back to Brazil what I've learned from Andrew and will try this at home...